Incident Summary:

11/27/2015: An assailant opened fire on a Planned Parenthood clinic and held an unknown number of people hostage for five hours in Colorado Springs, Colorado, United States. At least three people were killed and nine other people were wounded in the assault. An individual, identified as Robert Lewis Dear, claimed responsibility for the incident and stated that he was a "warrior for the babies."

GTD ID:
201511270001

When:
2015-11-27

Country:
United States

Region:
North America

Province/administrative
region/u.s. state:

Colorado

City:
Colorado Springs

Attack Information
Type of Attack (more) Armed Assault
Type of Attack (more) Hostage Taking (Barricade Incident)
Successful Attack? (more) Yes
Target Information (more)
Target Type: Abortion Related
Name of Entity Planned Parenthood Federation of America, Inc.
Specific Description Clinic
Nationality of Target United States
Additional Information
Hostages Yes
Number of Hostages Unknown
US Hostages Unknown
Hours of Kidnapping 5
Outcome Successful Rescue
Ransom No
Property Damage No
Weapon Information
Type Sub-type
Firearms Automatic Weapon
Weapon Details
An assault rifle was used in the attack.
Additional Information
Suicide Attack?No
Part of Multiple Incident?No
Criterion 1 (more) Yes
Criterion 2 (more) Yes
Criterion 3 (more) Yes
Doubt Terrorism Proper (more) No
Perpetrator Group Information
Group Name Claimed Responsibility
Anti-Abortion extremists Yes (Confirmed: Unknown; Mode: Personal claim)
Perpetrator Statistics
Number of Perpetrators 1
Number of Captured Perpetrators 1
Casualty Information
Total Number of Casualties 3 Fatalities / 9 Injured
Total Number of Fatalities 3
Number of U.S. Fatalities 3
Number of Perpetrator Fatalities 0
Total Number of Injured 9
Number of U.S. Injured 9
Number of Perpetrators Injured 0
Sources
"3 Are Dead in Colorado Springs Shootout at Planned Parenthood Center," New York Times, November 28, 2015.
"Planned Parenthood Shooting Suspect Robert Dear Says He's 'Warrior for the Babies'," NBCNews.com, December 9, 2015.
"Shooting near Colorado Planned Parenthood clinic leaves 3 officers injured," CBC, November 27, 2015.