Fear has a specific sound. At Florida State University, that sound wasn't just a gunshot; it was the frantic scratching of pens on paper as students hid behind bookshelves in the Strozier Library. It's been over a decade since the shooter on FSU campus changed the way we look at university security, yet most people only remember the headlines. They don't remember the specifics of the legal fallout or the weird, tragic details of the perpetrator’s mental spiral.
The 2014 shooting wasn't a random act by a stranger. It was a breakdown.
Myron May was an alum. He was a lawyer. He was someone who, on paper, should have been a success story for the university. Instead, he returned to Tallahassee in a state of paranoid delusion, convinced the government was "targeting" him with electronic waves. This isn't just a story about a crime; it's a case study in how mental health systems fail even the most high-achieving individuals. It’s heavy stuff.
What Actually Happened During the Shooter on FSU Campus Crisis
Late on the night of November 20, 2014, roughly 450 students were inside the library. It was the week before Thanksgiving. Everyone was caffeinated and stressed. Then, around 12:25 a.m., May opened fire near the entrance.
He didn't make it deep into the building. Thank God for that. FSU Police officers were on the scene in minutes. Literally minutes. They confronted him outside the entrance, ordered him to drop the handgun, and when he didn't, they fired. May was killed right there on the pavement.
But the chaos inside lasted hours.
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Students didn't know if there was one shooter or ten. They used social media to say goodbye to their parents. They shoved heavy wooden desks against doors. It’s easy to look back now and analyze the police response time—which was objectively fast—but for the kids under those desks, time didn't exist. It just froze. Three people were injured: Farhan "Ronny" Ahmed, Nathan Scott, and a third student who was grazed. Ronny Ahmed's life changed forever that night; he was paralyzed from the chest down.
The Warning Signs That Everyone Missed
We love to talk about "red flags" after the fact. It’s a way to feel like we can prevent the next one. With the shooter on FSU campus, the flags were more like bright neon signs.
May had been mailing packages to friends. He’d been making videos about "targeted individuals." He thought he was being watched. He even tried to report these delusions to the police in New Mexico before driving back to Florida. This is the part that gets me: he sought help. He went to the authorities and told them he was losing his mind, and the system basically just patted him on the head and sent him on his way because he hadn't committed a crime yet.
It’s a gap in the law. You can be clearly detached from reality, but unless you’re an immediate threat to yourself or others, involuntary commitment is hard to pull off.
Security Changes and the "Gun on Campus" Debate
After the shooting, the conversation immediately shifted to policy. This is where things get messy and political. Florida legislators used the FSU incident as a primary talking point for "campus carry" bills. The logic? If students had been armed, they could have stopped him.
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Opponents argued the opposite. They pointed out that FSU police arrived so quickly that adding more guns to a dark, crowded library would have just resulted in "friendly fire" or more confusion.
FSU didn't wait for the state to act. They beefed up security big time. They added more cameras. They changed the way students swipe into the library. They increased the visibility of campus police. If you walk through Strozier today, you'll see the security presence is much more "in your face" than it was in the early 2010s. It’s a reminder that safety usually comes at the cost of a certain kind of openness.
The Victims and the Survival of Ronny Ahmed
We should talk more about Ronny Ahmed. He’s the real story here.
While the media focused on Myron May’s manifesto, Ronny was fighting to reclaim his life. He became a symbol of resilience on campus. He eventually graduated. Think about that for a second. Most people would never want to step foot on that campus again, let alone the building where they were shot. He did it.
Nathan Scott, the library employee who was shot in the leg, also showed incredible grit. He actually stayed at his post and helped others even after being hit. These are the details that get buried under the "true crime" fascination with the shooter's motives.
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- The shooting lasted less than five minutes from the first shot to the final police engagement.
- Over 30 rounds were fired in total.
- The library reopened just 24 hours later, a move intended to show "Seminole Strength," though it was controversial at the time.
Moving Forward: Actionable Steps for Student Safety
If you're a student or a parent worried about campus safety today, you shouldn't just rely on the university's "Blue Light" towers. Those are fine, but they're old tech.
First, download the campus safety app. Most schools, including FSU, use something like "SeminoleSAFE." It gives you real-time alerts. If something is happening, you’ll know via a push notification before you hear it on the news.
Second, know your exits. It sounds paranoid, but it’s just situational awareness. When you sit down in a lecture hall or a library, look for two ways out. Not one. Two.
Third, take the "See Something, Say Something" mantra seriously. If a peer is talking about "targeted individuals" or government conspiracies in a way that feels dark or obsessive, tell a counselor. You aren't "snitching." You might be getting them the help that Myron May never got.
The 2014 shooter on FSU campus wasn't the first campus shooting and it wasn't the last. But it remains a pivotal moment in Florida history because it forced a conversation about the intersection of mental health, campus security, and the rights of students to feel safe while they study for a mid-term.
To stay informed about current campus safety protocols or to support victim advocacy groups, check the FSU Police Department’s transparency portal. They maintain updated records on all active shooter training and response statistics. Knowledge is the only thing that actually lowers the anxiety of being on a modern campus. Stay aware, look out for your friends, and don't let the history of what happened at Strozier be forgotten, because that's how we prevent it from repeating.