Westernville New Year's Day shooting

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Westernville New Year's Day shooting
Location Westernville, New York, United States
DateJanuary 1–2, 1969
Attack type
 Mass murder, mass shooting
Deaths5 (including the perpetrator)
Injured5
PerpetratorRalph MacLachlan

The Westernville New Year's Day shooting was a mass murder that occurred at a family gathering in Westernville, New York, United States on New Year's Day in 1969. Ralph Edwin MacLachlan, 37, [1] [2] [3] a meat cutter and church elder, armed with a semi-automatic .22-caliber rifle, killed four people, including his wife, and injured five others. The next morning, MacLachlan committed suicide by shooting himself following an exchange of gunfire with police. [4] [5] [6] Following the shooting, MacLachlan's brother stated that he had "no indication he was acting abnormally" during a phone conversation around an hour before the shooting. At the time, according to his brother, MacLachlan was watching a New Year's Day bowl game on the television. [7]

Victims

Four people were shot and killed, and a further five were injured. The fatalities include:

Additionally, the shooter injured his father-in-law, mother-in-law, 10-year-old niece, brother-in-law, and another neighbor. [4] MacLachlan and Anita's two-year-old and nine-month-old sons were unharmed after Anita hid them in a bedroom closet. [10]

References

  1. ↑ "Ralph Edwin Mac Lachlan - Ancestry®". www.ancestry.com. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  2. ↑ Pelkey, Herbert G. (January 3, 1969). "Slayer of Four Kills Self In Shoot-Out with Police". Democrat and Chronicle. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  3. ↑ "Mass Slayer Kills Himself, Ending Rampage of Gunfire" (PDF). The Daily Iowan. January 3, 1969. Archived (PDF) from the original on November 25, 2015. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  4. 1 2 Twellman, Chip (November 29, 2020). "Horrific 1969 crime scene: Four murdered, five wounded in deadly domestic dispute". Daily Sentinel. Archived from the original on June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Marital Problems: Motive For Killings?". Advance news. (Ogdensburg, N.Y.) 1967-current, January 05, 1969, Image 20. Advance News. January 5, 1969. p. 20. Archived from the original on June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  6. ↑ "Gunman Kills Four Persons; Takes Own Life". da.tj.news. The Daily Gleaner. January 2, 1969. Archived from the original on June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  7. ↑ "Man Kills Self After Slaying 4". The Tampa Tribune . January 3, 1969. p. 22. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  8. ↑ "Anita R. Turke - Ancestry®". www.ancestry.com. Retrieved July 2, 2025.
  9. 1 2 Pelkey, Herbert G. (January 2, 1969). "Gunman Kills 4 Persons, Wounds Eight Others in Adirondack Community". Ogdensburg Journal. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Future Of Two Orphaned Children Remains The Unanswered Question". Advance News. January 5, 1969. p. 8. Archived from the original on January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
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