Cupertino quarry shooting

Cupertino quarry shooting
Location	Cupertino, California, United States
Coordinates	37°19′1″N 122°5′31″W / 37.31694°N 122.09194°W / 37.31694; -122.09194
Date	October 5, 2011 (2011-10-05) 4:00 a.m. (Pacific Time)
Target	Co-workers
Attack type	Spree killing, massacre
Weapon(s)	Glock pistol, AK-47 assault rifle, another assault rifle, and a shotgun
Death(s)	4 (including the perpetrator)
Injured	7
Perpetrator	Shareef Allman

The Cupertino quarry shooting occurred on October 5, 2011, in a quarry in Cupertino, California. This shooting spree left three people dead and six others injured. Shortly thereafter, the shooter, Shareef Allman, shot a woman whose car he was attempting to carjack.^[1] It was initially believed that Allman was shot to death by Santa Clara County sheriff's deputies in Sunnyvale on October 6, but an autopsy revealed that Allman had committed suicide.^[2][3]

The shooter

The shooter, Shareef Allman, was 47 years old and worked at the quarry.^[4] Allman was an employee of Lehigh Hanson's Permanente Cement Plant, the site of the quarry in the hills to the west of Cupertino. He had worked at the plant for 15 years.

Allman married singer Qwen Mejia in July 1989. She is also known as Valeri Allman.^[5] Their marriage was marred by a series of violent incidents perpetrated by Allman against his wife, according to court documents. Mejia obtained a restraining order against Allman in 1992 and divorced him.

Allman fathered a daughter, Lashae Allman, who was born in 1993. Lashae Allman's mother was a woman other than Qwen Mejia.

Shareef Allman wrote a novel, "Amazing Grace," about a fictional victim of domestic abuse who overcame her tribulations with the help of God.

Victims

The three men killed are: Mark Muñoz, 59, of San Jose; John Vallejos, 51, of San Jose; and Manuel Guadalupe Piñon, 48, of Newman. Among the seven people injured were Jesse Vallejos and Mike Ambrosio.^[6][7]

Other

Allman's rampage also caused a variety of schools, such as Lawson Middle School, and Stratford Middle School to have lockdowns.

See also

• Spree killer
• List of workplace killings by number of victims
• List of rampage killers
• List of massacres in the United States

References

1. ^ Newman, Bruce; Fernandez, Lisa; Gomez, Mark; Webby, Sean (2011-10-05). "Cupertino quarry shooting suspect who killed 3, wounded 7 still on loose". San Jose Mercury News. http://www.mercurynews.com/sunnyvale/ci_19051702. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
2. ^ Webby, Sean; Fernandez, Lisa (2011-10-06). "How Cupertino homicide suspect Shareef Allman eluded huge manhunt for 22 hours". San Jose Mercury News. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_19053663. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
3. ^ http://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2011/10/coroner-calif-quarry-killer-died-from-self-inflicted-gunshot/1?csp=34news
4. ^ Kaplan, Tracey (2011-10-06). "Documents: Cupertino gunman's ex-wife said he had violent temper and assaulted her". San Jose Mercury News. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_19055444. Retrieved 2011-10-07. "His ex-wife sought a restraining order against him in 1992, accusing him of assaulting her on several occasions, including bashing her with a brass lamp and knocking her unconscious in a clash that drew the police -- nearly two decades before his deadly rampage at a Cupertino cement plant." 
5. ^ Fernandez, Lisa; Gomez, Mark (2011-10-06). "Cupertino triple homicide suspect shot and killed". San Jose Mercury News. http://www.mercurynews.com/crime-courts/ci_19053900. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
6. ^ de Sá, Karen; Krieger, Lisa M. (2011-10-05). "Victims described as hard-working family men". San Jose Mercury News. http://www.mercurynews.com/sunnyvale/ci_19049296. Retrieved 2011-10-07. 
7. ^ Sulek, Julia Prodis (2011-10-06). "Cupertino cement plant shooting victim recalls bloody morning". San Jose Mercury News. http://www.mercurynews.com/sunnyvale/ci_19053310. Retrieved 2011-10-07.