News - OnLine
Interview with the Superintendent
Sniper Weeks: 'It Seemed Like it Would Never End'

By Lasso Staff (November 4, 2002) Transcribed By Kristin Sommers
 

For three stressful weeks in October, snipers held entire communities hostage to their reign of terror and death. School systems were at the heart of the concerns, especially after the snipers shot a middle school student in Maryland. Most school systems curtailed after-school activities and brought recess inside. Lasso Online interviewed Falls Church Schools Superintendent Mary Ellen Shaw about her role in the decision making process surrounding these painful weeks. 

Lasso Online: At which point in what we now know as a series of sniper attacks did you know you would have to get directly involved with decisions that would affect us?
Superintendent Mary Ellen Shaw had to 
make many key decisions during the 
three-week sniper scare.
Shaw: Well it happened rather quickly, but the situation was unclear at first. Our local police had received reports about the original shootings in Maryland. So Officer Rau (the school’s SRO) came up here and another officer went to the elementary schools. Then I had a call from Officer Whitney that word had come from Maryland that there had been shootings and that they wanted us to know that it had occurred. Sadly, we hear about shootings all the time and so, my question was, "Is there any reason why we should think this would affect us?" The answer I got at that time was "no," but that there was a concern that there was a series of shootings and the suspects were loose. So I called Police Chief Murray, and asked him if there was any reason why we should think we were in any danger here in Falls Church and his answer was "no." There was nothing they knew about where the suspects had gone or where they had been that would connect them at all to Falls Church. So at that point we knew that some terrible thing had happened in the Metropolitan area, but it didn’t seem to have any bearing on us specifically. It slowly crept up, and I’m sure it was the same for all of you at home, that we had the shootings in Maryland and the next step that seemed to bring it closer was when the student was shot. So that was probably the time at which it did seem "all right now it’s related to schools" and it’s related to decisions we had to make. And so that was when I realized that it was a possibility that all of a sudden this was going to involve schools and students and things we have to worry about.

Lasso Online: If you were not in a position of authority what would your decision have been?

Shaw: Well personally I went home at night and I continued to do things I normally do.. My husband I went out for walks, although I have to say I stood near trees and walked quickly. My personal decision was that I had to continue to live my life and I didn’t want to do anything foolish, but I also didn’t want to hide inside my house all the time. I did think about where I would get gas and I live right near Seven Corners and so on Saturday I went to get gas because I thought no one would go to Seven Corners and think they could get away quickly because the traffic is awful. So I thought this is a perfectly safe place to get gas. Then on Sunday my husband went there to Home Depot at 7:00 and the shooting happened a couple of hours later. So you make the personal decisions thinking you’re being reasonable and safe and then it comes very close to you so it’s a hard call.

Lasso Online: Would your subsequent decisions have been different if there hadn’t been a shooting at a school?

Shaw: I think it would have. I think there were two things. One being that it had happened to a student. In addition, some of us were concerned about what role the media played in the sequence of events that happened. My perspective is that in the attempt to provide a lot of coverage the media reached beyond the actual story and began giving a lot of other information. And at some point there were statements made about how the killings had not affected schools or students. I think that possibly the shooting was in reaction to that statement and some of the other things that happened later seemed to be the perpetrators responding to what they saw as challenges; as if they were going to show the media that they could and they would. I think when the shooting at the middle school happened that it raised our concern. We then felt that we were dealing with someone who was not reacting to a specific situation--like being angry at a former boss or having a reason to go out and hurt a person--but just someone who was showing that they could do damage and that they could inflict death and pain on lots of people. That’s when it became apparent that we had issues about how safe we were. It was still over in Maryland. That was our thinking when I talked to other superintendents. Was it a Maryland thing vs. a Virginia thing? Then the next shooting happened in Manassas, so all of those things you were using to draw your conclusions that it isn’t really coming to us were starting to fall away. First it was a student, then it was Virginia and that’s when it became clear that we were more at risk than we thought we would be.

Lasso Online: Tell us more about the media and your concerns.
 

Shaw met with Lasso Online reporters to discuss
crucial decisions related to the sniper shootings.
(Photos by Andrea Genovese Soares)

Shaw: A day or two before the suspects were caught I had a call from Channel 4. This was when we were still trying to let our teams go away to games but keep it quiet. We had moved the cross-country meet to Clark County. Channel 4 called to confirm that it was moved, and I told the reporter I didn’t want them to publicize it. He then told me that because the information was posted on the website it had been distributed by a national wire service. This is when we set up a phone number for parents to call, deciding that this was a more discreet way to inform the athletes and their parents. 

Lasso Online: Who did you consult with in making decisions such as canceling outdoor activities and even keeping the schools open?

Shaw: I consulted the police chief, the city manager, and other superintendents. I made my decision by talking to other people about it. We are a small community and so we were in some circumstances able to go away for our events outside the danger zone. 

Lasso Online: What did you tell the elementary school kids about the shootings?

Shaw: We talked to counselors to get their opinions about what we should tell kids. We really only told them the bare minimum and left it up to the parents about how much they would tell. Some parents really didn’t want their kids to know anything about it and others let them know what was going on. If any kids asked why we were staying inside during recess, we just told them that "the principal said so."

Lasso Online: How did you react to the closing of Ashland schools and how did it play into your decision?

Shaw: Well the superintendent there used to be my boss so I did call him to ask about his decision. All he could tell me was that there was something in the note left at that shooting that caused them to feel that the schools needed to be closed.The superintendents in the Northern Virginia area didn’t get the information about the threat to children in that note until later that week and at that point the Hanover County and other Richmond area schools had reopened. 

Lasso Online: In terms of pressure and emotion, how did the decisions related to the sniper shootings compare to other events during your career?

Shaw: The hardest part with the sniper situation was that it seemed like it would never end. It lasted so long and it felt like that he was everywhere all the time and that it could happen anywhere.

Lasso Online: Did the effects of the sniper shootings such as indoor practices for sports teams, put us at a disadvantage compared to other schools?

Shaw: We actually kept more things going when other schools had closed. We still had some field trips that went to places indoors and we still had indoor sports practices when some schools canceled all practices. As a small school system we play in the Bull Run district so for most of the games we had we went outside the area affected by the shootings.

Lasso Online: Did any parents complain?

Shaw: Most were understanding. Only a few had complaints and one to whom I explained the situation said that they understood the decisions we had to make. Most parents wanted to help us and find a way to protect the kids. We had parents volunteer as safety patrols and help in the bus areas before and after school.