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Man attacked wife in classroom, police say
SWAT team members prepare to enter the front door of 2520 Argonne Road in Portsmouth on Thursday before sending in a robot equipped with a camera. Michael Layne was found dead of a self inflicted gunshot wound inside the home.
PORTSMOUTH, Ohio — The estranged husband of a fifth-grade teacher at a Portsmouth grade school attacked her in front of her students Thursday, then killed himself at his home during a standoff with police, authorities said.
Dead is William Michael “Mike” Layne, 56, who died from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, said Dr. Terry Johnson, Scioto County coroner.
His wife, Christi Layne, 53, of Portsmouth, a teacher at Notre Dame Elementary School, was in critical but stable condition Thursday afternoon at Cabell Huntington Hospital in Huntington, Portsmouth Police Chief Charles Horner said. Police said she suffered stab wounds and possibly a gunshot wound.
Police say the series of events began about 9 a.m. with the stabbing of another woman along 11th Street, an attack authorities believe was connected to the attack at the school. That victim, Stephanie Loot, 22, of Portsmouth, was taken to a hospital in Columbus, Ohio. Hospital officials did not release her condition on Thursday evening.
Christi Layne has worked 19 years at Notre Dame Elementary, which is a Catholic school located at 1401 Gallia St., Principal Kay Kern said.
"It's really hard on the staff," Kern said. "They are all very good friends."
No children were physically injured during the incident at the school. About 162 students attend classes there.
The gunman entered the school about 9:15 a.m. and went to Christi Layne’s classroom.
Student Emmaly Baker said she hid in the classroom’s coatroom when the gunman came in.
“We heard gunshots, and we heard her yelling. I was scared,” Baker said. “The police officer came and got us and she was still laying there and she was hurt really bad.”
Authorities said Mike Layne ran from the school to his residence about two miles away at 2517 Argonne Road and barricaded himself inside the home. An Ohio Highway Patrol SWAT team entered the house about 1:30 p.m. and found Mike Layne’s body in a small outbuilding in the back yard of the one-story frame house with blue vinyl siding. The body will be sent to the Franklin County coroner's office for an autopsy.
Police say a domestic violence petition had been filed against Mike Layne, who was on disability from the City of Portsmouth.
Horner said Christi Layne, who lived at another address, was stabbed and possibly shot, but they cannot confirm the shooting.
Horner says a firearm was found in the school and one shot was fired in the fifth-grade classroom where the incident took place. There is no indication the gunman went to any other room or building at the school.
A gun was also found at the site of the 11th Street stabbing incident, the chief said.
After Layne went to his home, witnesses heard gunfire at the house. Kim Harris, who cares for a man who lives next door, said at one point police fired at the house after gunshots came from inside the home. Police "told us to get down on the floor and stay in the back of the house," she said.
Eric Martin's mother lives two doors down from Mike Layne's residence. He described Mike Layne as a nice guy, but Martin said Thursday's activity caused him to fear for his mother's safety.
Neighbor Jack Freeland, 37, who often talked with Mike Layne, said the couple had separated last summer. He said Layne had been acting strangely for several months.
“At night time, he was out digging up his yard at 1, 2 in the morning,” he said.
Carol Bingaman, another neighbor, was in her kitchen when she heard gunshots.
“We’ve lived here for more than 12 years,” she said. “This has been a nice neighborhood to live in. Nobody bothers anybody. This is crazy. It’s been like a beehive (of activity) since it started. I didn’t really know him. The man had to be sick.”
Ohio State Highway Patrol Lt. Mike Crispen said the SWAT team assembled outside Mike Layne’s house made several attempts to contact him. He said they called the house telephone, along with another phone they threw inside.
Horner said he believes Mike Layne fired gunshots toward authorities, but he said police did not target him with return fire. He said officers only took aim at security cameras installed on the property.
After the incident at the school, Notre Dame High School and all Portsmouth City Schools were placed on lockdown, as was Southern Ohio Medical Center. The city lifted its lockdown order at 10 a.m. Kern said the Notre Dame Elementary School remained on lockdown until all children were accounted for and officials were sure the attacker was no longer in the facility. The school was closed after its students were released to their parents.
The elementary school will be closed today, and Kern said counselors will be available for students. The school offers pre-kindergarten through sixth grade.
St. Mary of the Annunciation Catholic Church hosted a community prayer service Thursday night.
Deacon Tom Berg, vice chancellor of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus, learned of the incident about 9:30 a.m. He said the diocese alerted clergy in the area and asked them to provide any needed assistance. A member of the diocese's crisis team went to Portsmouth, which is about a two-hour drive from Columbus.
"She will help assess the situation and determine what is needed, especially for the kids at the school," he said. "It is horrifying to hear of a shooting anytime at a school. As people of faith, it causes us to pray for people's safety."
Parents, many with cell phones clutched to their ears, congregated in the parking lot across the street from the school. They began leaving with their children around 10:30 a.m., said Kathy Hall, office manager of Cornerstone United Methodist Church. Her church locked its doors once calls began coming in about what was happening.
The scene outside was chaotic with police cars and few ambulances descending on the school and the fire department blocking off the street.
"I wasn't afraid for my own safety, I was afraid for the children, because these turn out so terrible, you know," Hall said.
The church's pastor said he went out to talk to parents and grandparents, who were shaken.
"Just imagine if that were your child there," the Rev. Clark Hess said. He described fearful parents caught up in a "swirl of differing scenarios and stories" about what had happened.
The incident brought dozens of officers from various law enforcement agencies, including Ohio Highway Patrol, Portsmouth Police Department, the Scioto County Sheriff and the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility.
Staff writers David E. Malloy and Curtis Johnson and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
