California School Shooter Used Deception to Enter Campus

A gunman in the US state of California, who shot and injured two children aged six and five at a school before fatally shooting himself, employed a “guise” to gain entry to the educational institution. Officials reported on Thursday that the children are in critical but stable condition and are receiving treatment at a trauma centre. The incident occurred on Wednesday at a school affiliated with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church near Oroville, California, situated approximately 55 miles (89km) from Sacramento. Investigators stated their belief that the shooter targeted the school due to its connection with the church and was motivated by the war in Gaza. On Thursday, the sheriff announced that a note detailing the gunman’s motive had been discovered. The note indicated his intention to carry out “child executions” as a “response to America’s involvement with Genocide and Oppression of Palestinians along with the attacks towards Yemen”. Authorities disclosed that the gunman possessed an extensive mental health and criminal history, which included charges of theft, fraud, and forgery over the years. The shooting took place shortly after 13:00 local time (21:00 GMT) at the Feather River School of Seventh-Day Adventists. Butte County Sheriff Kory Honea explained that the gunman, Glenn Litton, 56, had scheduled a meeting with a school administrator to discuss enrolling a student – a deception police say he utilized to enter the school. Sheriff Honea noted that the meeting appeared cordial, and Litton proceeded on a tour, but the situation changed when the gunman moved towards a bathroom and began opening fire. The gunfire struck students outside a classroom, hitting two kindergarten-aged children. Police reported that the gunman then turned the handgun on himself. First responders found him deceased with the firearm near his body. The school’s remaining 35 children were subsequently transferred to a church, where they were reunited with their families. Sheriff Honea stated on Wednesday that the young victims sustained “very, very serious” injuries. He added, “I’m thankful that they are still alive but they have a long road ahead of them.” Sheriff Honea had previously mentioned that investigators “have received some information that leads us to believe that the subject responsible for the shooting targeted this school because of its affiliation with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church”. He also previously noted that authorities considered the shooting to be an isolated incident, but a state-wide alert was issued to other schools affiliated with the Seventh-Day Adventist Church as a precautionary measure. The Seventh-Day Adventist Church is a Protestant Christian denomination with over 21 million members worldwide. According to the North American Division of Seventh-Day Adventists, there are one million members of the church in North America.