The Daingerfield church shooting was a
mass murder
Mass murder is the violent crime of murder, killing a number of people, typically simultaneously or over a relatively short period of time and in close geographic proximity. A mass murder typically occurs in a single location where one or more ...
that occurred at the First Baptist Church in
Daingerfield, Texas, United States on June 22, 1980. Alvin Lee King III, 45, a former high school teacher, armed with an
M1 carbine
The M1 carbine (formally the United States carbine, caliber .30, M1) is a lightweight semi-automatic carbine chambered in the .30 carbine (7.62×33mm) cartridge that was issued to the U.S. military during World War II, the Korean War, and t ...
, two
revolvers
A revolver is a repeating handgun with at least one barrel and a revolving cylinder containing multiple chambers (each holding a single cartridge) for firing. Because most revolver models hold six cartridges before needing to be reloaded, ...
, and a
scoped Colt AR-15 SP1 rifle, killed five people and wounded 10 others, after members of the church had declined his request to appear as character witnesses in a trial in which he was charged with raping his daughter. King was arrested after shooting himself and charged with five counts of murder, and ten counts of attempted murder, but committed suicide in his prison cell on January 19, 1982, before he could be tried.
[Five die in church shooting](_blank)
''Spokane Daily Chronicle'' (June 23, 1980)[Blood of the Lamb](_blank)
''Texas Monthly'' (March 1983)
Victims
* Gene Gandy, 50
* Gina Linam, 7
* J.Y. "Red" McDaniel, 49
* Thelma Richardson, 72
* Kenneth Truitt, 49
Additionally, Arthur Greaves, 69, Robert Jack Dean, 56, and Laverne McDaniel were injured during the shooting.
In popular culture
Faith Under Fire' (2012)
''
Law & Order
''Law & Order'' is an American police procedural and legal drama television series created by Dick Wolf and produced by Wolf Entertainment and Universal Television, launching the ''Law & Order'' franchise.
''Law & Order'' aired its entire ...
'', Season 1, Episode 18 - "The Secret Sharers" (1991)
See also
*
List of shootings in Texas
*
Sutherland Springs church shooting
References
External links
A History of Mass Violence: A KXAN Investigative SpecialHow A Small Texas Town Coped With A 1980 Church Shooting (HBO)1980 Church Shooting In Daingerfield, TX , Jay Gormley35th anniversary of Daingerfield church shootingSurvivors reflect on Daingerfield church shooting 40 years laterLaverne McDaniel Interview-Daingerfield church shooting 1980King competencyKing / compBlood of the LambShattered SanctuaryNEVER FORGOTTEN: Survivors reflect on Daingerfield church shooting 40 years later1980 Daingerfield Church shootingTargeting faithEast Texans remember church shootingKingPower of Prayer: East Texas pastor guided spiritual healing after America’s first mass shooting in a churchCareer in a Year Photos 1980: Gunman arraigned for Daingerfield church murders*
*
Five Die As Gunman Invades Tex. Church, Fires at CongregationChurch Prepares To Bury Its Dead
{{Mass shootings in the United States in the 1980s and before
1980 in Christianity
1980 in Texas
1980 mass shootings in the United States
1980 murders in the United States
1980s crimes in Texas
Attacks on buildings and structures in 1980
Church shootings in the United States
Deaths by firearm in Texas
June 1980 in the United States
Mass murder in 1980
Mass murder in Texas
Mass murder in the United States in the 1980s
Mass shootings in Texas
Mass shootings involving AR-15–style rifles
Morris County, Texas