Jewish Center Shooting Officially Classified a ‘Hate Crime’
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Johnson County Police(OVERLAND PARK, Kan.) — The shooting rampage outside two Jewish community centers over the weekend was officially classified a “hate crime” by authorities on Monday.
The third victim of the mass shooting, which happened on the eve of Passover, was identified by Overland Park, Ill., police as Teresa Lamanno, 53. The other two victims were identified Sunday as high school freshman Reat Underwood, 14, and his grandfather Dr. William Corporon.
The alleged perpetrator of the crime was identified as Frazier Glenn Cross, 73, who also goes by the last name Miller. The suspect, who has been a white supremacist for decades, allegedly yelled a Nazi salute after the shooting Sunday in Overland Park, witnesses told police. The shooter then drove to a nearby Jewish assisted-living facility, shooting another victim to death before surrendering, police said.
The well-known white supremacist and former Ku Klux Klan leader was later recorded screaming “Heil Hitler!” during his arrest.
The shooting spree started outside the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City, where parents and their children were gathering for a singing contest and another event. Cross was armed with at least one shotgun and was allegedly shooting at people in the parking lot, witnesses say.
Overland Park police Chief John Douglass spoke at a news conference Sunday, saying the investigation is far from complete. “Today is a sad and very tragic day,” Douglass said.
Police say high school freshman Reat Underwood, 14, and his grandfather Dr. William Corporon were shot and killed in their car. Two other would-be victims were able to dodge the bullets and run inside, officials said.
Suspect Glenn Miller, as he’s known, has always been an honest and open white supremacist, said Heidi Beirich of the Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Ala., which tracks hate groups.
“We have been tracking Miller, literally for decades,” Beirich said. “He is literally one of the most hardcore anti-Semites I have ever spoken to.”
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