Maryland shooting: Five victims of Capital Gazette shooting named as employees of the newspaper
Four of the victims were members of the editorial staff, and one worked on the sales team for the paper
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Your support makes all the difference.Police with the Anne Arundel County Police Department have named the five victims of the shooting at the Capital Gazette newspaper offices in Annapolis, Maryland, where a gunman opened fire on Thursday afternoon.
William Krampf, the acting police chief with the department, read the names aloud during a press conference Thursday night, breaking from previous statements that he would not hold another press conference until Friday morning.
Pointedly refusing to name the shooting suspect — even though several news outlets had reported his name online — Mr Krampf said that he and his investigators have an obligation to the victims and their family as they push forward with the investigation. A later tweet from the Anne Arundel Police Department noted that they had not released the suspect's name for investigative reasons, and said that the suspect had not been booked, and that no booking photo was available.
"We have an obligation and a responsibility to these victims that we get it right," he said, "and we only get the chance to do that once".
The victims are as follows:
Wendi Waters has been described as a prolific writer, focused and engaged with chronicling her community. One colleague, Adam Zielonka, said on Twitter that "Wendi would smile and say hi to me whenever I walked by her desk, starting before we were really introduced. I regret every time I did not return the smile and greeting. A truly friendly and genuine woman". Her work for the paper can be read here.
Rebecca Smith was identified online as a sales assistant at the newspaper, and her Facebook profile says she started at the company in November. She described herself in that profile as follows: "Dog mom. Softball fiance. Bonus Mom to the best kid ever". Her profile shows her alongside her finacé and their child.
Robert Hiaasen was an assistant editor at the newspaper, and his Facebook profile shows that he and his wife of 33 years and celebrated their anniversary less than a week ago. His Facebook profile showed that he taught classes for young journalists, and brought in Baltimore area reporters and writers for guest speeches to help cultivate the young minds. His work can be read here. His work for the paper can be read here.
John Mcnamara was a published author who The Baltimore Sun — which owns Capital Gazette — reports was an avid movie-goer fan of rock and folk music, and a man who got his dream job reporting on sports. His work fo the paper can be read here.
Gerald Fischman has been described as a writer who was quiet and withdrawn in a way that masked a "brilliant mind, wry wit and 'wicked pen' that his colleagues would treasure", according to The Sun. His work for the paper can be read here.
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