On December 26, 2000, a

mass shooting There is a lack of consensus on how to define a mass shooting. Most terms define a minimum of three or four victims of gun violence (not including the shooter or in an inner city) in a short period of time, although an Australian study from 20 ...

took place at Edgewater Technology in

Wakefield, Massachusetts Wakefield is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, incorporated in 1812 and located about north-northwest of Downtown Boston. Wakefield's population was 27,090 at the 2020 census. Wakefield offer ...

, United States. Michael Morgan McDermott, an application support employee, shot and killed all seven of his coworkers. It is the deadliest mass shooting in Massachusetts history. The weapons he used were an

AK-47 variant The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas operated, gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian s ...

, a 12-gauge shotgun and a .32 caliber pistol. He fired off a total of 37 rounds, shooting his victims in the back of the head repeatedly. Police later found a .460-calibre Weatherby Mark V rifle in McDermott's locker. He was found by police sitting calmly and stated that he did not speak

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

. At trial, he stated that he was born without a soul and that God had allowed him to earn a soul by traveling back in time to kill

Nazis Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...

. However, the prosecution asserted that the killings were motivated by his employer's garnishment of his wages for the

IRS The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting U.S. federal taxes and administering the Internal Revenue Code, the main body of the federal statutory tax ...

in order to pay

back taxes Back taxes is a term for taxes that were not completely paid when due. Typically, these are taxes that are owed from a previous year. Causes for back taxes include failure to pay taxes by the deadline, failure to correctly report one's income, or ...

that he owed. Evidence also showed that he had researched how to fake mental illness. McDermott was found guilty of seven counts of

first degree murder Murder is the unlawful killing of another human without justification or valid excuse, especially the unlawful killing of another human with malice aforethought. ("The killing of another person without justification or excuse, especially the ...

. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

Fatalities

*Jennifer Bragg Capobianco, 29, marketing *Janice Hagerty, 46, office manager *Louis A. Javelle, 58, director of consulting *Rose Manfredi, 48, payroll *Paul Marceau, 36, development technician *Cheryl Troy, 50, human resources director *Craig Wood, 29, human resources

Perpetrator

Michael Morgan McDermott was born Michael McDermod Martinez in Plymouth, Massachusetts, on September 4, 1958, and grew up in nearby Marshfield. He was the second of four children to Richard and Rosemary ( Reardon) Martinez, who both worked as teachers. In 1976, he graduated from Marshfield High, where he was rather popular among his peers according to a former classmate. Shortly after graduating high school, McDermott enlisted in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

and served for six years as an

electrician's mate Electrician's Mate (abbreviated as EM) is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard occupational rating. The Electrician's Mate's NOS is B210. History The Navy Electrician rating was established in 1883, then promptly disestablished i ...

, most of which was spent on the USS ''Narwhal''. He was eventually honorably discharged with the rank of

petty officer second class Petty officer second class is the fifth enlisted rank in the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Coast Guard, just above petty officer third class and below petty officer first class, and is a non-commissioned officer. It is equivalent to the rank of ser ...

. From 1982 to 1988, McDermott worked for the Maine Yankee Nuclear Power Plant. He then moved to

Weymouth, Massachusetts ("To Work Is to Conquer") , image_map = Norfolk County Massachusetts incorporated and unincorporated areas Weymouth highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250px , map_caption = Location in Norfolk County in Massa ...

, and began work in research and development for Duracell. In 1992, McDermott married Monica Sheehan. They divorced several years later. Around this time, McDermott began to gain significant weight. In 2000, after Duracell announced it would soon move to

Bethel, Connecticut Bethel () is a town in Fairfield County, Connecticut, United States. Its population was 11,988 in 2022 according to World Population Review. The town includes the Bethel Census Designated Place. Interstate 84 passes through Bethel, and it has ...

, McDermott resigned and later joined Edgewater Technology that same year. In October 2000, McDermott moved out of his apartment in South Weymouth after failing to pay his rent, leaving the residence in a derelict state and owing the landlord $1,720. He then moved into an apartment in Haverhill. It later emerged that, in addition to his other financial troubles, McDermott had owed roughly $5,000 in back taxes to the IRS and that Edgewater Technology had withheld a portion of his wages in order to comply with an order by the IRS. As of 2022, McDermott is incarcerated at

Old Colony Correctional Center Old Colony Correctional Center is a Massachusetts Department of Correction men's prison in Bridgewater, Massachusetts. The medium security facility is located in a plot of land in the Bridgewater Correctional Complex with the Bridgewater State ...

Bridgewater, Massachusetts Bridgewater is a town located in Plymouth County, in the state of Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the town's population was 28,633. Bridgewater is located approximately south of Boston and approximately 35 miles east ...

Media references

McDermott is cited in the 2003 psychology book ''Why We Hate''. In 2008, his case was studied on the psychology program ''

Most Evil ''Most Evil'' is an American forensics television program on Investigation Discovery, first aired in 2006, presented by forensic psychiatrist Dr. Michael H. Stone of Columbia University during the program's first three seasons, and by forensic ...

''.

Commemorations

cherry tree A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour ''Prunus cerasus''. The na ...

was planted outside of Edgewater Technology's offices in Wakefield in memory of the seven victims. Every December,

carnation ''Dianthus caryophyllus'' (), commonly known as the carnation or clove pink, is a species of ''Dianthus''. It is likely native to the Mediterranean region but its exact range is unknown due to extensive cultivation for the last 2,000 years.Med ...

flowers are woven into the branches in their memory.

References

External links

7 Die in Rampage at Company; Co-Worker of Victims Arrested
''

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'' (December 27, 2000)
A Deadly Turn to a Normal Work Day
''The New York Times'' (December 28, 2000)
7 Die in Massachusetts Office Shooting
''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'' (December 27, 2000)
In Wake of Killings, Strands of Suspect's Life
''The New York Times'' (December 28, 2000)
Gunman kills 7 at net firm
''

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