On this day in crime history – August 20

Published August 20, 2008 4:00am ET



On this day in 1986: Part-time U.S. Postal Service employee Patrick Henry Sherrill, 44, shot and killed 14 co-workers and wounded six others before turning the gun on himself. He began his rampage by gunning down a supervisor who had criticized him. The incident, which capped off a string of 35 homicides in 11 post offices between 1983 and 1986, is credited with inspiring the American slang term “going postal,” used to describe fits of rage in or outside the workplace.

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