Mass Murders Nevada

Armed with a pump-action shotgun and wearing camouflage, an ex-Marine walked through a local supermarket before dawn Thursday, randomly firing at clerks and customers, killing four employees and critically wounding a fifth, police said. Zane Floyd, 23, a part-time bouncer at a local sports bar, was arrested in the parking lot after police persuaded him not to take his own life, authorities said. Investigators were baffled at the motive for the shooting, which occurred shortly after 5 a.m.

The man suspected of killing two people at a Nevada City mental health office and a third person at a nearby restaurant last week had an arsenal of weapons at his home and was obsessed with a woman who worked at the clinic, investigators said Thursday. Authorities say Scott H. Thorpe, 40, shot five people Jan. 10, three at the Nevada County mental health office and two others at a Lyon's restaurant. Two victims survived; both are being treated at local hospitals.

A man believed to be a disgruntled mental health client went on a rampage Wednesday in this quiet Mother Lode town, shooting three people at a county mental health office and then two others at a nearby restaurant before vanishing into the midday gloom. Three people were killed and two were seriously wounded.

Scott H. Thorpe, the "disturbed" gunman accused of casually killing two mental health workers and a restaurant employee, emerged Thursday as a recluse who preferred the company of his geese and chickens to people. The one neighbor who knew Thorpe best in this Sierra foothill hamlet described the suspect as a peaceful man who sought help from mental health professionals for his overwhelming fear of crowds. "It's just so out of character," said Gary Dalbey, 61, Thorpe's neighbor across the street.

A former Marine, who prosecutors said was living out his fantasy when he gunned down four supermarket employees, should be sentenced to death, a jury recommended Friday. Zane Floyd bowed his head and listened quietly as the decision was read. Some members of the jury cried. The same panel that convicted Floyd of first-degree murder took less than two days of deliberation to decide his fate. Juror Tim LeMaster made a statement on behalf of the jury, saying their decision had not been easy.

The man suspected of killing two people at a Nevada City mental health office and a third person at a nearby restaurant last week had an arsenal of weapons at his home and was obsessed with a woman who worked at the clinic, investigators said Thursday. Authorities say Scott H. Thorpe, 40, shot five people Jan. 10, three at the Nevada County mental health office and two others at a Lyon's restaurant. Two victims survived; both are being treated at local hospitals.

Scott H. Thorpe, the "disturbed" gunman accused of casually killing two mental health workers and a restaurant employee, emerged Thursday as a recluse who preferred the company of his geese and chickens to people. The one neighbor who knew Thorpe best in this Sierra foothill hamlet described the suspect as a peaceful man who sought help from mental health professionals for his overwhelming fear of crowds. "It's just so out of character," said Gary Dalbey, 61, Thorpe's neighbor across the street.

A man believed to be a disgruntled mental health client went on a rampage Wednesday in this quiet Mother Lode town, shooting three people at a county mental health office and then two others at a nearby restaurant before vanishing into the midday gloom. Three people were killed and two were seriously wounded.

A former Marine, who prosecutors said was living out his fantasy when he gunned down four supermarket employees, should be sentenced to death, a jury recommended Friday. Zane Floyd bowed his head and listened quietly as the decision was read. Some members of the jury cried. The same panel that convicted Floyd of first-degree murder took less than two days of deliberation to decide his fate. Juror Tim LeMaster made a statement on behalf of the jury, saying their decision had not been easy.

Armed with a pump-action shotgun and wearing camouflage, an ex-Marine walked through a local supermarket before dawn Thursday, randomly firing at clerks and customers, killing four employees and critically wounding a fifth, police said. Zane Floyd, 23, a part-time bouncer at a local sports bar, was arrested in the parking lot after police persuaded him not to take his own life, authorities said. Investigators were baffled at the motive for the shooting, which occurred shortly after 5 a.m.