SEATTLE — The gunman burst in with murder on his mind early this morning. Four police officers sat in a coffee shop just outside Parkland, a Tacoma suburb 40 miles south of Seattle. They were working on their laptops, preparing to start their shifts — three men and a woman — when the shots rang out. It was an ambush. None survived.

The officers, representing five of 100 members of the Parkland Police Department, were gunned down at around 8:15 a.m. Pacific Standard Time.

Lakewood Police Chief Bret Farrar identified the four slain police officers notifying their families. “All four of our slain officers had been with this department since it started five years ago,” Farrar said.

The four slain are:

• Sergeant Mark Renninger, 39. He had 13 years of law enforcement experience and leaves a wife and three children.
• Officer Ronald Owens, 37. He had 12 years of law enforcement experience and leaves a former wife and a daughter.
• Officer Tina Griswold, 40. She had 14 years of law enforcement experience. She leaves her husband and two children.
• Officer Greg Richards, 42. He had eight years of law enforcement experience and leaves his wife and three children.

Police are searching for a man named Maurice Clemmons and have tagged him as a person of interest in connection with the horrific shooting.

Clemmons, according to the Seattle Times, has a long criminal history and was pardoned in Arkansas by then-Governor Mike Huckabee nine years ago. The Times reports Clemmons’ record includes five felony convictions in Arkansas and at least eight felony charges in Washington.

Sherri Badger, Public Information Manger for Washington’s Pierce County Emergency Management department told Blast that witnesses described the shooter as black, between 5′8″ and 5′10″ wearing a black coat and blue jeans with a “scruffy face.”

Parkland, a newly incorporated city only 14 years old, is left trying to make sense out of a national tragedy.

“Shock. Shock and sadness,” said Hunter George, a spokesman for Pierce County, Washington, in an interview with Blast. “The fact that someone would gun down four police officers in cold blood is almost too much to imagine”

Parkland Police Officer Ed Troyer said officers frequent the Forza Coffee Shop because of its central location in the city. The shop, The Associated Press reported, is owned by a retired cop.

One of the slain officers may have gotten a shot off, Troyer said, but none of them were prepared for what happened. “This was more of an execution,” Troyer said. “The officers were sitting there with a computer going over their paperwork, which is also a normal activity on a Sunday morning before their shift starts.”

Troyer believes the officers were targeted. Investigators do not believe the gunman came into the shop to rob it but instead to kill police officers.

The pacific northwest has seen an unusual string of these kinds of brazen shootings in the past two years. Six people were shot at a gas station last year.

On Halloween, Seattle Police Officer Timothy Brenton was shot and killed while sitting in a cruiser with a rookie cop. The trainee, Britt Sweeney was grazed in the neck. Christopher Monfort, 41, who also allegedly firebombed four police cars in October, was arrested for the shooting after he was injured in a shootout with police in early November. He’s still in an area hospital.

Authorities do not believe the shootings are connected.

Troyer said that the department has had tremendous support from other police departments. Nearby McChord Air Force Base in Tacoma even offered assistance.

The shooting does not appear to be gang related. “For a gang member it would be way out of the box,” he said, “and they don’t like the attention.”

George said authorities are doing their best to reassure this city’s 24,000 residents that they’re safe. “We’re trying to reassure everyone,” George said. “There’s a massive manhunt going on.”

Washington Governor Chris Gregoire said she was “shocked and horrified” upon hearing about the shooting.

“Our police put their lives on the line every day, and tragedies like this remind us of the risks they continually take to keep our communities safe,” Gregoire said in a statement. “My heart goes out to the family, friends and co-workers of these officers, as well as the entire law enforcement community.”

In a joint statement released to Blast, Parkland Mayor Douglas Richardson and City Manager Andrew Neiditz said the shooting was the “most tragic event in Lakewood’s 14 years as a city.”

“We lost four of our finest in a shocking, heartbreaking, and senseless murder,” the officials said. “Our hearts, thoughts, and prayers are with the families and colleagues of these innocent victims during this extraordinarily difficult time.”

The slain officers were all part of Lakewood’s original police department, which was created just five years ago. All transferred to Lakewood as commissioned law enforcement officers from other communities. The department is currently seeking accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, and a team from the commission is due in the city next Saturday to review the new department for the prized accredited status.

“Once we have fully notified extended family members, we will release the identities of the slain officers,” the mayor and town manager said.

Those with information on the crime should call 866-977-2362.

Law enforcement sources, who initially refused to name the shooter yesterday, identified the man as James W. von Brunn, an elderly Maryland man with a long history of white supremacist ties. He is still at hospital in “critical condition.”

Von Brunn is, according to a website he maintains called “The Holy Western Empire,” a World War II veteran who served with the U.S. Navy. He’s billed his website as “a new, hard-hitting expose of the Jew conspiracy to destroy the white gene pool.”

Von Brunn has a daunting criminal record. In 1981, armed with two guns, a knife and a mock bomb, he entered the Federal Reserve’s Washington headquarters in an attempt to kidnap officials. He was subsequently arrested on attempted kidnapping, assault, second-degree burglary and weapons charges.

Von Brunn said he tried to commit the crime because he was upset with high interest rates and the state of the economy, which was at that time in a recession. He blamed the Jews for the issue.

After a trial von Brunn was sentenced to six years in prison, a sentence he blamed on a “Negro jury” and a “Jew judge.”

He is also a known Holocaust denier. Von Brunn committed Wednesday’s shooting on the day the museum was set to stage a play about Anne Frank, just two days before what would have been her 80th birthday. He’s said he thinks “The Diary of Anne Frank” was a hoax.

He now faces first-degree murder charges and, if convicted, could face the death penalty.

“There was blood everywhere”

On Wednesday, the shooter, armed with a rifle, walked into the museum around 12:50 p.m. and shot a guard near the security checkpoints and metal detectors.

CNN reports the guard opened the door for the 88-year-old, after which von Brunn pulled out his rifle and shot Officer Johns.

Police Sgt. David Schlosser told reporters two other guards acted quickly and open fired on the assailant, striking him with a bullet.

The Washington Post reports a third person sustained minor injuries in the event.

A young woman interviewed by CNN said she heard five shots and saw the guard lying face down on the ground bleeding. She told the reporter that guards demanded the gunman “drop the weapon.” When he didn’t respond, the two guards began shooting.

“There was blood everywhere,” she said.

Another witness told the Post that he was in line for tickets with his wife and two grandchildren when the shots were fired. He then heard someone yell “hit the deck!” and his family immediately ducked for cover.

They were then evacuated along with a “couple thousand” others, including students on a school trip. All the students are reportedly unharmed.

Surprise attack

Joseph Persichini, assistant director of the Bureau’s Washington field office, said the FBI had no prior knowledge of the attack.

“Preliminary indication is that this incident involved a lone suspect. At this time, we have no additional intelligence information to indicate threats to area landmarks but will monitor the situation closely,” he added.

The Post reports bomb sniffing dogs were deployed to some of the more than 100 locations listed in a notebook found in the gunman’s car.

However, D.C. Mayor Adrian Fenty said the attack was an “isolated incident.”

The Israeli embassy issued a statement expressing their sadness over the attack.

President Obama has also expressed grief. “This outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms,” he said.

In a statement posted on its website, the Holocaust Museum said Officer Johns “died heroically in the line of duty.” The museum will close Thursday to honor Officer Johns.

Professor says she’s not surprised by shooting

Maki Haberfield, a Hebrew University of Jerusalem alumni and professor of criminal justice at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, says she isn’t surprised this event took place in the nation’s capital.

“If one looks at the proliferation of the right wing militias in this country and their mantras that they, quite openly, place on the web, it is not surprising that we just witnessed this event,” she said Wednesday just hours after the shooting.

Haberfield believes websites that openly display anti-American and racially charged hate should be moderated.

“It should be prevented. There is a freedom of speech but not a freedom of hate speech that incites violent acts. Hate speech is and should be an exception to the freedom of speech,” she said.

She also suggested the U.S. government dedicate more resources to battling homegrown terrorism and train local law enforcement to deal with immediate threats that federal officials wouldn’t be able to handle in a timely manner.

“Local law enforcement is better positioned to identify the homegrown threat,” she said. “[The U.S. should] allocate funds for local law enforcement to have more training and awareness towards home grown groups…[and] start looking at the various modalities of the white neo-Nazis.”

In the past some have argued that security guards at museums should not carry guns since they protect what is, essentially, an educational facility. Haberfield however thinks in places of high sensitivity, like the Holocaust Museum, guards should carry weapons to protect what, for many neo-Nazis, is a symbolic target.

Haberfield also evaluated the emotions of the two guards who shot von Brunn. She praised their quick thinking and good judgement.

“Fear, fear and more fear. People assume that armed individuals, be it police officers or private security, experience high pressured situations in a different way than an average person – it is not true, they are just better equipped to respond in a desired manner but the emotions are the same,” she added.

“The evidence clearly indicates that the actions of Milton Police that day spared the life of this young girl from the brother who had already succeeded in killing two of his sisters,” Keating said. “These actions were not only necessary and justified, but heroic and demonstrative of a high level of professionalism, integrity and bravery.”

Keating’s office reviewed evidence from the state and local police and the state Chief Medical Examiner’s office. Investigators also interviewed 9-year-old Saraphina Revelus, who survived the attack.

The following is an excerpt from the Massachusetts State Police investigation:

“From the initial 911 call made to Milton Police, until … [the] reports, ‘shots fired suspect down,’ a total time of approximately five minutes and fifty-two seconds had elapsed. In that span of time, Milton Police responded to the scene, gained entrance into the apartment, faced the above described situation, found the suspect in the bedroom, forced the bedroom door open and made several attempts, by shouting commands for him to give himself up, that can be clearly heard on the 911 tape, which he did not comply with. It was only when he lunged in a threatening manner towards the screaming nine-year-old child, cowering in a bedroom corner that officers were forced to use deadly force. It is reasonable to infer that had the Police Officers not acted in that manner, using deadly force, [the nine-year-old], who had already been stabbed approximately ten times and bleeding profusely, would have suffered additional grievous bodily injury or death at the hands of the suspect, Kerby Revelus.”

One suspect is in custody, the FBI said in a statement.

Hicks, 33, joined the FBI in March 2007. The University of Pittsburgh graduate formally served as a Baltimore police officer. He leaves wife and three-year-old son.

“This is a real tragedy with the loss of such a talented agent who made the ultimate sacrifice for his country when putting on a badge and accepting the responsibility for protecting our nation,” said Special Agent in Charge Michael A. Rodriguez. “The FBI family mourns alongside Agent Hicks’ family. We ask that the media and the public respect the family’s privacy during this very difficult time.”

FBI Director Robert S. Mueller echoed.

“The loss of Sam Hicks is a tragedy,” said Mueller. “Our hearts and prayers go out to Sam’s family and the members of the Pittsburgh Field Office.”

“We are in the process of notifying the agent’s family and will provide more details later today,” the FBI said in a statement.

The FBI specifically points out that early media reports that this incident was associated with a home invasion are actually false.

The Associated Press reports that Rodriguez, 62, was sentenced to five years in prison and credited for the four he has already served since he was arrested in 2004.

Prosecutors say Rodriguez, a Yankees fan, was watching a playoff game on television in Boston. The Red Sox won 6-4 and the group started teasing the New York fan. He then pulled out a gun and shot three of them, killing one.

The outburst was apparently alcohol-fueled, and Rodriguez says he has no memory of the incident.

Seven-year-old Julian King was discovered with a gunshot wound to his head inside a white Chevrolet Suburban on the city’s West Side, CBS2 Chicago is reporting.

The white Chevrolet Suburban was taken away by investigators, and a medical examiner identified the body inside as King this afternoon.

Over the weekend, Hudson offered a $100,000 reward for the safe return of her nephew.

“Please keep praying for our family and that we get Julian King back home safely,” Hudson said in a posting on her MySpace page Sunday. “If anyone has any information about his whereabouts please contact the authorities immediately.”

Hudson also posted two pictures of her nephew wearing the brown-and-orange striped polo shirt he was wearing when he was last seen, CNN reported.

William Balfour, Hudson’s sister’s estranged husband and father of King, was arrested Friday as the main suspect in the deaths. Balfour’s mother claims Balfour is innocent of his son’s death, CNN reported.

An Amber Alert was issued Friday naming Balfour as a suspect in the double homicide. He has not been charged yet, law enforcement sources told the Chicago Tribune and Chicago Sun-Times.

A family member found the bodies at the Donerson’s home Friday afternoon. Donerson was found shot in the living room while Jason Hudson was found in the bedroom, police said.

Authorities described the shooting as domestic violence and said at least one of the victims suffered defensive wounds, Yahoo! News reported.

The Cook County medical examiner’s office has said autopsies for Donerson and Jason Hudson were pending as of Saturday.

Records from the Illinois Department of Corrections show Balfour, 27, is on parole and spent nearly seven years in prison for attempted murder, vehicular hijacking and possessing a stolen vehicle, Yahoo! News reported. Public records show one of Balfour’s addresses as the home where Donerson and Jason Hudson were shot.

Jennifer Hudson won an Academy Award for best supporting actress in 2007 for her role in “Dreamgirls,” and her self-titled debut album is a top seller. She was featured in this year’s “Sex and the City” movie and is also starring in “The Secret Life of Bees,” which is in theaters now.

In an interview last year with Vogue, Hudson credited her mother with encouraging her to audition for “American Idol,” which launched her career.

The five women, Jennifer L. Bishop of South Bend, Ind., Carrie A. Chiuso of Frankfort, Ill., Rhoda McFarland, the store manager, of Joliet, Ill., Sarah T. Szafranski of Oak Forest, Ill., and Connie R. Woolfolk of Flossmoor, Ill., were killed during an apparent robbery of the store.

“We are deeply saddened by the loss of these vibrant women,” said Tim Crane, President, Harris Community Bank, which is administering the fund. “All of us at Harris were shocked by the tragedy and we are honored to join with Lane Bryant and the community to remember their lives.”

All funds will be distributed evening to the victims’ families.

Send donations to:

The Lane Bryant Tinley Park Memorial Fund
Harris Bank
19500 S. Harlem Avenue
Frankfort, IL 60423
ATTN: Sandy Kozin

The suspect has not been found. In addition to the memorial fund, Lane Bryant and its parent company, Charming Shoppes Inc., is offering a $50,000 reward for information leading to the gunman’s arrest. Anyone with information is asked to call the Tinley Park Police Department at 708-444-5394, or the Cook County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-535-7867.