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Kent State shootings

On May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guard soldiers fired about 67 rounds in 13 seconds at unarmed Kent State University students protesting the Vietnam War, killing four and wounding nine, one permanently.

SOLVED1970

Kent State University, Kent, Ohio

3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
May 4th Strike Poster
May 4th Strike Poster — Credit: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain

On May 4, 1970, members of the Ohio National Guard opened fire on unarmed college students at Kent State University in Kent, Ohio, killing four and wounding nine others, one of whom was permanently paralyzed. The shootings occurred during a rally opposing the expansion of the Vietnam War into Cambodia, which President Richard Nixon had announced on April 30, as well as the National Guard's presence on campus and the draft. Twenty-eight guardsmen fired approximately 67 rounds over about 13 seconds.

Students Jeffrey Glenn Miller, 20, Allison Beth Krause, 19, and Sandra Lee Scheuer, 20, died at the scene; William Knox Schroeder, 19, a member of the campus ROTC battalion, was pronounced dead at Robinson Memorial Hospital in Ravenna shortly afterward. Scheuer and Schroeder had been observing the protest from a distance during a break between classes rather than actively participating. Nine others were wounded, including Dean R. Kahler, who sustained a back wound that left him permanently paralyzed from the waist down. None of those shot was closer than 71 feet to the guardsmen, and the four who died were, on average, 345 feet away.

The events followed several days of escalating tension in Kent, including the burning of the campus ROTC building on the night of May 2 and a May 3 press conference at which Ohio Governor Jim Rhodes described protesters as "the worst type of people that we harbor in America." On May 4, an estimated 2,000 people gathered on the Commons despite university efforts to cancel the rally. After tear gas failed to disperse the crowd, roughly 96 guardsmen advanced with bayonet-fixed rifles, becoming boxed in near an athletic field before retracing their steps up Blanket Hill. As they reached the crest, several guardsmen turned and fired into the crowd of students, some of whom were fleeing. A subsequent FBI investigation concluded that the Guard had not been under fire and that guardsmen fired the first shots; the FBI also found reason to believe some guardsmen's stated fears for their lives were fabricated after the fact.

The shootings triggered nationwide protests and a student strike involving more than 4 million students at hundreds of institutions, and are credited with intensifying public debate over the Vietnam War and the Cambodian incursion.

Legal proceedings followed on multiple fronts. A grand jury indicted five guardsmen on felony charges and three others on misdemeanor charges; the guardsmen maintained they had fired in self-defense. In 1974, eight guardsmen were tried on federal charges of depriving students of their civil rights but were acquitted in a bench trial. U.S. District Judge Frank J. Battisti, who dismissed the charges, wrote that the government had not shown the defendants shot students "with an intent to deprive them of specific civil rights," while stating that such use of force "is, and was, deplorable." Civil wrongful-death and injury actions against Governor Rhodes, the Kent State president, and the guardsmen initially resulted in verdicts for the defendants. The President's Commission on Campus Unrest (the Scranton Commission) later concluded in its September 1970 report that the shootings were "unnecessary, unwarranted, and inexcusable."

Key facts

Victims
Dean R. Kahler, James Dennis Russell, Thomas Mark Grace, Allison Beth Krause, John R. Cleary, Robert Follis Stamps, William Knox Schroeder, Alan Michael Canfora, Sandra Lee Scheuer, Douglas Alan Wrentmore, Joseph Lewis Jr., Jeffrey Glenn Miller, Donald Scott MacKenzie
Date
1970
Location
Kent State University, Kent, Ohio
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1970-04-30

    President Richard Nixon announces the expansion of U.S. combat operations into Cambodia.

  2. 1970-05-01

    Roughly 500 students rally on the Kent State Commons; unrest later erupts downtown, prompting a state of emergency declaration by Kent Mayor LeRoy Satrom.

  3. 1970-05-02

    The campus ROTC building is set on fire; Ohio National Guard troops arrive in Kent that evening.

  4. 1970-05-03

    Governor Jim Rhodes holds a press conference condemning protesters; a curfew is enforced and some students are bayoneted by guardsmen.

  5. 1970-05-04

    Ohio National Guard troops fire on protesters on Blanket Hill, killing four students and wounding nine others.

  6. 1970-09

    Twenty-four students and one faculty member (the 'Kent 25') are indicted on charges related to the May 4 rally and the ROTC fire; separately, five guardsmen are indicted on felony charges and three on misdemeanor charges.

  7. 1971-12

    Remaining charges against twenty of the 'Kent 25' are dismissed for lack of evidence.

  8. 1974-11-08

    U.S. District Judge Frank J. Battisti dismisses federal civil rights charges against the guardsmen following their acquittal in a bench trial.

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People

  • Leon Smith

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on misdemeanor charges in connection with the shootings.

  • Frank J. Battisti

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    U.S. District Judge who presided over the 1974 federal civil rights trial and dismissed charges against the acquitted guardsmen.

  • Dean R. Kahler

    VICTIM

    Student wounded by a back injury that fractured his vertebrae, leaving him permanently paralyzed from the waist down.

  • James Dennis Russell

    VICTIM

    Student wounded in the right thigh and grazed on the forehead.

  • Thomas Mark Grace

    VICTIM

    Student wounded in the left ankle.

  • Matthew McManus

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on misdemeanor charges in connection with the shootings.

  • Allison Beth Krause

    VICTIM

    Student who died at the scene from a fatal chest wound, approximately 343 feet from the National Guard.

  • James Pierce

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on felony charges in connection with the shootings.

  • William Perkins

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on felony charges in connection with the shootings.

  • John R. Cleary

    VICTIM

    Student wounded with an upper left chest wound.

  • Robert Follis Stamps

    VICTIM

    Student wounded in the right buttock.

  • William Knox Schroeder

    VICTIM

    Student and ROTC battalion member who died at Robinson Memorial Hospital from a chest wound roughly an hour after the shooting.

  • Alan Michael Canfora

    VICTIM

    Student wounded in the right wrist.

  • Sandra Lee Scheuer

    VICTIM

    Student who died at the scene from a fatal neck wound, approximately 390 feet from the National Guard.

  • Douglas Alan Wrentmore

    VICTIM

    Student wounded in the right knee.

  • Barry Morris

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on misdemeanor charges in connection with the shootings.

  • Joseph Lewis Jr.

    VICTIM

    Student wounded twice, in the right abdomen and lower left leg.

  • Jeffrey Glenn Miller

    VICTIM

    Student killed instantly by a gunshot; died at the scene, approximately 265 feet from the National Guard.

  • Lawrence Shafer

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guard sergeant indicted on felony charges in connection with the shootings; later among guardsmen acquitted in the 1974 federal civil rights bench trial.

  • Donald Scott MacKenzie

    VICTIM

    Student wounded with a neck injury.

  • James McGee

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on felony charges in connection with the shootings.

  • Ralph Zoller

    CHARGED

    Ohio National Guardsman indicted on felony charges in connection with the shootings.

Roles reflect public records and court outcomes at the time of writing — supporting citations are on file under Sources.

Archival records

  • Bullet Hole in Don Drumm Sculpture at Kent State

    archival location

    Bullet Hole in Don Drumm Sculpture at Kent State

    Credit: Mws77 (talk) (Uploads) · Public domain · Source

  • Kent State, Site of Jeffrey Miller Memorial

    archival location

    Kent State, Site of Jeffrey Miller Memorial

    Credit: Mws77 at en.wikipedia · Public domain · Source

  • Map of Shootings at Kent State University in 1970

    archival location

    Map of Shootings at Kent State University in 1970

    Credit: President (1969-1974 : Nixon). President's Commission on Campus Unrest. · Public domain · Source

  • May 4th Strike Poster

    archival location

    May 4th Strike Poster

    Credit: Unknown authorUnknown author · Public domain · Source

  • Merrill Hall 3

    archival location

    Merrill Hall 3

    Credit: JonRidinger · CC BY 3.0 · Source

  • May4thMemorial

    archival location

    May4thMemorial

    Credit: Pacificboyksu · CC BY 3.0 · Source

  • Perspective of Ohio National Guard at Kent State

    archival location

    Perspective of Ohio National Guard at Kent State

    Credit: M. Stewart · Public domain · Source

  • Pagoda at Kent State

    archival location

    Pagoda at Kent State

    Credit: Lechatsavant · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source

  • Kent State University Student Anarchy Downtown Kent May 2 1970

    archival location

    Kent State University Student Anarchy Downtown Kent May 2 1970

    Credit: Richard Carlton · Public domain · Source

  • Kent State shootings

    unclassified

    Kent State shootings

    Credit: Larry Stoddard · Public domain · Source

  • Kent State Commons

    archival location

    Kent State Commons

    Credit: JonRidinger · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Source

  • Mary Ann Vecchio Kent State May 4 1970 John Filo Photograph

    unclassified

    Mary Ann Vecchio Kent State May 4 1970 John Filo Photograph

    Credit: Student John Filo · Public domain · Source

Places

Kent State University, Kent, Ohio

41.1501, -81.3434

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On May 4, 1970, Ohio National Guard soldiers fired about 67 rounds in 13 seconds at unarmed Kent State University students protesting the Vietnam War, killing four and wounding nine, one permanently.
Where did the shootings happen?
Kent State University, Kent, Ohio.
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.
More cases in Ohio

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICKent State shootingsWikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — The New York TimesThe New York Times · 2026-07-07
  3. OFFICIAL / AGENCYContemporaneous coverage — nps.govnps.gov · 2026-07-07

Record history

First published
JUL 07, 2026
Last verified against sources
JUL 07, 2026

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