RALEIGH, N.C. — Less than a day after a shooting left five people dead, including an off-duty police officer, and two people injured, a 15-year-old suspect was in custody and the city was reeling from the losses.
The Wake County District Attorney’s Office was taking steps toward charging the teen as an adult, officials said Friday.
Earlier Friday, Raleigh Police Chief Estella Patterson named the five victims at a press conference: Raleigh Police Officer Gabriel Torres, 29; Nicole Conners, 53; Susan Karnatz, 49; Mary Marshall, 34; and James Thompson, 16.
Later in the day, Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman told The News & Observer that she has begun the process of moving the case from juvenile court to superior court.
“In this situation, there’s no question the mass loss of life, in my opinion, this case be transferred and tried in superior court,” Freeman said.
If probable cause is determined at an upcoming hearing, Freeman’s office will automatically pursue adult charges per a North Carolina law that moves Class A felonies in juvenile court to superior court. First-degree murder is a Class A homicide.
Because the initial petitions were filed in juvenile court, Freeman’s office has not released the suspect’s name.
However, sources have confirmed for The News & Observer that the suspect in Thursday night’s shooting is 15-year-old Austin Thompson, a sophomore at Knightdale High School and the brother of 16-year-old shooting victim James Thompson.
It’s not yet clear whether the suspect knew any of the victims other than his brother. Police declined to say.
Austin Thompson was hospitalized in critical condition at WakeMed, where he was taken after being captured by police Thursday night. The nature of his injuries has not been released.
Austin Thompson lives in the Hedingham neighborhood. Neighbors said he lived with his father, a handyman in the neighborhood, and would help on odd jobs.
Several sources described unusual behavior from the son. ”I used to see him at 4:30, 5 in the morning with a bookbag on,” said Lavarius Thompson, a neighbor with no relation to the suspect. “Buses don’t run till 7 in the morning.”
Thompson said he normally works out in his garage, but something kept him from the habit Thursday night. "I could have been a victim myself,” he said.
Police declined to discuss the motive or circumstances of the shooting, but promised to share more details in the coming days. In North Carolina, police prepare “five-day reports” outlining what transpired during a significant crime incident, usually when a police officer shoots someone.
Torres, a Raleigh police officer, was on his way to work when he was shot. Torres was not in uniform or in his patrol car, she said.
Patterson said Torres had been with the department for 18 months. Before that, Torres served as a Marine at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville. He was a Marine from November 2016 to February 2021, reaching the rank of sergeant, according to information provided to The N&O by the United States Marine Corps.
Torres leaves behind his wife and one child, Patterson said.
The shooter was dressed in camouflage and carrying a long gun that looked like a shot gun, according to a person who reported the shooting.
The unnamed man who called 911 at 5:12 p.m. said the victim was his “buddy” and was a Raleigh police officer, according to a recording released Friday afternoon. He said victim was in a white car on Osprey Cove Drive and bleeding from his chest.
“It’s an officer,” the man said. “He works for you all.”
Patterson said the crime scene spanned two miles and the investigation is ongoing.
President Joe Biden on Friday called for a ban on semi-automatic weapons Friday morning after the shooting.
“Enough,” Biden said in a statement. “We’ve grieved and prayed with too many families who have had to bear the terrible burden of these mass shootings. Too many families have had spouses, parents and children taken from them forever. This year, and even in just the five months since Buffalo and Uvalde, there are too many mass shootings across America, including ones that don’t even make the national news.”
“The depth of their pain is unimaginable," said North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper. "As policy makers, we cannot, and we will not, turn away (from) what has happened here. We must be resolved to make changes and to succeed.”
Freeman said her focus is to support the victims’ families, as her office has done in the past.
“We are prepared for justice to be sought for these families,” Freeman said.
———
(Raleigh New & Observer reporters Danielle Battaglia, Colleen Hammond and Anna Johnson contributed to this report.)
———
