Western Psych mobile unit sent to shooter's apartment at mother's request

PITTSBURGH -- Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic staff members encountered a troubled grad student at least three times before he shot six people a week ago, and he threatened staff at a UPMC facility last month, sources said on Wednesday.

Gunman John F. Shick moved to Pittsburgh in July to attend Duquesne University. He never stepped inside Western Psych's Oakland facility before 1:42 p.m. March 8, a medical source said. University of Pittsburgh police fatally shot Shick, 30, of Oakland after he opened fire in the hospital lobby and a hallway.

Western Psych staff evaluated him in November, likely at an outpatient clinic, when he withdrew from Duquesne, investigators said. School officials banned Shick from campus because women complained that he had harassed them.

Shick refused treatment in January from a Western Psych mobile unit sent to his apartment when his mother expressed worry about him. In February, he threatened people with a baseball bat at a UPMC facility in Shadyside, investigators said.

Pittsburgh police won't discuss details about the case or what they found inside Shick's apartment after his fatal rampage.

People may never know what prompted the attack, and he apparently chose random victims, Public Safety Director Mike Huss said. He would not release the content of taped 911 calls or surveillance footage from the hospital's lobby.

"This was an isolated, random incident, and it's very unfortunate," Huss told the Tribune-Review. "The agencies that responded, mostly University of Pittsburgh police, did the best they could. It's disturbing to many people, upsetting. At the same time, we live in one of the safest cities in America."

The hospital's parent, UPMC, said it would hold a systemwide moment of silence at 2 p.m. Thursday to mark one week since the shooting that killed therapist Michael Schaab, 25, of Regent Square and injured five.

UPMC officials would not say whether Shick sought treatment, citing federal privacy laws. Spokesman Paul Wood acknowledged the hospital on Tuesday gave Allegheny County Medical Examiner Dr. Karl Williams medical records that he had requested in a subpoena and court order.

"We routinely try to get medical records, even if we're not sure any exist or what might be in them," Williams said. "Typically, a subpoena is enough to get the records. UPMC, the police and my office are all being overly cautious because this is a very unusual case.

"Very little about this case is normal, and I don't want there to be any questions later about how it was handled."

Huss said people should not worry, in general, about security in the city's public buildings.

"There's always a chance something like this could happen," he said. "Not every one of our buildings is secure; we know that. Some buildings have better security than others. Even when you have security, there's people who may try to circumvent it."

Neighbors and investigators at Shick's apartment building blocks from the hospital described papers taped to walls inside an otherwise clean apartment. Police found pills in the apartment, including 43 medications ranging from psychotropic drugs to pain pills to treatment for erectile dysfunction.

They found the address for Western Psych on a piece of paper on a wall, investigators said. They found empty glass bottles with wicks taped on top, a gas mask and an empty gun holster. In his attack, Shick used two pistols that authorities say were purchased in Texas.

District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. met with Pittsburgh police Chief Nate Harper and Cmdr. Thomas Stangrecki Wednesday.

"We'll try to address the public soon," Zappala said.

The Medical Examiner's Office is investigating Shick's death and reached his parents with the help of the Coast Guard.

Laurence and Susan Shick have spent years living and traveling on a sailboat, according to their blog. They called Williams' office on Tuesday, said they planned to hold a service for their son and would call back with arrangements. Williams said his office has not heard back from the couple. Shick's embalmed body remains in the Strip District facility.

The Trib could not reach the Shicks.

"It's not unusual for there to be a delay of weeks or even months sometimes when the next of kin are located out-of-town," Williams said.

He would not say what investigators found on Shick when they brought his body into the morgue or what his office found at autopsy.

The day before the shootings, a neighbor said, Shick summoned an ambulance and vomited in the apartment building's lobby. Officials would not say where the ambulance took him.

Before moving to Pittsburgh, Shick lived in Portland, Ore., where police arrested him in 2009 on charges of fighting with officers at Portland International Airport. Bob Leineweber, assistant district attorney in Multnomah County, said police petitioned the court to have Shick receive psychiatric treatment. Leineweber did not know where or how long Shick was committed. Portland police said they plan to release details about his stay as early as Thursday.

This article was written by Channel 11's news exchange partners at TribLIVE.

WPXI