Cop's son opens fire inside Florida university campus; 2 killed
What's the story
The son of a police officer opened fire at Florida State University (FSU) on Thursday (local time), killing two people and injuring six others.
The shooter has been identified as Phoenix Ikner, a 20-year-old man believed to be a student and son of a Leon County sheriff's deputy.
He allegedly opened fire around lunchtime near the student union building. The motive behind the act remains unknown.
Gun ownership
Ikner's mother, a law enforcement officer, owned the gun
"Unfortunately, her son had access to one of her weapons that was found at the scene," Leon County Sheriff Walter McNeil said at a press conference.
The firearm was previously part of her service weapons but was converted to a personal firearm after being purchased from the department.
The two people killed were not students, and authorities did not offer information about the four others who were shot and injured.
Shooting details
Incident details and immediate response
The shooting started at about 11:50am local time, close to the student union building on the FSU campus.
Police directed students and faculty members to shelter in place in the wake of the incident.
Ikner was shot by responding officers when he refused to surrender; he was later taken into custody.
The four victims who were injured along with Ikner were all hospitalized.
Eyewitness reports
Eyewitness accounts of the shooting
Eyewitnesses gave chilling accounts of the shooting.
Student Max Jenkins said Ikner fired four or five shots outside after coming out of the student union building.
Chris Pento, who was touring the university with his children, was quoted by Reuters as saying, "It was surreal, people started running."
His daughter "just got trampled over" during the chaos, he said.
As many as 42,000 students attend classes at the main campus.
Twitter Post
Video taken by student at Florida State University
I am a current student at Florida State University. This is the video I took while being escorted out by police. I was in class when the shooting started, in the building next to where the sh**ters were. pic.twitter.com/TfuRbp2301
— Holden Mamula (@ignqiny) April 17, 2025
Gun control
Previous incidents and the ongoing debate on gun control
This tragedy is the second shooting on FSU's campus in 11 years.
In 2014, a graduate fired shots at the school's main library, injuring two students and an employee.
Federal law forbids those under 21 from purchasing handguns. Though the Florida law prohibits those under 21 from buying rifles and other long guns, state law still permits them to receive firearms as presents.