Salt Lake City Public Library hostage incident
Encyclopedia
The Salt Lake City Public Library hostage incident occurred on March 5, 1994 when Clifford Lynn Draper held several hostages on the second floor in the former main branch of the Salt Lake City Public Library
, which now houses The Leonardo
, a culture and arts center.
an sand painting ceremony, Draper leapt onto the service desk in the Fiction section brandishing a M1911
pistol and claiming to have a bomb. He ordered nearby people into a conference room, which was already occupied by a Toastmasters group: Librarian Gwen Page, six civilians, and police officer Lt. Lloyd Prescott, who offered to change places with the last person who entered the conference room. Lt. Prescott was in plain clothes at the time and had his pistol hidden on his person. After Draper and the others entered the room Page began to count hostages, as ordered, and began to have them line up facing the wall while Draper made demands and described his plans. A Toastmaster managed to inconspicuously slip several hostages out a second door in the conference room, inciting a run for more hostages to exit the commons. Page and others chose to stay in the room while Draper threatened but did not shoot.
and evacuating the five-story building in under five minutes, by using the fire alarm. Several staff stayed on-site to provide police with floor plans and operating the telephone, security and power lines according to the wishes of the SWAT teams. One librarian, Jenny Wright, hid a group of eight children and their parents from the Children's Section (located on the second floor near Draper) in another conference room until Draper was satisfied with the number of hostages and had closed the door and had lowered blinds over the room's glass walls. Another librarian arrived and the group was led to safety through an exit in the staff area of the building.
which would cause it to detonate if Draper released a hand-held button. For this reason Lt. Prescott hesitated to use force, and the incident lasted more than six hours, during which Draper made demands for cash, gold
and platinum
bullion, back-pay for prior military service, and a full presidential pardon from President Bill Clinton
.
At one point, Draper had one of the hostages put more duct tape
on the homemade bomb because he feared the two contact points for the detonator would spontaneously close. After this, he announced that everyone would draw straws to determine the order in which they would be shot until his demands were met. Lt. Prescott decided to risk the chance that the thick oak
table the bomb was situated on would be able to shield the hostages if they could get under it in time. Lt. Prescott withdrew his pistol and, while shouting at the other hostages to get on the floor, fired five times while SWAT members crashed through the glass walls of the conference room. Draper was hit by all five bullets and fell to the floor wounded. Despite the dead man's switch, the bomb did not detonate. Draper was rushed to nearby LDS Hospital
where he was pronounced dead on arrival
.
The bomb was determined to be modeled after a Vietnam War
-era anti-personnel claymore mine that would have been particularly deadly if it had gone off. The Salt Lake City Police Department
's bomb squad deemed it too volatile to move, and it was detonated inside the conference room. None of the shrapnel penetrated the table, verifying Lt. Prescott's hypothesis.
Salt Lake City Public Library
The Salt Lake City Public Library system's main branch building is an architecturally unique structure in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is located at 210 East, 400 South, across from the Salt Lake City and County Building and Washington Square.-History:...
, which now houses The Leonardo
The Leonardo (Salt Lake City)
The Leonardo is a culture, arts, and science center and museum in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It is located at the former site of the main branch of the Salt Lake City Public Library...
, a culture and arts center.
Incident process
During a demonstration of a TibetTibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
an sand painting ceremony, Draper leapt onto the service desk in the Fiction section brandishing a M1911
M1911
The M1911 is a single-action, semi-automatic, magazine-fed, and recoil-operated handgun chambered for the .45 ACP cartridge. John M. Browning designed the firearm which was the standard-issue side arm for the United States armed forces from 1911 to 1985. The M1911 is still carried by some U.S....
pistol and claiming to have a bomb. He ordered nearby people into a conference room, which was already occupied by a Toastmasters group: Librarian Gwen Page, six civilians, and police officer Lt. Lloyd Prescott, who offered to change places with the last person who entered the conference room. Lt. Prescott was in plain clothes at the time and had his pistol hidden on his person. After Draper and the others entered the room Page began to count hostages, as ordered, and began to have them line up facing the wall while Draper made demands and described his plans. A Toastmaster managed to inconspicuously slip several hostages out a second door in the conference room, inciting a run for more hostages to exit the commons. Page and others chose to stay in the room while Draper threatened but did not shoot.
Staff response
The library staff acted quickly by calling 911911
Year 911 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Julian calendar.-Africa:* Rebellion of the Kutama Berbers against the Fatimid Caliphate...
and evacuating the five-story building in under five minutes, by using the fire alarm. Several staff stayed on-site to provide police with floor plans and operating the telephone, security and power lines according to the wishes of the SWAT teams. One librarian, Jenny Wright, hid a group of eight children and their parents from the Children's Section (located on the second floor near Draper) in another conference room until Draper was satisfied with the number of hostages and had closed the door and had lowered blinds over the room's glass walls. Another librarian arrived and the group was led to safety through an exit in the staff area of the building.
Bomb
Draper placed what he claimed was a bomb on the table in the center of the conference room. It was equipped with a dead man's switchDead man's switch
A dead man's switch is a switch that is automatically operated in case the human operator becomes incapacitated, such as through death or loss of consciousness....
which would cause it to detonate if Draper released a hand-held button. For this reason Lt. Prescott hesitated to use force, and the incident lasted more than six hours, during which Draper made demands for cash, gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and platinum
Platinum
Platinum is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Pt and an atomic number of 78. Its name is derived from the Spanish term platina del Pinto, which is literally translated into "little silver of the Pinto River." It is a dense, malleable, ductile, precious, gray-white transition metal...
bullion, back-pay for prior military service, and a full presidential pardon from President Bill Clinton
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton is an American politician who served as the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. Inaugurated at age 46, he was the third-youngest president. He took office at the end of the Cold War, and was the first president of the baby boomer generation...
.
At one point, Draper had one of the hostages put more duct tape
Duct tape
Duct tape, or duck tape, is cloth- or scrim-backed pressure sensitive tape often sealed with polyethylene. It is very similar to gaffer tape but differs in that gaffer tape was designed to be cleanly removed, while duct tape was not. It has a standard width of and is generally silver or black...
on the homemade bomb because he feared the two contact points for the detonator would spontaneously close. After this, he announced that everyone would draw straws to determine the order in which they would be shot until his demands were met. Lt. Prescott decided to risk the chance that the thick oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
table the bomb was situated on would be able to shield the hostages if they could get under it in time. Lt. Prescott withdrew his pistol and, while shouting at the other hostages to get on the floor, fired five times while SWAT members crashed through the glass walls of the conference room. Draper was hit by all five bullets and fell to the floor wounded. Despite the dead man's switch, the bomb did not detonate. Draper was rushed to nearby LDS Hospital
LDS Hospital
LDS Hospital is a general urban hospital and surgical center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The hospital was originally owned by the LDS Church but is now owned and operated by Intermountain Healthcare...
where he was pronounced dead on arrival
Dead on arrival
Dead on arrival or D.O.A. is a term used to indicate that a patient was found to be already clinically dead upon the arrival of professional medical assistance, often in the form of first responders such as emergency medical technicians, paramedics, or police...
.
The bomb was determined to be modeled after a Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
-era anti-personnel claymore mine that would have been particularly deadly if it had gone off. The Salt Lake City Police Department
Salt Lake City Police Department
The Salt Lake City Police department is headquartered in downtown Salt Lake City. Utah, at the intersection of the streets 315 East and 200 South. The department was founded in 1849.-Administration:...
's bomb squad deemed it too volatile to move, and it was detonated inside the conference room. None of the shrapnel penetrated the table, verifying Lt. Prescott's hypothesis.