Ore. shooter turned weapon on himself

Suicide came after his wounding, in front of students.

Christopher HarperMercer killed himself after being wounded by detectives.

Christopher Harper-Mercer, the gunman who killed nine people last week in an attack at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, turned a gun on himself after he was wounded in a shootout with police officers, officials said Wednesday.

Douglas County District Attorney Rick Wesenberg said at a news conference that two plainclothes detectives responded to reports of the shootings at the school in Roseburg and exchanged gunfire with Harper-Mercer before he killed himself.

Harper-Mercer wounded nine students in the attack.

Wesenberg praised the officers for their quick response and said their use of force was justified.

“These men saved lives that day,” Wesenberg said.

Over the weekend, officials said Harper-Mercer, 26, had committed suicide after police responded to an emergency call for help. Wesenberg gave new details about the confrontation.

The two officers, who were not wearing bulletproof vests, saw Harper-Mercer in a doorway inside Snyder Hall after he had opened fire on an English class. The gunman fired several rounds at the detectives, who returned fire, hitting him once in the right side. He then went back inside the classroom, where many of his victims lay dead or wounded, and shot himself.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin has said the quick action by officers Joe Kaney, 49, and Todd Spingath, 41, helped save dozens of lives.

Officials recovered six weapons at the school, at least five magazines of ammunition and a flak vest worn by Harper-Mercer. Eight other weapons were recovered at his home.

Harper-Mercer’s mother, Laurel Harper, allowed her son to have guns and acknowledged in online posts that he struggled with autism.

She and her son shared an apartment outside Roseburg. Neighbors of the mother and son in California, where they lived before moving to Oregon in 2013, have said the two went target shooting together.

In her online postings, Laurel Harper talked about her love of guns and her son’s emotional troubles, but there are no hints of worry that he could become violent.

One posting reads: “He’s no babbling idiot nor is his life worthless. He’s very intelligent and is working on a career in filmmaking.”

A private memorial has been held for Lawrence Levine, who was killed while teaching the class. Another private service was held Wednesday for 44-year-old Sarena Dawn Moore of Myrtle Creek. More funerals are scheduled through Saturday.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin has said the quick action by officers helped save dozens of lives.