Gunman kills 7, himself at hotel

BROOKFIELD, Wis. — A man neighbors described as quiet and devout opened fire on a group of men, women and children attending a weekly church service Saturday at a Brookfield, Wis., hotel, killing eight people — including himself — and seriously wounding four others.

"He planned to shoot us all," said Chandra Frazier, a woman attending the Living Church of God gathering.

The service had been going about 15 minutes when the man yelled out something and opened fire. Some people sought cover, others attempted to protect loved ones. One man, Frazier saizd, yelled, "Please stop! Think about it!"

The killer, armed with a handgun, paused at least once to reload. Frazier said she dove beneath the chair of a man who was then shot.

"I'm just wondering why I'm still alive," she said.

Besides the gunman, four of the victims — three males, ages 15, 17 and 72, and one 55-year-old woman — died at the scene, the Sheraton Hotel, 375 S. Moorland Road, just north of I-94.

Three others — all men, ages 44, 50 and 58 — died at Froedtert Memorial Lutheran Hospital.

Among the dead was the church's leader, Randy Gregory, 50, of Gurnee, Ill.

Three survivors include females, ages 10, 20 and 52. The fourth is a 20-year-old man.

It is one of the worst mass killings in state history.

"It's heartbreaking, it's overwhelming. It's human carnage," Waukesha County District Attorney Paul Bucher said.

Police said the gunman acted alone.

"There is nobody else being sought at this time as a suspect," said Daniel Tushaus, chief of the Brookfield Police Department.

The shooter is believed to be Terry Ratzmann, 44, who lived with his mother and sister in New Berlin. Neighbors said Ratzmann had been a devoted member of the church.

Ratzmann's silver pickup truck was towed away from the hotel hours after the shooting. New Berlin police closed down Ratzmann's neighborhood while investigators searched his house.

New Berlin Mayor Ted Wysocki said officers from his city had been called in to help after the shooting.

"We're doing an investigation at the behest of the Brookfield Police Department," Wysocki said. "They told us that there is potential of a suspect in New Berlin."