Knoxville Unitarian Universalist church shooting
Encyclopedia
On July 27, 2008, a politically motivated fatal shooting took place at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church in Knoxville, Tennessee
, United States
. Motivated by a desire to kill liberals
and Democrats
, gunman Jim David Adkisson fired a shotgun
at members of the congregation during a youth performance of a musical
, killing two people and wounding seven others.
church hosted a youth performance of Annie Jr.
Some 200 people were watching the performance by 25 children when Adkisson entered the church and opened fire on the audience. Originally, people thought that the loud bang caused by the gunshots that were part of the play. Adkisson (born June 25, 1950), pulled a 12-gauge shotgun out of a guitar case and began firing. One person was killed at the scene. The deceased was identified as Greg McKendry (60), a longtime church member and usher who deliberately stood in front of the gunman to protect others. Later that night, a 61-year-old woman, Linda Kraeger, died from wounds suffered during the attack. Kraeger was a member of Westside Unitarian Universalist Church in Farragut. Others injured by the shotgun blasts include TVUUC member Tammy Sommers, and visitors John Worth, Joe Barnhart, Jack Barnhart, and Linda Chavez. Allison Lee was injured while escaping with her young children.
The shooter was stopped when church members John Bohstedt, Robert Birdwell, Arthur Bolds, and Terry Uselton and visitor Jamie Parkey restrained him.
The Knoxville Police Department (KPD) responded within three minutes of the 911 call, and ambulance services arrived only minutes later.
from 1974 to 1977, says that he was motivated by hatred of Democrats
, liberals
, African Americans and homosexuals
. According to a sworn affidavit by one of the officers who interviewed Adkisson on July 27, 2008:
Additionally, one of Adkisson's former wives had been a member (in the 1990s) of the church where the attack occurred.
Adkisson's manifesto also cited the inability to find a job, and that his food stamps
were being cut. His manifesto
stated that he intended to keep shooting until police arrived and expected to be killed by police. Adkisson had a waist satchel with more ammunition, totaling 76 shells
of #4 shot
.
In his manifesto, Adkisson also included the Democratic members of the House and Senate, and the 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America
of Bernard Goldberg
in his list of wished-for targets.
, a former president of the Unitarian Universalist Association
(UUA) and former pastor of TVUUC spoke. The UUA president, Rev. William G. Sinkford
, spoke at a vigil held at Second Presbyterian Church, in Knoxville, on July 28, 2008. A relief fund has been created by the UUA and its Thomas Jefferson District to aid those affected by the shooting. On August 10, the Unitarian Universalist Association took out a full-page ad in the New York Times. The ad carried the message, "Our Doors and Our Hearts Will Remain Open". The Unitarian Universalist Association carries comprehensive coverage of the response of the UU faith community online.
The TVUUC Board voted to rename the 'greeting hall' to honor Greg McKendry, because of his outgoing and friendly personality, and to rename the church library to honor Linda Kraeger, because of her work as an author and professor. An oil painting of Greg McKendry hangs over the fireplace in the greeting hall.
. Adkisson is represented by public defender
Mark Stephens. Stephens indicated that this move was taken to get the case to trial stage as quickly as possible so resources would become available for a mental health assessment of Adkisson, indicating a possible insanity defense.
According to a knoxnews.com article of August 21, 2008, Adkisson was arraigned that day on charges of murder and attempted murder and a trial date of March 16, 2009 was set. He remains in jail on $1 million bond. Also according to that article, "authorities haven't said whether Adkisson might face federal charges in the shooting, but the FBI has opened a civil-rights probe."
On February 4, 2009 lawyers representing Adkisson announced that he would plead guilty to two counts of murder, accepting a life sentence without possibility of parole
.
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. Motivated by a desire to kill liberals
Liberalism in the United States
Liberalism in the United States is a broad political philosophy centered on the unalienable rights of the individual. The fundamental liberal ideals of freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom of religion for all belief systems, and the separation of church and state, right to due process...
and Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, gunman Jim David Adkisson fired a shotgun
Shotgun
A shotgun is a firearm that is usually designed to be fired from the shoulder, which uses the energy of a fixed shell to fire a number of small spherical pellets called shot, or a solid projectile called a slug...
at members of the congregation during a youth performance of a musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
, killing two people and wounding seven others.
Shooting
The Unitarian UniversalistUnitarian Universalism
Unitarian Universalism is a religion characterized by support for a "free and responsible search for truth and meaning". Unitarian Universalists do not share a creed; rather, they are unified by their shared search for spiritual growth and by the understanding that an individual's theology is a...
church hosted a youth performance of Annie Jr.
Annie (musical)
Annie is a Broadway musical based upon the popular Harold Gray comic strip Little Orphan Annie, with music by Charles Strouse, lyrics by Martin Charnin, and the book by Thomas Meehan. The original Broadway production opened in 1977 and ran for nearly six years with a blonde Annie as the poster...
Some 200 people were watching the performance by 25 children when Adkisson entered the church and opened fire on the audience. Originally, people thought that the loud bang caused by the gunshots that were part of the play. Adkisson (born June 25, 1950), pulled a 12-gauge shotgun out of a guitar case and began firing. One person was killed at the scene. The deceased was identified as Greg McKendry (60), a longtime church member and usher who deliberately stood in front of the gunman to protect others. Later that night, a 61-year-old woman, Linda Kraeger, died from wounds suffered during the attack. Kraeger was a member of Westside Unitarian Universalist Church in Farragut. Others injured by the shotgun blasts include TVUUC member Tammy Sommers, and visitors John Worth, Joe Barnhart, Jack Barnhart, and Linda Chavez. Allison Lee was injured while escaping with her young children.
The shooter was stopped when church members John Bohstedt, Robert Birdwell, Arthur Bolds, and Terry Uselton and visitor Jamie Parkey restrained him.
The Knoxville Police Department (KPD) responded within three minutes of the 911 call, and ambulance services arrived only minutes later.
Motivations
Adkisson, a former private in the United States ArmyUnited States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
from 1974 to 1977, says that he was motivated by hatred of Democrats
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, liberals
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
, African Americans and homosexuals
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
. According to a sworn affidavit by one of the officers who interviewed Adkisson on July 27, 2008:
Additionally, one of Adkisson's former wives had been a member (in the 1990s) of the church where the attack occurred.
Adkisson's manifesto also cited the inability to find a job, and that his food stamps
Food Stamp Program
The United States Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program , historically and commonly known as the Food Stamp Program, is a federal-assistance program that provides assistance to low- and no-income people and families living in the U.S. Though the program is administered by the U.S. Department of...
were being cut. His manifesto
Manifesto
A manifesto is a public declaration of principles and intentions, often political in nature. Manifestos relating to religious belief are generally referred to as creeds. Manifestos may also be life stance-related.-Etymology:...
stated that he intended to keep shooting until police arrived and expected to be killed by police. Adkisson had a waist satchel with more ammunition, totaling 76 shells
Shotgun shell
A shotgun shell is a self-contained cartridge loaded with lead shot or shotgun slug designed to be fired from a shotgun....
of #4 shot
Lead shot
Lead shot is a collective term for small balls of lead. These were the original projectiles for muskets and early rifles, but today lead shot is fired primarily from shotguns. It is also used for a variety of other purposes...
.
In his manifesto, Adkisson also included the Democratic members of the House and Senate, and the 100 People Who Are Screwing Up America
100 People Who Are Screwing Up America
100 People Who Are Screwing Up America is a non-fiction book by Bernard Goldberg that was published in 2005. The book's central idea is to name and blame a long list of specific individuals for making the United States a "far more selfish, vulgar, and cynical place."Goldberg's book denounces many...
of Bernard Goldberg
Bernard Goldberg
Bernard Richard Goldberg , also known as Bernie Goldberg, is an eleven-time Emmy Award-winning American writer, journalist, and political commentator...
in his list of wished-for targets.
Response
Many Unitarian Universalist congregations held special vigils and services in response to the Knoxville shooting. The Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church scheduled a rededication ceremony on August 3, 2008, at which the Rev. Dr. John A. BuehrensJohn A. Buehrens
Rev. John A. Buehrens is a Unitarian Universalist minister and author, and served as the sixth president of the Unitarian Universalist Association from 1993 to 2001. Rev. Buehrens currently serves as minister of First Parish in Needham, Massachusetts. Ordained in 1973, he served congregations in...
, a former president of the Unitarian Universalist Association
Unitarian Universalist Association
Unitarian Universalist Association , in full the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in North America, is a liberal religious association of Unitarian Universalist congregations formed by the consolidation in 1961 of the American Unitarian Association and the Universalist Church of...
(UUA) and former pastor of TVUUC spoke. The UUA president, Rev. William G. Sinkford
William G. Sinkford
The Rev. William G. Sinkford was elected the seventh president of the Unitarian Universalist Association of Congregations in 2001. Sinkford was elected to his second and final term as president in 2005. His installation as president made him the first African American to lead the organization. He...
, spoke at a vigil held at Second Presbyterian Church, in Knoxville, on July 28, 2008. A relief fund has been created by the UUA and its Thomas Jefferson District to aid those affected by the shooting. On August 10, the Unitarian Universalist Association took out a full-page ad in the New York Times. The ad carried the message, "Our Doors and Our Hearts Will Remain Open". The Unitarian Universalist Association carries comprehensive coverage of the response of the UU faith community online.
The TVUUC Board voted to rename the 'greeting hall' to honor Greg McKendry, because of his outgoing and friendly personality, and to rename the church library to honor Linda Kraeger, because of her work as an author and professor. An oil painting of Greg McKendry hangs over the fireplace in the greeting hall.
Legal proceedings
At his first court appearance, Adkisson waived his rights to the preliminary hearing and requested the case go directly to the grand juryGrand jury
A grand jury is a type of jury that determines whether a criminal indictment will issue. Currently, only the United States retains grand juries, although some other common law jurisdictions formerly employed them, and most other jurisdictions employ some other type of preliminary hearing...
. Adkisson is represented by public defender
Public defender
The term public defender is primarily used to refer to a criminal defense lawyer appointed to represent people charged with a crime but who cannot afford to hire an attorney in the United States and Brazil. The term is also applied to some ombudsman offices, for example in Jamaica, and is one way...
Mark Stephens. Stephens indicated that this move was taken to get the case to trial stage as quickly as possible so resources would become available for a mental health assessment of Adkisson, indicating a possible insanity defense.
According to a knoxnews.com article of August 21, 2008, Adkisson was arraigned that day on charges of murder and attempted murder and a trial date of March 16, 2009 was set. He remains in jail on $1 million bond. Also according to that article, "authorities haven't said whether Adkisson might face federal charges in the shooting, but the FBI has opened a civil-rights probe."
On February 4, 2009 lawyers representing Adkisson announced that he would plead guilty to two counts of murder, accepting a life sentence without possibility of parole
Parole
Parole may have different meanings depending on the field and judiciary system. All of the meanings originated from the French parole . Following its use in late-resurrected Anglo-French chivalric practice, the term became associated with the release of prisoners based on prisoners giving their...
.
External links
- Coverage of the church shooting that occurred at the Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church on Sunday July 27, 2008 in Knoxville, Knoxville News SentinelKnoxville News SentinelThe Knoxville News Sentinel is a daily newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA owned by the E. W. Scripps Company. It operates , an award-winning news website....
- 'Total hero' dies after taking blast to protect others in church
- Gunman critically wounds 7 in Tennessee church
- Several wounded by gunman in Tennessee church
- Unitarian Universalist Association's page of news about the event and response thereto
- Sermon entitled "Letter to My Murderer" that explores the Tennessee death penalty in the context of the Knoxville shootings.