6 friends killed at party in Crandon (WI) - 1 hurt; hours later, SWAT team kills shooter

Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel ^ | 10/7/07 | RAQUEL RUTLEDGE

[janetjanet998]

6 friends killed at party in Crandon

1 hurt; hours later, SWAT team kills shooter

By RAQUEL RUTLEDGE
rrutledge@journalsentinel.com

Posted: Oct. 7, 2007

Nothing seemed out of the ordinary Saturday night when Tyler Peterson met up with a bunch of friends in a parking lot behind a Crandon bank.

They talked about hunting, what to do later that night. Typical stuff. That was it. It was 8:30 p.m.

But before the sun would rise, Peterson, a 20-year-old, off-duty Forest County sheriff's deputy and part-time City of Crandon police officer, would be suspected of storming into his ex-girlfriend's house and killing her and five other young people at a party, including two of his best childhood buddies.

Another teen was critically wounded.

Peterson would later end up dead, shot by the Crandon SWAT team.

"He must have just snapped," said a close friend who had known Peterson since they were in kindergarten and talked to him in the parking lot Saturday night. "He seemed fine (at 8:30 p.m.)."

Authorities in Crandon, about 180 miles north of Milwaukee, did not release details of the killings or the names of the victims Sunday, but the Journal Sentinel learned from interviews with families and friends that the following were killed:

• Jordanne Murray, 18, Peterson's former longtime sweetheart, who graduated from Crandon High School in 2006.

• Katrina McCorkle, an 18-year-old senior at Crandon High.

• Leanna Thomas, also an 18-year-old senior at Crandon.

• Bradley Schultz, 20, a 2005 graduate of Crandon and a student at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee majoring in criminal justice.

• Aaron Smith, called "Chunk" by his friends, also a 2005 graduate of Crandon. His age was not available.

• Lindsey Stahl, 14, a freshman at Crandon.

Charlie Nietzel, 19, of the neighboring town of Pickerel was wounded. He was in critical condition late Sunday at St. Joseph's Hospital in Marshfield.

Because a local law enforcement officer was involved, the investigation is being handled by the state Department of Criminal Investigation. Officials would not disclose any information Sunday other than to say authorities responded to a report of shots fired at 2:47 a.m., and that six people and the killer were dead.

Three-term Crandon Mayor Gary Bradley expressed anger and frustration at the state's handling of the case, complaining about a lack of information for officials and families and the length of time being taken in removing the bodies from the home.

"Man, they paralyzed this town," he said.

Bradley confirmed that Peterson was shot and killed by the Crandon SWAT team Sunday afternoon, hours after the early morning shootings.

Many connections

Although few in Crandon knew exactly what happened in Murray's home, in a town where the population barely pushes 2,000, seemingly everyone knew the victims or the shooter.

Fay Statezny has known the Petersons and the families of several of the other victims for 20 years or more. Statezny said Tyler Peterson was "a normal kid" who liked to hunt and fish and loved the outdoors.

He had grown up with Smith and Schultz, and they were all very close friends.

"We would all go mud-running and ice fishing," said Peterson's longtime friend from kindergarten, who didn't want his name published because of the sensitivity of the situation.

He said Peterson and Murray had been together for a long time and broke up earlier this year. He debunked rumors that Murray was dating someone else, sparking a jealous rage in Peterson.

Paul Pitts, a 17-year-old senior, said Peterson was the type of guy who was picked on by students when he was in high school.

Other friends and neighbors said Peterson, who was officially deputized in February, had recently completed special-forces-type training.

A homecoming sleepover

It made sense to Jenny Stahl that her 14-year-old daughter, Lindsey, should stay the night at Murray's house. After all, it was homecoming weekend; lots of kids were sleeping at friends' homes. It cut down on the late-night driving. It would be safer that way, they thought.

Lindsey Stahl and Murray both worked at an ice cream and hamburger stand called Eats and Treats in Crandon. They stopped at Stahl's home around 9 p.m. to pick up a change of clothes.

At 8 a.m. Sunday, Jenny Stahl got a knock on her door. Her neighbor told her of the slayings and took her to Praise Chapel Community Church, where she waited with the families of the other victims for word about their loved ones. Stahl hoped for the best.

"I thought maybe she wasn't there, maybe she got out," Stahl said in an interview in her driveway, where she stood with friends and neighbors hugging and drinking Pepsi.

She waited eight hours. At 4 p.m., authorities announced the names of the dead. Lindsey was on the list.

The 14-year-old's half brother, Ryan Coulter, 12, said his sister was smart and interested in issues ranging from global warming to animal rights.

"She probably would have changed the world, you know," he said.

Jenny Stahl grew up in Kenosha and moved her family to Crandon because she thought the small community would be a safer place for her children to grow up.

Elsie Murray, Jordanne's grandmother, said the family was not able Sunday to talk about what happened.

Friends said Jordanne lived in the lower level of the house and her father, Paul Murray, lived in the upper level.

Kelly Flanery, 15, a sophomore at Crandon High, knew all of the victims and said that in addition to working at the ice cream shop, Jordanne Murray worked at Subway in Crandon.

She "was like the nicest person. She was friends with everyone," said Flanery. "I didn't believe it at first. It didn't like sink in, it really hasn't."

Home to visit his mother

Schultz grew up in Crandon but moved to Cudahy two years ago to attend UW-Milwaukee, where he was a junior, said his uncle Steve Bocek, who lives in Oak Creek. Schultz worked part-time at a Racine electrical supply company to pay for school.

The middle of three boys, Schultz often drove to Crandon on weekends to visit his mother, who is blind with retinitis pigmentosa, and younger brother.

"He was just always a nice kid, always polite. He just wanted to come down here to go to school so he could further his education," said Bocek, who last saw his nephew three weeks ago when Schultz visited to swim in Bocek's backyard pool.

Schultz, who had a girlfriend in the Milwaukee area, had played basketball and baseball at Crandon High School.

"He was such a good kid; who would ever expect this?" his uncle said.

McCorkle and Jordanne Murray had been "friends forever," said a former boyfriend of McCorkle's. McCorkle loved to play softball and was thinking about where to attend college, he said. And she was very tight with her family.

"Her family meant everything to her," he said.

Friends said Smith, or "Chunk," as friends called him, was into football and loved to fish.

"He was one of them guys that everybody gets along with," said a childhood friend who also grew up with Peterson and Schultz.

Smith's sister said her family was grieving and couldn't talk.

Thomas' grandfather, Roy Thomas, said his granddaughter has a twin sister, Lindsay. "She was a sweet little girl," he said tearfully before hanging up the phone.

A grieving town

As streets were barricaded near the shooting scene, the soul of Crandon seemed to shake with grief.

"This is affecting everybody in this small community," said Tom Vollmar, a Forest County supervisor who has lived in Crandon for 57 years. "There's no family that hasn't been touched in one way or another."

Schools Superintendent Richard Peters said the victims and Peterson were all "people who we have known or patted on the back or encouraged at one point in time."

Crandon High School's crisis team gathered twice Sunday. Counselors fanned out to area churches to help families and friends of the victims who had gathered there.

School is canceled today.

Praise Chapel Community Church Pastor Bill Farr was called by the Forest County Sheriff's Department at 6:30 a.m. Sunday and asked to open the church for victims' families and other members of the community. About 200 people showed up during the day. He said it took so long for authorities to release the names because state investigators were handling the case.

More than a dozen hours later, Farr was still at the church.

"This is going to take a long time for a community like this to get over," said Farr, who has lived in Crandon for many years.

Standing next to his pickup truck in the church parking lot Sunday night, Farr began to cry as he held hands and prayed with three other church members.

"We just really need everyone's prayers right now," he said.

[mylife]

How did this clown get on the police force? dont they do psych evals?

[jellybean]

Local radio reports they are calling in councelors when school resumes. Not sure when that will be.

[SE Mom]

I didn’t catch who FOX was interviewing- though it sounded like the county school superintendent- he sounded pretty sober. Small town like that..will not be the same for years.

God bless them all.

[jellybean]

Paul Bunyan’s...sounds like a plan. :)

[org.whodat]

I figured that was how this would end.

Where does it say who's dead?

[Calvin Locke]

As for me I think an effort should be made to hire cops with an IQ greater than 60.

That makes too much sense for public safety and the taxpayers.

The ACLU and the Civil Rights division of the Justice Dept. have been on a rampage against jurisdictions that hire only qualified and competent people.

[ArmstedFragg]

Some folks like to sleep!

Sounds like another tragic "deafening rap music before dawn" case. Apparently 'turn down the flippin' music' wasn't clear. Time to license boom boxes. Maybe prohibit their sale on weekends, too.

[NorthwoodsGirl]

His ex gf was 19 years old I believe. She graduated last year. So 19 or 20.

Yes it is very calm and usually our “big news” is someone who shot a deer illegally or someone who is getting divorced or married.

Still no word about the friend yet, but since no one has heard from her at all today I doubt the news will be good when we do hear.

I do know one ex gfs name but the spelling may be off Jordann Murray and I have a couple more but not from anyone reliable at this point.

[mylife]

Here in TX we had a Sheriff and a deputy get into a gunfight over a paycheck dispute.

Theres some bad apples out there

[CindyDawg]

see post 114

[MinuteGal]

Wow! You two newshens are great additions to FR.

You're on the spot where this tragedy has unfolded and you knew just what to do. We have more of a perspective from the details and local color you've provided.

It's amazing how there are freepers in the most remote or the smallest hamlets of this country who hasten to inform the rest of us when there's breaking news.

Welcome to this forum, gals. You're doing great!

Leni

[mylife]

Not to make light of this, but I guess she “done her daddy dirty”.

Prayers to all who were affected by this nutcase cop

[mylife]

It's amazing how there are freepers in the most remote or the smallest hamlets of this country who hasten to inform the rest of us when there's breaking news.

This is why the MSM is dead FR covers the globe

[babygene]

Probably a justified shooting... /s He probably told them to lower the music and they refused.

[SE Mom]

Has the sheriff lifted the gag order yet? Is local news just speculationg or are there any facts yet?

[CindyDawg]

Was the cop a hometown boy? That has to even hurt worse, if one of your own did this.

[kenth]

Theres some bad apples out there

---

Yep, badges don’t automatically instill honor and the people behind them don’t always try to live up to the office.

The next county over here in north GA, a deputy shot up the house of a guy who was dating his ex-wife. The sheriff was eventually arrested too as he tried to help cover it up from the state police investigation.

But then, that’s the nature of news. Being good isn’t newsworthys so we never really hear about the great cops out there.

[NorthwoodsGirl]

Thank you I am glad to be here and I just want to get the info out to all of you before the media messes it all up.

I cant see them having school tomorrow. It would be pretty miserable since the classes are so so small. Depending on the grade there are 60-100 kids in a whole grade.

Cops are headed back to their counties now that he is dead and there is nothing else to do at the crime scene I think our town can start the grieving process as soon as they release the names!!!

[maine-iac7]

Guess you didn't catch post no. 16 that explained:

Packers-Bears game tonight. Lots of people have get-togethers on Sundays here in NE Wisconsin

To post such a cold-blooded, judgmental statement,

(A dozen people at a 3 am party? I'm guessing no one

is going to miss the party guests that got shot. Some folks like to sleep!)

on top of the fact that you can't know the who's and why's, is unconscionable.

You sound like one cold son of an

(I figure anyone who can dish out such self-righteous pontifications about the death of many young people can take it as well)

[mylife]

So true. I have seen both sides