By: Gabriela Sundquist
Read Time: 8 minutes
Content Warning:
Gun violence and mass murder. Reader discretion is advised.
What does Amy Bishop, a middle-aged unassuming woman with a stable marriage and no criminal record, have in common with Adam Lanza (shooter in Sandy Hook), Eric David Harris, and Dylan Bennet Klebold (shooters in Columbine)? They all committed mass murder.
By February 2010 there had already been 15 other shootings involving 3 or more victims that year. Needless to say, the shock factor had started to wear off. But Amy stood out to people. Her profile didn’t match the other shooters. It was much rarer for a woman to commit this kind of crime, and her history didn’t seem to show any of the classic red flags. She was an over-achiever, an accomplished violinist, got her Ph.D. at Harvard, and completed postdoctoral work at Harvard School of Public health. On top of that, her personal life was deemed clean as well: stable marriage, no criminal record,, and no record of substance abuse.
Yet, she did this anyway.
February 12, 2010
On the brisk day of February 12, 2010 at the University of Alabama in Hunstville, life changed dramatically. Faculty gathered around in a windowless conference room in the Shelby Center for Science and Technology. Amy Bishop, a Neurobiologist, sat silent, dark, and brooding. She normally was one of the most consistent voices in the room, but this meeting was different.
She sat next to Gopi Podila, a plant biologist and the Department Chair, at the head of the table by the door. Across from her sat Debra Moriarity, a biochemist. She and Amy had been close at one point. In the past year though, there had been a distance between them.
Amy stood up at the end of the meeting and pulled out a 9-mm. Ruger Semiautomatic and started shooting. First, she shot Gopi Podila in the head, and panic ensued. People started screaming and running, but there was nowhere to run to. Amy was blocking the only door. She then shot Adriel Johnson, and Maria Ragland Davis.
Debra dove under the table and crawled to Amy. She wrapped her arms around Amy’s legs. “Please don’t do this!” She begged, but Amy was beyond reasoning pointed the gun at Debra and pulled, but the gun jammed. Debra took her chance and pushed through Amy for the door, and started running. Amy, relentless, continued to pull the trigger. She finally stopped to fix the jam, and Moriarity ran back around to the conference room. She ducked into the room where another coworker and she barricaded the door.
Less than one minute later, 6 people had been shot, and three of them killed.
Victims
| Name/Position | Condition |
| Gopi Podila/Chairman | Deceased |
| Maria Ragland Davis/Associate Professor | Deceased |
| Adriel D Johnson, Sr./ Associate Professor | Deceased |
| Luis Rogelio Cruz-Vera/ Professor | Injured |
| Joseph G Leahy/Professor | Injured |
| Stephanie Monticciolo/ Staff Assistant | Injured |
Searching for the Reason
People were astounded and so confused by what had happened. After looking into Amy, the authorities learned that she had filed for tenure with the school and had been denied a year earlier. Her several attempts to appeal the decision had also failed.
Debra shared that she and Amy had been friends since Amy started working at the school in 2003. They talked about family, dreams, frustrations, and Amy’s obsession with getting tenure. Debra had actually voted against her receiving the tenure, which had caused tension between the two. But it seemed that all of the faculty didn’t feel she was a good fit for the school.
Apparently, Amy knew that her job was ending at the end of the semester, and it caused a rage inside of her. She felt like her life was over. While this was definitely a motive, it didn’t seem to equal the tragedy, especially with her uneventful history.
As they continued to dig, they found that Amy had anything but an uneventful past.
Murky and Mishandled Past
Amy had grown up with her brother Seth. He was only a couple years younger than him. Some people in their small town reported that there was a known rivalry between the two, while others claimed that the two were very close. The two of them were both shy and quiet, but Amy was reported to be much more aloof than Seth. She was also known to be very competitive.
Their family growing up was very close. They lived in a small town where not much happened. Their mom Judith (Judy) was gregarious and friendly. Everyone knew her. She served on many boards and volunteer positions in the town including in the Town Meeting board, and the local government. She even worked for the local paper.
The Day That Changed It All
In 1986, Amy Bishop shot and killed her brother, Seth Bishop.
Her mother reported the incident as an accident. As the report tells it, Amy was nervous that someone was going to rob their house. It had happened before, which is why they purchased the gun in the first place. She had loaded the gun, and couldn’t unload it. Amy planned on waiting until Seth got home so he could show her how to do it, as he was the one who showed her how to load it. When he got home, she asked for his help, and accidentally shot him. She then fled the scene. When the cops showed up, Amy was nowhere to be found.
So how, you may be wondering, did this incident not show up when Amy’s shooter profile was originally created? Well, Amy and Seth’s mother was very important. So important that she somehow convinced the police to let Amy go, without record, without charges.
Yet there is evidence that this shooting may have not been the accident her mother had painted it to be. But we’ll never know because there was no investigation done.
Either way, it seems common sense that Amy would have needed counseling and medical attention after this incident. But she received none. Unfortunately, this was normal at the time. Therapy and mental wellness were not taken seriously in the 80s.
After Seth’s death, Amy was catatonic, upset, and completely lost.
She had four children and was said to be a “loving but high-strung” mother. Her youngest was her first boy, whom she named Seth. He was born on what would have been her brother’s 33rd birthday.
Further Crimes and Issues
Amy also had several other issues since 1986. Here are just a few:
- Tried multiple times to commit suicide
- Threatened her dad with a gun
- Punched a lady in the head who was given the last booster seat at a restaurant
- Sent a bomb to her boss
- Never should have gotten a Ph.D. It was a local scandal because she didn’t do the required work.
Again, how had she made it this far in life with no record and no reprimand? People were protecting her. Whether those people were her parents or husband or family, she was always being protected nonetheless. The fact that she had somehow made it this far in life without raising concerns and without gathering a long rap sheet means that people were covering for her every step of the way. Whether they were doing this out of pride, shame, or maybe even to protect her from her consequences, this was extremely harmful.
She hadn’t been right since the day she killed her brother, or maybe even before. People said that she had hallucinations on and off since Seth’s murder. People were very concerned with her mental health, yet, no one did anything. No one admitted her to the mental hospital or held her accountable for anything she had done.
Not only did this ruin and end so many other lives, but it didn’t help her at all. If she had just been taken into custody after Seth’s death or any of the other crimes she committed, she may have had a chance at normalcy.
Therapy is Cool! 10/10 Would Recommend!
Gratefully, therapy is no longer taboo in most places and mental health is often looked at as equal to physical health. It’s cases like these where people so obviously needed help and didn’t get it and mass destruction is the result.
I am proudly in therapy and have been most of my adult life. If you feel you need to talk to someone who can give you a little bit of perspective on your situation, or if you know someone who you think could use a professional listening ear, please consider therapy. Visit Psychology Today to find a therapist who fits your needs.
Meditation, Mindfulness and Murder 