Campus Alert Archive
Penn State

The Alert That Wasn't: Penn State Stays Silent During the State College Spree That Killed Four

PAshootingadvisorymedium confidence
Confirmed Threat

On the night of January 24, 2019, 21-year-old Jordan Witmer opened fire inside P.J. Harrigan's Bar & Grill in State College, Pennsylvania — about two miles from the University Park campus — killing 62-year-old Dean Beachy and his 19-year-old son Steven Beachy and wounding 21-year-old Nicole Abrino. After fleeing the bar, Witmer crashed his car, broke into a nearby home, and fatally shot 83-year-old George McCormick before turning the gun on himself. Penn State did not send a PSUAlert, citing 'lack of an imminent threat to Penn State students or the campus' — a decision that triggered student outrage.

Alerts
1
Response
min
Killed
3
Injured
1
Institution
Pennsylvania State University, University Park
Public R1 · PA
~47,000 studentsRavePSUAlert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

1 message in sequence · 1 verified verbatim

FOLLOW-UPEmail
Verified verbatimPenn State Senior Director of News and Media Relations statement (verbatim) as reported by Onward State, the Daily Collegian, and Inquirer240 chars
After careful consideration based on the circumstances known to law enforcement at the time, location of the incidents, and the lack of an imminent threat to Penn State students or the campus, it was decided that an alert would not be sent.
This case is unusual in that the most significant 'alert' was the public statement explaining why no PSUAlert was sent
Students used social media to express frustration that no PSUAlert was issued for a fatal shooting two miles from campus, particularly given that many students live in the affected area
The incident prompted Penn State to publicly review its off-campus notification protocols, although the university maintained its threshold for PSUAlert activation
Context

Background

On the evening of January 24, 2019, 21-year-old Jordan Witmer entered P.J. Harrigan's Bar & Grill, a popular State College tavern roughly two miles from Penn State's University Park campus. He opened fire, killing 62-year-old Dean Beachy and his 19-year-old son Steven Beachy and wounding 21-year-old Nicole Abrino, who had reportedly been at the bar with him. Witmer fled, crashed his car nearby, broke into a home, and fatally shot 83-year-old George McCormick — a stranger whom investigators believed Witmer had chosen at random. Witmer was found with a self-inflicted gunshot wound by the time police arrived. The night's casualty count reached three killed and one wounded — plus the gunman dead. The most consequential institutional response, however, was the absence of a PSUAlert. Penn State University Police Services determined that the threat was not imminent to the campus and chose not to push the emergency mass notification. Students expressed sharp frustration on social media, noting that the affected area was densely populated by Penn State students and that other universities routinely alert for off-campus shootings within a similar radius. A Penn State spokesperson defended the decision but conceded the university would review its protocols. The episode became a frequently cited reference point in subsequent national debates about how flagship universities should communicate about off-campus violence — a debate that resurfaced after Penn State's 2024 changes to its Active Attacker Policy.
Analysis

Key Findings

Penn State did NOT send a PSUAlert for a fatal shooting that killed three people two miles from campus, citing 'lack of an imminent threat to Penn State students or the campus'
The decision triggered student outrage and forced Penn State to publicly review its off-campus notification protocols, although the university maintained its threshold
The shooter, Jordan Witmer, killed three victims (Dean Beachy, Steven Beachy, George McCormick) and wounded a fourth (Nicole Abrino) before dying by self-inflicted gunshot
The case became a national reference point for the policy question of when universities are obligated to push emergency notifications for off-campus violence in the residential student community
Outcome
Three victims and the gunman were dead by the time police cleared the scene: Dean Beachy (62), his son Steven Beachy (19), George McCormick (83), and shooter Jordan Witmer (21, self-inflicted). Nicole Abrino (21) survived a chest wound. Witmer's motive was never definitively established. Penn State publicly defended its decision not to issue a PSUAlert, prompting the university to subsequently review its off-campus notification protocols.
Provenance

Sources

  1. News
    Investigators: No Apparent Motive In State College Fatal Shooting (CBS Pittsburgh)
    cbsnews.com
  2. News
    State College Police Investigating Murders, Suicide That Left Four Dead (WPSU)
    radio.wpsu.org
  3. News
    4th person dies after shooting spree near Penn State University (6abc / WPVI)
    6abc.com
  4. News
    Gunman kills 3 at bar and home near Penn State University: Police (ABC News)
    abcnews.go.com
  5. News
    Gunman kills 3, wounds 1 near Penn State before fatally shooting himself (NBC News)
    nbcnews.com
  6. Student Paper
    Students Angry At Penn State After No Alert Sent For State College Shooting (Onward State)
    onwardstate.com
  7. News
    Penn State to review protocols for alerting students after off-campus fatal shooting (Tribune-Democrat)
    tribdem.com
Tags
shootingoff-campusno-alert-sentpenn-statestate-collegepj-harriganspsualertalert-controversymurder-suicidepolicy-review
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion