On July 15, 1984, 42-year-old James Huberty told his wife, Etna, that he felt something was wrong with his mind. Two days later, on July 17, he phoned a mental health clinic in San Diego and asked to see someone. He left his name and number, and the receptionist promised someone would call him back soon. James sat by the phone for hours waiting, but no one rang. Because he had sounded calm and said he had never been in a hospital for mental problems, the clinic marked his call as “not urgent” and planned to get back to him within two days. The next morning, July 18, James took his wife and two daughters to the San Diego Zoo.
While they walked around, he quietly told Etna that he thought his life was basically finished. He was still angry that the clinic never called, and he muttered, “Society had their chance.” They had lunch at a McDonald’s in Clairemont, then went home. A little later, James walked into the bedroom dressed in a maroon T-shirt and camouflage pants. Etna was resting on the bed. He bent down, kissed her, and said, “I want to kiss you goodbye.” Etna asked where he was going—she was about to start dinner. James looked at her and answered, “I’m going hunting humans.” He picked up a bundle wrapped in a blanket, a box of bullets, and a gun slung over his shoulder. As he headed for the door he looked at his older daughter Zelia and said, “Goodbye.
I won’t be back.” James got in his car and drove a short distance down San Ysidro Boulevard. Witnesses saw him pull into a supermarket parking lot, then a post office, before finally stopping at another McDonald’s just a few blocks from his apartment. He walked inside carrying his weapons and, in the next 77 minutes, shot and killed 21 people—men, women, and children—while wounding 19 others. A police sniper finally ended it by shooting Huberty dead on the spot.
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