CHALCO, Neb. (WOWT/Gray News) – A Nebraska school community is mourning the death of a special education teacher who was killed after a domestic violence incident escalated into a shootout, according to police.
Sarpy County Sheriff Jeff Davis said 45-year-old Rebecca Geiger was killed in her Chalco Hills home in a shooting around 3 a.m. Monday near South 143rd Street and Meadows Parkway. Police said they found him.
Officials said Guyger’s 19-year-old daughter called 911 and told the operator that her father, Rory Guyger, 44, had shot her mother before pointing the gun at her.
Rory Guyger then reportedly alerted deputies, but Davis said the first person to fire was someone inside the home.
“Shots fired by a subject were fired from inside the home, outside of a plate glass window. One of the officers fired shots,” the sheriff said in an update Monday.
Officers then entered the home and found Rory Guyger dead from gunshot wounds.
Officials said life-saving measures were unsuccessful, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
Authorities said they had visited the home about a month ago for an incident and had been told not to return.
“There was an alarm going off at the house because of the response they received at the time,” Davis said. “It was domestic and we followed up on the mental health issue. The next day the person said to us, ‘Be careful, you shouldn’t come back here.’ .”
Officials said five lawmakers involved in the shooting have been placed on administrative leave. No deputies were injured.
Investigators are looking at body cameras worn by the deputies as well as cameras inside and outside the home. They said they do not yet know whether Rory Geiger’s fatal injuries were self-inflicted or from the gunfire fired by Sarpy County deputies.
“At this point, it doesn’t matter whether he took his own life or whether he was shot by one of our own citizens, their response and coming in probably saved the lives of those two girls. There seems to be no doubt about it,” Davis said.
According to reports, officers found several guns inside the home during a search.
“He’s a very kind teacher.”
Rebecca Geiger is a special education teacher who just started her 10th year at Westside High School.
“She was a very sweet teacher,” said Elizabeth Power of Westside Community Schools. “She was very good at helping the students feel like they were so seen, so loved, and that they belonged here at Westside High School. It’s very, very important, especially to her students.”
The school district established a crisis response team. Counselors are available throughout the week.
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