Shooting of VA journalists spotlights workplace violence

The shooting of a reporter and photographer in Virginia Wednesday morning is putting the spotlight on the issue of violence in the workplace. Reporter Alison Parker and photographer Adam Ward were

News 12 Staff

Aug 27, 2015, 1:35 AM

Updated 3,164 days ago

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Shooting of VA journalists spotlights workplace violence
The shooting of a reporter and photographer in Virginia Wednesday morning is putting the spotlight on the issue of violence in the workplace.
Reporter Alison Parker and photographer Adam Ward were on-air when police say they were shot and killed by a former colleague who was fired from the station two years ago.
Robert Denby, of Syosset, says the incident is devastating, but an unfortunate part of the world we live in.
"Anywhere that you work, there's going to be someone who at one point was let go for some reason or another and you have to then think, 'Well, is that a nut job? Does that person have access to guns?'" says Denby.
Clinical psychologist Curtis W. Reisinger says there are warning signs to look for in disgruntled employees, including getting more tense, glaring, fist pounding and writing long letters.
According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics' Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, there were more than 14,000 workplace homicide victims between 1992 and 2012. That's an average of over 700 a year.
As News 12 reported back in 2013, police say Sang Ho Kim opened fire at a lighting fixture company in East Garden City killing a worker and injuring the company owner over a soured business relationship. Kim later killed himself.


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