A Saturday afternoon shooting at an In-N-Out Burger in Twin Falls, Idaho, left at least three people dead and seven injured, just one week after the restaurant first opened its doors.
The gunman opened fire at approximately 2:00 p.m. on August 1 in a busy shopping plaza where hundreds of people had gathered on a summer weekend. Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks said the suspected shooter was found dead near the restaurant shortly after the attack. Among the dead: a female In-N-Out employee who had been serving customers when the shooting began.
City spokesperson Josh Palmer said three people were killed and seven others injured, some critically. Palmer did not clarify whether the gunman's death was included in that toll. Multiple victims were taken to St. Luke's Magic Valley Medical Center, where a hospital spokesperson said staff were working alongside law enforcement and emergency personnel.
The In-N-Out location had opened on July 24 as part of the chain's expansion into Idaho. Eight days later, it became a crime scene. Twin Falls, a city of roughly 56,000 about 130 miles southeast of Boise, is not the kind of place residents associate with mass violence.
Hicks described what officers encountered when they arrived.
"It was a very chaotic scene."
He added that investigators believe the immediate danger has passed.
"We believe the threat to the community is over."
Both the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are assisting local authorities. As of the police chief's news conference, investigators had not yet identified the suspected shooter publicly and were still working to determine a motive. Authorities said they were contacting victims' families before releasing names, ages, or other details.
Video captured from across the street appeared to show a person dressed in black carrying a long rifle and walking toward a white vehicle. The figure opened the driver's-side door and the trunk. Kevin Bell Jr., credited with the footage, drove away from the area out of concern that the shooter might be retrieving additional weapons.
In-N-Out President Lynsi Snyder confirmed in a statement posted to Facebook that the gunman had fired both on and away from In-N-Out property before taking his own life.
Snyder's statement identified the slain employee as a woman who had been taking care of customers at the time of the attack. She did not release the employee's name.
"We lost one of our beautiful Associates tonight. She was taking care of our most important asset, our Customers, and her life was taken by a disgusting human who doesn't value the lives of others or his own."
Snyder described her own grief in plain terms.
"My heart is broken, my chest is heavy, my eyes burn from the tears I've shed."
She acknowledged the broader toll on everyone present, employees and customers alike, and pledged the company's support.
"I am no stranger to loss, but this is so incredibly tough, and my heart also goes out to all of the Associates and Customers who were there during this traumatic event."
"We will stand together, and we will do everything we can to learn from this situation."
Snyder also urged the In-N-Out community to "turn to God, not in anger, but seeking comfort and strength for those who are hurting."
Investigators have not said who the gunman was, what drove him to open fire in a crowded restaurant on a Saturday afternoon, or whether he had any connection to the victims or the business. The type of long rifle visible in the witness footage has not been identified publicly. And the exact death toll remains unclear, Palmer's count of three dead may or may not include the shooter himself.
What is known: a young woman showed up to work at a restaurant that had been open for eight days. Families lined up for burgers on a summer weekend in a small Idaho city. And a gunman turned an ordinary afternoon into a scene of carnage that now involves two federal agencies.
The people of Twin Falls deserve answers. More than that, they deserved a Saturday afternoon that stayed ordinary.
