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University of Texas tower shooting

SOLVED1966University of Texas at Austin Main Building (Tower), Austin, Texas3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026
Kathleen Leissner Whitman in 1966 Viking
Kathleen Leissner Whitman in 1966 Viking — Credit: University Studios · Public domain

On the night of July 31–August 1, 1966, 25-year-old Marine veteran and University of Texas student Charles Whitman fatally stabbed his mother, Margaret Whitman, at her Guadalupe Street apartment, and his wife, Kathleen Whitman, in the couple's Jewell Street apartment, leaving suicide notes describing his intent to spare them "the embarrassment" he believed his later actions would cause.

The following morning, Whitman purchased additional firearms and ammunition, packed a footlocker with weapons and supplies, and disguised himself in coveralls before driving to the University of Texas at Austin campus. Using false credentials, he gained access to the Main Building (the Tower) shortly before noon on August 1, 1966. On the 28th floor, he bludgeoned and then fatally shot receptionist Edna Townsley, and shot members of a visiting family on the stairwell, killing 16-year-old Mark Gabour and 56-year-old Marguerite Lamport and wounding two others. He then barricaded the stairwell and began firing from the observation deck at approximately 11:48 a.m., targeting people on and around the campus, including an eight-months-pregnant woman whose unborn child was killed.

Over the next roughly 96 minutes, Whitman killed 15 people from the tower and wounded at least 31 others, while police officers and armed civilians returned fire from the ground and a police-chartered aircraft attempted to provide a vantage point for a police sharpshooter. Austin Police officer Billy Paul Speed was among those killed while responding to the scene. Officers Ramiro Martinez and Houston McCoy, aided by civilian Allen Crum and other officers, ascended the tower and reached the observation deck at approximately 1:21 p.m. In the ensuing confrontation, McCoy fatally shot Whitman, with Martinez also firing at him; Whitman was pronounced dead at 1:24 p.m.

An autopsy found a small tumor in the white matter above Whitman's amygdala; experts have disagreed on whether it contributed to his actions. In total, Whitman killed 17 people, including his mother, wife, and an unborn child, counting two additional deaths in later years — 17-year-old Karen Griffith, who died a week after being shot, and David Gunby, who died in 2001 after health complications tied to his 1966 gunshot wound, a death that was officially ruled a homicide.

The university closed for one day before reopening on August 3, 1966. The observation deck was closed to the public until 1968, closed again after several later suicides, and reopened for guided tours in 1999 with added security screening. The shooting spurred the creation of a formal university police force in Texas, formalized through state legislation signed in 1967. Officers Martinez and McCoy were later awarded Medals of Valor by the City of Austin, and in 2008 the Austin City Council recognized additional police officers and civilians for their roles in ending the shooting. Memorials to the victims have since been established on the university campus, including a garden and inscribed stone unveiled on the fiftieth anniversary of the shooting in 2016.

Key facts

Victims
Robert Hamilton Boyer, Thomas Frederick Eckman, Thomas Aquinas Ashton, David Hubert Gunby, Thomas Ray Karr, Paul Bolton Sonntag, Claudia Marilyn Rutt, Harry Walchuk, Edna Elizabeth Townsley, Roy Dell Schmidt, Margaret Elizabeth Whitman, Mark Jerome Gabour, Marguerite M. Lamport, Kathleen Frances Whitman, Baby Boy Wilson, Billy Paul Speed, Karen Joan Griffith
Date
1966
Location
University of Texas at Austin Main Building (Tower), Austin, Texas
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1966-07-31

    Charles Whitman begins composing a suicide note in the evening, later interrupted by friends.

  2. 1966-08-01

    Shortly after midnight, Whitman stabs his mother, Margaret Whitman, to death at her apartment.

  3. 1966-08-01

    At approximately 3:00 a.m., Whitman stabs his wife, Kathleen Whitman, to death as she sleeps.

  4. 1966-08-01

    Whitman purchases additional firearms and ammunition during the morning.

  5. 1966-08-01

    Whitman arrives at the University of Texas at approximately 11:25 a.m. and gains access to the Main Building tower.

  6. 1966-08-01

    Whitman kills receptionist Edna Townsley and members of a visiting family on the 28th floor stairwell.

  7. 1966-08-01

    At 11:48 a.m., Whitman begins shooting from the observation deck, striking an eight-months-pregnant woman and killing her unborn child, the first shot from the tower.

  8. 1966-08-01

    Officer Billy Paul Speed is shot and killed while responding at 12:08 p.m.

  9. 1966-08-01

    At approximately 1:21 p.m., officers Ramiro Martinez and Houston McCoy, with civilian Allen Crum, reach the observation deck.

  10. 1966-08-01

    Whitman is shot by Officer McCoy and further fired upon by Officer Martinez; he is pronounced dead at 1:24 p.m.

  11. 1966-08-02

    Whitman's autopsy is conducted, revealing a small tumor above his amygdala.

  12. 1966-08-03

    The University of Texas reopens after being closed for one day; Kathleen Whitman is buried at Davis-Greenlawn Cemetery in Rosenberg, Texas.

  13. 1966-08-05

    Whitman is interred alongside his mother at Hillcrest Memorial Park in West Palm Beach, Florida.

  14. 1967-04-27

    Texas Governor John Connally signs legislation establishing formal campus policing at state institutions of higher education, prompted in part by the shooting.

  15. 1968

    The tower observation deck reopens to the public before later being closed again following student suicides.

  16. 1999

    The observation deck reopens permanently for guided, security-screened tours.

  17. 2001-11

    David Gunby, wounded in the 1966 shooting, dies; his death is officially ruled a homicide.

  18. 2006

    A memorial garden dedicated to victims of the shooting is formally established on campus.

  19. 2016-08-01

    On the fiftieth anniversary, the University of Texas holds a moment of silence and unveils a stone memorial inscribed with victims' names.

Best coverage

No approved coverage links are attached yet.

People

  • Robert Hamilton Boyer

    VICTIM

    33-year-old mathematician shot and killed near the tower.

  • Thomas Frederick Eckman

    VICTIM

    18-year-old student shot and killed near Claire Wilson.

  • Houston Roy McCoy

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Austin police officer credited with fatally shooting Whitman on the observation deck.

  • Thomas Aquinas Ashton

    VICTIM

    22-year-old student and Peace Corps volunteer shot and killed.

  • David Hubert Gunby

    VICTIM

    23-year-old engineering student shot and severely wounded; died in 2001 from related health complications, officially ruled a homicide.

  • Thomas Ray Karr

    VICTIM

    24-year-old student shot and killed while reportedly trying to assist another victim.

  • Paul Bolton Sonntag

    VICTIM

    18-year-old shot and killed while taking cover on Guadalupe Street.

  • Claudia Marilyn Rutt

    VICTIM

    18-year-old shot and killed after attempting to aid her boyfriend, Paul Sonntag.

  • Harry Walchuk

    VICTIM

    38-year-old PhD student and father of six, shot and killed on Guadalupe Street.

  • Edna Elizabeth Townsley

    VICTIM

    Tower receptionist; bludgeoned and fatally shot by Whitman.

  • Roy Dell Schmidt

    VICTIM

    29-year-old electrician shot and killed roughly 500 yards from the tower.

  • Margaret Elizabeth Whitman

    VICTIM

    Perpetrator's mother; stabbed to death in her apartment prior to the tower shooting.

  • Ramiro Martinez

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Austin police officer who ascended the tower and fired at Whitman during the confrontation on the observation deck.

  • Allen Crum

    LAW ENFORCEMENT

    Civilian deputized on-site who accompanied officers to the observation deck and assisted in ending the shooting.

  • Mark Jerome Gabour

    VICTIM

    16-year-old tourist shot and killed on the stairwell to the observation deck.

  • Marguerite M. Lamport

    VICTIM

    56-year-old tourist shot and killed on the stairwell to the observation deck.

  • Kathleen Frances Whitman

    VICTIM

    Perpetrator's wife; stabbed to death in the couple's apartment prior to the tower shooting.

  • Baby Boy Wilson

    VICTIM

    Unborn child of Claire Wilson, killed when she was shot, the first person struck from the observation deck.

  • Charles Joseph Whitman

    CONVICTED

    Perpetrator; killed by police at the scene, so never legally tried, but is identified by investigators and the historical record as responsible for the killings and stabbings.

  • Billy Paul Speed

    VICTIM

    23-year-old Austin police officer shot and killed while responding to the scene.

  • Karen Joan Griffith

    VICTIM

    17-year-old high school student shot and wounded; died seven days later.

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

Archival records

  • Carla Sue Wheeler Austin High School yearbook 1966

    archival location

    Carla Sue Wheeler Austin High School yearbook 1966

    Credit: Stephen F. Austin High School faculty members, 1966 · Public domain · Source

  • Charles Whitman Injured Victim El Paso Herald Post August 2 1966

    newspaper

    Charles Whitman Injured Victim El Paso Herald Post August 2 1966

    Credit: Tom Lankes · Public domain · Source

  • Charles Whitman University of Texas at Austin Victim Location Brownsville Herald August 2, 1966 Page 10

    newspaper

    Charles Whitman University of Texas at Austin Victim Location Brownsville Herald August 2, 1966 Page 10

    Credit: Brownsville Herald staff member. August 2, 1966. · Public domain · Source

  • Charlotte Darehshori Hiding Behind Flagpole

    crime scene press

    Charlotte Darehshori Hiding Behind Flagpole

    Credit: Tom Lankes · Public domain · Source

  • Kathleen Leissner Whitman in 1966 Viking

    portrait victim

    Kathleen Leissner Whitman in 1966 Viking

    Credit: University Studios · Public domain · Source

  • The Tower, University of Texas at Austin (ca 1980)

    archival location

    The Tower, University of Texas at Austin (ca 1980)

    Credit: Larry D. Moore · CC BY 4.0 · Source

  • Thomas Eckman Scott High School Toledo Ohio 1965

    portrait victim

    Thomas Eckman Scott High School Toledo Ohio 1965

    Credit: Scott High School faculty members, 1965 · Public domain · Source

  • University of Texas Main Building Tower 3

    archival location

    University of Texas Main Building Tower 3

    Credit: Kurt Kaiser · CC0 · Source

Places

University of Texas at Austin Main Building (Tower), Austin, Texas

30.2862, -97.7394

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
On August 1, 1966, Charles Whitman killed his mother and wife, then opened fire from the University of Texas Tower observation deck in Austin, killing 15 more people and wounding at least 31 before being shot dead by police roughly 96 minutes later.
Where did the shooting happen?
University of Texas at Austin Main Building (Tower), Austin, Texas.
Who was convicted?
Charles Joseph Whitman (Perpetrator; killed by police at the scene, so never legally tried, but is identified by investigators and the historical record as responsible for the killings and stabbings.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved. Last verified July 2026.
More cases in Texas

Sources

  1. ENCYCLOPEDICUniversity of Texas tower shootingWikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — Los Angeles TimesLos Angeles Times · 2026-07-07
  3. PRESSContemporaneous coverage — NPRNPR · 2026-07-07

Record history

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