Lone Wolf: Rev Dannie Baker "Ready for the Revolution to Begin" (Miramar Beach - Walton County, FL)

Two foreign nationals are dead and three others were hospitalized after a man shot them with a rifle early Thursday and then barricaded himself inside his town home, according to lawmen.

Lawmen didn't know why Dannie Baker, who is in his 60s, shot the people, Walton County Sheriff's Office Capt. Tom Ring said.
However, the Sheriff's Office confirmed that residents had filed reports in August 2008 after Baker circulated alarming e-mails about the national campaign issues.

He was being held at the Walton County Jail on two open counts of murder.

The shooting was the worst such incident along the Emerald Coast in recent memory.

Two of the victims, a young adult man and woman, died from the gunshot wounds. Two other young men were taken by helicopter to Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola, where one was listed in critical condition and the other was stable Thursday. A third man was taken by ambulance to Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast, where was in good condition, according to the Sheriff's Office.

Sheriff's deputies responded to Summer Lake, a town home subdivision at 340 Scenic Gulf Drive, at 1:48 a.m. Thursday after getting a 911 call. They secured the scene and called for assistance from special response teams in Okaloosa and Santa Rosa counties.

"Both those agencies have good tactical capabilities," Ring said.

When the teams arrived, they used a loudspeaker to talk with Baker, said Michele Nicholson with the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office.

Baker surrendered with further incident shortly after 6 a.m.

His tennis shoes were discarded near the door of his home at Unit 25, where he was arrested.

Ring said the victims were shot at Unit 12.

Their names were not released Thursday because the Sheriff's Office had not been able to reach their families. Their consulate had been contacted.

All were in the country with appropriate documentation, according to the Sheriff's Office.

"It's my understanding some were of Hispanic descent," Ring said.

Several young adults hugged each other and cried as investigators interviewed them at the scene Thursday morning.

"It's just senseless," Walton County Sheriff Mike Adkinson said later.

The victims were among at least 14 people who were in the town home when the shooting occurred, said Adkinson. The survivors were taken to safe locations and were being offered grief counseling, he added.

He also said he wouldn't confirm what country the victims were from or if they were here on work visas, as many foreign nationals are at this time of year.

"It's a tragedy of truly severe, severe proportions," said Adkinson, who added that the residents of Unit 12 had never been in trouble with the Sheriff's Office. "They were totally harmless and victims in the true sense of the word."

Not much is known about Baker or his lifestyle yet, according to the Sheriff's Office.

He was a volunteer at the Walton County Republican Headquarters during the Bush-Cheney presidential campaign in 2004.

"He volunteered the same time I did," said Pat Magee, a member of the Walton County Republican Executive Committee. "I was shocked. The person I knew would have never done anything bad to anyone."

Magee said Baker answered phones and did general office work during the campaign. Although she didn't remember much about his personal life, she said he had mentioned he was from Alabama and had attended Auburn University.

Jim Anders, another member of the Republican Executive Committee, said Baker was very active during the 2004 election but added that he was very eccentric. He said Baker traveled to Atlanta once a year to assist in some sort of music ministry there.

Baker did not volunteer during last year's election, but local Republicans said they began to receive disturbing e-mails from him about national political issues, said Anders.

"Dannie had some emotional problems, it seemed," said Anders, who added that that many e-mails were "radical" and "inappropriate."

The e-mails were so disturbing they were reported to the Sheriff's Office, the Republican volunteers said.

The Sheriff's Office said the e-mails did not target any individuals, but would not reveal any more details about them.

Tim Norris, chairman of the Republican Executive Committee, said the group had not seen much of Baker over the past few years until last summer. After the e-mails, Norris said the group asked him to stay away and he did.

According to the Walton County property appraiser's Web site, Baker is listed as the owner of Unit 25 in the Summer Lake complex. Unit 12 is owned by a Destin couple and rented through Southern Coastal Management.

In addition to the murder charges, State Attorney Bill Eddins said that Baker could face three charges of attempted murder.

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Posted: Tue, 03/03/2009 - 14:24
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Submitted by nywtprd on Tue, 03/03/2009 - 14:34.

http://www.wjhg.com/home/headlines/40450222.html

There's new information about Thursday morning's shooting rampage in Miramar Beach that left two people dead and three others wounded.

The victims were students from Chile working in the United States as part of an international exchange program.
Neighbors say they suspect the shooing was a hate crime.

Investigators aren't saying what motivated the murders of these students, but neighbors have their own theory.

Neighbor Crystal Lynn says, “He did come up to me one time and ask me if I was ready for the revolution to begin and if I had any immigrants inside my house to get them out.”

Shooter sent 'radical'

Submitted by Chain on Tue, 03/03/2009 - 15:37.

Shooter sent 'radical' e-mails
Comments 267 | Recommend 34
February 26, 2009 - 6:48 AM

MIRAMAR BEACH - Two foreign nationals are dead and three others were hospitalized after a man shot them with a rifle early Thursday and then barricaded himself inside his town home, according to lawmen.