UCLA shooting: gunman and professor dead

An engineering professor at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) has been fatally shot.

William Klug, associate professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering, has been identified as one of two people who died in a shooting at one of the university’s engineering buildings on 1 June. The gunman then turned the gun on himself, according to multiple sources.

Charlie Beck, Los Angeles police department chief, told a news conference that “a homicide and a suicide occurred”.

“It appears to be entirely contained...There are no suspects outstanding and no continuing threat to UCLA’s campus,” he added. "[There is] evidence there could be a suicide note but we don’t know at this point.”

Claudia Peschiutta, a Los Angeles-based journalist, tweeted that the gunman was a student who was “apparently despondent about grades”, but this has not been confirmed.

#UCLAshooting: Student apparently despondent about his grades shot professor & then killed himself, according to law enf source. @KNX1070

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— Claudia Peschiutta (@ReporterClaudia) June 1, 2016

The UCLA campus reopened yesterday afternoon, following a lockdown after the shooting, but all classes were cancelled.

Scott Waugh, executive vice-chancellor and provost at UCLA, said classes, except those taking place in the Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, will resume on 2 June, but engineering classes will be cancelled for the rest of the week. He said the incident will not affect final examinations, which begin next week.

In a statement posted on the university’s website on 1 June, UCLA chancellor Gene Block said that counselling services would be available for all students and staff.

“Our hearts are heavy this evening as our campus family mourns the sudden and tragic deaths of two people on our campus earlier today. The thoughts and prayers of our entire UCLA family are with the victims’ families and the students, faculty and staff of UCLA Engineering,” he said.

“Our UCLA family has indeed been shaken, but we will rely upon the strong bonds of our community and our faith in one another as we begin the process of healing.”

In 2014, University of California, Berkeley chancellor Nicholas Dirks told Times Higher Education that universities in the US need to do more to prevent fatal shootings, following a series of gun-related incidents involving school and college students.

ellie.bothwell@tesglobal.com