New York Times
The gunman, who apparently killed himself, was an employee of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, a regional transit agency for Silicon Valley.
SAN JOSE, Calif. — A municipal transit worker opened fire as the Wednesday morning shift was gathering for work at a San Jose rail yard, killing nine people in the latest of the mass shootings that have plagued the United States this year.
California law enforcement officials identified the gunman as Samuel James Cassidy, 57, a maintenance worker who had been with the Silicon Valley’s regional transit agency for at least a decade. The authorities said he appeared to have killed himself at the scene.
It was unclear how many people were wounded, officials said.
The gunman was an employee of the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority, which oversees bus, rail and paratransit service for commuters, said Sgt. Russell Davis, a spokesman for the county sheriff’s office. He did not identify the weapon used, or offer a possible motive, although Mayor Sam Liccardo of San Jose said Mr. Cassidy’s co-workers had “expressed generalized concerns about his mental health.”
At the rail yard, workers said, panic erupted as word spread of gunfire in two buildings. While bomb squads searched for explosives there, firefighters were responding to a blaze at Mr. Cassidy’s empty home, about eight miles away.