Nine people were gunned down last week in Oregon, but one young man was intentionally spared by the shooter, according to CNN. The killer called the 18-year-old "the lucky one."
Matthew was forced to watch others be shot, and was given a message to take to the police from the shooter. His mother, Summer Smith, has asked that Matthew's last name not be published. "He'll never feel complete security again," she said.
Christopher Harper-Mercer, the shooter, entered the classroom where Matthew was sitting last Thursday. After shooting three people, he addressed Matthew and give him an envelope. It held a flash drive, which the police say contained writings from Harper-Mercer.
After receiving the envelope, Matthew was ordered to sit in the back of the room while the shooter went back to firing.
More details about the shooting at Umpqua Community College are emerging this week, including the story about Matthew. Witnesses inside the room say that the shooter told one person to beg him not to shoot, but shot them anyway, according to The Associated Press. Students were also told to crawl around the room.
Various reports are saying that the flash drive contained a manifesto, of sorts, from the shooter, according to The New York Daily news. As of Tuesday afternoon, police have yet to publicize a motive for the mass shooting, if one is known to them. The shooter engaged in a brief gunfight with police before shooting himself, authorities said.
