Binghamton shootings
Encyclopedia
The Binghamton shootings took place on Friday, April 3, 2009, at the American Civic Association
immigration center
in Binghamton
, New York
, United States
. At approximately 10:30 a.m. EDT
, a naturalized immigrant Jiverly Antares Wong (aka Jiverly Voong) entered the facility and shot numerous people inside. Fourteen people were ultimately confirmed dead, including the shooter, and four were wounded. The injured people, aged from twenty to mid-fifties, were treated for gunshot wounds at Wilson Medical Center in Johnson City
and Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital in Binghamton
.
The American Civic Association in Binghamton provides citizenship, cultural, and language assistance to the local immigrant community.
Wong then entered through the front door firing a number of bullets at those in his path. At 10:30 a.m. Broome County Communications received several 911 calls, and the first police were dispatched to the scene. Two of the Civic Association's receptionists were among the first victims. While one of the receptionists was reported to have been shot through the head and killed, the second, shot in the stomach, feigned death and, when the gunman moved on, took cover under a desk and called 911. The receptionist's call was taken by 911 staff at 10:38 a.m. The wounded receptionist, 61-year-old Shirley DeLucia, remained on the line, despite her gunshot wound, for 39 minutes and relayed information until she was rescued. She later recounted that the gunman had simply opened fire without saying anything.
The area where the violence was then focused was a classroom just off the main reception areas, where an ESL class was being given to students. Everyone who was in that classroom suffered a gunshot wound. Wong entered and opened fire on the students inside, taking some hostage.
Police arrived within minutes of the 911 calls; it was later revealed that when Wong heard the sirens, he took his own life by turning one of his guns against himself. In all, Wong fired 99 rounds; 88 from a 9 mm Beretta and 11 from a .45-caliber Beretta. Police remained at the perimeter of the property, having locked down nearby Binghamton High School
and a number of streets in the area. At one point, not knowing if the gunman was alive or dead, police summoned Broome Community College
Assistant Professor Tuong Hung Nguyen, who is fluent in Vietnamese
, to help communicate with Wong in the event of contact.
SWAT
members entered the Civic Center building and began clearing it at 11:13 a.m.—43 minutes after the first call to the police at 10:30 a.m., and 40 minutes after patrol officers first arrived on the scene at 10:33 a.m. At the time of their entry it had not yet been confirmed that Wong had committed suicide, and they proceeded with caution. At approximately 12:00 noon, ten people left the building, with another ten following approximately forty minutes later. Some of the hostages had escaped to a basement, while over a dozen remained hidden in a closet. Thanh Huynh, a high school teacher of Vietnamese background, was asked to translate so the Vietnamese survivors could be interviewed by the police.
Wong was found dead, in the first-floor classroom with his victims, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. A number of items were found on Wong's body, including a hunting knife, in the waistband of his pants; a bag of ammunition, which was tied around his neck; and two semi-automatic pistol
s (a .45-caliber Beretta
and a 9mm Beretta
, matching the serial numbers on his New York State pistol license). Also found at the scene were a number of unspent magazines, at least one empty magazine with a 30 round capacity and a firearm laser sight.
By 2:33 p.m., SWAT had completed the clearing of the building and all those inside had been evacuated.
, New York
. Wong was born into an ethnic Chinese (Hoa) family in South Vietnam
. He first came to New York in the late 1980s before moving to California
. In 1992, Wong was arrested and convicted of a misdemeanor charge
of fraud
. Wong became an American citizen in November 1995 and sometime after that, left the United States to live in Ottawa
, Ontario
in Canada
. He later returned to the U.S., taking up residence in Inglewood
, California in December 1999. While living there, Wong married and later divorced Xiu Ping Jiang; the couple had no children.
Wong worked for almost seven years as a delivery man for a catering company called Kikka Sushi located in Los Angeles. Wong failed to show up to work one day in July 2007, having moved to Binghamton that month, and the company's next contact with him was when Wong called seeking a copy of his W-2 earnings statement in 2008, asking that it be forwarded to a New York State address. Although early reports suggested Wong had recently lost his job at a local IBM
plant in nearby Endicott
, New York, IBM stated they had no records showing Wong had ever worked for the company. Wong worked at a local Shop-Vac vacuum cleaner plant until it closed in November 2008.
Several sources suggested possible motivations for Wong's actions, including feelings of being "degraded and disrespected" for his poor English language ability, frustration over losing his job, and difficulty in finding work in New York. Wong had also allegedly made comments such as "America sucks" and talked about assassinating the president, to his former co-workers at Shop Vac. Another one of his coworkers stated, "He was quiet -- not a violent person" and "I can't believe he would do something like this".
. It was dated March 18, 2009, and postmarked April 3, 2009, the day of the shootings. The three stamps used for the postage were a liberty bell and two purple hearts. The package contained a two-page handwritten letter; photos of Wong, seen holding guns while smiling; a gun permit, and Wong's driver's license. In the letter text, various motivational details are apparently revealed, but the bulk of the letter is a rambling diatribe against the police, detailing the author's perceived persecution by them.
on April 6, 2009.
American Civic Association (Binghamton)
The American Civic Association is an immigration services organization located in Binghamton, NY that provides community integration services to immigrants and refugees in the Greater Binghamton region...
immigration center
Immigration to the United States
Immigration to the United States has been a major source of population growth and cultural change throughout much of the history of the United States. The economic, social, and political aspects of immigration have caused controversy regarding ethnicity, economic benefits, jobs for non-immigrants,...
in Binghamton
Binghamton, New York
Binghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. At approximately 10:30 a.m. EDT
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
, a naturalized immigrant Jiverly Antares Wong (aka Jiverly Voong) entered the facility and shot numerous people inside. Fourteen people were ultimately confirmed dead, including the shooter, and four were wounded. The injured people, aged from twenty to mid-fifties, were treated for gunshot wounds at Wilson Medical Center in Johnson City
Johnson City, New York
Johnson City is a village in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 15,535 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area....
and Our Lady of Lourdes Memorial Hospital in Binghamton
Binghamton, New York
Binghamton is a city in the Southern Tier of New York in the United States. It is near the Pennsylvania border, in a bowl-shaped valley at the confluence of the Susquehanna and Chenango Rivers...
.
The American Civic Association in Binghamton provides citizenship, cultural, and language assistance to the local immigrant community.
The shootings
At about 10:30 a.m. EDT, Jiverly Wong barricaded the rear door of the Binghamton American Civic Association building with a vehicle registered in his father's name. He was described as wearing a bullet-proof vest, a bright green nylon jacket, and dark-rimmed glasses.Wong then entered through the front door firing a number of bullets at those in his path. At 10:30 a.m. Broome County Communications received several 911 calls, and the first police were dispatched to the scene. Two of the Civic Association's receptionists were among the first victims. While one of the receptionists was reported to have been shot through the head and killed, the second, shot in the stomach, feigned death and, when the gunman moved on, took cover under a desk and called 911. The receptionist's call was taken by 911 staff at 10:38 a.m. The wounded receptionist, 61-year-old Shirley DeLucia, remained on the line, despite her gunshot wound, for 39 minutes and relayed information until she was rescued. She later recounted that the gunman had simply opened fire without saying anything.
The area where the violence was then focused was a classroom just off the main reception areas, where an ESL class was being given to students. Everyone who was in that classroom suffered a gunshot wound. Wong entered and opened fire on the students inside, taking some hostage.
Police arrived within minutes of the 911 calls; it was later revealed that when Wong heard the sirens, he took his own life by turning one of his guns against himself. In all, Wong fired 99 rounds; 88 from a 9 mm Beretta and 11 from a .45-caliber Beretta. Police remained at the perimeter of the property, having locked down nearby Binghamton High School
Binghamton High School
Binghamton High School, previously known as Binghamton Central High School, is a large public high school located in the center of Binghamton, New York. The school is culturally diverse, with 2000+ students from many different countries, religions, and income levels...
and a number of streets in the area. At one point, not knowing if the gunman was alive or dead, police summoned Broome Community College
Broome Community College
Broome Community College is a SUNY two-year college in Broome County, New York. The college was founded in 1946 and went through several name changes. The school is located in Binghamton, New York...
Assistant Professor Tuong Hung Nguyen, who is fluent in Vietnamese
Vietnamese language
Vietnamese is the national and official language of Vietnam. It is the mother tongue of 86% of Vietnam's population, and of about three million overseas Vietnamese. It is also spoken as a second language by many ethnic minorities of Vietnam...
, to help communicate with Wong in the event of contact.
SWAT
SWAT
A SWAT team is an elite tactical unit in various national law enforcement departments. They are trained to perform high-risk operations that fall outside of the abilities of regular officers...
members entered the Civic Center building and began clearing it at 11:13 a.m.—43 minutes after the first call to the police at 10:30 a.m., and 40 minutes after patrol officers first arrived on the scene at 10:33 a.m. At the time of their entry it had not yet been confirmed that Wong had committed suicide, and they proceeded with caution. At approximately 12:00 noon, ten people left the building, with another ten following approximately forty minutes later. Some of the hostages had escaped to a basement, while over a dozen remained hidden in a closet. Thanh Huynh, a high school teacher of Vietnamese background, was asked to translate so the Vietnamese survivors could be interviewed by the police.
Wong was found dead, in the first-floor classroom with his victims, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. A number of items were found on Wong's body, including a hunting knife, in the waistband of his pants; a bag of ammunition, which was tied around his neck; and two semi-automatic pistol
Pistol
When distinguished as a subset of handguns, a pistol is a handgun with a chamber that is integral with the barrel, as opposed to a revolver, wherein the chamber is separate from the barrel as a revolving cylinder. Typically, pistols have an effective range of about 100 feet.-History:The pistol...
s (a .45-caliber Beretta
Beretta
Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta is an Italian firearms manufacturer. Their firearms are used worldwide for a variety of civilian, law enforcement, and military purposes. It is also known for manufacturing shooting clothes and accessories. Beretta is the oldest active firearms manufacturer in the...
and a 9mm Beretta
Beretta 92
The Beretta 92 is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. The model 92 was designed in 1972 and production of many variants in different calibers continues today...
, matching the serial numbers on his New York State pistol license). Also found at the scene were a number of unspent magazines, at least one empty magazine with a 30 round capacity and a firearm laser sight.
By 2:33 p.m., SWAT had completed the clearing of the building and all those inside had been evacuated.
The perpetrator
The perpetrator in the American Civic Association shooting was 41-year-old Jiverly Antares Wong (December 8, 1967 – April 3, 2009), a resident of Johnson CityJohnson City, New York
Johnson City is a village in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 15,535 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area....
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Wong was born into an ethnic Chinese (Hoa) family in South Vietnam
South Vietnam
South Vietnam was a state which governed southern Vietnam until 1975. It received international recognition in 1950 as the "State of Vietnam" and later as the "Republic of Vietnam" . Its capital was Saigon...
. He first came to New York in the late 1980s before moving to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. In 1992, Wong was arrested and convicted of a misdemeanor charge
Misdemeanor
A misdemeanor is a "lesser" criminal act in many common law legal systems. Misdemeanors are generally punished much less severely than felonies, but theoretically more so than administrative infractions and regulatory offences...
of fraud
Fraud
In criminal law, a fraud is an intentional deception made for personal gain or to damage another individual; the related adjective is fraudulent. The specific legal definition varies by legal jurisdiction. Fraud is a crime, and also a civil law violation...
. Wong became an American citizen in November 1995 and sometime after that, left the United States to live in Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He later returned to the U.S., taking up residence in Inglewood
Inglewood, California
Inglewood is a city in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, southwest of downtown Los Angeles. It was incorporated on February 14, 1908. Its population stood at 109,673 as of the 2010 Census...
, California in December 1999. While living there, Wong married and later divorced Xiu Ping Jiang; the couple had no children.
Wong worked for almost seven years as a delivery man for a catering company called Kikka Sushi located in Los Angeles. Wong failed to show up to work one day in July 2007, having moved to Binghamton that month, and the company's next contact with him was when Wong called seeking a copy of his W-2 earnings statement in 2008, asking that it be forwarded to a New York State address. Although early reports suggested Wong had recently lost his job at a local IBM
IBM
International Business Machines Corporation or IBM is an American multinational technology and consulting corporation headquartered in Armonk, New York, United States. IBM manufactures and sells computer hardware and software, and it offers infrastructure, hosting and consulting services in areas...
plant in nearby Endicott
Endicott, New York
Endicott is a village in Broome County, New York, United States. The population was 13,038 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Binghamton Metropolitan Statistical Area. The village is named after Henry B...
, New York, IBM stated they had no records showing Wong had ever worked for the company. Wong worked at a local Shop-Vac vacuum cleaner plant until it closed in November 2008.
Several sources suggested possible motivations for Wong's actions, including feelings of being "degraded and disrespected" for his poor English language ability, frustration over losing his job, and difficulty in finding work in New York. Wong had also allegedly made comments such as "America sucks" and talked about assassinating the president, to his former co-workers at Shop Vac. Another one of his coworkers stated, "He was quiet -- not a violent person" and "I can't believe he would do something like this".
Package mailed to TV station
Several days after the incident, an envelope was received by Syracuse, New York, TV station News 10 NowNews 10 Now
YNN Central New York is a 24-hour local cable news television channel headquartered in Syracuse, New York. YNN stands for "Your News Now." The channel, which is owned and operated by Time Warner Cable, is a member of the YNN network of six Upstate New York news channels, and is also the hub for...
. It was dated March 18, 2009, and postmarked April 3, 2009, the day of the shootings. The three stamps used for the postage were a liberty bell and two purple hearts. The package contained a two-page handwritten letter; photos of Wong, seen holding guns while smiling; a gun permit, and Wong's driver's license. In the letter text, various motivational details are apparently revealed, but the bulk of the letter is a rambling diatribe against the police, detailing the author's perceived persecution by them.
Text of letter
Following is the verbatim text of Wong's letter to News 10 Now, which includes numerous errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. The two-page letter was handwritten, using (nearly) all capital letters. Although the letter did not contain a signature, authorities have no reason to believe that it was written by anyone other than Wong.Victims
During this incident, a total of thirteen victims were killed and four wounded. A detailed obituary for the victims was published in The New York TimesThe New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
on April 6, 2009.
Killed
- Parveen Ali, age 26, a migrant from northern PakistanPakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
- Almir Olimpio Alves, age 43, a BrazilBrazilBrazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
ian Ph.D. in MathematicsMathematicsMathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
and visiting scholar at Binghamton UniversityBinghamton UniversityBinghamton University, also formally called State University of New York at Binghamton, , is a public research university in the State of New York. The University is one of the four university centers in the State University of New York system...
, attending English classes at the Civic Association - Marc Henry Bernard, age 44, a migrant from HaitiHaitiHaiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
- Maria Sonia Bernard, age 46, a migrant from Haiti
- Li Guo, age 47, a visiting scholar from China
- Lan Ho, age 39, a migrant from Vietnam
- Layla Khalil, age 53, an IraqIraqIraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
i mother of three children - Roberta King, age 72, an English language teacher who was substituting for a vacationing teacher
- Jiang Ling, age 22, a migrant from China
- Hong Xiu "Amy" Mao Marsland, age 35, a nail technician who migrated from China in 2006
- Dolores Yigal, age 53, a recent immigrant from the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
- Hai Hong Zhong, age 54, a migrant from China
- Maria Zobniw, age 60, a part-time caseworker at the Civic Association, originally from UkraineUkraineUkraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
Wounded
Among the four victims who were wounded:- Shirley DeLucia, age 61, the critically wounded Civic Association receptionist who feigned death and then contacted police
- Long Huynh, age 42, a Vietnamese immigrant whose wife, Lan Ho, was killed. Huynh attempted to shield her with his body, but a bullet that first shattered Huynh's elbow, ricocheted, striking his wife, and killed her. In addition to his elbow, one of Huynh's fingers was shot off, a bullet hit his chest, and another bullet entered his chin and exited through his cheek.
Response
- President Barack ObamaBarack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...
referred to the shootings as "senseless violence" and offered sympathies to the victims. - New York Governor David PatersonDavid PatersonDavid Alexander Paterson is an American politician who served as the 55th Governor of New York, from 2008 to 2010. During his tenure he was the first governor of New York of African American heritage and also the second legally blind governor of any U.S. state after Bob C. Riley, who was Acting...
ordered state flags to be flown at half staff on April 8, 2009. - Wong's parents, Henry Voong and Mui Thong, issued a statement apologizing for their son's actions.
External links
- Binghamton siege pictures – BBCBBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
- "Binghamton Victims Shared a Dream of Living Better Lives"; New York Times obituary for the victims
- Image of Wong's two page handwritten letter sent to local news station (pdf)
- Binghamton American Civic Association official website