What Raleigh mass shooting search warrants mean for accused teen shooter
Search warrants obtained by WRAL News on Thursday reveal disturbing new details about the Oct. 13, 2022, shooting in Raleigh's Hedingham neighborhood.
WRAL News was first to report the content of the warrants and spoke to a defense attorney and former Raleigh police officer about what they mean for 16-year-old Austin Thompson, the accused shooter.
Thompson is accused of shooting and killing five people, including his brother, in the Hedingham neighborhood and a nearby greenway. Two others were injured.
New search warrants list 11 firearms and 170 boxes of ammunition seized from Austin Thompson's home. Detectives also found computer and hard drives.
He had a bag loaded with all these different weapons – knives, ammunition, money. He was planning on making his getaway and making it at whatever cost was needed.
Defense attorney Lee Turner told WRAL News the new search warrants reveal the evidence investigators are gathering against Thompson, who was 15 when he was charged in the mass shooting.
"The mountain of evidence must be unbelievable that’s involved in this case," Turner said. "Obviously, it was a situation where there were a lot of weapons at the home."
Turner reviewed the search warrants, which describe the evidence investigators are collecting in their case against Thompson.
WRAL's complete Hedingham coverage
"One thing that really stood out to me was this wasn’t an instantaneous thing," Turner said. "There was some premeditation and planning that went into it."
Detectives found what appears to be a confession note signed by Thompson describing the killing of his brother, James Thompson, inside the home.
From there, investigators said Thompson went on a shooting spree before being tracked down in a shed 6 miles from his home, where he was taken into custody.
"I’ve been to the shed where the incident occurred at the very end, and it appeared to me at that point of time he was lying in wait," Turner said. "He wasn’t trying to hide out. I think he found a spot that would be advantageous to him as the officers approached."
Thursday's new search warrants also reveal what Thompson was allegedly searching on his phone during the incident.
A search warrant for Thompson's cell phone states he used Google to search "active shooter NC," previous mass killings, the age of suspects and weapons used in violent crime and police response tactics, including 10-codes, which are short phrases police use to communicate quickly over the radio.
"Probably he was trying to decipher exactly what they were saying and what these codes meant as to how it pertained to him," Turner said.
The search warrants also describe Thompson as an "avid gamer." WRAL News asked Turner why investigators would mention that.
"Whether there are some mental issues with this young man, I don't know," Turner said. "We're not privy to that, but I think that’s why the gaming was thrown in – just to show another aspect of where he was mentally or what might have possibly contributed to this."
Austin Thompson will not face the death penalty, but he will be tried as an adult and faces life in prison if convicted. His trial is set for September 2025.
"It’s tragic that a 15-year-old could come up with this plan and execute it in the way he did," Turner said.
WRAL News reached out to Thompson's attorney for comment on the search warrants but has not heard back.
James and Jennifer Crumbley's 17-year-old son, Ethan Crumbley, is serving life in prison after pleading guilty to murder and terrorism. Ethan Crumbley opened fire on Nov. 30, 2021, at Oxford High School in Michigan, killing four students and injuring others.
WRAL News asked District Attorney Lorrin Freeman why Austin Thompson's parents don't face more serious charges, like involuntary manslaughter, which James and Jennifer Crumbley face in Michigan.
Freeman said on Thursday that the Hedingham shooting reflects "significant differences" to the Michigan case.
"It is additionally of note that the parents in the Michigan case did not cooperate with investigators and prosecutors from the beginning of that terrible situation," Freeman said. "While it is inappropriate for me to comment on the currently pending case involving Thompson, the public record would reflect significant differences in these cases."
