A heartless husband has done an unthinkable thing by going to his wife's school and shooting her dead alongside her students.
Karen Elaine Smith
A Southern California man fatally shot his estranged wife inside an elementary school classroom attended by special needs children before killing himself on Monday, San Bernardino Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said.
Two students were injured in the murder-suicide at North Park Elementary School in San Bernardino, and one of those children later died at a hospital, Burguan said.
Burguan said the shooter, Cedric Anderson, 53, of Riverside, walked into the classroom armed with a large caliber revolver and opened fire "without saying anything," killing Karen Elaine Smith, 53, also of Riverside. Smith was a teacher at the school.
The two students struck by gunfire were standing behind Smith, the police chief said.
Jonathan Martinez, 8, died at Loma Linda University Medical Center after being airlifted from the school, the police chief said. The other student, a 9-year-old boy, was listed in stable condition at the medical center, according to the hospital.
"This is a tragic incident that has befallen our city," San Bernardino Police Lt. Michael Madden told reporters.
Cedric Anderson
How shooting unfolded
Police received reports of the shooting at the school shortly before 10:30 a.m., and officers responded within minutes, Madden said.
San Bernardino Police Capt. Ron Maass, the incident commander, said Anderson had gone to the classroom to visit Smith. There is no indication the suspect's handgun was visible when he entered the school, Maass said.
Anderson signed in at the front office when he entered the school, according to Maass. He said he believed Anderson was known to the front office.
Burguan said Anderson told employees in the office he wanted to drop something off with his wife and then headed to the classroom. He added that it is not uncommon for a spouse to gain access to a school campus to meet with their partner.
"He came in, and very, very quickly upon entering the classroom started shooting," Burguan said.
Anderson also reloaded after firing what is believed to have been a .357-caliber revolver, the police chief said.
Burguan said preliminary information indicates the two were recently married.
"I'm told that their marriage was relatively short. They've only been married for a few months and they've been separated for about the last month, month-and-a-half, roughly, when this incident took place," he said. "But there's nobody that in the investigation has come forward to say that they saw this coming."
The police chief said Anderson "does have a criminal history."
Court records showed that he had faced criminal charges of brandishing a weapon, assault and crimes against public peace in 2013, with those charges later "dismissed or not prosecuted." There had also been two petitions for temporary restraining orders filed against him by women in previous years.
-CNN's Artemis Moshtaghian, Julie In and Amanda Jackson contributed to this report.
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