An apparent murder-suicide that left two men and a woman dead in a San Jose State parking garage were the first killings on campus since 1994, but for the city of San Jose, the Tuesday night homicides marked the 19th and 20th so far this year -- a number equal to all the city's homicides committed in 2010.
San Jose has long been considered one of the safest cities in America, coming in fourth for the past three years among cities with populations over 500,000, according to FBI statistics.
But with 20 homicides in the first five months of the year, including three multiple homicides, the question is raised whether the city is growing more dangerous. It's an assertion that bristles San Jose police.
"How do you factor in these cases that are isolated incidences?" Sgt. Jason Dwyer, spokesman for the San Jose Police Department, asked Wednesday. "If someone goes over the deep end, is that an accurate assessment of how safe the city is? Of course, one homicide is too many and we're not minimizing it. But you really need to talk about the motives behind them and see what effect they have on the overall safety of the city."
The homicide rates in the Bay Area's second- and third-largest cities also are up, although not as dramatically as in San Jose. San Francisco had recorded 21 homicides as of May 7, compared with 17 at the same time in 2010. Oakland had 35 homicides as of May 8, up from 31 at the same time last year. There were 10 homicides in San Jose at this time last year.
The motive for Tuesday evening's killings at San Jose State is still being investigated, and university officials said little Wednesday. But one witness at the crime scene on the fifth floor of the university's 10th Street garage said a young man and woman were found shot to death in a black Mercedes.
The shooting suspect, who died at the hospital, was found next to the car. A small handgun was recovered near him.
Campus officials declined to release the names of the three people Wednesday.
University spokeswoman Pat Lopes Harris said only that the victims were connected to the university.
It seems likely they are students, however, because Harris called this week's killings "unprecedented" and university police Chief Peter Decena said the 1994 killing on campus was different because it "was not a student."
Tuesday's shooting was reported at 8:36 p.m. as students were coming and going from evening classes.
Several witnesses were in the garage at the time, Decena said, and they have been interviewed by police. Campus police are leading the investigation, although they are getting help from San Jose Police Department homicide investigators and crime scene veterans.
The killing was not gang-related, and none of those involved had criminal records, Harris said.
"We're still looking into how the three knew each other," she said.
One student who lives across the street from the garage said he heard at least 10 shots fired in rapid succession. Kevin Seay, 21, was home when he heard six popping sounds. He asked a roommate whether he heard anything, and then he heard six to eight more shots. About 45 minutes later, Seay heard what he believes was a single gunshot.
A university public address system was activated within about 30 minutes of the shooting, telling people in classrooms and school offices that there was no threat to the campus community, Harris said.
An email alert followed more than an hour after that with a similar message from university police, saying the "suspect is in custody." It was sent to those who had registered for the alert system, she said, including faculty and about half the student body.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
