Nine Dead in Erie, Pennsylvania Shooting, Including Suspected Gunman and Two Children, Officials Say

Nine people are dead after a shooting Friday evening, Oct. 9, at a home near East Seventh and Perry streets on Erie's east side, according to city officials. The total includes the suspected shooter, who died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. Authorities said at least two children are among the dead.

Police were dispatched shortly before 5 p.m. after a ShotSpotter alert reported gunfire. Witnesses told investigators they saw a man firing a weapon outside the property before he went inside.

Officers found two women dead in the street. More victims, including the children, were found inside the home along with the suspected gunman.

What the city says happened

Erie officials said Saturday, Oct. 10, that investigators determined all of the deaths happened before officers reached the scene. Police arrived within minutes of the alert, and no additional shots were fired after they got there, the city said.

A SWAT team was deployed. Officers tried to get the man inside to come out, then entered the home after obtaining a warrant.

The account of the police response drew some early confusion. Erie News Now reported that more gunshots were heard while police surrounded the home and that the gunman had barricaded himself inside. Police later said those sounds were flash-bang devices used in the tactical response, not gunfire. The city also stressed that the deaths were not the result of a prolonged standoff or a delay in police action.

Officials' statements

Erie Police Chief Rick Lorah said he has not seen anything like it in more than 28 years in law enforcement. "I'm not sure that the city of Erie has ever seen the loss of life and the devastation that we just witnessed," he said.

Lorah has declined to describe what officers found inside the house, citing respect for the victims and their families and the active investigation. "We will not speculate about a motive or any information that could compromise this investigation," he said.

Mayor Daria Devlin and the City of Erie issued a joint statement calling the shooting a "terrible tragedy" and saying the shooter is dead and the public faces no ongoing danger. The city asked residents to be careful about sharing unverified information while investigators work.

Gov. Josh Shapiro said he spoke with Devlin and offered his administration's "full support." "My heart breaks for this family," he said, which suggests the victims may have been members of one family. Authorities have not said so publicly.

Erie News Now reported that responding officers are being offered counseling.

What is still unknown

Police have not released the victims' names or ages. They have not said how the victims were related to the suspected gunman, if at all. The weapon used has not been identified publicly, and Lorah has offered no motive.

The city scheduled a further update for 4 p.m. Saturday.

A violent weekend elsewhere

Erie was not the only multi-victim shooting of the weekend. In Douglas, Georgia, five people were found shot at a home on Robin Lane around 11:09 p.m. Friday. Police Chief Brannen Pruette said the case appears to be a murder-suicide.

Georgia authorities have now reported a mass shooting or similar multi-victim incident three weekends in a row. That includes a homecoming party shooting in Vienna that left two dead and 35 injured.

The Gun Violence Archive, which counts any incident with at least four people shot excluding the shooter, has logged 365 mass shootings in the U.S. in 2026.

In Erie, the open questions are the ones only the investigation can answer: who the victims were, what led the gunman to open fire, and how a man firing in the street was able to kill so many before the first officers pulled up.