RALEIGH♥

As we mourn the one-year anniversary of Raleigh’s mass shooting, we reflect with city and state leaders and first responders on what we did right and what we learned.

On the evening of Thursday, Oct. 13, 2022, Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin walked toward me, phone pressed to her ear, at a joint Midtown Raleigh Alliance/Raleigh Magazine City Council Candidate Meet & Greet. She had the look of utter grief. As I approached to greet a visibly shaken Baldwin, I paused and searched her face, asking, “Are you OK?” … “No,” she immediately returned, her voice broken. “Ask Gina,” she added, and then leaned to RM Publisher Gina Stephens and whispered, “You can tell her,” and turned to immediately leave. … Stephens and I quietly finished the event in shock, sorrow and fear without alarming anyone as candidates eagerly greeted citizens of Raleigh—a city that would wake up the next day forever changed.

What unfolded from there was everyone’s worst nightmare—including the mayor’s, who had eerily uttered aloud earlier that day, “That’s my worst nightmare,” in reference to a mass shooting in another city. … “Five hours later, I was living that worst nightmare,” says Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin of the mass shooting that devastated Raleigh’s Hedingham. 

Tragedies of domestic terrorism don’t come with a forecast—by design they are intended to shock and awe, leaving as much carnage as possible in their wake. But they do have measured responses—and a plan. On this otherwise perfect sunny, mild mid-October Raleigh evening, the perfect storm was brewing for a massacre of unfathomable scale. As the young assassin rampaged through the otherwise halcyon Hedingham neighborhood—tragically taking the lives of five Raleighites, injuring two others and destroying infinite families and loved ones—two key Raleigh public safety officials, the police chief and director of communications, were out of town. But in the face of our collective worst nightmare, our public safety dispatchers, first responders, leaders and health care workers have been commended for a flawless execution. “The coordinated and swift response among state and local law enforcement and elected officials was extraordinary,” says Gov. Roy Cooper. “North Carolina families deserve to know their safety is the top priority.” 

It was just past 5pm on that fall Thursday eve as people began wrapping up their work day and driving the roads when calls began flooding the Wake County Emergency Communications Center.

5:09pm | First 911 call: Reporting multiple shots fired near Hedingham golf course. Police are dispatched as numerous calls begin to come in regarding shooting victims in the area.   

5:12pm | 911: “My mom and I are at home and we heard some shots outside, and I looked out my window and the neighbor is on the ground I think. Sahalee Way in Hedingham.” Dispatcher asks if that is near Osprey Cove to confirm if this is the same report. “It’s a street or so up. There’s two people! Somebody’s laying by the bush and somebody’s laying on the porch. Oh, my God, it’s two people…” 

5:12pm | 911: “Osprey Cove Drive! … Just came through with a shotgun and shot my buddy. Get here ASAP! … He went back to the Neuse River Trail! … It’s an officer. … He’s in a white car… in a cul-de-sac. … The shooter is in all camo and looks like he’s like 16. One officer was shot! An off-duty cop. He just walked right through and shot him. Active shooter! Active shooter! It looks like he’s bleeding from his chest…” 

5:16pm | 911: “Osprey Cove Drive. White teenager out here with a shotgun and shot somebody. He ran back into the woods…”

5:19pm | Officers first arrive on the scene. 

When the city manager called Baldwin on her way into the campaign event, “she said, ‘Mary-Ann, this is really serious. There’s been a mass shooting. This young man has escaped, but he’s holed up in an old barn. We have helicopters out; the State is involved.” … “I was shell shocked,” she recalls. “I remember thinking ‘They see me walking toward the campaign event. … I have to tell them I can’t stay’—but I didn’t feel comfortable saying why. I remember getting in my car and shaking like a leaf. I was having difficulty breathing and trying my best not to cry. It was one of the most painful moments ever.”

Meanwhile, ~1,700 miles away, Police Chief Estella Patterson was in Dallas for the International Association of Chiefs of Police conference. “I looked at my phone and saw we had an officer down and several people had been shot,” recalls Patterson. “I kept telling myself I had to get back to Raleigh—to my department and community—immediately.”

The governor received a similar phone ping from his chief of staff. “It was a harrowing moment and one I won’t forget,” he says—“we were immediately on the phone with law enforcement.”

5:21pm| 911: A Neuse River Greenway cyclist caller describes two injured women on the trail near Bay Harbor Drive. 

5:49pm| Emergency radio alert put out that officers are searching for a “6-foot white male. 15 years old. Camo with long gun.” 

5:55pm | RPD tweets they’re on the scene of an active shooting around Neuse River Greenway near Osprey Cove Drive and Bay Harbor Drive. 

6:42pm | Officers locate the suspect in an area with two outbuildings (barn-like structures) near McConnell Oliver Drive. As they attempt to search the area, the suspect fires multiple shots from one of the buildings.

6:44pm | RPD Officer Casey Clark sustains gunshot wound to knee and falls to the ground. Multiple officers, including two officers with RPD, returned fire. Officers deployed cover fire, allowing Officer Clark to be pulled to safety for treatment for his injuries. ~23 rounds were fired by RPD officers in the direction of the outbuilding where the suspect fired upon officers.

6:49pm | RPD tweets an update: “Residents in the area of McConnell Oliver Drive, Tarheel Club Drive and Old Milburnie Road are being advised to remain indoors. Drivers are advised to avoid the area and seek alternate routes.”

6:54pm | Gov. Cooper tweets he has spoken to Baldwin and “instructed state law enforcement to provide assistance responding to the active shooter in East Raleigh.”

With Patterson en route and the director of communications out of town, Public Information Officer Lt. Jason Borneo answered the call to step up and represent RPD. Borneo was in a meeting with the chief of staff when his phone lit up with texts and phone calls of the news. “It was difficult to believe this was happening in our community,” he recalls.    

Beyond the social media storm and police scanner pickups on Reddit, broadcast media reported the confirmed details as they developed throughout the night, says ABC11/WTVD-TV VP of News Bervette Carree. “It was extremely important to be accurate with every detail, not just to be the first to report it.” 

“I was on vacation and just landed back in town at RDU,” recalls Carree, who knew the neighborhood well and had a close family friend who had recently moved from Sahalee Way in Hedingham. “I jumped into journalist mode right away [and] headed straight to the newsroom. As the events unfolded and the facts emerged over the next six hours, I was numb.” 

“Just to see the Sahalee Way street sign or flowers covering the neighborhood entrance was triggering because I’d spent so much time in that area. It was very surreal,” says ABC11/WTVD-TV VP of News Bervette Carree.

7:01pm | Scanner traffic reveals plan to use aerial drone to monitor the suspect in the barn.

7:17pm | 911: Dispatcher says, “They actually have a visual on this guy right now. They’re not looking for him now. They fully have eyes on him.” 

7:18pm | According to scanner traffic, officers note suspect hasn’t moved and has a gun in his lap. They decide to move in with drone to advance within 15 feet.

7:22pm | Suspect is “slumped” but still moving. Drone crashes and officers discuss retrieving a bomb robot.

7:29pm | Police radio signals officers to take cover as suspect aims “to hold a shotgun up.”

7:33pm | Officers receive tip that suspect may have a hand grenade.

7:40pm | 16-year-old male found in Sahalee Way residence bathroom. 

8:18pm | Per scanner traffic, suspect is contained, but officers won’t advance without more equipment.

9:04pm | Press conference: Baldwin reports 5 killed, 2 injured at WakeMed. 

“I was trying during those press conferences not to cry,” says Baldwin, “because I thought, ‘If you start, you’re just gonna lose it.’ … I was literally shaking and trying to maintain my composure. It was the hardest thing I’ve done in my life. But it had to be done. You’re called to lead.”

It’s a balancing act. You can’t look so stoic that you appear unaffected; nor can you appear so emotional people fear anyone’s ability to lead through a disaster. So, I asked Baldwin how you do both simultaneously, and she answered after a long pause: “I think I did it just by being me. But, man, it was really hard.”

9:07pm| Scanner traffic reveals suspect still able to move while officers try to retrieve his firearm.

9:11pm | Officers plan to keep a robot between the firearm and suspect while they employ another to retrieve the weapon, per scanner traffic.

9:24pm | Scanner traffic reports the “shotgun’s still on the ground. He’s trying to pull the trigger and nothing’s happening.”

9:32pm| Officers employ robot in efforts to pull suspect away
from backpack.

9:34pm | Officers move toward the barn where suspect has been holed up.

9:36pm | Officers handcuff suspect, who has single gunshot wound and is wearing a handgun in his waistband. Officers locate shotgun and large hunting knife nearby.

9:37pm | RPD tweets “the suspect is now in custody.”

10:51pm | Press conference: Borneo confirms suspect is a “white male juvenile,” injured officer Clark has been released from WakeMed and Patterson is aboard a return flight to Raleigh.

As news of the carnage crept into the wee hours of the evening, every city resident was coping with the same shattered reality: Raleigh had joined the ranks of communities marred by gun violence—and we had lost our own in a senseless act of violence. 

What We Learned

There is no amount of posturing or reflection or planning that can undo the events of that tragic evening—or bring back the five lives lost. Gov. Cooper acknowledges that while coordinated efforts were swift, it’s essential to review responses in any crisis. As we queried first responders and officials on what we learned from that night, communication was the common takeaway.

“The response seemed flawless,” says Baldwin. “But what we learned is we have to be prepared to communicate to the public what is happening.” Since that dark October night, Baldwin was invited to a January United States Conference of Mayors to speak on a panel addressing gun violence. 

“Every one of you in this room needs to have a crisis communications plan in place, and you need to know who’s in charge,” she implored. “Make sure you are ready to address your residents and lead.” Since that harrowing day in Hedingham, Raleigh is in the process of formulating a crisis response communications strategy to guide us in the future. 

It’s a lesson we learned again when an active shooter recently stormed UNC-Chapel Hill. Cooper points to that Aug. 28 shooting as another indication of how essential communication can be. “We know, in addition to the law enforcement response, communicating with the public and letting people know what is going on and where to go is critical. In the age of social media, having clear protocols for active shooter and emergency warnings is vital.”

Beyond safety briefings, “it’s important to note that deadly gun violence has become horrifically and sickeningly normalized in our state and country, with an average of five people a day in our state dying of gunshot wounds,” says Cooper. “The fact that someone who is well armed and protected would randomly shoot people makes things even more terrifying. We must address the scourge of gun violence by implementing commonsense gun reform and investing in mental health care for people who need support.” 

The governor also points to a need for more commonsense civilian education. “It’s critical we do the basics like making sure people understand how to safely lock their firearms so their children and others can’t take and misuse them,” says Cooper.

Beyond improving our crisis action and prevention plans, “this is a time of reflection,” says Baldwin. “To pay homage and respect to the lives we lost. To revere the leaders and health care workers who bravely led us through.” And to acknowledge that we must always reflect and prepare so that, God forbid, we face another mass tragedy. 

IN HIS OWN WORDS

“I was at home when I received the call from our on-call chaplain that there was a mass shooting. … After that, things felt like slow motion. I remember telling my family I was leaving for the hospital. On the road, it was dusk; the sky seemed gray and hazy. I called our program assistant to create a communication and response plan for our department. I remember feeling nervous on the highway because we didn’t know details about the shooter’s location. When I arrived at the hospital, I headed straight to the emergency department. As soon as I opened the doors, an RPD officer walked through with a family. He looked at me, at my badge, and said, ‘We need you. Come with me.’ We went to our ICU waiting room where a victim’s family member was sitting. Few facts were shared. Few words were spoken. I sat quietly next to the family member while the officer began talking to them. It was the beginning of a long, long night filled with emotions—sadness, shock, anger, fear and relief. I remember leaving the building emotionally numb from all I had experienced, and simultaneously knowing we had done good work for our community.” –WakeMed Spiritual Care Director Rev. Jeremy Gilmore, MDiv, MA

What We Did Right

“On a horrific, tragic night, we saw an immediate, overwhelming, highly coordinated, well-trained response by law enforcement to stop the shooter. That’s my expectation as Governor, and I appreciate the courage of law enforcement officers who work to keep our communities safe, particularly in dangerous moments.”  –Gov. Cooper

“Despite the initial chaos, the response was extraordinary! The deaths ceased as soon as officers arrived in the vicinity. I know for a fact others could have been killed. Our presence on the scene made all the difference. I am extremely proud of every public safety officer who risked their own safety responding to the incident.” –Police Chief Patterson

“As we received information in real time, it was clear that our officers were heading into a dangerous situation. I was proud to see the response of our officers and the officers of partner agencies who responded to the incident. At the end of the day, we took a dangerous person into custody.” –Public Information Officer Lt. Borneo

Raleigh Healing Together

Friday, Oct. 13, 3:30pm, Raleigh Municipal Building:
Quiet ceremony to create a space to honor the victims and survivors

Saturday, Oct. 14, 10am, Nash Square: Speakers honor front-line workers; community partners share resources on health, nutrition, mental health, gun violence prevention, and more.