Who is Caleb Sharpe? Washington Freeman High School shooter sentenced to 40 years in prison

On Friday, 20-year-old Caleb Sharpe was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the 2017 Freeman High School shooting, which left one student dead and three others injured.

On September 13, 2017, Caleb Sharpe, a student at the Freeman High School, entered the premises with a bag containing a handgun, an assault-style rifle, and several boxes of ammunition.

He allegedly attempted to use the rifle but could not load it since it was jammed. When confronted by a fellow student, Sam Strahan, Caleb shot him with a handgun, killing him on the spot. Prosecutors accused him of proceeding to shoot three other students non-fatally.

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All there is to know about Caleb Sharpe

Raised in Spokane, Washington, Caleb Sharpe was 15 years old at the time of the shooting. The Independent reported that the shooter was a quiet young man with a quiet, soft-spoken personality.

Sharpe was also an avid YouTuber who published videos on the platform under the username "Mungo Walker". His social media pages were rife with mock shootouts, gun-related content, and anti-feminist memes.

The Spokesman reported that the shooting was fuelled by Sharpe's immaturity, mental health issues, and learning disorders, including depression and untreated ADHD. Craig Beaver, a psychologist, said that Sharpe dealt with loneliness and emotionally abusive behavior from his father.

Beaver further added that prior to the shooting, Sharpe had written two suicidal notes and became increasingly isolated. He was also bothered by the fact that his family had moved several times, and that his step-siblings had moved out of the house.

Sharon Hundland, a Deputy Prosecutor, also discussed Sharpe's mental health issues:

“I think that he was lost in his head and that he was depersonalizing."

She said:

"His obsessive and compulsive tendencies were and are an issue."

Fox reported that Sharpe apologized to his victims and their parents in court, including Sam Strahan's mother:

"There’s only really one thing that I can say. And that is, I am sorry."

He added:

"That day showed me the true cost of evil. Everything that this community had to pay, my own family had to pay. From that point on and now, evil has no place in my heart."

Brooke Foley, the public defender representing Sharpe, cited the young man's immaturity and mental health issues as reasons his sentence should not be too harsh. Foley said that with proper treatment, the 20-year-old can be reformed.

Talking about Sharpe, the public defender said:

"His prospects for change and rehabilitation are strong. Justice is following the law, despite demands for blood."

Caleb Sharpe was sentenced as an adult. However, as he perpetrated the crime as a juvenile, he was not sentenced to the typical 70-90 years that school shooters typically receive in Washington.