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Sheriff: Oregon gunman killed himself

Posted at 12:45 PM, Oct 03, 2015
and last updated 2015-10-03 15:45:06-04

The latest on the deadly shooting at a community college in Oregon (all times local):

12:25 p.m.

Authorities say the gunman who killed nine people at an Oregon community college committed suicide as officers arrived.

Sheriff John Hanlin made the disclosure Saturday at a news conference. He says the determination was made by the medical examiner's office.

 

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11:45 a.m.

An official says the gunman who killed nine people at an Oregon community college left a "manifesto" that was a couple pages long.

The official did not reveal the contents of the document but described it as an effort to leave a message for law enforcement.

The official is familiar with the investigation but was not authorized to disclose information and spoke on the condition of anonymity.

The official said the document was left at the scene of Thursday's shooting but wouldn't specify how authorities obtained it.

Authorities are trying to determine a motive for the mass killing.

—By Associated Press writer Tami Abdollah

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11 a.m.

Conflicting reports are emerging about whether the gunman who killed nine people at an Oregon community college singled out Christians as his victims.

Janet Willis, grandmother of wounded student Anastasia Boylan, said victims who identified themselves as Christian were shot in the head.

However, the mother of another wounded student said the gunman asked his victims if they were religious but did not specifically target them if they were Christians.

Stephanie Salas, mother of 18-year-old survivor Rand McGowan, said the shooter asked about religion to let his victims know they were about to "'meet their maker.'"

Police have not disclosed any details about a possible motive. Gunman Christopher Harper-Mercer died following a shootout with police.