Nevada School Shooting: Michael Landsberry, Shot Dead By 12-Year-Old Gunman, Recalled As Loving Teacher

A 12-year-old student at Sparks Middle School outside Reno, Nev., opened fire on the school grounds on Monday morning, wounding two students and killing much-beloved teacher Michael Landsberry (pictured) before turning the gun on himself.

Landsberry, a 45-year-old math teacher and former Marine and member of the Nevada Air National Guard, was slain at the scene of the shooting. Described as a hero for stepping in front of the shooter and attempting to talk him down, Landsberry is survived by his wife and two stepchildren.

“[Landsberry] was telling him to stop and put the gun down, and then the kid, he yelled out ‘No!’ like yelling at him, and then he shot him,” middle school student Jose Cazares, who was in the line of fire on Monday, said on Today. “[Landsberry] was calm and he was holding out his hand like, ‘Put the gun in my hand,’ like to just stop.”

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The teacher, who was commonly referred to as Batman – the superhero he both adored and embodied according to students – was known to be the kind of person who would step up in times of crisis. "That was the kind of person that Michael was," his brother, Reggie Landsberry, told CNN. "He was the kind of person that if somebody needed help, he would be there."

Following his untimely death, a Facebook page was created in Landsberry’s memory. The page, which already has over 15,000 likes, is where those who knew him are sharing photos and memories of the heroic teacher. A fundraising car wash and bake sale for Landsberry’s surviving family will be held on Saturday in Sparks, Nev.

The unidentified student, armed with a semiautomatic handgun, wielded his weapon outside the middle school at 7:17 a.m. on Monday, according to Washoe County School District spokesperson Katie Holmes. The two students who were injured in the incident were rushed to a local hospital and were later listed in stable condition, according to Sparks deputy police chief Tom Miller. The shooter died at the scene from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

–Chelsea Regan

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