Saturday, December 09, 2006

It's not easy being a lawyer

Police: Chicago gunman angry over patent

CHICAGO - The gunman who fatally shot three people in a law firm's high-rise office before he was killed by police felt cheated over an invention, authorities said Saturday.

Joe Jackson forced a security guard at gunpoint to take him up to the 38th floor offices of Wood, Phillips, Katz, Clark & Mortimer, which specialized in intellectual property and patents. He carried a revolver, knife and hammer in a large manila envelope and chained the office doors behind him, police said.

Jackson, 59, told police before he was shot that he had been cheated over a toilet he had invented for use in trucks, Police Superintendent Phil Cline said Saturday.

He was holding a hostage at gunpoint Friday when a SWAT officer shot him from about 45 yards away, Cline said earlier. There were no negotiations and the hostage was unharmed, police said.

"There was at least another 25 to 30 people on the floor and I think the Chicago police officers from SWAT saved those people's lives," he said.

Mayor Richard Daley said police did a "tremendous" job handling the situation.

The confrontation at the 43-story Citigroup Center sent office workers fleeing and stranded commuters who use a train station in the building.

posted by Hash & Hana at 2:21 PM

2 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I was in that building on Friday afternoon as it was happening, the lower three floors are a mall and offices upstairs...one of the ritziest areas of Chicago...It was horrifying...Of the five people he shot, only one survived

2:58 PM  
Blogger AKA said...

You know this is actually one of my fears - being threatened by an client. I didn't think it actually happened...

Ruby, I can't believe you were there while it was happening! Though it's tragic that he killed four people, I guess people can be somewhat thankful that the gunman was brought down and didn't go berserk in the mall downstairs.

8:56 PM  

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