Doug Williams

Case details

Doug Williams was a 48-year-old assembly line worker at a Lockheed Martin plant in Meridian, Mississippi. On July 8, 2003, he committed suicide by shooting himself the same day he carried out a mass killing at the Lockheed Martin plant.

Timeline

• July 8, 2003 — Doug Williams shot 14 of his co-workers with a shotgun at the Lockheed Martin plant in Meridian, Mississippi, killing six people, then committed suicide.
• July 15, 2003 — DeLois Bailey succumbed to her wounds.

The offence

On July 8, 2003, Doug Williams shot at co-workers during a workplace incident at the Lockheed Martin plant in Meridian, Mississippi. He shot 14 co-workers with a shotgun, killing six and injuring eight.

Williams entered an annex where a meeting took place. At approximately 9:30 a.m., he entered the room yelling: “I told y’all to stop (expletive) with me! Didn’t I tell y’all not to (expletive) with me?”, and began shooting. He first killed Mickey Fitzgerald, who tried to calm him down, with a shot in the face.

Williams then focused on a group of four black workers cowering on the floor. He remarked, “There's four right there.” Williams killed Sam Cockrell, wounded Al Collier (shot in the back and right hand), and wounded or fatally wounded additional employees including Charles Scott and DeLois Bailey, who was fatally wounded when she was trying to run out of the room.

After going out of the room and returning after a short while, Williams continued shooting while searching and calling for Jack Johns, the production manager. Williams then left the annex and headed for the main factory, searching for other employees who had reported him to management for making racist threats.

In the main factory area, Williams was apprehended by his colleague Pete Threatt, who tried to take away his gun. Williams pushed Threatt out of the way, lowered the shotgun, and said: “Get out of my way or I’ll kill you, too.” While Threatt tried to make others aware of the gunman by screaming for people to take cover, Williams walked through the plant and shot five other people, most of them at point blank range.

Williams killed Charles J. Miller, Thomas Willis and Lynette McCall at their work stations and wounded Henry Odom and Randy Wright. Williams then committed suicide in front of his girlfriend and co-worker, Shirley J. Price, by shooting himself in the torso, ending his rampage which lasted approximately ten minutes.

Weapons

Williams returned armed with a 12 gauge Winchester shotgun and a Ruger Mini-14 on his back, with bandoliers with ammunition draped across his chest and a bandana on his head.

In one account, there were believed to have been two weapons with which he entered the building: a 12 gauge shotgun and a mini 14 .223 caliber semiautomatic weapon. At that time, it was stated that there were no indications he discharged the .223 rifle, and that all wounds appeared to have been suffered using the .12 gauge shotgun.

Additional weapons taken from the vehicle at the scene included a .22 caliber magnum Derringer, a P-91 .45 caliber Ruger pistol, and a .22 caliber rifle with a scope. Another account said that three more weapons were later found by police in his car: a .22 Magnum Derringer, a .45-caliber Ruger P90 pistol, and a .22-caliber rifle with a scope. There were also additional large quantity of ammunition in the vehicle.

Victims and injuries

Deceased

• Mickey Fitzgerald, 45, of Little Rock, Mississippi
• Sam Cockrell (ph), 46, of Meridian, Mississippi
• Lynnette McCall (ph), 47, of Cuba (ph), Alabama
• Thomas Willis, 57, of Lisman (ph), Alabama
• Charlie Miller, 58, of Meridian, Mississippi
• Doug Williams, the shooter, of Meridian

Injured

• Brad Bynum, 29
• Steve Cobb, 46
• Al Collier, 49
• Brenda Dubose, 55
• Chuck McReynolds, 62
• Henry Odom, 57
• Charles Scott, 65
• Randy Wright, 55

Investigation and motive

Co-workers described Doug Williams as making racist threats and remarks. He had to attend a mandatory ethics and diversity class together with 13 others, including several black employees. Williams arrived at the plant in a very agitated state according to some colleagues and made threats to kill black workers according to some accounts, while others who spoke to him prior to the shooting stated he “gave no indications that anything was wrong.”

After he left the meeting, he told his supervisor, Jeff McWilliams, that he would take the matters into his own hands.

Police initially believed the killings might have been racially motivated because five of the six people killed were black and co-workers described him as making racist remarks. Police later stated that the shooting was more likely random, noting that most of the injured were white. One cousin said Williams was not a racist and even had black friends, and the cousin also described him as being depressed. The cousin said Williams had expressed concern “about something to do with a meeting at work.” Another co-worker described Williams as angry at everybody and having run-ins with management and fellow workers while feeling mistreated.

In one account, Sheriff Billy Sollie confirmed the deaths and injuries and said: “He had a shotgun and a semiautomatic rifle and he appeared to open fire at random on employees,” and: “Mr. Williams was mad at the world. This man had an issue with everybody,” as described by co-worker Hubert Threat. Another quote from Sheriff Billy Sollie said: “There was no indication it involved race or gender as far as his targets were concerned.”

Another account described Williams as “mad at the world” and said police were trying to determine why he left a business meeting at the aircraft parts plant only to return and gun down 14 colleagues, killing five.

Arrest / apprehension / response

Pete Threatt tried to take away Williams’s gun, and Williams pushed him out of the way and told him: “Get out of my way or I’ll kill you, too.” While Threatt attempted to alert others by screaming for people to take cover, Williams walked through the plant and shot other employees.

Law officers made vehicles go through checkpoints outside the plant at midday as about two dozen people waited to learn the fate of their loved ones. The shooting stunned residents of Meridian.

Other people

Supervisor and co-workers

• Jeff McWilliams was identified as Williams’s supervisor.
• Al Collier was wounded in the back and right hand.
• Charles Scott was wounded by ricochet/grazing from bullet fragments (head and hand grazed).
• Jack Johns was identified as the production manager, whom Williams searched and called for.
• Steve Cobb was wounded.
• Pete Threatt tried to apprehend Williams.
• Booker Steverson described hearing the first shot and taking off.
• Hubert Threat described Williams’s temperament.
• Jim Payton said Williams talked about wanting to kill people and quoted Williams: “I'm capable of doing it.”
• Russell Wright described Williams as “a hothead.”
• Austin Clark said Williams made accusations when he was angry and had problems with white people too.

Family members and associates

• DeLois Bailey (mentioned as succumbing on July 15) was fatally wounded while trying to run out of the room.
• Mickey Fitzgerald was described as being killed.
• Bobby McCall was DeLois Bailey’s husband. He said she expected Williams to harm someone someday and described Williams’s threat against black people: “She said he made a threat against black people,” and added: “Obviously, he was a sick guy. I wish somebody had given him some help before he done destroyed my life and my kids' life.”
• Shirley J. Price was Williams’s girlfriend and co-worker. Williams committed suicide in front of her by shooting himself in the torso.
• Mayor John Robert Smith was present during a community service where Shirley Price spoke.
• The Rev. Kathy Spells pleaded for racial unity and said: “It's time to get together and pray and get this racist thing over with,”
• Craig Hitt, president of the Lauderdale County Board of Supervisors, said: “We know one another, almost everyone knows someone who works in the building, or has a relative who works in the building,”

Statements and quotations

Sheriff Billy Sollie confirmed the deaths and injuries and said:

• “He had a shotgun and a semiautomatic rifle and he appeared to open fire at random on employees,”
• “There was no indication it involved race or gender as far as his targets were concerned,”
• “We are not sure if those killed were friend or foe,”

Williams yelled during the shooting:

• “I told y’all to stop (expletive) with me! Didn’t I tell y’all not to (expletive) with me?”,

Williams remarked:

• “There's four right there.”

During the apprehension attempt, Williams said:

• “Get out of my way or I’ll kill you, too.”

A co-worker quoted Williams:

• “I'm capable of doing it,”

During the meeting, Williams told co-workers:

• “Y’all can handle this.”

Shirley Price said during a memorial service:

• “Excuse me. Don't criticize this man. He was human too ... don't exclude him. He was a victim, too. ... He was a kind and loving human being.”

The Rev. Kathy Spells said:

• “It's time to get together and pray and get this racist thing over with,”

Bobby McCall said:

• “She said he made a threat against black people,”
• “Obviously, he was a sick guy.

Aftermath

Lockheed Martin spokeswoman Meaghan Mariman said: “All of us at Lockheed Martin are shocked and incredibly saddened that this incident occurred,” at the company’s Bethesda, Md., headquarters. Gov. Ronnie Musgrove said: “Mississippi's family grieves today for this senseless tragedy. My thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of those lost.”

A community service took place after the shooting, where Shirley Price interrupted Mayor John Robert Smith and spoke in support of the gunman.

A Lockheed worker said Williams repeatedly threatened to kill him and other blacks nearly two years earlier, according to an AP account relayed by The Telegraph Herald.

Other details

Williams was described in multiple accounts as a racist “hothead.” The incident was described as the deadliest workplace shooting in the United States since December 2000, when Michael McDermott killed seven co-workers at Edgewater Technology in Wakefield, Massachusetts. The Meridian plant employed about 150 people and built parts for C-130J Hercules transport planes and vertical stabilizers for F-22 Raptor fighter jets.