Dekraai was involved in a contentious child custody battle with his ex-wife, Michelle Fournier, who worked at Salon Meritage and was among those murdered.
According to USA Today, public mass killings like the ones we saw in Oregon and Newtown only represents one in six mass murders. Most mass killings—53 percent—are familial murders, and of those, 80 to 84 percent happen in the home. They may generate national headlines, but rarely do they seem to attract the same attention as do public mass murders.
The USA Today report, "Behind the Bloodshed: The Untold Story of America's Mass Killings," found that 77 percent of mass killings involve the use of firearms. In 72.9 percent of those killings, the killer carried a handgun, in 18.5 percent he had a rifle, and in 8.6 percent he had a shotgun. Males accounted for 94 percent of the shooters.
Interestingly, due to the lack of accurate statistical reporting by the states (Florida does not even report its data to the FBI), USA Today gives the FBI statistics on mass murder a 57 percent accuracy rate. The newspaper's reporters started with the FBI's Supplemental Homicide Reports and then combed through local news reports and official records to give a clearer picture of mass murder in the United States.
Read more about men who murder their families below.