Halloween Hell: Sylvia Seegrist's Mischief Night Massacre

Mischief night is usually full of energetic young people's potentially humorous pranks, but in a suburban Philadelphia mall October 30, 1985 was not humorous at all. It was on that fateful day Sylvia Seegrist walked into Springfield mall in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, with her .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle and opened fire. While the madness ended fairly quickly, in less than four minutes, when all was said and done Sylvia Seegrist killed three people and wounded seven others.

HALLOWEEN HELL: SYLVIA SEEGRIST'S MISCHIEF NIGHT MASSACRE

A Diverse Area: Background

Delaware County ranges socioeconomically from working class communities such as Chester to the posh suburban neighborhoods found along the Main Line. Crum Lynne itself is considered a suburb of Philadelphia, along with Springfield. The citizens of Delaware County are generally white and conservative. Notable people from Delaware County include actor Danny Bonaduce, singer/songwriter Jim Croce, musician Joan Jett, actor/comedian Jamie Kennedy, and many more (Art History Club).

Growing Up Ill: Offender Information

Sylvia Seegrist was born in Crum Lynne, Delaware County, Pennsylvania on July 31, 1960. As a child, Seegrist was abused by her grandfather, who also performed lewd sexual acts in her presence, starting at age eight. She was often and conflict with her parents and demonstrated behavioral problems throughout adolescence. At age fifteen, when she was just a sophomore in high school, Seegrist was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia. Her illness was so severe that she faced a lifetime of medication and/or hospitalization; likely both (Dzuali 2006).

Medical professionals report that schizophrenia has both positive and negative symptoms. Positive side effects include delusions, hallucinations, disorganized speech, thoughts, and beliefs, and disorganized thoughts and behaviors. Negative side effects include alogia, poverty of speech, a flattening or blunting affect, avolition, anhedonia, catatonia, and posturing. These symptoms usually do not occur until one reaches their late teens or early twenties. Schizophrenia cannot be diagnosed until positive symptoms occur (Human Illnesses and Behavioral Health).

Sylvia's mental illness forced her to become alienated from her friends and family. As a result from both isolation and illness, she was unable to hold a steady job. Regardless, she was still forced to live on her own. Her isolation from friends and family helped her develop a new interest; Seegrist became very passionate about the military. She began dressing in Army fatigues, read many books on warfare, and made it known that she wanted to fight as a guerilla in Iran. Unfortunately, her illness got in the way yet again and she was discharged from the Army after only two months for behavioral issues (Dzuali 2006).

Following her discharge, Sylvia's mental state worsens when she ceases taking her medication properly. As a result of this, her delusions worsen. During this time of worsening delusions, Seegrist tries to strangle her mother. Following this incident, Sylvia was only hospitalized for three weeks. Then in 1980, she then stabs her counselor in the back with a paring knife. She also stated several times that she wanted to buy a gun and shoot people, but this warning was unfortunately ignored. Over a period of ten years, Seegrist was committed to mental hospitals twelve times, while her parents searched for residential treatments (Dzuali 2006).

Mischief Night Massacre: The Murders

At approximately 3:30pm on October 30, 1985, Sylvia Seegrist arrived at Springfield Mall, in the suburbs of Philadelphia, and started shooting (NBC). She emerged from her white Datsun dressed in army fatigues and a knit cap, carrying a .22 caliber semi-automatic rifle. She fired her first shots in the parking lots. She shoots at a man from thirty yards away, but misses. As Seegrist passes by the man, he runs to her car and punctures one of her tires with an ice pick to prevent escape. When he looked inside her car he saw a rifle case, fingerless gloves, a newspaper, and quite a few spilled bullets. He automatically assumed that the shooter was male, but he was wrong (TRUtv).

The shots outside continue when she shoots at a woman standing at an ATM. She then centers on a man standing at the mall's entrance. Fortunately, she misses both targets. Most people assume that it is some sort of poor mischief night prank, but they quickly learn that it is very real. Near the Magic Pan restaurant, Seegrist takes her first victims. A two-year-old boy takes the first bullet, which fatally wounds his lungs and heart. Two other children are wounded-a nine year old girl was shot in the right cheek and a ten year old received an external chest wound (TRUtv).

It appeared as though Seegrist had no method to her madness. She would shoot at people outside of stores and randomly shoot inside of some stores, but pass by others. She shattered a window at Oriental furniture store, Pearl of the East, before shooting over the head of a Rite Aid drugstore clerk. She also shot into Kinney shoe store (TRUtv).

No one stopped her as she made her way through the pedestrian area, angrily muttering to herself. A man standing alone in the walkway was shot and hit three times, leaving him critically wounded. A woman ran from a store to find her husband had been shot in the ear and was bleeding badly; she screamed for help. The victims continue adding up as one girl is shot in stomach twice, a woman suffers from a back wound, another women is hit four times in the abdomen, and an adolescent girl is shot in the left hand and right wrist (TRUtv).

Seegrist is finally stopped when she comes into contact with John Laufer, a twenty-four year old graduate student. He believes that she is shooting blanks as a joke and right before he stops her she points her gun directly at him from ten yards away. Laufer grabs her and says "You picked the wrong person to fool with. I'm going to turn you in now." He guides her to a shoe store thirty yards away and orders her to sit in a chair until he returns. When he returns with a security guard, Seegrist is put on the floor and handcuffed, where she remains until the police arrive (TRUtv).

In the end, the shooting last less than five minutes, though to everyone in the mall it seemed much longer. Seegrist fired approximately twenty rounds and had ten rounds left when she was apprehended (Giordano 2007). The numbers weighed in at a noticeable three dead and seven wounded (Torrey 2007). The three dead were two-year-old Recife Cosmen of Delaware, sixty-four year old Augsto Ferrara of Philadelphia, and sixty-seven year old Dr. Ernest Trout.

The Aftermath: Following the Incident

The shooter's identity was not a secret for long. In fact, many mall employees already knew of Sylvia Seegrist. She lived within walking distance of the mall and frequented it, harassing customers. Police learned later that Seegrist had visited the mall a week earlier to get her tranquilizer prescription filled at the drugstore. Apparently she was very angry when the pharmacist refused to fill the prescription because Sylvia forgot her welfare card. As it turns out, most of the shooting occurred in front of Rite Aid (Ramsland 2006, 52).

When Sylvia was asked why she did this, she responded "My family makes me nervous" (Torrey 2007). She insists that she did not mean to do it, but evidence shows that she hoped to be killed during the rampage (suicide by cop) or at least executed for it (TRUtv). Regardless of the reasoning, neighbors were not surprised by her actions. Her neighbors report that she was extremely hateful, aggressive, and violent, especially toward children. These neighbors and others who knew her immediately pictured her as the shooter when they heard of the incident. Former roommates were scared of her and her former pastor said that he knew she would explode someday (The Washington Post 1985). Even her own parents were not surprised by the shooting. In fact, he mother was quoted in the New York Times saying "We were always fearful that maybe some tragedy would happen...She threatened it: 'Some day before I kill myself, I'll bring some people down with me.'" Unfortunately, her threats and warnings went unheard until the tragedy actually occurred (Goodstein & Glaberson 2000).

Following the event, much blame was placed on the Pennsylvania mental health system, as they handled a seriously ill woman rather poorly. After serious incidents, including the attempted strangulation of her mother and the stabbing of her therapist, she experienced only short stays at mental hospitals (Dzuali 2007). Furthermore, just two weeks before the incident, Sylvia contacted a psychiatrist. Instead of seeing her, the psychiatrist simply called in a prescription for her instead.

The Justice System Takes Over: Pre through Post-Trial

Seegrist attends her arraignment barefoot at approximately 8pm on the same night of her rampage. As to be expected, Seegrist was less than cooperative at this time. Among her first words to the judge were "Fuck you, I hope you starve, motherfucker! I don't like that feeling, but that's the way it is." She then blamed the rampage on her parents, claiming they abused her, and wished she had never been born. She also lashed out with "Hurry up, man. You know I'm guilty. Just kill me on the spot" (Time 1985). While the judge read out the charges, she paid no mind to him; instead she shouted "Do you have a black box? That is my testimony" (Ramsland 2006, 52). The preliminary hearing was set for a week later, on November 7, 1985.

Following her rampage, Seegrist underwent an extensive psychiatric evaluation to see if she could understand the charges brought against her and participate in her defense. Her public defenders filed a motion that the DAs office return all of Seegrist's psychiatric records, which delayed the proceedings even more. Seegrist was declared competent to stand trial on March 7, 1986; with a proviso stating that her mental state could deteriorate before or during the trial (TRUtv).

Seegrist paid no attention to her surroundings at her preliminary hearing. In fact, she sat through the testimony scribbling a long note the whole time. This note read "The end of commerce, the end of post office, and the end of money!" The defense said that this was evidence of her mental illness (TRUtv).

Sylvia was being charged with three counts of murder and seven counts of attempted murder and assault. Seegrist's attorneys plead insanity, stating that schizophrenia caused the incident. Opening statements began on June 18, 1986. The prosecution argued that Seegrist planned her attack and she had done so in hopes of receiving attention. The defense argued that she did not know right from wrong and showed a history of violence and severe mental disability TRUtv).

The prosecution calls to the stand the mall security guard and witnesses who had been at the mall that day. The mall security guard testified that after being handcuffed Seegrist mumbled about a little black box and negative energy. Witnesses who were at the mall on the day of the rampage recounted what they saw. Injuries to the victims were explained rather graphically; to the point in which some were in tears (TRUtv).

The defense calls Ruth Seegrist and three mental health professionals to the stand. Ruth Seegrist spoke of how Sylvia's grandfather masturbated and demonstrated several sexual positions in front of her when she was a child. She also recalled Sylvia's extensive mental illness history and bizarre behavior. She spoke of incidents in which Sylvia spray-painted her body, cut off all of her hair, and vandalized her apartment walls. The three mental health professionals (two psychiatrists and a psychologist) testified that Sylvia could not appreciate what she had done that day (TRUtv).

The prosecution disagreed with the defense's argument. They [prosecution] felt that because Sylvia had done well in her psychology courses that she knew how to fool the doctors. Dr. Park Dietz testified that Seegrist had known what she was doing and that is was wrong. He claimed that Sylvia may be bi-polar rather than schizophrenic. He also believed that the shootings were organized and that it had been a planned attack, therefore making her not legally insane (TRUtv).

The prosecutions closing arguments consisted of accusing Seegrist of committing the crimes because she was unable to succeed at anything and blamed society for that. The defense merely argued that Seegrist was a victim of mental illness. In total, the trial lasted eight days and the jury debated for more than nine hours. Seegrist was found guilty, but mentally ill. She was sentenced to three consecutive life sentences for the murder charges and a maximum of ten years for each of the seven attempted murder charges (TRUtv).

Following the trial, Seegrist's victims and their families filed a gross negligence lawsuit against the owner's of Springfield Mall, Haverford State Hospital, the township police department, the corporation that owned Best Products (where she purchased the gun), and a mental health counselor, claiming that they failed to take proper precautions to protect the public. There was evidence against Seegrist claiming that she made threatening remarks on the days leading up to her rampage (TRUtv).

Seegrist's inspiration was James Huberty, who took an assault rifle into a McDonald's in San Ysidro, California. He went on a shooting rampage for ten minutes, killing twenty-one people and wounding nineteen others before being killed by a SWAT officer. Apparently Seegrist visited this McDonald's before going to her local McDonald's and making hand gestures signifying shooting people, saying "I'm going to blow you all away" (TRUtv).

The mall's attorneys claimed that they were unable to see commitment for Seegrist and even if they had been able to she would not have been detained for very long, as her previous record shows. They also stated that no one can predict what people can do to harm the public and that they should not be held responsible for the potentially dangerous possibilities (TRUtv).

In February 1990, the plaintiffs were awarded damages. Insurance companies settled out of court for an undisclosed amount. Rumors place the amount at more than three million dollars (TRUtv).

Where Is She Now: Current Status

After spending two and a half years at Norristown State Hospital, Seegrist was relocated to the Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution at Muncy (Ramsland 2006, 53). A 1991 follow-up piece by Reid Kanaley with the Philadelphia Inquirer stated that she had stabilized her feelings and behaviors. She then even expressed hope of someday being released. She is no longer overwhelmed by paranoia and delusions, but instead feels remorse for what she did. At the time, she was studying to obtain a degree in psychology. She explained that she went to the mall that day with a mission because she feared her mother was going to have her hospitalized again and the side-effects from her medication at the time were so strong that she would rather die or go to jail than be forced to medicate in a hospital (TRUtv).

A 1994 follow-up piece explained that Sylvia had nearly completed her college degree and was now teaching math to fellow prisoners. Her mother concluded that the state prison environment was "humane" for Sylvia (TRUtv). Her parents frequently visited her at Muncy until 1995 when she decided she no longer wanted any family contact. According to a 2002 article in the Philadelphia Inquirer, Ruth Seegrist had not heard from her daughter since November of that year (Schogol 2002).

CONCLUSION

At the young age of twenty-five, Sylvia Seegrist put an end to her own life without committing suicide. In killing three people and wounding seven others, Seegrist ensured that she would never again know what it is like to be free. And after only ten years of being a diagnosed paranoid schizophrenic, that is a fate she at least semi-willingly chose. Three bodies, seven other victims, a trial, a lawsuit, and many psychological examinations later, Sylvia Seegrist is finally getting what she deserves: help, even if it is behind bars.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. 1985. Massacre at the mall. The Washington Post, November 2, Editorial, Final edition.

2. 1985. American notes Pennsylvania. Time, November 11.

3. Art History Club. Delaware county. http://www.arthistoryclub.com/art_history/Delaware_County,_Pennsylvania

4. Dzuali, Torwoli. 2006. Sylvia Seegrist and state control over the mentally ill. Research paper, Authors Den.

5. Giordano, Kevin. 2007. Halloween hell. Mens Magazine Online, http://www.mensmagazineonline.com/halloween_hell.asp

6. Goodstein, Laurie, and William Glabberson. 2000. The well-marked roads to homicidal rage; rampage killers: second of four articles-warning signs. New York Times, April 10, Late Edition (East Coast).

7. Human Illnesses and Behavioral Health. Schizophrenia. http://www.humanillnesses.com/Behavioral-Health-Ob-Sea/Schizophrenia.html

8. NBC10. Whatever happened to: Sylvia Seegrist. http://www.nbc10.com/news/9372291/detail.html?subid=10101521

9. Ramsland, Katherine. 2006. Inside the minds of mass murderers: why they kill. Westport, CT: Praeger.

10. Schlogol, Mark. 2002. A killer still driven by her demons. The Philadelphia Inquirer, March 24, Region section.

11. Torrey, E. Fuller. 2007. Help the ill before they kill. New York Post, April 13.

12. TRUtv. Halloween rampage. http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/notorious_murders/mass/sylvia_seegrist/index.html