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02-20-2008, 11:11 AM
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Two Students Shot Dead in Baton Rouge Classroom
A 23-year-old woman fatally shot two fellow students inside a classroom at the Baton Rouge campus of Louisiana Technical College on Feb. 8, 2008, then turned the gun on herself, police said. Several students dialed 911 as she opened fire with a .357-caliber revolver. Latina Williams walked into a second-floor emergency medical technology class, spoke briefly with the instructor and stepped out, then re-entered through a second door and fired six rounds before reloading and shooting herself in the head, according to the Baton Rouge Police Department. About 20 people were in the room at the time. The first 911 call reached police at 8:36 a.m., and officers were inside the building within about four minutes, authorities said. Sgt. Don Kelly described a scene of "mass pandemonium, people running," and said one of the first officers to reach the classroom reported that he could still smell gunpowder. The women who were killed were identified as Karsheika Graves, 21, and Taneshia Butler, 26, both of Baton Rouge. Investigators said they found no connection between Williams and either victim, and police said the motive might never be known. Williams had no permanent address and had been living out of her car following a falling out with her family in Mississippi, investigators said. Police said she had recently shown signs of paranoia, had given away or sold several belongings, and had called a crisis counselor anonymously on the morning of the shooting to say she intended to take her own life. She bought the revolver and a box of ammunition at a New Orleans pawnshop the day before, according to police. The college canceled classes for several days, and funerals for both women were held the following week. Graves' relatives met Williams' mother, Jennie, in Mississippi while arranging services. In a statement, the mother said, "I will be haunted to the end of my days by what my child has done."
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