8 Killed in Erie, Pa., Mass Shooting; Suspect Also Dead

Eight people, including two children and a pregnant woman, were killed in a mass shooting at a home in Erie, Pennsylvania, on Friday afternoon, authorities said. The suspected gunman, a 45-year-old man related to seven of the victims, died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, bringing the total death toll to nine, according to CBS News.

Police were called to the 700 block of Perry Street on the city’s East Side at around 5 p.m. Friday after witnesses reported seeing a man firing a gun before he entered the home. Two women were found dead in the street; six more victims and the suspect were discovered inside.

The Victims

Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said eight of those killed were related to one another, while the ninth victim was a family friend. The victims’ ages ranged from 1 to 51.

According to the Associated Press, officers found a 5-year-old boy and a 1-year-old girl dead on the first floor, along with two women and two young men — ages 24, 44, 19 and 21 — in a second-floor stairwell. Two additional women, ages 37 and 51, were found dead outside. One of the women inside the home was eight months pregnant.

Family members later identified the pregnant victim as Angelina Stone, who was days away from giving birth to her third child, a boy she had already named Kyrie. Her young son, Isiah, and daughter, Amari’anna, were among the dead, the New York Post reported.

“She was pregnant, about to have her baby in a couple days, and she had a daughter that was almost 2 and her son Isiah, and they were all just beautiful,” family friend Lisa Simmers told Erie News Now.

“Her two babies were on the spectrum. Innocent children, couldn’t have told on that man if they wanted to, and he still killed them,” Simmers said.

How the Attack Unfolded

Lorah said investigators recovered video and audio from a neighbor’s Ring doorbell camera that captured two “distressed” women arriving at the home and pounding on the door shortly before 5 p.m. The gunman then came out and shot them as they ran toward him before returning inside.

“We believe that the shooter comes out and calls towards the two females. They run towards [him], and then he shoots them,” Lorah said, ABC News reported. “We hear what we believe to be … muffled gunshots in that audio, very faintly, [a] scream, and a few shots fired, and that’s where we believe those two outside victims were hit.”

All of the deaths occurred before officers arrived, Lorah said. A SWAT team, drone and robot were deployed before officers entered the home. The chief said responding officers were met with “an eerie silence” — no gunshots, no cries for help and no movement — which delayed their entry, and he pushed back against criticism that they waited too long.

“Had any of those been heard, we would’ve made entrance immediately,” Lorah said. “It was horrific. It was the worst scene I have ever experienced.”

Loud bangs that residents reported hearing during the response were flashbang devices used by the tactical team, not additional gunfire, police said.

Investigation and Reaction

Lorah declined to discuss a motive, saying it was “too soon,” but suggested mental health was a factor. “I think that mental health is at play here,” he said. Investigators planned to interview relatives and examine the cellphones of the two women killed outside.

Erie County Coroner Lyell Cook ruled the victims’ deaths homicides and the suspect’s death a suicide. No autopsies were performed, and police did not immediately release the suspect’s name.

Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro said he offered the state’s “full support” to Erie Mayor Daria Devlin and expressed his condolences. “My heart breaks for this family. Lori and I are praying for their loved ones and the entire Erie community,” Shapiro said.

Mayor Devlin addressed the victims’ families directly. “I am so deeply sorry. What happened to you was horrific, and there is nothing that any of us can say today that will make this any easier,” she said. “But you do need to know that our entire community is with you.”

Erie County District Attorney Elizabeth Hirz urged the public to avoid spreading unverified information. “Please do not allow rumors, speculation, or unverified information to add to the pain these families are already experiencing,” she said.

Community in Mourning

Neighbors and residents gathered Saturday for a memorial service honoring the victims, the New York Post reported. Those who knew the family described a scene of shock and grief.

“This situation is horrific and unimaginable,” neighbor Jennifer Macko told CBS Pittsburgh. “It just got worse and worse throughout the night as the day went on; it was unimaginable.”

Juicesiyah Alexander Windham, the father of toddler victim Amari’anna, said he was devastated. “I’m so broken, man. I left Erie to stay away from that lifestyle, and I come back and lose my daughter, lose my baby mom, lose who I was fighting to stay alive for,” he said.

What’s Next

The investigation remains ongoing, with a motive still undisclosed. The shooting has renewed attention on gun violence and domestic-violence dynamics in the United States. Officials said the suspect’s .40 caliber handgun — registered to him — was recovered at the scene.

As the community grieves, questions remain about what led to the killings and what, if anything, might have prevented them. Authorities have asked the public to wait for the investigation to conclude before drawing conclusions.