2 killed, 9 wounded in Lafayette theater shooting

ADVOCATE STAFF REPORT
John Russel Houser, the gunman authorities say fatally shot two people and wounded nine others before killing himself Thursday in a Lafayette movie theater, was a 59-year-old drifter living in a motel, where investigators have found wigs and disguises.
Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft said Friday morning in announcing Houser’s identity that authorities still have no motive in the killings. His car, found in the parking lot near a theater exit after the shootings, had a switched license plate.
Craft said Houser clearly intended to escape after opening fire by blending in with the fleeing crowd, but turned back when police arrived and shot himself.
Houser had several addresses across several Southern states, Craft said, including Phenix City, Alabama.
The victims are Mayci Breaux, 21, from Franklin, and Jillian Johnson, 33, from Lafayette, he said.
The bodies of Houser and one of the victims were found inside the theater. The other victim died at the hospital, Craft said.
Of the nine other victims who were injured in the shooting and taken to the hospital, one remained in critical condition.
“It was a pretty horrific scene with that many people being shot,” Craft said, describing the inside of the theater.
Craft said earlier there was no evidence at this time that Houser knew any of the victims.
Houser opened fire about 20 minutes into the 7 p.m. showing of the comedy “Trainwreck” at The Grand 16 Theatre. The first two people he shot were those sitting right in front of him, Craft said.
The victims ranged from teenagers to people in their 60s.
The motive still remains unclear. The weapon was a 40-caliber handgun.
Four nearby officers heard the shots and ran into the theater on Johnston Street, hearing more shots as they entered, the police chief said earlier Friday.
Craft said the shooter acted alone in what appeared to be an isolated incident.
Shortly before midnight police exploded a suspicious package in what they believe to be the suspect’s vehicle.
Gov. Bobby Jindal arrived at the scene Thursday night. He praised the actions of the first responders.
“They ran toward shots fired, toward danger, not away from it,” Jindal said, adding that “Lafayette is a strong community. We will get through this.”
The governor also said he plans to meet with the families of the victims.
“A lot of us are horrified and shocked,” he said, asking the public to “shower” the families with “thoughts, hugs and prayers.”
Thursday night, witnesses at a nearby bar told The Advocate they were having drinks when a woman with no shoes ran up to the group telling them she was in the front of the theater when she heard popping sounds.
In her haste to escape, she lost her shoes and purse, she told them.
University of Louisiana at Lafayette students Jacob and Jordan Broussard, 19-year-old twin brothers from Lafayette, and Jalen Fernell, 20, of Lafayette, said they were across the hall from the shooting site, watching the thriller “Southpaw”, when they heard gunshots and the evacuation siren. When they ran through the front of the theater, they saw a woman lying on the ground, covered in blood.
Traffic was snarled down Johnston Street and all roads leading to the theater were blocked off while police processed the scene.
People were standing on the sidewalks on the perimeter of the parking lot and ambulances were lined up at the side of the theater.
Advocate staff writers Billy Gunn and Jim Mustian contributed to this report.
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Authorities have uncovered that Lafayette theater shooting John Houser apparently had mental issues and was evicted from his Alabama home in 2013 or 2014.

Russell County Sheriff Heath Taylor told The Advocate that his office also denied Houser a pistol permit in 2006.

“It appears he had some mental health issues,” Taylor said.

Senior law enforcement officials are also trying to locate Houser’s family members.

“He was known to us,” Phenix City Police Chief Ray Smith told The Advocate, citing number of civil disputes and “strange behavior.”

Houser, the gunman authorities say fatally shot two people and wounded nine others before killing himself Thursday in a Lafayette movie theater, was a 59-year-old drifter living in a motel, where investigators have found wigs and disguises.

Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft said Friday morning in announcing Houser’s identity that authorities still have no motive in the killings. His car, found in the parking lot near a theater exit after the shootings, had a switched license plate.

Craft said Houser clearly intended to escape after opening fire by blending in with the fleeing crowd, but turned back when police arrived and shot himself.

Houser had several addresses across several Southern states, Craft said, including Phenix City, Alabama.