{{Short description|American convicted school shooter}} {{Use American English|date=January 2026}} {{Use mdy dates|date=January 2026}} {{Infobox criminal | name = Jon Romano | image = | caption = | birth_name = Jon William Romano | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1987|10|30}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Jon Romano |url=https://schoolshooters.info/jon-romano |website=schoolshooters.info |access-date=23 November 2023}}</ref> | birth_place = | known_for = Perpetrating the Columbia High School shooting | criminal_charge = attempted murder and<br/>reckless endangerment<ref name="dddgg">{{cite news |last1=Yang |first1=Maya |title=A school shooter went viral on TikTok. Should he be on the platform at all? |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/oct/12/former-school-shooter-viral-tiktok-new-york#:~:text=In%202020%2C%20Jon%20Romano%20was,New%20York%20back%20in%202004. |access-date=23 November 2023 |agency=The Guardian |date=12 October 2023}}</ref> | criminal_penalty = 20 year prison sentence<ref name="liquori">{{cite news |last1=Liquori |first1=Donna |title=Student Agrees to 20-Year Term After Nonfatal Shooting Spree in High School |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/19/nyregion/student-agrees-to-20year-term-after-nonfatal-shooting-spree-in.html |access-date=23 November 2023 |agency=New York Times |date=19 December 2004|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20190421025308/https://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/19/nyregion/student-agrees-to-20year-term-after-nonfatal-shooting-spree-in.html|archivedate=April 21, 2019}}</ref> (Released after 17 years on good behavior)<ref name="cbs6albany2">{{cite news |author=WRGB Staff |title=Jon Romano, convicted in 2004 East Greenbush school shooting, released from prison |url=https://cbs6albany.com/news/local/jon-romano-convicted-in-2004-east-greenbush-school-shooting-released-from-prison |access-date=24 May 2024 |agency=cbs6albany |publisher=cbs6albany |date=16 December 2020}}</ref> | criminal_status = | conviction_status = Released | motive = Suicidal ideation, sexual abuse, depression<ref>{{cite news |last1=Churchill |first1=Chris |title=Churchill: Two decades after school shooting, Jon Romano comes home and tries to explain |url=https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/churchill-two-decades-school-shooting-jon-18405751.php |access-date=23 November 2023 |date=5 October 2023}}</ref> | victims = | date = February 9, 2004<ref>{{cite news |last1=Santora |first1=Marc |title=Student Opens Fire at a High School Near Albany, Hitting a Teacher |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/10/nyregion/student-opens-fire-at-a-high-school-near-albany-hitting-a-teacher.html |access-date=23 November 2023 |agency=The New York Times |date=10 February 2004}}</ref> | time = | locations = Columbia High School, East Greenbush, New York | fatalities = 0 | injuries = 1 | weapon = Winchester 12-gauge pump-action shotgun | weapons = }}
'''Jon William Romano'''<ref name="liquori"/> (born October 30, 1987) is an American convicted school shooter and reformed mental health advocate.
== Early life == Romano was born on October 30, 1987 in East Greenbush, New York. His father left the family when Romano was four years old. He alleges that, as a child, he was beaten by his father.<ref name="wsj2021">{{cite web |last1=Romano |first1=Jon |title=Jon Romano (Note he wrote and left at home on the morning of Feb. 9, 2004) |date=9 February 2004 |pages=4 |url=https://schoolshooters.info/sites/default/files/Romano_letter_day_of_attack.pdf |access-date=23 November 2023}}</ref>
== Shooting and incarceration == On February 9, 2004, Romano, a Columbia High School student, walked into school with a Winchester 12-gauge pump-action shotgun. He passed by the main office and ascended stairs to a second-floor bathroom, where he hid inside a stall and sent text messages to his friends such as "I'm in school with shotgun, get out."<ref name="liquori"/><ref>{{cite news |last1=Patrick |first1=William |title=An Incident of School Violence in East Greenbush, New York |url=https://www.williampatrickwriter.com/books/project-one-xh5xl-stad2 |publisher=The Official Website of William B. Patrick}}</ref> Romano then washed his hands, then stepped out into a hallway and fired two shots before he was tackled from behind by school assistant principal John Sawchuk. During the ensuing struggle, a third shot was fired that struck the leg of special education teacher Michael Bennett.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Swenson |first1=Kyle |title=In 2004, he walked into school with a shotgun. Today – from prison – he weighs in on Parkland. |url=https://www.spokesman.com/stories/2018/mar/05/in-2004-he-walked-into-school-with-a-shotgun-today/ |access-date=23 November 2023 |agency=The Spokesman-review |publisher=The Spokesman-review |date=5 March 2018}}</ref> Romano was subdued and restrained until police arrived and he was arrested.
Romano was charged with three counts of attempted murder in the second degree, one count of assault in the second degree, and 82 counts of reckless endangerment in the first degree. He accepted a plea agreement from the prosecution and was sentenced to 20 years in prison followed by a five-year period of post-release supervision.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Liquori |first=Donna |date=2004-12-19 |title=Student Agrees to 20-Year Term After Nonfatal Shooting Spree in High School |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/12/19/nyregion/student-agrees-to-20year-term-after-nonfatal-shooting-spree-in.html |access-date=2026-03-20 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref>
He wrote a series of letters during his incarceration that advocated against gun violence. After the 2018 Parkland high school shooting, he wrote that the survivors were “courageous and inspiring for demanding action from politicians".<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hincks |first1=Joseph |title=This Man Is in Prison for Opening Fire in a High School. He Says the Parkland Shooting Survivors Are 'Courageous and Inspiring' |url=https://time.com/5184987/jon-romano-parkland-school-shooting/ |access-date=23 November 2023 |agency=Time Magazine |date=4 March 2018}}</ref> On February 21, 2018, The Albany Times Union published a column featuring comments from Sawchuk. Romano responded with a letter thanking Sawchuk for stopping him before he could hurt himself or others. <ref>{{Cite news |last=Edwards |first=Lynda J. |title=In letter, East Greenbush school shooter praises Florida advocates |url=https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/NY-school-shooter-supports-gun-control-praises-12723420.php |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20231124111429/https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/NY-school-shooter-supports-gun-control-praises-12723420.php |archive-date=2023-11-24 |access-date=2026-03-20 |work=Times Union |language=en}}</ref>
Romano was released on December 15, 2020 after serving seventeen years of his 20-year sentence.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Staff |first=WRGB |date=2020-12-15 |title=Jon Romano, convicted in 2004 East Greenbush school shooting, released from prison |url=https://cbs6albany.com/news/local/jon-romano-convicted-in-2004-east-greenbush-school-shooting-released-from-prison |access-date=2026-03-20 |website=WRGB |language=en}}</ref>
== After release == === Sword attack === On 29 August 2022, Romano was attacked with a sword and critically injured while working at a homeless shelter in Albany, New York. Randell D. Mason, a 42 year old homeless man was subsequently arrested and charged with attempted second-degree murder.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Brendan J. Lyons, Joshua Solomon |title=Jon Romano, convicted in '04 school shooting, was victim in sword attack |url=https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/school-shooter-jon-romano-was-victim-of-sword-17407431.php |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240806000018/https://www.timesunion.com/news/article/school-shooter-jon-romano-was-victim-of-sword-17407431.php |archive-date=2024-08-06 |access-date=2026-03-20 |work=Times Union |language=en}}</ref> In April 2023, Mason was found guilty and sentenced to 25 years imprisonment on the charge.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Rizzo |first1=Sara |title=Albany man sentenced to 25 years in sword attack case |url=https://www.news10.com/news/crime/albany-man-sentenced-to-25-years-in-sword-attack-case/ |access-date=24 November 2023 |work=News 10 |agency=News 10 |date=7 April 2023}}</ref>
=== Social media === In early 2022, Romano made a social media account on the streaming platform Tiktok. The account quickly gained a following due to his criminal notoriety. As attention to his social media presence grew, a significant amount of backlash from other influencers on the platform, many of whom claimed it was an attempt to monetize the notoriety gained from his violent crimes. In late 2022, Romano announced that he would no longer be participating on the platform due to the amount of negative and abusive comments he received.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Jon Romano (@jonseekingpeace2) {{!}} TikTok |url=https://www.tiktok.com/@jonseekingpeace2 |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20231102121013/https://www.tiktok.com/@jonseekingpeace2 |archive-date=2023-11-02 |access-date=2026-03-20 |website=TikTok |language=en}}</ref>{{failed verification|reason=Not mentioned in source|date=May 2026}}
As of 2026, Romano actively posts on TikTok and has a following of over 250,000 followers.
==References== {{Reflist}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Romano, Jon}} Category:1987 births Category:Living people Category:People from East Greenbush, New York Category:American people convicted of attempted murder Category:21st-century American criminals Category:American TikTokers Category:American public speakers Category:American victims of crime Category:Criminals from New York (state) Category:School shootings in New York (state) Category:Racially motivated violence against white Americans in New York (state)