Kyle Aaron Huff

Kyle Aaron Huff (September 22, 1977 – March 25, 2006) was an American mass murder responsible for a mass shooting at a rave party in the Capitol Hill neighborhood of Seattle, Washington on March 25, 2006. He killed six people and injured two more before committing suicide.

Biography

Before the shooting

He had previously been arrested in his hometown of Whitefish, Montana, for destroying a public arts project and was charged with a felony. (He shot up a statue of a moose that was part of an installation called "Moose on the Loose.") He was described by residents there as a well-liked person with a minor history of delinquency. He moved to Seattle with his twin brother about five years before the shooting. He had little contact with police in Seattle, but was involved in a brawl at the Lobo Saloon in 2004.

The shooting

On the evening of March 24, 2006, a "Better Off Undead" event was held at the Capitol Hill Arts Center (CHAC), which reported a maximum attendance of 350 throughout the evening. By nearly all accounts, CHAC itself had ample security at the event, with more than 20 security personnel on duty. At the event, Kyle Huff was invited to attend an after-party at a private residence about a mile away. Sometime between 4:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. on March 25, Huff left the event to attend the after-party.

A last-minute invitee, Huff did not personally know anyone at the after-party. He was quiet but spoke pleasantly with everyone as the after-party progressed. Nobody recalled him leaving, and there was no altercation or belligerent behavior exhibited by Huff.

Huff left the house and returned to his large truck, parked nearby. From the truck, he retrieved a 12-gauge pistol-grip Winchester 1300 Defender shotgun and a .40-caliber semiautomatic Ruger P944 handgun, and several bandoliers with more than 300 rounds of ammunition for the guns. On his way back to the after-party, he spray-painted the word "NOW" on the sidewalk and on the steps of a neighboring home.

Upon arrival, he shot five victims who were outside talking: two on the steps, the others on the porch. He forced his way in through the front door of the house and shot two more people on the first floor. During the shooting, Huff allegedly stated "There's plenty for everyone" or something similar. On the second floor, he fired through the locked door of a bathroom where a couple had taken refuge inside the bathtub; neither person was hit. At least one other victim was injured during the shooting and taken to Harborview Medical Center, and at least one died at the hospital.

The shooting inside the house lasted for five minutes. A patrol officer nearby, Steve Leonard, heard the shots and headed to the scene, getting the address from multiple 911 dispatches. When he got to the house, he encountered an injured victim and immediately got between the victim and the house, as Huff was coming down the steps. Before the officer could complete his demand that Huff drop his weapon, Huff placed the gun in his mouth and shot himself through the head.