Edmond post office shooting

Sherrill was a relief carrier, meaning he was often required to work alternate routes on different days, a position dictated by his rank on the seniority list. His lack of a permanently assigned route meant that he lacked the same job stability as other USPS workers. Opinions vary concerning his job performance. Some reports portray him as an erratic, irritable worker; others claim he performed well and was being badgered by management. In any case, on the afternoon of August 19, 1986, supervisors Esser and Bland reprimanded Sherrill for his behavior.^[4] Sherrill had threatened revenge twice out of anger towards being disciplined.^[5]

On August 20, 1986, Patrick Sherrill armed himself with a mail bag containing three semi-automatic pistols along with ammunition and arrived at his workplace.^[6][5] Shortly after 7:00 a.m., he shot and killed Richard Esser Jr., one of two supervisors who had verbally disciplined him the previous day. Sherrill then sought out Bill Bland, another supervisor who had reprimanded him. However, Bland had overslept that morning and arrived an hour late to work, by which time the shootings were already over. Not finding Bland, Sherrill then killed co-worker Paul Michael Rockne,^[1] and sought more co-workers to kill.^[5]

At the time of the attack, around 100 workers occupied the facility.^[1] In total, Sherrill killed fourteen people and wounded six others.^[5] The shooting ended after Sherrill committed suicide by shooting himself in the forehead as police entered the facility.^[1][6]

Fourteen people were killed in the shooting, while six others were injured. Those killed were Patricia Ann Chambers, 41; Judy Stephens Denney, 41; Richard C. Esser Jr., 38; Patricia A. Gabbard, 47; Jonna Ruth Gragert, 30; Patty Jean Husband, 48; Betty Ann Jarred, 34; William F. Miller, 30; Kenneth W. Morey, 49; Leroy Orrin Phillips, 42; Jerry Ralph Pyle, 51; Paul Michael Rockne, 33; Thomas Wade Shader Jr., 31; and Patti Lou Welch, 27.^[1]

The Yellow Ribbon Memorial is a commemorative outdoor structure dedicated to the victims of the Edmond, Oklahoma post office shooting. Dedicated on May 29, 1989, it is located outside the post office's main entry to the south. The memorial contains the bronze statue of a man and a woman standing atop the fountain's center base and holding the ribbon of which the bow is attached to the base. To represent the fourteen victims killed in the shooting, the fountain contains fourteen water jets and a plaque on the front of the base listing their names.^[7]

The memorial was built by the Edmond community and the United States Postal Services;^[8] the statue was created by sculptor Richard Muno (1939–2015).^[8][9] Community members have gathered at the memorial to commemorate the victims, especially on the 25th (2011)^[10] and 30th (2016)^[11] anniversaries.

The memorial was surveyed in May 1996 as "well maintained", categorized by the Smithsonian American Art Museum.^[7] Over the years, the memorial slowly deteriorated with apparent "cracks in the concrete".^[12][13] Throughout the early 2010s, operations of the fountain were halted for, according to USPS, "a damaged water supply line".^[12] As of 2016, the fountain still operates seasonally.^[11][13]

Patrick Henry Sherrill (November 13, 1941 – August 20, 1986) was born in Watonga, Oklahoma, and had served in the United States Marine Corps. Sherrill was described as a loner by those who knew him.^[14] He was considered an expert marksman,^[1] gaining experience in small-arms through being in the Oklahoma Air National Guard,^[5] in which he was a member of a pistol team.^[1]

The 1986 Edmond incident was the first of several highly publicized postal shootings.

• 1991, Ridgewood, New Jersey^[15][16]
• 1991, Royal Oak, Michigan^[17]
• 1993, Dearborn, Michigan
• 1993, Dana Point, California^[18]
• 1995, Montclair, New Jersey^[19]
• 1997, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
• 2006, Goleta, California^[20]

• Virginia Beach shooting (2019) — a similar shooting which targeted a workplace
• Mass shootings in the United States
• Gun violence in the United States
• List of rampage killers (workplace killings)
• Workplace violence
  • Organizational conflict
  • Workplace aggression

• "Going postal"
• "Crazy Pat's" Revenge, Time (June 24, 2001)
• "The loner: From shy football player to 'Crazy Pat'", The New York Times (August 22, 1986)
• "Aug. 20, 1986: Just an ordinary day", EnidNews.com (August 20, 2006)
• "15 die in post office rage", The News-Journal (August 21, 1986)
• "Former marine kills 14, self", Lodi News-Sentinel (August 21, 1986)