Overview
- Law enforcement says an 18-year-old, Bradley Scott Sayer, shot and killed two patrons at the Chico branch of the Butte County Library and was arrested at the scene; investigators recovered one firearm inside the library and two more in his vehicle.
- Officials said the attack occurred on June 22 and left Robert Johnson, 74, and Jacob Hull, 46, dead while a child suffered non-life-threatening injuries from broken glass.
- At a June 25 arraignment Sayer did not enter a plea and the judge ordered him held without bail until a July 16 return; prosecutors charged him with two counts of murder plus firearm and special-circumstance enhancements and said they are not seeking the death penalty.
- Investigators report evidence of extremist and copycat ties, including a shirt marked “Natural Selection,” a court gesture linked to white-power symbolism, a multi-year journal referencing Columbine, and social media posts that federal agents are probing.
- Local, county and federal teams continue digital and physical forensics and may bring additional charges as they assemble evidence while the community copes with victims’ losses and library safety measures are reviewed.