Speaker 1: We have an active shooter.
Speaker 2: We have an acter shooting's go ahead and to Claire,
Speaker 2: that's a mass casualty.
Speaker 1: Welcome to Active Shooter, a podcast that covers the whys,
Speaker 1: the hows, and the aftermath of active shooter and mass
Speaker 1: casualty events. I have an active shooter in the building,
Speaker 1: a checking call as our bag attacks.
Speaker 3: We got chush flier at four fifteen asl Brouge ninety one.
Speaker 3: So I'm like, oh, I'm at a fire.
Speaker 1: On active shooter. It's of an active shooter, active shooter,
Speaker 1: active shooter in mass casualty incidents. Thank you for listening.
Speaker 2: You are listening to Active Shooter, a podcast that may
Speaker 2: contain adult themes, explicit language, and graphic depictions of violence.
Speaker 2: Portions of this show may be traumatic for those under eighteen.
Speaker 2: Listener discretion is advised.
Speaker 4: Now to the school shooting in Perry, Iowa, police saying
Speaker 4: multiple people were shot at the local high school early
Speaker 4: this morning on the student's first day back to class.
Speaker 5: Law enforcement sources.
Speaker 4: Telling ABC News the gunman is dead and two victims
Speaker 4: were taken to the hospital.
Speaker 1: The new year is a time for a fresh start,
Speaker 1: or a reset of sorts. While many adults are trying
Speaker 1: to determine how long they can carry out their New
Speaker 1: year's resolutions. Most children and young people are still enraptured
Speaker 1: with the newness of the toys, clothing, and electronics that
Speaker 1: they receive for the holidays. The new year is rarely,
Speaker 1: if ever, associated with endings. Yet for the students and
Speaker 1: faculty at Perry High School, their first day back to
Speaker 1: school of the brand new year, January fourth, twenty four,
Speaker 1: marked the ending for some. Furthermore, that day was noted
Speaker 1: as the first school shooting of twenty twenty four, a
Speaker 1: distinction that no day wants and no one wants to give.
Speaker 1: Most students had just spent the previous two weeks at
Speaker 1: home with their families, celebrating the holidays and New Years,
Speaker 1: and looking forward to the promise of the new year.
Speaker 1: Many were eager to return to school, while others not
Speaker 1: so much. Still, there was a sense of excitement after
Speaker 1: returning from such a long hiatus, and students were busy
Speaker 1: catching up with friends about everything they did while on
Speaker 1: their break. They weren't prepared for the horrific violence that
Speaker 1: interrupted their morning and shattered their worlds. Today's case is
Speaker 1: dedicated to the lives and memories of the six injured
Speaker 1: survivors and the two deceased victims, Dan Marberger and Amir Joliffe.
Speaker 1: Active Shooter the podcast is a High five Holly production,
Speaker 1: and I'm your host JT. If you've listened to our
Speaker 1: prior episodes, you know that the Active Shooter podcast team
Speaker 1: has taken the no notoriety pledge and we will not
Speaker 1: be sharing the real name of the shooters that we cover.
Speaker 5: We will be.
Speaker 1: Giving the shooters a pseudonym and refer to them by
Speaker 1: that name throughout the episode. This will help in clearing
Speaker 1: up any confusion in the story while remaining true to
Speaker 1: our pledge and not naming the shooter by their actual name.
Speaker 1: We will refer to today's shooter as Dean. The shooting
Speaker 1: at the Perry High School is eerily similar to the
Speaker 1: shooting we covered in our last episode one thirteen. The
Speaker 1: CVPA school shooting. Both occurred first thing in the morning.
Speaker 1: A student and faculty member were killed in each shooting.
Speaker 1: The shooter was killed in each case, and in both cases,
Speaker 1: the shooter exhibited many red flags, either with their struggle
Speaker 1: with mental health issues, the are alarming social media content,
Speaker 1: or both. Both may have been prevented. Perry High School,
Speaker 1: a part of the Perry Community School District, is located
Speaker 1: at twelve hundred eighteenth Street in Perry, Iowa, which is
Speaker 1: approximately thirty miles from Des Moines. Perry is a small,
Speaker 1: young community of about eight thousand residents, nearly eighteen hundred
Speaker 1: residents or students attending K through twelve, and one of
Speaker 1: the Perry Community schools. The middle school and high school
Speaker 1: share one building and are connected by a hallway that
Speaker 1: is situated right next to the cafeteria, which is where
Speaker 1: you'll find the largest number of students gathered at one time.
Speaker 1: It's also where the shooting occurred that changed the live
Speaker 1: of so many young people, people who may have been
Speaker 1: still holding onto the innocence of youth. Outside, the weather
Speaker 1: was cold at thirty degrees fahrenheit, and it was overcast.
Speaker 1: Inside the school, it was bright and warm, as the
Speaker 1: school cafeteria hosted a morning breakfast program for all middle
Speaker 1: and high school students that morning. It was particularly busy
Speaker 1: as students were returning from the long holiday break and
Speaker 1: beginning the start of the second semester at school, which
Speaker 1: means starting new classes. The jazz band also practices in
Speaker 1: the cafeteria, and they were wrapping up practice and hustling
Speaker 1: out of the massive room off to put away their
Speaker 1: instruments and get on with their day. Elsewhere, seventeen year
Speaker 1: old Dean was busy recording TikTok videos, seemingly from a
Speaker 1: bathroom within the high school. In the video, Dean can
Speaker 1: be seen facing directly into the camera in front of
Speaker 1: a blue Duffel bag, and he captioned.
Speaker 5: The video with the words now we wait.
Speaker 1: The video was set to the track Stray Bullet, which
Speaker 1: is a song by a German rock band called KMFDM,
Speaker 1: which includes lyrics such as quote I am your nightmare
Speaker 1: coming true, I am your worst enemy. Perhaps the first
Speaker 1: indication that something terrible loomed is that this song could
Speaker 1: also be found on the former website of one of
Speaker 1: the Columbine Shooters. The first period bell hadn't rung yet,
Speaker 1: and while the cafeteria was busy, it wasn't quite as
Speaker 1: hectic in the school as it would be once the
Speaker 1: bell rang. Dean entered the cafeteria at seven thirty seven
Speaker 1: am carrying a pump action shotgun and a handgun. Without hesitation,
Speaker 1: he opened fire. Nine one one was called within the
Speaker 1: very same minute as the first bullet was fired. Students
Speaker 1: initially thought the gunshots were balloons popping or a book
Speaker 1: bag dropping.
Speaker 6: I just heard a couple of like bangs, not really gunshots.
Speaker 6: They're not very loud. And we saw a bunch of
Speaker 6: kids running and and we asked what happened because we
Speaker 6: were kind of concerned. But we thought it was just
Speaker 6: for a band or something, just messing around. But then
Speaker 6: one of my girlfriend's friends said that it was a shooting,
Speaker 6: so that there was a shooter with a gun, and
Speaker 6: then we got scared. But again we thought it was
Speaker 6: like a prank or something like a lot of people
Speaker 6: think about that stuff us. And that's when a bunch
Speaker 6: of clops started coming and we knew it was serious.
Speaker 6: And when we were trying to leave, one of our
Speaker 6: teachers started like screaming at us, and that's when we
Speaker 6: knew it was seriously. Were telling about to leave. Leave, leave,
Speaker 6: And that's when I got serious and like, I just
Speaker 6: heard a bunch of some of my friends I saw.
Speaker 1: The mind doesn't initially suspect gunfire inside of the hallways
Speaker 1: of an educational institution. When the paralyzing realization dawns on
Speaker 1: you that you are under attack, fight flight, or freeze
Speaker 1: kicks in. Such was the case for fifteen year old
Speaker 1: Xander Shelley, who was in the hallway outside of the
Speaker 1: cafeteria waiting for classes to start. He heard shots fired
Speaker 1: and started to run towards a nearby classroom. He was
Speaker 1: barely struck by the bullets that whizzed past, and he
Speaker 1: managed to make it into the classroom, where he texted
Speaker 1: his father that there was a school shooter. Upon clearing
Speaker 1: the school, Xander was rushed to Iowa Methodist Medical Center,
Speaker 1: where he was treated for gunshot wounds. He was released
Speaker 1: the same day, physically intact, but emotionally he was a
Speaker 1: different person than the one who woke up that morning.
Speaker 1: He was a child, no more. Several of the jazz
Speaker 1: band members were exiting the cafeteria when the gunfire started.
Speaker 1: Some ran outside to the football field and beyond. They
Speaker 1: ran until they couldn't run anymore, or until they felt
Speaker 1: far enough away from the danger inside the school. Back
Speaker 1: inside of the cafeteria, Principal Dan Marberger attempted to approach Dean.
Speaker 1: He sprittly tried to reason with the student to drop
Speaker 1: the weapon. This heroic maneuver allowed many students the chance
Speaker 1: to escape physically unharmed. Principal Marburger wasn't as fortunate. Dean
Speaker 1: shot the principal several times. He too was rushed to
Speaker 1: the hospital, but he passed away ten days later, unable
Speaker 1: to overcome the extensive injuries he sustained. Fifty six year
Speaker 1: old Dan Marberger was born on June sixth, nineteen sixty seven,
Speaker 1: in Clinton, Iowa. Dan graduated from East Central Community High
Speaker 1: School in Miles, Iowa, before heading off to college. He
Speaker 1: earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Central College in
Speaker 1: nineteen eighty nine. After college, Dan returned to East Central
Speaker 1: High School, where he taught computer skills and social studies,
Speaker 1: and he coached football, golf, and girls basketball. He even
Speaker 1: served as the athletic director for the school while.
Speaker 5: He was teaching.
Speaker 1: Dan went back to school to earn a Master's of
Speaker 1: Science degree in educational administration from Drake University. In nineteen
Speaker 1: ninety five, Dan moved to Perry, Iowa, and was offered
Speaker 1: a job as the associate principal at the high school.
Speaker 1: In nineteen ninety seven, when he was only thirty years old,
Speaker 1: he was hired as the principal of Parry High where
Speaker 1: he continued to serve up until the date of the shooting.
Speaker 1: Dan was proud to have implemented many academic programs into
Speaker 1: the schools program, and in two thousand seven, he earned
Speaker 1: the honor of being named Iowa High School Athletic Directors
Speaker 1: Association Administrator of the Year. Dan was a passionate educator,
Speaker 1: but he equally loved traveling, especially with his family, who
Speaker 1: was his number one priority. He was known to enjoy
Speaker 1: an afternoon of reading or golfing, or watching sports and
Speaker 1: grilling out with his family. The avid sports fan was
Speaker 1: a devoted Iowa Hawkeyes fan, but he also supported the
Speaker 1: Vikings and White Sox. Dan is survived by his beloved wife, Elizabeth,
Speaker 1: and their five children and four grandchildren. Moments after Dan
Speaker 1: was shot, Dean continued to fire into the cafeteria and
Speaker 1: adjacent hallway. Sixth grader Amir Joliffe was struck by one
Speaker 1: of the errant bullets. The eleven year old was pronounced
Speaker 1: dead at the scene, and his death has deeply impacted
Speaker 1: the community. Born in twenty twelve in Chicago, Illinois, Amir
Speaker 1: was vivacious. He was a lively young boy who wore
Speaker 1: a constant smile, so much so his nickname was Smiley.
Speaker 1: He loved life and was the first to stick up
Speaker 1: for another child if they were being bullied. Amir wanted
Speaker 1: others to get along and he was happiest when on
Speaker 1: the move. His family says that Amir was never one
Speaker 1: to stand still and always sought adventure. The youngster had
Speaker 1: a lot of hobbies and interests, including band, choir, soccer,
Speaker 1: and like most kids his age, playing video games. Amrr
Speaker 1: will be missed each and every day by his four siblings, parents,
Speaker 1: and so many others whom he touched. Police were on
Speaker 1: the scene by seven forty five am, but the school
Speaker 1: had already begun sheltering in place. When officers entered the school,
Speaker 1: they located Dean with a pump action shotgun and small
Speaker 1: caliber handgun. He was deceased, having died from a self
Speaker 1: inflicted gunshot wound. The school was searched and a homemade
Speaker 1: bomb was found. It was described as rudimentary and was
Speaker 1: safely disarmed. The FBI and ATF also responded to the
Speaker 1: scene and assisted in the subsequent investigation. Students were rescued
Speaker 1: from inside of the school and rounded up from nearby
Speaker 1: neighborhoods where they ran and sought shelter in area homes.
Speaker 1: There were over one hundred and fifty officers on scene,
Speaker 1: and reunification centers were established at the Perry Lutheran Home,
Speaker 1: the McCreery Community Building, and the National Guard Armory.
Speaker 7: All unit's Dallas County. Who's got an active spears.
Speaker 8: Activation at Perry High School?
Speaker 7: Active spears activation at Perry High School? It's gonna be
Speaker 7: in reference to possible possible gun shots at Perry High School?
Speaker 8: That way, Dallas one direct?
Speaker 3: Do you have access to the.
Speaker 8: Cameras we're getting pulled up now. We've got somebody down
Speaker 8: in the hallway.
Speaker 7: Copy, we see something on the west of Hallway West, Holly,
Speaker 7: what chale am?
Speaker 3: I switching to all male subject down in the hallway
Speaker 3: appears to be self inflicted wounds. I'm showing other victims Dallas.
Speaker 3: Subject that's down as deceased. Copy subject down deceased.
Speaker 8: Good location.
Speaker 3: We are outside of room freeze early.
Speaker 7: We're gonna need multiple ambulances, so we're gonna need both
Speaker 7: other MS units headed that way as well.
Speaker 8: Do we have a number of victims are estimated? We're
Speaker 8: a victim.
Speaker 3: Coffee we're getting multiple reports.
Speaker 8: Dallas by the ninety three. Let's go ahead and put
Speaker 8: both the helicopters in route. Also, let's get very fire
Speaker 8: there so that we can have planning zone. Say we
Speaker 8: can start triage patients our ambulance. Can you reserve a
Speaker 8: helicopter forming any patients?
Speaker 5: Do we have on creams.
Speaker 8: Unknown at this time, we have two in our truck.
Speaker 8: Reports of multiple inside Dallas. It's Folk County been advised
Speaker 8: to advise all the hospitals of it possible mash casually
Speaker 8: inclement coffee.
Speaker 7: We're calling them now.
Speaker 8: Middle school has been.
Speaker 3: Cleared.
Speaker 8: Officers are doing the secondary suite question.
Speaker 7: So we've got triage area currently. He's advising no other
Speaker 7: incoming units need to come into the school right now.
Speaker 7: I am in.
Speaker 8: Command of EMS Transports. We believe that we have our
Speaker 8: most critical out.
Speaker 1: Dean was born on October eleventh, two thousand and six,
Speaker 1: in Des Moines, Iowa. The first ten years of his
Speaker 1: life were spent living in Jamaica, and while living there,
Speaker 1: he had a younger sister, who was born in twenty eleven.
Speaker 1: Dean enjoyed living in Jamaica and loved taking fishing trips
Speaker 1: to the Sandbar. The family eventually moved to Perry, Iowa,
Speaker 1: where Dean's father was the manager at the Perry Municipal Airport.
Speaker 1: After working as the public works director for the City
Speaker 1: of Perry, Dean's mother owned her own business, though the
Speaker 1: specific type of business is unknown. She also served on
Speaker 1: the city Development board, and overall their family was very
Speaker 1: involved with their community. Dean, a senior at Perry High School,
Speaker 1: was described as private and kept to himself. Some reports
Speaker 1: indicate that he was the target of bullying and had
Speaker 1: been for much of the time he was in school
Speaker 1: in Iowa. Dean spent a substantial amount of time online,
Speaker 1: and he used his social media presence to discuss his
Speaker 1: obsession with different serial killers, including Jeffrey Dahmer. He posted
Speaker 1: photos of himself posing with firearms, and his entire social
Speaker 1: media presence was a depiction of a mass shooter in
Speaker 1: the making. Dean wasn't close with many people, but he
Speaker 1: did have two friends who both say he just became
Speaker 1: tired of being bullied all the time. He hated going
Speaker 1: to school and being tormented, but he mostly just dealt
Speaker 1: with it. After he learned that his little sister was
Speaker 1: starting to get bullied too. Dean snapped, he was one thing,
Speaker 1: but he'd be damned if his sister was going to
Speaker 1: live with the same harassment he did. His friends say
Speaker 1: that Dean was actually the nicest kid and they really
Speaker 1: didn't understand why he was singled out so much. There
Speaker 1: was a number of concerning posts on Dean's social media,
Speaker 1: specifically his TikTok. In one video, Dean was seen mimicking
Speaker 1: quote the Cook from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies, while
Speaker 1: yet another clip showed Dean pointing a stick at a
Speaker 1: friend while pretending it was a gun. He referred to
Speaker 1: himself as a stoner in at least one video, and
Speaker 1: multiple photos showed Dean with various firearms. He had over
Speaker 1: two hundred and fifty followers on TikTok before it was
Speaker 1: eventually taken down. Dean's most frequently used social media app, however,
Speaker 1: was called Discord, which is really more of a messaging platform.
Speaker 1: A number of the messages were recovered, and one such
Speaker 1: message indicated that he was at school.
Speaker 5: End quote ready for what's to come.
Speaker 1: About ten minutes after that message, another one was posted saying, quote, I'm.
Speaker 5: Fucking nervous, I'm in the bathroom gearing up.
Speaker 1: Dean continued using a racial slur and writing quote.
Speaker 5: I need him to leave so I can assemble my guns.
Speaker 1: It was also discovered that Dean belonged to a chat
Speaker 1: group on Discord called School Massacre's Discussion, and the group
Speaker 1: was meant for exactly what it was named. The entire
Speaker 1: premise is completely disturbing, and indeed, at least one other
Speaker 1: Discord user thought so as well, as they reportedly flagged
Speaker 1: the chat group to the FBI the November before the shooting.
Speaker 1: Whatever happened with that report is unknown, but this user
Speaker 1: most definitely did the right thing in reporting it. These
Speaker 1: are precisely the types of posts, groups, or content. These
Speaker 1: are precisely the types of posts, groups, or content that
Speaker 1: should be reported to authorities any time you see it.
Speaker 1: Perhaps if this tip was thoroughly acted upon immediately, we
Speaker 1: wouldn't be reporting on this case. For their part, Discord
Speaker 1: released a statement saying the following quote. Our deepest sympathies
Speaker 1: are with the victims, their families, and the community in Perry,
Speaker 1: Iowa following yesterday's horrific shooting. Discord has a zero tolerance
Speaker 1: policy against content that glorifies violence and violent extremism, which
Speaker 1: is reflected in our community guidelines. We took immediate action
Speaker 1: against the suspect and his content and are currently cooperading
Speaker 1: with law enforcement to assist them in their continuing investigation.
Speaker 1: The shooter's parents were horrified to learn that their son
Speaker 1: was capable of committing such violence. They had no idea
Speaker 1: who was planning such a terrible attack, and in fact,
Speaker 1: they had been discussing future plans with him, never imagining
Speaker 1: he intended anything but a bright and productive future. A
Speaker 1: memorial was held at a local park on the same
Speaker 1: day as the shooting, and a number of GoFundMe accounts
Speaker 1: were established for the families of the deceased and injured.
Speaker 1: The governor ordered all flags to be lowered half staff.
Speaker 1: We all have the unique ability to help prevent such
Speaker 1: a catastrophic event from happening if we keep our eyes
Speaker 1: and ears open and never hesitate to report when something
Speaker 1: or someone just doesn't seem right. With the delicate balance
Speaker 1: of mental health reform, education, active shooter training, and common
Speaker 1: sense gun laws, we may one day rea the dream,
Speaker 1: the dream that there will be no more active shootings.
Speaker 1: We pray that love will prevail over hate.
Speaker 8: Too many have died, we should say to ourselves, not
Speaker 8: one more.
Speaker 1: In the meantime, we urge our listeners to stay aware
Speaker 1: of your surroundings and keep in touch with your loved ones.
Speaker 1: If you see something, say something, you never know how
Speaker 1: many lives you'll be saving. Thank you for listening to
Speaker 1: today's episode of Active Shooter the Podcast. Remember, if you
Speaker 1: see something, say something, there's no telling how many lives
Speaker 1: you may be saving. A big thank you to Darren Curtis,
Speaker 1: who composed some of the songs on our show. You
Speaker 1: can find him online at www dot Darrencurtis music dot com.
Speaker 1: Make sure to check us out on social media. You
Speaker 1: can find us on Facebook at Active Shooter the Podcast
Speaker 1: and on Twitter at podcast Active. Thank you and be safe.