(PHOTO: BOLIVAR)
The victim in the Delta State University shooting has been identified as Professor Ethan Schmidt, campus officials confirmed Monday afternoon.
Chief Buster Bingham, Cleveland Police Department, said DSU police were contacted this morning about a shooting in Jobe Hall, and reports indicate the shooting occurred. The victim has been identified as Professor Ethan Schmidt, and a suspect is on the large. The suspect is not being named at this time, but authorities tell PPD he is another professor who was involved in a love triangle with an unnamed woman and the deceased victim.
Professor Shannon S. Lamb, 45, the Geographer and Coordinator Director of the Social Sciences Education Program, has been identified as a person of interest by law enforcement. His girlfriend was found dead in the town of Gautier, Mississippi, on the morning of September 14 shortly before the shooting at Delta University commenced.
Don Mitchell, an Associate Professor of English at Delta State University, who worked with both Schmidt and the suspected shooter, characterized the victim as an “excellent family man and expert on native American culture.” Mitchell also said Lamb is currently on leave, which he took last semester for personal reasons.
“I just know that two or three days before class he said he couldn’t teach,” Mitchell said. “I know he was teaching something online, so he was still teaching something for the university.”
The law enforcement command center is located at the corner of Fifth Avenue and Highway 8. University Relations Vice President Michelle Roberts said it is a “tragic situation, and the entire campus sends its heartfelt thoughts and sympathy to Professor Schmidt’s family.”
All classes at Delta State University have been cancelled for the remainder of the day and night, along with plans to commemorate the 90th anniversary of the campus set for Tuesday.
All faculty, staff and students who have been cleared from academic buildings were moved to Sillers Coliseum, and officials say students currently in residence halls should remain there. Campus administrators are working to get food, water and counselors to the Coliseum. Police are working to clear all campus buildings, and students, faculty and staff should stay where they are until they are escorted out.
