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Florida State reopens library where three shot, gunman killed

By Bill Cotterell

TALLAHASSEE Fla. (Reuters) – Florida State University reopened its main library on Friday, the day after a gunman injured three people when he opened fire in the lobby of the building where hundreds of students were studying for final exams.

Normal activities resumed on the North Florida campus, where one student was critically injured by an alumnus who fired a semi-automatic handgun in the lobby of Strozier Library around 12:30 a.m. on Thursday and then was shot dead outside by law enforcement officers.

“It’s hard coming back,” said Taylor Krause, a senior from Atlanta, while waiting for the library to reopen.

The library was “the place I felt most safe on campus,” said Krause, who was inside during the shooting. “Now that’s probably not going to be the case for a while.”

University President John Thrasher greeted students at the entrance to the library, noting the school could not have anticipated that it would experience the latest in a string of campus shootings.

“What happened yesterday is certainly not passed, but we know the kids want to move ahead,” Thrasher told reporters. “They’re here to learn.”

About 40,000 students attend Florida State, a research university well-known nationally for its strength in football.

Authorities continued to investigate the motives of the shooter, Myron May, saying he had experienced a mental crisis. Police said journals and videos by the 31-year-old lawyer showed that he thought he was being targeted by the government.

A 2005 Florida State graduate, May received his law degree in Texas. He recently moved back to Florida after quitting his job and breaking up with his girlfriend in New Mexico, where he told authorities he heard voices and thought he was being watched, according to police reports.

Two of his three victims were doing well. A library employee who was shot in the leg was in good condition at a hospital, and one student had suffered only graze wounds.

There were no updates on Friday morning on the condition of a student last reported in critical condition at Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, whose family had requested privacy.

(Writing by Letitia Stein; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)