‘It was scary’: Man arrested in shooting at Johnson County Mental Health Center in Olathe

‘It was scary’: Man arrested in shooting at Johnson County Mental Health Center in Olathe

Donny Carpenter was waiting for his 9-year-old daughter to finish a group therapy session at the Johnson County Mental Health Center when he heard five consecutive gunshots ring out.

Panic set in as Carpenter, 37, saw sheriff’s deputy vehicles driving on Spruce Street pause in front of the building and veer into the parking lot. Armed with assault rifles, he said, they hopped out of their cars and ran toward the front entrance.

Soon after, several squad cars from the sheriff’s office and Olathe Police Department flooded into the parking lot. He heard shouting and watched as a nightmare began to unfold before him.

“When I tried to go toward the building, I was told to stay away,” Carpenter said. “I was like, ‘I have a kid inside and I don’t know what’s going on.”

Johnson County Sheriff’s Office Deputies were driving on Spruce Street Thursday evening when they spotted a man shooting into the front of the building, according to a news release. Additional deputies and officers from the Olathe Police Department responded to secure the area.

Carpenter was told to wait across the street while law enforcement worked to gain control of the situation. But he stayed in the parking lot, fearing the worst.

“I had to wait — I don’t know — it felt like an eternity, but it might have only been 30-40 minutes to get an answer, before they said they had it under control,” Carpenter said.

Deputies eventually told him that people inside had been evacuated across the street. Someone texted his girlfriend letting her know that Carpenter’s daughter was safely evacuated to another location.

An exact timeline was not provided, but a suspect was quickly detained and taken into custody, the sheriff’s office said in the release. No one was injured in the gunfire.

The sheriff’s office identified the suspect as Joseph S. Longman, 34, in a news release Friday.

The motive for the shooting is still unknown.

‘It could have been so much worse’

Although the building closes at 5 p.m. weekdays, Carpenter’s daughter was attending a group therapy session that dismisses at 5:30 p.m. He said there was still several people inside when the gunfire erupted.

He remembered seeing a man walk toward the front of the building a few minutes before he heard the gunshots. But he didn’t find the man suspicious, since there were employees still leaving the building around the same time.

While he waited for law enforcement to give an all-clear, he said his mind was racing with thoughts, hoping the shooter didn’t get far into the building.

“I didn’t know how far the guy was going to come into the building or if they were going to come out of the building,” Carpenter said. “I was trying to prepare myself for everything.”

Carpenter said he was thankful for a quick response from law enforcement, saying that without deputies close by, he wonders what could have happened.

“It was scary,” he said. “But it could have been so much worse.”

Longman was booked into the Johnson County Detention Center Thursday and charged with aggravated assault. He is due to appear for a first appearance in court 1:30 p.m. Friday in Division M2 of Johnson County District Court.

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