A 39-year-old postal employee shot two female co-workers at Des Moines' main post office Thursday morning before police captured her within minutes, and she now faces attempted murder charges, authorities said.
Jennifer Christine Pledger of West Des Moines opened fire on the facility's second floor shortly after 9 a.m., according to police. Officers detained her along a nearby bike path at 9:21 a.m. without resistance and recovered a 9 mm handgun, according to ITV Hub. Investigators have not yet released a motive.
What happened at the Des Moines post office
The shooting occurred in an area of the building that is not open to the public. Witnesses told police they heard 10 to 12 shots. Pledger stood over one of the women she had shot and fired again, police said, then kept firing as she fled the building.
Both victims survived. Police identified them as women aged 45 and 53, and both were in stable condition at a hospital Thursday. A 55-year-old male employee was hurt in a fall while trying to escape; his injuries were also not believed to be life-threatening.
“They're all at the hospital. They are being cared for right now,” Des Moines police Sgt. Paul Parizek said at a briefing.
Parizek said officers responded within three minutes of the first calls, which began coming in around 9:10 a.m. The quick capture, he said, ended what could have been a far worse situation in a building that sits just north of downtown and directly across the street from one of the city's main hospitals.
Charges filed against the suspect
Pledger is charged with two counts of attempted murder, two counts of willful injury causing serious injury and intimidation, NBC News reported. The Associated Press reported that attempts to reach possible relatives were unsuccessful and that no attorney had yet been identified to speak on her behalf.
A spokesperson for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said the federal agency is investigating the shooting alongside local, state and federal law enforcement.
Gov. Reynolds thanks law enforcement
Gov. Kim Reynolds said she was in contact with the Iowa Department of Public Safety following the shooting.
“We are monitoring the situation and our prayers are with everyone involved,” Reynolds posted online. “Grateful for the immediate response by law enforcement.”
Des Moines Public Schools temporarily locked down a nearby elementary school, a welcome center and a nutrition center, barring anyone from entering or leaving. Those restrictions were lifted once police confirmed the suspect was in custody.
A dark history of postal workplace violence
The Des Moines shooting is the latest in a long line of violence at postal facilities, a pattern that has shaped federal workplace safety policy for decades.
In 1986, a disgruntled postal worker killed 14 co-workers at an Edmond, Oklahoma, post office before taking his own life. Five years later, a fired postal worker in Royal Oak, Michigan, killed four former colleagues, then himself. Those attacks and others pushed postal officials to commission a study of workplace violence, released in 2000, around the time the phrase “going postal” entered the national vocabulary.
That report concluded “going postal” was a myth and found postal employees are actually less violent than the national workforce. It still recommended stronger systems for flagging warning signs before employees turn violent.
Violence has continued despite the reforms. In 2006, a former postal worker stormed a sorting facility in Goleta, California, and fatally shot six workers before killing himself, CNN noted in its coverage of the Des Moines attack.
Questions still unanswered
Police have not said what may have driven Pledger to open fire on her colleagues, and investigators continued working the scene Thursday. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service has not said whether the suspect had any prior disciplinary history or whether warning signs were missed.
For now, the focus remains on the recovery of the three injured employees and on the criminal case ahead for Pledger in Polk County court.
FAQ
Who was charged in the Des Moines post office shooting?
Jennifer Christine Pledger, 39, of West Des Moines, a U.S. Postal Service employee. She faces two counts of attempted murder, two counts of willful injury causing serious injury and intimidation.
How were the victims injured?
Two women, aged 45 and 53, suffered gunshot wounds and were in stable condition. A 55-year-old man was injured in a fall while fleeing the building.
How quickly did police respond?
Calls came in around 9:10 a.m. and officers detained the suspect at 9:21 a.m. along a nearby bike path, recovering a 9 mm handgun.