World

San Bernardino gunman kills wife and student in murder-suicide

12:09 pm on 11 April 2017

A special education teacher and a student were fatally shot by her estranged husband when he opened fire in her classroom before killing himself at a California primary school, police say.

The screenshot from ABC News reportedly shows the students who have evacuated from the San Bernardino primary school after the shooting. Photo: Screenshot / ABC News

The gunman has been identified by police as Sedrick Anderson, 53, of San Bernardino and his wife as Karen Elaine Smith.

Authorities said an 8-year-old boy died from his wounds and his 9-year-old classmate was admitted to hospital in a stable condition.

They said Anderson had a criminal history that included domestic violence and weapons charges.

City Police Chief Jarrod Burguan said the couple had been married briefly and had been separated for about a month.

The two students were struck by gunfire had been standing behind Smith, he said.

Neither student was related to the dead couple.

San Bernardino was the scene of a mass shooting in 2015 when a husband and wife killed 14 people and wounded more than 20 others at a holiday office party.

Authorities said the couple, Syed Rizwan Farook, and Tashfeen Malik, were inspired by Islamic extremism.

They were killed by police during a shootout.

Reuters / BBC