Gunman saw his doctor the day before killing him, three others in his medical office

By Kevin Canfield

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    TULSA, Oklahoma (Tulsa World) — The shooter who gunned down four people on the campus of Saint Francis Health System on Wednesday was a disgruntled patient determined to kill his doctor and anyone who stood in his way, Tulsa police said Thursday.

The physician, Dr. Preston Phillips, 59, had performed back surgery on Michael Louis, 45, of Muskogee on May 19 and saw him the day before the shooting for a follow-up visit, according to a timeline provided by Tulsa Police Chief Wendell Franklin.

In the interim, Louis called Phillips’ office several times seeking relief for his pain.

After the shooting, Franklin said, police found a letter from Louis that made clear that his intent was to kill Phillips.

“He blamed Dr. Phillips for the ongoing pain following the surgery,” Franklin said at a press conference Thursday.

Public records show that Phillips had no pending or past disciplinary action by the Oklahoma State Board of Medical Licensure and Supervision and that he was sued once by a patient in district court but the case was dismissed.

Franklin identified the other victims as Dr. Stephanie Husen, 48; receptionist Amanda Glenn, 40; and William Love, 73, who initially was described as a patient. Police later said Love was accompanying a patient.

“We are supposed to be the ones who are caring for others during tragedies like this,” Dr. Ryan Parker, Saint Francis associate chief medical officer and emergency room physician, said during the press conference in the lobby of Saint Francis Heart Hospital. “To think that our caregivers were the victims is just incomprehensible to me.

“They died while serving others; they died in the line of duty.”

According to Franklin, the gunman used two weapons to shoot his way through the orthopedic center on the second floor of the Natalie Building: a semi-automatic AR-15-style rifle, and a .40-caliber Smith & Wesson pistol.

Louis entered the Natalie Building through a second-floor entrance from the parking garage, Franklin said.

“It is an entry that is open to the public just as any other building, just as you walked in here today,” he said. “There is no one to greet you at that door, so he was able to walk in without any type of challenge.”

Louis bought the AR-15 at a Tulsa gun store less than three hours before the shootings occurred just before 5 p.m., and the pistol was purchased at a Muskogee pawn shop on Sunday, Franklin said.

Both weapons were purchased legally, the chief said.

A bomb threat was cleared late Wednesday at Louis’ residence in Muskogee, police said, adding that that side of the investigation continues.

“I cannot emphasize enough that we train rigorously over and over and over again for not if, but when,” Franklin said, “because we have seen the violence that has taken place throughout the United States, and we will be naive not to think that that would not happen in our jurisdiction.”

Asked whether he could support legislation to address gun violence, such as a red flag law or some kind of background check for gun purchases, Franklin said his job is to execute the law.

“There are legislators that legislate the law, that create the law, and I am more than happy to work with legislators if they want to bend my ear from a law enforcement perspective and ask what we need,” he said. “I am more than willing to sit down and provide that information.”

Franklin praised the work of his officers and other law enforcement personnel who responded to the crisis.

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