Jose Reyes

Case overview

Jose Reyes was a 12-year-old seventh-grade student who carried out a school shooting at Sparks Middle School in Sparks, Nevada, United States. During the attack, Reyes injured two students and killed a teacher. Reyes then committed suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

Timeline

• October 21, 2013 — A school shooting occurred at Sparks Middle School in Sparks, Nevada, United States.
• October 22, 2013 — Candlelight vigils were held on October 23 in Reno and at Sparks Middle School; classes were discussed in relation to the school week, and President Barack Obama's office called Sparks Mayor Geno Matini to express condolences.
• October 23, 2013 — Candlelight vigils were held for Michael Landsberry and the two wounded students in Reno and at Sparks Middle School.
• October 25, 2013 — A vigil was held on October 25 at the Sparks Marina for Landsberry and the two wounded students.
• October 29, 2013 — Classes re-opened at Sparks Middle School.
• May 14, 2014 — An article described authorities releasing an in-depth report about the shooting on this date.
• May 13, 2014 — An article described details from a 1,300-page report released by the Sparks Police Department.
• November 11, 2013 — Another report provided background on Jose Reyes as a child and described his family and the morning of the shooting.
• October 21, 2013 — A report described a Nevada middle school student shot and killed a teacher and wounded two students before fatally shooting himself.
• November 8, 2013 — A report described Jose Reyes Sr. pleading guilty in 2012 and later being found guilty of child abuse after admitting hitting his son.

Background

Reyes was described as an extremely young rampage attacker. A profile noted that he committed the attack at age 12 and was the second youngest rampage attacker the writer was aware of, after Drew Golden, who was 11. It also noted that since the attack by Reyes, another 12-year-old, Mason Campbell, committed a school shooting, and that only Reyes died by suicide.

Reyes left behind two letters: one to his parents and one to the teachers and students at his school.

The offence

Reyes opened fire at Sparks Middle School with a semi-automatic handgun. He was wearing a Sparks Middle School uniform during the attack and carried out the shooting at about 7:15 am, 15 minutes before classes started.

Events during the shooting

Reyes was described as talking to a group of students behind the school campus near the north hallway and appearing angry. A witness reported that Reyes said:

• “Why you people making fun of me, why you laughing at me?”

Reyes pulled out a Ruger 9 mm semi-automatic handgun and fired at the students. One student was shot in the shoulder and injured. Reyes then aimed at another student but did not fire. Reyes walked southbound to the basketball court area.

Michael Landsberry, a math teacher, saw Reyes and tried to intervene. Landsberry demanded he drop the gun, and Reyes replied:

• “No!”

Reyes shot and killed Landsberry as he was standing on a playground. Reyes then shot twice at a window, shattering the glass, and then shot and wounded a student who tried to come to Landsberry’s assistance after he fell to the ground. The wounded student was shot in the abdomen from 10 to 20 feet away.

Students ran away from the school campus.

Reyes committed suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head.

School access and witnesses

The first 911 calls were made after 7:15 am. According to police, the shooter attempted to enter the school doors but they were locked due to the school district's policy. At least twenty students witnessed the shootings.

At least 150 law enforcement officers responded to the shooting, some from as far as 60 miles away from Sparks.

Victims and injuries

Michael Landsberry was killed from a gunshot wound to the chest. He was described as a 45-year-old eighth-grade math teacher and veteran of the United States Marine Corps and Nevada National Guard. Another report described him as a member of the Nevada Army National Guard and that he was an ex-Marine who coached basketball and soccer.

Two 12-year-old male students were being hospitalized in Renown Regional Medical Center. Their injuries were described as gunshot wounds. Their conditions were initially described as critical, then upgraded to fair and serious. As of October 23, the two students remained hospitalized. One victim, Mason Davis, sustained gunshot injuries to his lower abdomen, and the other sustained injuries to his upper torso area.

A separate report described that one young man underwent surgery.

Investigation

Police reports included many pages of paperwork documenting response to the attack, interviews with family and friends, and extensive witness statements. A report of 1,300 pages was described as produced after an exhaustive police investigation.

Police said the investigation did not identify one clear catalyst or motive for the actions of the suspect. Sparks Police Chief Brian Allen said:

• “The investigation did not identify one clear catalyst or motive for the actions of the suspect,”

Another quote attributed to Allen stated:

• “We will never know the complete motive or intent behind this tragic incident as the only person with the true knowledge felt acting out in violence and taking his own life was the best course of action,”

Allen also said:

• “That in itself is a tragedy.”

Weapons and ammunition

Police described the gun used as one of two from the Reyes' apartment in Sparks. It was kept in a cabinet above the refrigerator behind cereal boxes.

Police reported that the boy attempted to enter school doors but they were locked due to school district policy.

Parents and potential charges

A report described that at least one point in the investigation raised the possibility that Reyes' parents could face charges if they knowingly made the 9 mm pistol available to the boy. Later, police said the investigation turned up no evidence that Jose and Liliana Reyes were aware that their son knew where the 9 mm pistol was kept in a kitchen cabinet.

Police said the parents Jose and Liliana Reyes would not be charged with a crime. Allen said:

• “They did not believe their son had any interest in firearms and he was not a child that acted in violent or aggressive behavior,”

Arrest / detention

There was no arrest outcome described for Jose Reyes because he died by suicide the same day.

Trial

No trial information was provided for Jose Reyes.

Sentencing

No sentencing information was provided for Jose Reyes.

Appeals

No appeals information was provided for Jose Reyes.

Outcome

Reyes died by suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head the same day.

Aftermath

Immediately after the shooting, students were evacuated from Sparks Middle School to nearby Agnes Risley Elementary School. Students from both schools were then moved to Sparks High School. Classes were cancelled at Sparks Middle School for the school week, and classes re-opened on October 29.

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval and Senator Harry Reid released statements expressing condolences to the victims, their families, and the school community. On October 22, President Barack Obama's office called Sparks Mayor Geno Matini to express their condolences.

Candlelight vigils were held for Michael Landsberry and the two wounded students on October 23 in Reno and at Sparks Middle School. Several hundred people attended the vigils. A vigil was held on October 25 at the Sparks Marina for Landsberry and the two wounded students.

Other details

Attempts at school emergency communications

The report described that Then-Principal Stacy Cooper was inside the school when a crowd of students began running toward her, saying that someone was shooting a gun. She called Code Red on her radio and called 911, but the intercom was not working when she attempted to announce Code Red to the rest of the school. She told police it was common for the intercom system to not work.

Prior history and autism spectrum diagnosis

Principal Cooper told police she was familiar with Reyes because he had a history of “angry outbursts” at Agnes Risley Elementary School.

Teachers at Agnes Risley first noticed emotional problems with Reyes in second grade; they said he would often cry and they took him for walks around the school to help him calm down. Reyes' fourth-grade teacher Kelly Lorenzetti described him as “always smiling, always willing to help and very quiet.” She said he had few friends and participated in imaginary play rather than organized sports at recess.

Christy Bartlett, a special education teacher, said Reyes would often believe he was being teased when children were reacting to something different, and said the kids at the elementary school “cared for Jose and did not let people pick on him because of his speech or academics.” Bartlett said Reyes had a difficult time calming down once he became angry and that he once threw a chair against a wall when he thought a student was teasing him for reading from a lower-level book. Bartlett said she recommended that Reyes be placed in a life skills class, but the recommendation was denied by the program manager.

A Washoe County School District employee wrote in a note to school counselors:

• “He is very low academically and cognitively and also gets frustrated and upset when he is confused or does not understand something,”
• “I am worried about his ability to handle middle school.”

Bullying-related findings and evidence

Police said Reyes was bullied by students, with friends and acquaintances describing bullying and mistreatment. Another report described that a mistreatment incident was alleged but police said it did not rise to bullying charges under state law.

The report stated:

• “No evidence was identified that indicated Reyes was bullied by the definition of state law,”
• “However, it is clear on numerous occasions he was treated poorly, teased, called names and mocked by other students.”

The report included incidents in a locker room where Reyes was drinking from a water bottle and a student knocked it out of his hands; the group then laughed and teased him for looking as if he had urinated in his pants.

Police described that multiple reports existed of teasing and bullying, but the investigators had difficulty pinning down details including the names of the offenders and the specific bullying actions.

Anti-bullying videos and related classroom activities

Students watched two anti-bullying videos in the weeks before the shooting. One film described school violence and shootings as a result of bullying, and included the message that being a victim does not justify hurting another person. The film “Teen Truth” was shown on Sept. 13, 2013, and portrayed a victim of bullying pulling a gun from his backpack and shooting another student. The report described that at the end of the film the bullying victim talked about “wishing he could go back in time to change things in the past.” The police report said the film ended with a “clear message that being a victim of bullying or any mistreatment does not justify hurting another person.” The report also said the film was supposed to be accompanied by other student activities and those activities were not completed in Reyes' class.

A second bullying video was watched on the Friday before fall break. It included stories of a victim who hanged himself, a girl who brought a girl to school, and a lesbian student who was harassed.

In Reyes’ note to his parents, police described him writing:

• “When I die, I will go back to the past and fix everything.”

Technology and searches

Investigators found searches on the Reyes family laptop in both July and October for “Super Columbine Massacre Role Playing Game.” The report described that 47 of the 69 video games in the boy's collection were “violent themed first-person shooter or shooter type games” such as “grand Theft Auto V,” “Assassins Creed” and “Call of Duty 4.”

Police said images on Reyes' phone had photos of violent wars scenes and pictures of the Columbine High School shooters. The report also described that he used the family's laptop to search for things including bullying and to look up “Top 10 evil children” and “Super Columbine Massacre Role Playing Game.”

Reyes’ letters

A letter to teachers and students included:

• “Dear teachers and students today is the day when I kill you bastards for the embarressment that you did. You say mean things in school. That I'm gay. That I'm lazy. Stupid. Idiot and also say I pee my pants and also stealing my money. Well that all ends. Today I will get revenge on the students and teachers for ruinning my life...And right now this school will now come to an end your death will be rising when I shoot you. Have a great death at school.”

A handwritten letter to his parents began:

• “Dear mom and dad I'm sorry about all this is because some of my family and friends hate me but I understand. What I did this shooting is not because of the shooting games, bullying or other stuff is because of the past causes there some bad things in the past cause of me. And now I'm just a monster...”

The letter ended with:

• “But I love you and I wish the past would be good and better someday.”

The report described that Reyes’ notes gave conflicting motivation for the shooting and both implied his life would end in the process.

Additional witness and communication details

A student described hearing:

• “We were playing catch, and I heard a loud pop,”

Another student wrote:

• “He fell to the ground, then I ran.”

A vice principal, Jerry Endres, described that he went to Landsberry, saw he was dead, turned when he heard a gunshot, and saw Reyes pointing the gun at him; he believed Reyes was chasing him and as he ran, he fell. Endres hid behind a planter until he was able to get into the school.

Teacher Benjamin Tucker wrote:

• “I heard a loud pop,”
• “I thought it was a firecracker. Mr. Landsberry and I went to investigate. We saw students running in all directions.”

Tucker described opening the door and letting a few students in and then stacking garbage cans in front of the door.

Family and related child abuse plea by Jose Reyes Sr.

A report described that Jose Reyes Sr., also named Jose Reyes in some reporting, pleaded guilty in 2012 to misdemeanor child abuse after admitting hitting his son and giving him a black eye following an argument during which the son struck him first. The father was described as having reported the incident to school officials and being arrested on felony child abuse charges, then later pleaded guilty in Sparks Justice Court to a misdemeanor charge of child abuse, neglect or endangerment and was ordered to pay a $500 fine and attend anger management and parenting classes.

One report stated that the father had no previous record and admitted hitting his son in January that year.

Police records described an argument after returning home from buying video games, where the father tried to teach the child to count money to pay for the games. It described that the father said:

• “You don't have to be a crybaby.”

The report included a record statement:

• “The strikes to REYES face resulted in a black eye.”

The arrest report included a quote:

• “Reyes-Mandujano is being very cooperative and honest and forthright, but I was still going to place him under arrest and take him to jail tonight.”

The arrest report also described that Reyes told police he felt:

• “sick to his stomach”

The report described no other incidents of abuse before or since and that police had not linked the school shooting to the one incident.

A separate report described that the father was found guilty of child abuse after admitting hitting his son and giving him a black eye in 2012, and named Jose Reyes Sr. as age 32.

Jose Reyes family background details included in reporting

One report described Jose Reyes’ parents as Liliana and Jose Reyes, who met at a dance and later exchanged numbers at a pizza place, both from Mexico, and married in 2000. It described that Liliana Reyes announced she was pregnant a few months later, that Jose was born on July 2, 2001 and weighed 7 pounds, 10 ounces, and that he had a full head of hair and that the umbilical cord was around his neck. It described that he worked in restaurants and that he opened a place called Sparks Coffee Shop on May 14, 2011.

Another report described that Jose Reyes worked in his father’s restaurant shortly after it opened, spending weekends, school vacations, and some nights after school washing dishes, greeting customers, busing tables, and cooking. It described that he saved his money and bought his mother shoes and bought his sisters toys, and included stories about paying bills and picking up a tab at Olive Garden.

School day and morning scene descriptions in reporting

One report described the morning of the shooting as a typical morning, describing interactions between Jose Reyes, his mother, and his father before school on Oct. 21. It described that Jose insisted he needed his BB gun for science class as they drove to school, his mother replied “No,” and that he left the BB gun and got out of the car at Sparks Middle School. It described that in his orange backpack was a Ruger 9 mm semi-automatic gun.

Student descriptions of the incident in reporting

A report included quotes from students during interviews, including:

• “A kid started getting mad and he pulled out a gun and shoots my friend, one of my friends at least. ”
• “And then he walked up to a teacher and says back up. The teacher started backing up and he pulled the trigger.”
• “I heard him saying, 'Why you people making fun of me, why you laughing at me,?'”
• Seth Hinchberger said the shooter “pulled out a weapon and just shot it. And scared all of us and we just started running.”
• Another student said he and other students heard four or five more shots as they ran across a field.

Emergency response claims

A report described that Tom Robinson, deputy chief of Reno police, said:

• “We've got video we have to review, people we've got to talk to,” and also said:
• “But in my estimation, he is a hero. We do know he was trying to intervene.”

Another report described that 150 to 200 personnel secured the school and surrounding area, and said Pedro Martinez described the day as “very sad” and “very tragic.” It also included statements attributed to Sparks Mayor Geno Martini and Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval.