On June 28, a gunman broke into the office of The Capital Gazette in Annapolis and opened fire, killing five people. Three of them had deep ties to the University of Maryland: Rob Hiaasen, a journalism lecturer, and Gerald Fischman and John McNamara, both university and Diamondback alumni.
The shooting shook the university community, and hundreds of mourners flocked to memorial services at the university’s Memorial Chapel and an Owings Mills nature center. In the wake of heartbreak, The Capital Gazette’s owner endowed a scholarship fund for journalism students at the university.
Below is The Diamondback’s complete coverage of the shooting and its fallout.
Last updated: Aug. 18, 2018
“Such an impact”: Hundreds remember John McNamara at UMD Chapel
An honorary Maryland basketball jersey for McNamara featured prominently at the service.
By Iris Vukmanovic | Published July 11, 2018
(Julia Lerner/The Diamondback)
UMD alum Gerald Fischman’s memorial service is set for Sunday
The service will begin at 1 p.m. at the Judean Memorial Gardens in Olney.
By Angela Roberts | Published July 4, 2018
(Photo courtesy of the Baltimore Sun Media Group)
“May you stay forever young”: Hundreds mourn UMD journalism lecturer Rob Hiaasen
Former coworker Kevin Cowherd said Hiaasen was “a big man who needed to laugh the way he needed oxygen.”
By Iris Vukmanovic | Published July 3, 2018
(Iris Vukmanovic/For The Diamondback)
Memorial service planned for alum John McNamara at UMD’s chapel
The service is set for July 10 from 10 a.m. to noon.
By Angela Roberts | Published July 2, 2018
(Photo courtesy of the Baltimore Sun Media Group)
Capital Gazette owner creates scholarship fund for UMD journalism students
It is aimed at honoring the victims of the shooting at the paper’s newsroom.
By Leah Brennan | Published July 1, 2018
(File photo/The Diamondback)
UMD journalism lecturer Rob Hiaasen believed in “the power of story”
Hiaasen was adored by his first and last class of college students.
By Jack Roscoe | Published June 29, 2018
(Photo courtesy of Maria Hiaasen)
Reserved yet cunning, Diamondback alum Gerald Fischman had a flair for the mundane stories
Fischman worked for more than 25 years as an editorial writer and editorial page editor.
By Arya Hodjat | Published June 29, 2018
(Photo courtesy of Alan Sea)
Diamondback alum John McNamara was a Terps fanatic and “an all-around terrific person”
McNamara covered Maryland sports for more than 20 years.
By Brooks DuBose | Published June 29, 2018
(Photo courtesy of MGN Online)
UMD alumni Gerald Fischman and John McNamara killed in Capital Gazette shooting
Both Fischman and McNamara worked for The Diamondback.
By Jillian Atelsek | Published June 28, 2018
(Images courtesy of Baltimore Sun Media Group)
UMD journalism lecturer Rob Hiaasen killed in Capital Gazette shooting
Hiaasen taught one class of JOUR320 in the spring.
By Leah Brennan | Published June 28, 2018
(Photo courtesy of the journalism college)
