United States Secret Service
United States Department of Education
Federal Bureau of Investigation
Report published April 2010
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“In the wake of the Virginia Tech tragedy, many universities were
confronted with the troubling reality that one person can, in a few
brief moments, devastate a college community through an act of
targeted violence.” (Campus Attacks, pg. 27)
This report was developed in response to the April 16, 2006 Virginia Tech
incident:
 32 killed (27 students and 5 faculty)
 17 wounded
A collaborative endeavor of U.S. Secret Service, Department of
Education, and FBI
A review of 272 incidents of violence that affected Institutes of Higher
Education (IHEs) in the United States from 1900 through 2008
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 Report Citation:
Drysdale, D., Modzeleski, W., and Simons, A. (2010). Campus
Attacks: Targeted Violence Affecting Institutions of Higher
Education. U.S. Secret Service, U.S. Department of Homeland
Security, Office of Safe and Drug-Free Schools, U.S.
Department of Education, and Federal Bureau of
Investigation, U.S. Department of Justice. Washington, D.C.,
2010.
 Report Download Sites:
 http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac.shtml
 http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osdfs/resources.html
 http://www.fbi.gov/publications/campus/campus.pdf
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 Understand the scope of the problem of targeted
violence at IHEs
 Analyze where, when, and how the 272
incidents of targeted violence occurred
 Compile information on offenders and their
relationship to the IHEs
 Identify factors that may have motivated or
triggered the attacks
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Incident Study Inclusion Criteria:
 IHE students, employees, faculty, or events were
selected as a target, either specific
individuals/events or random selection that
matched the subject’s victim profile
 Targets were selected prior to the assault or at
the time of the assault
 Subject had the ability to employ lethal force
 272 incidents identified: 1900 – 2008, on-campus
or off campus, within U.S.
 (3/4 of incidents occurred after 1970)
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 Educational, residential, and workplace
environment
 Many buildings, large classrooms, uncontrolled
access
 Irregular student schedules
 Minimal regular contact between educators and
students
 Difficult to observe / recognize behavioral
concerns among students
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Table 3: Directed Assaults by Decade, 19002008 Decade
N
=
%
1900s
1
0.4
1910s
0
0.0
1920s
3
1.1
1930s
8
2.9
1940s
1
0.4
1950s
13
4.8
1960s
19
7.0
1970s
25
9.2
1980s
40
14.7
1990s
79
29.0
2000s*
83
30.5
Total
272
100.0
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Table 7: Factors that Motivated or Triggered the Directed Assaults Categories
n=
%
Related to an Intimate Relationship
77
33.9
Retaliation for Specific Action(s)
31
23
23
13.7
10.1
10.1
Refused Advances or Obsession with the Target
Response to Academic Stress/Failure
Acquaintance/Stranger Based Sexual Violence 22
Psychotic Actions
18
Workplace Dismissal/Sanction
14
9.7
7.9
6.2
Need to Kill / Specific Victimology
Draw Attention to Self/Issue(s)
Bias Related
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7
5
3.1
3.1
2.2
Total
227 100
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 Explore how the findings of this report can help you:



Identify individuals whose behavior causes concern or
disruption on or off campus.
Assess whether the identified individual possesses the
intent and ability to carry out an attack and if the
individual has taken any steps to prepare for the
attack.
Manage the threat posed by the individual, to include
disrupting potential plans of attack, mitigating the
risk, and implementing strategies to facilitate longterm resolution.
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 Go beyond open sources - thoroughly examine
case files and investigative records from campus
attacks in an effort to better serve the
professionals who work to ensure campus safety.
 Conduct a more detailed examination of
characteristics that were difficult or impossible
to measure due to inadequate or missing
information in the open sources (e.g., mental
illness, past behavior).
 Ultimate goal: identify offenders prior to an
attack and save lives!
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For your attention, and…
For everything you do to create safe campuses
where academic and personal growth can
flourish.
 Report Download Sites:
http://www.secretservice.gov/ntac.shtml
 http://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osdfs/resources.html
 http://www.fbi.gov/publications/campus/campus.pdf

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SA R. Mark Wood
314-58-2717
r.mark.wood@ic.fbi.gov
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