'Our community's worst nightmare': Grand jury weighs in on Florida State mass shooting
A Leon County grand jury indicted Phoenix Ikner on murder charges in the April 17 mass shooting at Florida State University and found the actions of the campus police officer who shot him as lawful and "heroic."
A Leon County grand jury on Wednesday, May 14, issued a true bill presentment on the mass shooting, which left two people dead and six others injured.
"This was our community's worst nightmare," the report says. "We are proud to host students of all ages and now the horror of a school shooting has fallen upon us. While the results are tragic, it could have been so much worse."
The grand jury found that there were no "early warning" signs that Ikner, a 20-year-old who enrolled at FSU for the spring semester, would carry out such a shooting. The citizens panel also found that he acted alone.
"While there were rumors of other shooters and organizations, no evidence has been uncovered that suggests he had the aid of any person or organization," the grand jury report says. "He carried two guns. One was a 12-gauge shotgun that, blessedly, failed to properly operate. He stole this from his parents' home. His other weapon was a .45 pistol that he stole from his father's bedside. There is no evidence to support that he, or another person, knew or helped him gain this weapon."
The grand jury, which saw surveillance and police body camera footage of the shooting, praised FSU Officer Cody Poppell, who drove his motorcycle toward the sound of gunfire and encountered Ikner in the midst of his rampage.
"We watched the panicked students running past Strozier Library, and yet he accelerated up the sidewalks so he could enter the space between Moore Auditorium and the Student Union," the report says. "There, he could clearly see the gunman chasing and shooting at another potential victim. He stopped and shot several times while still straddling his running motorcycle. He struck him once in the face. There is no question others would have died absent his actions."
Ikner, who was neutralized three minutes and three seconds into his attack, was taken to Tallahassee Memorial HealthCare, where he remained for several weeks.
He was arrested Tuesday, May 13, by the Tallahassee Police Department and booked into the Wakulla County Detention Facility, which is holding him because his stepmother was a school resource deputy for the Leon County Sheriff's Office, who was transferred to the property crimes division after the shooting.
The grand jury indicted Ikner on two counts of first-degree murder and seven counts of attempted murder, which includes two people he allegedly fired at but missed.
FSU shooting timeline: Grand jury releases minute-by-minute details of April mass shooting
'He merely wanted to kill as many people as possible'
The report says the victims of the shooting were "totally random." Robert Morales , 57, a university dining coordinator, was shot and killed in front of Pollo Tropical and Brooklyn Pizza inside the Student Union. He shot Morales twice as he tried to run away, then two more times when he was on the ground, according to the grand jury's timeline of events.
Tiru Chabba , 45, an employee of FSU vendor Aramark from Greenville, South Carolina, was shot after the suspect exited the west main entrance doors and fired at multiple people. Ikner allegedly ran out of the west entrance before coming back to the deceased victim and shooting him again. Five others, all students, were shot and injured and later released from the hospital.
"He shot men and women of various ages, races, and lifestyles," the grand jury wrote in its report. "All evidence suggests he merely wanted to kill as many people as possible, not that he was targeting any person or group. The only consistent trait of each victim was their innocence."
The grand jury found that Ikner, who graduated from Lincoln High School before earning an AA degree last year at Tallahassee State College, had "no history of mental health or behavioral referrals indicating him as a threat."
A similar search of Tallahassee State College showed no mental health treatment, no disciplinary referrals, nor any reports of him making threats to any fellow students," the grand jury said. "Finally, a review of his one semester at Florida State University shows that he never sought mental health counseling, never received any disciplinary referrals, nor were there any reports of him making violent or other concerning comments."
The grand jury said people who knew Ikner and made claims about him in the media ― former TSC classmates said he expressed neo-Nazi views ― were interviewed by police.
"In each case, they have admitted that they never observed behavior or comments that would cause them to anticipate this attack," the report says. "Further, many have confessed that whatever his prior behavior, while rude or awkward, it never constituted a threat against any person or group."
The grand jury said it wanted to recognize the "bravery and skill" of all the first responders, adding that "all forms of criminal justice converged on our campus when it fell under attack."
"Specifically, Florida State University Officer Cody Poppell and his fellow officers heroically ran into gunfire and stopped the threat," the grand jury wrote. "We find his actions lawful and in the defense of others. We thank him for his service."
Grand jury report timeline of April 17, 2025, FSU mass shooting
Police have said Ikner waited in a parking garage for nearly an hour before going on the random shooting rampage . The grand jury further flushed out the timeline below.
11:57:00 AM- Suspect parks on service drive north of Moore Auditorium and east of the Student Union. Suspect steps out with a shotgun and attempts to shoot a student.
11:57:24 AM- Suspect begins shooting, people start running, suspect can be seen running towards the Student Union through the grass (two persons shot at this time).
11:58:22 AM- Suspect enters the Student Union via east main entrance and runs across to the west main entrance.
11:58:36 AM- Suspect exits west main entrance doors shooting at multiple people, killing one person.
11:58:43 AM- Suspect runs left out of west entrance, comes back to deceased victim and shoots victim again (11 :58:51 AM).
11:58:54 AM- Suspect runs right towards Bookstore entrance (two more persons shot at this time).
11:58:54-11:59:09 AM- Suspect runs after group of people outside of Bookstore shooting (another person was hit and ran towards the Integration Statue), suspect comes back by Bookstore doors shooting at another person.
11:59:30 AM- Suspect reenters the Student Union via west main entrance, runs towards Food Court.
11:59:42 AM- Suspect shoots and kills a second person in front of Pollo/Brooklyn, suspect shot victim twice running, shoots an additional two times once victim is on the ground.
11:59:54 AM-12:00:05 PM- Suspect chases a student through Food Court and shoots at her out double doors in front of Panda Express.
12:00:14 PM- Suspect chases persons south on the east side of the Student Union through the bushes.
12:00:27 PM- Suspect shot and falls between the Moore Auditorium and Student Union.
Contact Jeff Burlew at jburlew@tallahassee.com or 850-599-2180.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Leon County grand jury indicts alleged FSU shooter, clears officer
