2011 Copley Township shooting

Mass shooting in Ohio, U.S. December 2025 December 2023 2011 Copley Township shooting Ohio center Copley Township 41.09 -81.6052 Copley Township, Ohio, U.S. 2011 08 07 41.09 -81.6052 type:event_region:US-OH it 10:55 11:05 a.m. EST UTC-05:00 Mass shooting 8 (including the perpetrator) 1 * Hi-Point Model JHP .45-caliber pistol Smith & Wesson Model 586 .357 Magnum revolverhttps://www.scribd.com/document/174222286/American-Handgunner American Handgunner December 2013https://www.thefreelibrary.com/The+mass+killer%2C+the+cop+and+the+armed+citizen.-a0345171703 The mass killer, the cop and the armed citizen. The Free Library Michael E. Hance Ben Campbell Unclear On August 7, 2011, a mass shooting occurred in Copley Township, Ohio, committed by 51-year-old Michael E. Hance. Seven people were shot dead before the gunman was shot and killed by Copley police officer Ben Campbell. Hance had previously displayed erratic and bizarre behavior, and was considered by those who knew him to be delusional. Campbell later received the Law Enforcement Congressional Badge of Bravery for taking down Hance. Shooting Using two handguns, including a Hi-Point Model JHP .45-caliber pistol and a blue-steel Smith & Wesson Model 586 .357 Magnum six-shot revolver2011-08-10 Ohio rampage suspect bought gun from pawn shop en-US CBS News http://www.cbsnews.com/news/ohio-rampage-suspect-bought-gun-from-pawn-shop/ 2015-06-08 he bought from the same location in 2005, Hance opened fire at a house in the 2300 block of Goodenough Avenue. He first shot his 49-year-old girlfriend Rebecca K. Dieter, who was the only survivor in the shooting. Dieter managed to call 9-1-1 before escaping to the porch of her house and being shot again in the back, after which she pretended to be dead.2011-08-08 Police Work to Determine Motive in Deadly Ohio Shooting Rampage en-US FOX News Associated Press https://www.foxnews.com/us/police-work-to-determine-motive-in-deadly-ohio-shooting-rampage/ 2015-06-03Carney Jim 2012-08-07 Becky Dieter remembers being shot: 'We lost many great people that day' en-US Akron Beacon Journal https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/local/2012/08/07/becky-dieter-remembers-being-shot/10708045007/ live 2023-12-14 https://web.archive.org/web/20120809213723/http://www.ohio.com/news/local/becky-dieter-remembers-being-shot-we-lost-many-great-people-that-day-1.325380 2012-08-09 He then ran into an adjacent house, where he shot and killed Dieter's brother Craig; Autumn Johnson, 16; her grandparents, Russell Johnson, 67, and Gudrun Johnson, 64; and Amelia Shambaugh, 16, who was visiting a friend at the time and was seated in her parked car when she was shot. Hance then chased Autumn Johnson's father, 44-year-old Bryan Johnson, northward, and shot him to death in a nearby driveway on Schocalog Road. He next followed Craig's son, 11-year-old Scott, into a house on the same street. There, Hance found Scott hiding behind a furnace in the basement with the home's current residents, Melonie Bagley and her three children (nine-year-old Dae'Shawn, three-year-old Destany, and a one-year-old daughter). Bagley tried to deny that Scott was with her before fleeing with her daughters. Hance found Scott and Dae'Shawn, shooting and killing the former while leaving the Bagley family alive.Miller Marilyn 2012-08-07 Copley mother still struggling for peace of mind after shooting in her home en-US Akron Beacon Journal https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/local/2012/08/07/copley-mother-still-struggling-for/10676433007/ live 2023-12-14 https://web.archive.org/web/20120808212045/http://www.ohio.com/news/local/copley-mother-still-struggling-for-peace-of-mind-after-shooting-in-her-home-1.325367 2012-08-082012-08-07 Copley shootings left eight dead, woman seriously wounded en-US Akron Beacon Journal https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/local/2012/08/07/copley-shootings-left-eight-dead/10676293007/ 2023-12-14 As Hance was leaving the house, Officer Ben Campbell, along with former Copley Township policeman Keith Lavery, spotted him. Together, they issued commands telling him to drop his weapon and get on the ground, which Hance ignored, raising his gun instead, firing shots at them.2012-08-08 Remembering: One year anniversary of Copley Killings en-US WOIO https://www.cleveland19.com/story/19221014/remembering-one-year-anniversary-of-copley-massacre 2023-12-14 In response, Campbell and Lavery shot at Hance, with rounds from Campbell's rifle ultimately killing Hance.Waterhouse Mike 2011-08-07 Gunman among 8 dead in shooting rampage in Copley Township en-US WEWS http://www.newsnet5.com/news/local-news/akron-canton-news/police-respond-to-reports-of-multiple-gunshots dead 2015-06-03 https://web.archive.org/web/20150429165955/http://www.newsnet5.com/news/local-news/akron-canton-news/police-respond-to-reports-of-multiple-gunshots 2015-04-292011-08-07 Ohio police shoot man dead after 'domestic killings' en-GB BBC News https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-14438221 2011-08-07Remizowski Leigh 2011-08-08 Police name suspect in Ohio shooting spree en-US CNN News http://edition.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/08/ohio.shooting/ https://web.archive.org/web/20121025093935/http://edition.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/08/08/ohio.shooting/ dead October 25, 2012 2011-08-08 Perpetrator thumb|Michael Hance Michael E. Hance, a 51-year-old male, was identified as the gunman in the shooting. He was described as extremely helpful, but also quiet, strange, eccentric and "not well-liked" by residents of Copley Township.Armon Rick 2011-08-10 Ohio gunman purchased one weapon five days before rampage https://www.bostonherald.com/2011/08/10/ohio-gunman-purchased-one-weapon-five-days-before-rampage/ 2023-12-14 Boston Herald en-US Acquaintances stated that he had "compulsions" that seemed to hint at a previously undiagnosed mental illness. He graduated from Norton High School in 1978, and was voted the "most courteous" student in the class. His only experience with mental healthcare was through herbal remedies. His girlfriend later described him as having no violent tendencies, but stated that he was depressed and had had trouble sleeping. However, he was described as delusional and displayed bizarre behavior, such as removing all the batteries in the clocks in the house, saying the ticking noise "bothered him". In 1997, Hance contacted police about a man threatening him with a gun when he went out to confront him for vandalizing his truck. He had recently been forced to care for Dieter's father, who was suffering from dementia, and lost his job at a copy store after it was closed down. He was also having tense relations with Russell and Gudrun Johnson, who were his next-door neighbors.Caniglia John 2011-08-09 Copley shooter Michael Hance was eccentric, but also helpful to neighbors in Akron en-US Plain Dealer http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2011/08/shooter_described_as_eccentric.html 2015-06-03 On one occasion, he was told by Gudrun to clean up his property, only for her to be forced away by him.Begos Kevin Welsh-Huggins Andrew 2011-08-09 Property dispute apparently sparked shooting rampage en-US The Wichita Eagle https://www.kansas.com/news/local/crime/article1074937.html live 2020-10-17 https://web.archive.org/web/20201020195601/https://www.kansas.com/news/local/crime/article1074937.html 2020-10-20 Hance had in the lead up to the shooting sought out repayment of a debt that he had previously forgiven, when he had previously been unmotivated by money.Morehead Bob 2011-11-21 Academy students learn at-risk clues: Copley chief recounts August massacre en-US The Post https://www.thepostnewspapers.com/norton/local_news/academy-students-learn-at-risk-clues/article_51a74867-328d-5143-8fe2-0c1a60065658.html 2023-12-14 He used the money to buy the guns used in the shooting from Sydmor's Jewelry in neighboring Barberton, Ohio five days before, as well as a holster and roughly 200 rounds of ammunition. He visited a local gun range several times in the lead up to the shooting. The day before the shooting he had visited family with his girlfriend. Relatives noted that he had appeared "agitated", and that Hance had glared at Scott Dieter. The Copley Chief of Police, Michael Mier, stated that Hance may have been planning a shooting in Cleveland or Pennsylvania, and Craig Dieter, the first victim, had noticed his guns. In his theory, the Johnsons were collateral damage. Aftermath Ben Campbell was one of 34 police officers presented the Top Cops award by President Barack Obama in May 2012, and later received the Law Enforcement Congressional Badge of Bravery in March 2013 for taking down Hance.Deike John 2013-03-26 Officer Receives Badge of Bravery for Gunning Down Copley Shooter en-US Patch https://patch.com/ohio/fairlawn-bath/officer-receives-medal-of-bravery-for-gunning-down-cofd347c8d84 2023-12-14Jones Bob 2021-02-23 Copley resource officer saves choking student at Copley Middle School en-US WEWS https://www.news5cleveland.com/news/local-news/akron-canton-news/copley-resource-officer-saves-choking-student-at-copley-middle-school 2023-12-14 On the anniversary of the shooting a year later, a memorial was held in remembrance of the victims. Flags in the community were hung at half-staff.Nethers Dave 2012-08-08 Copley Honors Shooting Victims 1 Year Later en-US WJW https://fox8.com/news/community-members-honor-slain-neighbors-1-year-later/ 2023-12-14 The only survivor, Hance's girlfriend, stated in August 2019, in the aftermath of the 2019 El Paso Walmart shooting and the 2019 Dayton shooting, that she still believed in the rights of the Second Amendment, but that she supported the proposal of a red flag law, even though she did not believe it would have stopped the shooting. She stated she believed Hance was suffering from a type of delusional disorder and was psychotic at the time.Byard Katie 2019-08-11 'This isn't happening': Survivor of 2011 Copley attack backs gun rights, but seeks stricter controls en-US Akron Beacon Journal https://www.beaconjournal.com/story/news/crime/2019/08/12/this-isn-t-happening/4482037007/ 2023-12-14 Gun rights advocate Massad Ayoob, writing for American Handgunner, argued that the response to the shooting was courageous on part of the police, and that the contribution of armed citizen Keith Lavery in taking down Hance was ignored by the media, which he called "disgraceful".Ayoob Massad Massad Ayoob 2013-11-01 The mass killer, the cop and the armed citizen American Handgunner en-US 0145-4250 Gun control advocate Tom Diaz argued in his book The Last Gun that the shooting was "quintessentially American", and that the media response to the shooting exemplified a "breathless but ultimately feckless" type of media reporting after mass shootings.Diaz Tom Tom Diaz https://books.google.com/books?id=2G8RBAAAQBAJ&dq=Michael+E.+Hance&pg=PA15 The Last Gun: How Changes in the Gun Industry Are Killing Americans and What It Will Take to Stop It 2013-04-02 The New Press 978-1-59558-830-2 15–18, 258–259 en-US Google Books References Category:2010s crimes in Ohio Category:2011 in Ohio Category:Summit County, Ohio Category:Deaths by firearm in Ohio Category:2011 murders in the United States Category:2010s mass murders in the United States Category:Murder in Ohio Category:2011 mass murders Category:2011 mass shootings in the United States Category:August 2011 crimes in the United States Category:Mass shootings in Ohio Category:Family murders in the United States Category:Mass shootings involving armed citizens Category:Attacks on residential buildings in the United States Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 2011 Category:Mass shootings involving revolvers