Two people were killed and at least six others wounded during a mass shooting at Florida State University (FSU) on Thursday, according to investigators in the United States.
Here is what we know so far about the suspect, victims and the investigation into the incident:
What happened at Florida State University?
A gunman opened fire outside the student union at FSU close to lunchtime on Thursday at 11:50am Eastern Time (15:50 GMT).
Upon hearing gunshots, students and parents scrambled to escape and seek shelter in a bowling alley and freight lift inside the student union.
The university promptly issued an active shooter alert. Soon after, Florida State’s alert system announced that law enforcement had neutralised the threat.
Where did the FSU shooting take place?
The shooting took place outside the student union on the main FSU campus, which is in Tallahassee, Florida, close to the state’s Capitol building.
More than 42,000 students are enrolled at FSU’s main campus.
Tallahassee, the capital of Florida, is about 350km (220 miles) northwest of Orlando.
What do we know about the alleged attacker and weapons?
Leon County Sheriff Walter McNeil has identified the gunman as 20-year-old Phoenix Ikner, the son of a Leon County sheriff’s deputy. His mother, named by US media as Jessica Ikner, has served at the sheriff’s department for 18 years, McNeil said.
Phoenix Ikner is an FSU student, Jason Trumbower, chief of the university’s police force said during a news conference on Thursday.
He had access to his mother’s handgun which was once a service weapon but was now a personal firearm. “Unfortunately, her son had access to one of her weapons that was found at the scene,” McNeil said during the news conference.
Besides the handgun, authorities believe that Ikner brought a shotgun to campus. It is unclear whether this shotgun was used in the shooting. Trumbower said there is no evidence that anyone was shot with a shotgun.
FSU business management student Aidan Stickney, 21, said he saw a man get out of a car with a shotgun, aiming it at another man, The Associated Press news agency reported. The gun jammed and the attacker ran back to his car before returning with a handgun, opening fire on a woman, said Stickney, who said he ran from the scene and warned others.
When the alleged attacker refused to surrender, the police shot him and took him into custody.
Authorities have not yet speculated on or revealed the attacker’s motive.
What do we know about the victims?
The identities of the victims are not known.
The two people who have died were not students of the university, said Trumbower.
Five people were injured by gunfire while a sixth was injured while trying to run away.
The injured victims are being treated at Tallahassee Memorial Hospital. This is also where the attacker is being treated. The extent of the victims’ or the attacker’s injuries is not known. A statement released by the hospital says: “At this time, details are still unfolding, and we do not yet have specific information to share.”
What have been the reactions to this incident?
US President Donald Trump said he had been briefed on the incident at FSU while speaking to reporters at the Oval Office. “It’s a horrible thing. It’s horrible that things like this take place,” he said.
However, he did suggest he will not back new legislation on guns. “The gun doesn’t do the shooting, the people do,” said Trump.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis responded to the shooting in a series of posts and a video posted on X. “Our prayers are with our FSU family and state law enforcement is actively responding,” he wrote.
We stand with Florida State University. Today, we are all Seminoles. pic.twitter.com/dUMW3eL48r
— Ron DeSantis (@GovRonDeSantis) April 17, 2025
All classes on the FSU main campus for Thursday and Friday were cancelled.
How many shootings have taken place in the US so far this year?
There have been 81 mass shootings in the US in 2025 so far, according to not-for-profit website Gun Violence Archive. This includes the FSU shooting on Thursday.
In January, a 17-year-old suspect shot and killed a female high school student in Nashville, Tennessee, before killing himself, law enforcement officials said.
The Thursday shooting was the second shooting at FSU in 11 years. In 2014, a graduate opened fire at the main library, wounding two students and an employee. The gunman was shot and killed by the police.
What are the gun laws in the US?
The right to buy and carry a gun is guaranteed in the US Constitution.
The Second Amendment of the US Constitution states: “A well-regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.”
In 2022, former US President Joe Biden signed into law the first major federal gun reform in three decades. This bipartisan bill strengthened background checks for the youngest gun buyers and helped states introduce laws that make it easier for authorities to seize guns from people believed to be dangerous.
However, rules of gun ownership vary depending on the state.
Florida, for example, was notorious for having relaxed gun laws until 2018, when the state passed strong gun laws following a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland. The new laws created extreme risk protection orders, which restrict gun access from people believed to be dangerous. They also raised the minimum age for purchasing guns to 21.
Will gun laws be tightened in the US?
This is a highly contested subject. About 58 percent of American adults favour stricter gun laws, according to a report by the Pew Research Center, published in July 2024.
Samantha Barrios, the Florida State Director at gun violence prevention organisation GIFFORDS, said in a statement: “Florida Governor Ron DeSantis offered his prayers to the students and faculty at FSU, but prayers are not enough. It’s time for real action. It’s time to close loopholes and pass gun safety laws that we know work, not repeal the bipartisan measures Floridians implemented after Parkland.” GIFFORDS is led by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.
However, legislators have been reluctant to make any significant changes. Furthermore, on February 7, Trump signed an executive order “to end the federal government’s violation” of the Second Amendment and Americans’ right to protect themselves and their families.
This order seeks to “dismantle gun control”, repealing measures taken by the Biden administration to regulate firearm use.
Besides the bipartisan bill Biden signed in 2022, he introduced other gun control measures. In April 2024, Biden introduced a rule requiring online gun sellers or people who sell firearms at gun shows to conduct background checks on their customers. In September 2024, he signed an executive order establishing a task force to crack down on machine-gun conversion devices and unserialised, 3D-printed guns.
“President Trump’s executive order could reopen the untraceable ghost gun market and undermine actions to protect Americans from gun trafficking and violent crime,” a statement by Brady United, a nonprofit organisation against gun violence, said.
While some organisations advocate for regulation of gun use, others lobby against it.
The National Rifle Association (NRA) started as a recreational group for rifle shooting in 1871, but has burgeoned into a political organisation campaigning against gun control. An article by the NRA says gun control places limits on the freedom guaranteed by the Second Amendment.
The NRA’s argument is: “Criminals, by definition, do not obey the law. Gun control laws only affect law-abiding people who go through legal avenues to obtain firearms.”
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