Radcliffe Haughton

Background

Radcliffe Franklin Haughton was tentatively identified as the shooter. He was 45 years old and was described as the estranged husband of a spa worker who was one of the fatal victims.

Haughton was raised in Jamaica and moved to the United States as an adult. He first took up residence in Illinois and later moved to the Milwaukee area.

Haughton had one daughter, age 12, with estranged wife Zina Haughton. He also had a stepdaughter age 20 who was working in the building along with Zina Haughton at the time of the shooting.

Haughton’s father, Radcliffe Haughton Sr. of Florida, said he spoke with his son a few days before the shooting and nothing seemed amiss. He said he had called for his son to turn himself in.

At the time of the shooting, Haughton had been issued a restraining order and was not allowed to possess firearms.

Haughton had posted on Facebook around the time a restraining order was issued. The post included: "Need to get out of Wisconsin, HELP . . . ".

A Google Plus page linked to Haughton included a photograph of a man that appeared to be him, pointing what looked to be a weapon at the camera.

Haughton had worked as a salesman of pricey imported cars. He and Zina had owned their Brown Deer home since 2002.

Police in Brown Deer, Wisconsin, were called to the home of Radcliffe and Zina Haughton almost 20 times in the years before the shooting. Several calls were for alleged domestic abuse. The police responses for problems between the couple took place over the course of 11 years.

As recently as Oct. 2, records showed Zina Haughton called police from a gas station late at night. An officer arrived and observed that she was not wearing shoes, her makeup was running, and she appeared to have been crying. The officer reported that her shirt was ripped and she appeared to have been intoxicated. The officer also noticed scrapes and swelling on the left side of her face. The officer wrote: “I also noticed she had scrapes and swelling on the left side of her face,” the officer wrote.

The officer said: “I asked Zina how she got the injury to her face. Zina said she was not injured. I told Zina I could see the injury on her face.”

The officer took Zina into the gas station bathroom to show her the injury. Zina kept telling the officer she did not know how her face got injured. The officer wrote: “Zina kept telling me she did not know how her face got injured.”

After the officer asked if Radcliffe had assaulted her, Zina said no. She admitted that he forcefully removed her cell phone from her bra when she arrived home around 9 p.m. The report states: “Zina keeps her cell phone in her bra and Radcliffe knew this.”

Based on the injury to Zina’s face, her ripped clothes, statements made by Zina that she struggled with Radcliffe over her phone, and her disheveled appearance, the officer wrote: “Based on the injury to Zina’s face, her ripped clothes, statements made by Zina that she struggled with Radcliffe over her phone, and her disheveled appearance, I believe she was physically assaulted by Radcliffe,” the officer wrote.

The officer drove Zina to her home and knocked on the door. The lights were off and no one answered. The officer could see someone walking inside the residence. The officer reported: “We left the residence without making contact with Radcliffe,” the officer reported.

Days later, police in nearby Brookfield arrested Radcliffe Haughton after he allegedly slashed the tires of his wife’s car. Authorities said paperwork on those charges had not been formally submitted before Haughton showed up Sunday at the Brookfield salon where his estranged wife worked, killed her and two other women, injured others, and then took his own life.

The offence

On October 21, 2012, a mass shooting occurred at the Azana Spa in Brookfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee. The incident took place at the Azana Spa at 200 North Moorland Road.

As of 3:40 pm CST on October 21, eight casualties had been reported. Four of them, including the shooter, were reported as dead. Four of them had not suffered critical injuries.

The shooter was tentatively identified as Radcliffe Franklin Haughton. He arrived at the spa via taxi and was wearing a camouflage outfit and carrying a backpack.

Dead were three women, all shot as Haughton stormed through the salon bent on killing his estranged wife, an employee there. About a dozen people were in the building at the time.

Police would not say at the time whether Haughton’s wife, Zina, was among the dead. The narrative described that there was “little question she was the target.” It stated that just two weeks earlier she had received a temporary restraining order after he showed up at Azana and slashed the tires of her car.

A judge granted a four-year restraining order against Haughton on Oct. 18.

Brookfield Police Chief Daniel Tushaus stated that it appeared Haughton’s rampage was rooted in domestic violence.

A statement by the Milwaukee bomb squad’s dispatch included that an improvised explosive device was left behind and a fire was set.

Investigation

Milwaukee news station TMJ4 reported that the mall had been closed by police at 1:14 pm CST on October 21.

Froedtert Memorial Hospital was locked down for security purposes but resumed normal operations by 4:25 pm.

A spokesperson for the Federal Bureau of Investigation stated that bomb disposal technicians and hostage negotiators had been dispatched. Agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were also sent to the scene.

Brookfield Police Chief Dan Tushaus stated that Haughton’s car, a Mazda Protoge, had been located shortly after the shooting.

Law enforcement instructed bystanders to evacuate the parking lot of the Brookfield Square shopping center near the spa.

Law enforcement searched the area surrounding the spa and the Brookfield Square shopping center for a suspect initially described as an 6-foot-1 African-American male in his 40s.

By the end of the day of the shooting, four people, including Haughton, had died. All persons in the building had been safely evacuated.

Christine Bannister, a dispatch supervisor for Waukesha County, stated that Radcliffe Franklin Haughton had been found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Police got the first call—“shooting in progress”—at 11:09 a.m. When officers got to the salon they found three women dead at the scene and helped evacuate the other victims as well as others who were inside the building, the chief said.

There was smoke in the building from a small fire in a hallway that they believed Haughton started. Tushaus also said that a one-pound propane tank was in the building, but it was unknown if Haughton had brought it to the salon or if it had been left by contractors who were working at the site earlier.

Police hours were spent searching and securing the building. Tushaus said the process was painstaking because of the many small rooms at the salon and because officers did not know Haughton was dead. Tushaus said at a news conference:

“We methodically did a search of that building expecting to encounter the suspect,”
“That's what took us so long. . . . We were expecting an armed encounter if we did come across him.”

Arrest

The narrative did not describe an arrest in connection with the shooting.

Trial

The narrative did not describe a trial.

Sentencing

The narrative did not describe sentencing.

Appeals

The narrative did not describe appeals.

Outcome

Haughton committed suicide six hours after he started the shooting rampage by shooting himself in the head while inside the spa.

The suspect’s daughter age 12 and the suspect’s wife’s daughter were found to be safe at their Brown Deer home.

By the end of the day, four people including Haughton had died.

Victims

Three women were killed in the attack. One of them was Haughton’s wife, Zina Haughton, 42, also of Brown Deer, Wisconsin, according to the Waukesha County medical examiner's office.

Witnesses said Zina “heroically tried to dissuade and calm her husband in an effort to defuse the situation before being shot.”

The four wounded women were ages 22, 30, 32, and 40. They were taken to Froedtert Hospital in Wauwatosa. All were expected to survive. The women had gunshot wounds to their arms and legs and neck. The women were not identified.

Hospital officials said one of the four was undergoing surgery early Sunday night and was in critical condition. A second had already undergone surgery and was in satisfactory condition. A third was stabilized and scheduled for surgery later Sunday night. A fourth did not require surgery but was admitted.

Gary Seabrook, director of surgical services, said four patients were brought to the hospital: “with multiple gunshot wounds to their extremities.”

Aftermath

The White House issued a statement saying that President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama's thoughts and prayers were with the victims of "this horrible shooting" and their families.

Paul Ryan, the Republican vice-presidential nominee and congressman from another Wisconsin district, and his wife Janna said that they were "shocked and saddened" by the incident.

Sympathy for the victims poured in Sunday. Many people posted comments on Azana's Facebook page.

Owner Tami Gemmell issued a statement thanking those who had reached out. She said:

"We are devastated by this tragedy and remain in shock over how this could have happened," she said.
"Please know that our first concern is for the victims and their families, and for our Azana family . . . "

Pardeep Kaleka became a volunteer grief counselor with the Salvation Army after the sorrow he endured led him to the new role. His father was among those killed at the Sikh Temple in August. He was at the temple Sunday when the organization texted him: More people had been shot, and he was needed. On another sunny morning, not so different from the day his father died, Kaleka was in Brookfield, consoling others.

Katie O'Rourke heard gunshots ring out. She was 23 and of Wauwatosa. She and another massage therapist were upstairs with two clients. They took massage tables and turned them into barricades against the unlocked door, doused the lights, turned off the piped-in music, and crouched in fear in the dark, windowless room for nearly 45 minutes.

Katie O'Rourke used her cellphone to call 911. An operator initially told her to leave the building. O'Rourke did not like that idea. She said:

"I didn't know where the shooter was," she said.
She said the 911 operator tried to keep her calm, telling her that help was coming.

The narrative stated that O'Rourke and the others heard the sprinklers go off in a hallway but sat tight. O'Rourke said:

"We didn't even know if the building was on fire," O'Rourke said.

After nearly 45 minutes, police arrived at the women's room. The operator was talking to the officers outside the door. O'Rourke and the other three opened the door and made for the exit. O'Rourke said:

"We all held hands and got out of there as fast as possible," she said.

As they fled, O'Rourke said she stepped over a lifeless body on the first floor. Nearby, she saw another victim, apparently dead, on the floor. She said:

"I don't even know how to describe it," she said of her experience.
"It was scary. It was something else."

Another woman fled, screaming, into traffic on Moorland Road. David Gosh of West Allis said she ran right out into the street and was pounding on cars. He said:

"She ran right out into the street and was pounding on cars," said David Gosh of West Allis, who had been returning from duck hunting earlier Sunday with his father, John, and a friend, Ben Luedke.

Gosh said that moments later, a man with a handgun ran out and appeared to be chasing the woman. He said that police began streaming to the scene, and the gunman ran back into the building.

John Gosh said he saw two women come out of the building who had been shot. One appeared to have been shot in the leg and the other in the back. David and John were witnesses described in the narrative.

Christopher Pfeiffer of Pewaukee saw a young woman run barefoot and frantic through the Brookfield Square parking lot. Pfeiffer said:

"She was screaming, yelling, crying hysterically. She was pleading for help," Pfeiffer said.
"She kept saying, 'My mother was shot.' "

Other details

Law enforcement officers were reported to have searched the area surrounding the spa and the Brookfield Square shopping center for a suspect, initially described as an 6-foot-1 African-American male in his 40s.

The suspect and his wife's daughter, age 12, were found to be safe at their Brown Deer home.

The narrative included a description that Haughton sent signals recently of possible trouble. It referenced the posting on his Facebook page and the Google Plus photograph.

The narrative included a description of Haughton having a misdemeanor criminal record in suburban Chicago, including twice convicted in the 1990s of marijuana possession and once this year of disorderly conduct. It referenced that in Milwaukee County he was charged with disorderly conduct last year but the case was dismissed after a key witness did not show for the trial, using online records.