TOM MARQUARDT’S DEBUT BOOK
“I WANTED TO KILL HARTLEY AND THEN I WANTED TO KILL MARQUARDT.”
THE MISERABLE LONER WASN’T HAPPY WHEN HE SAW THE NEWSPAPER STORY OF HIS SEXUAL HARASSMENT CONVICTION. HE TOOK TO TWITTER TO ATTACK THE NEWSPAPER’S EDITOR AND THE REPORTER WHO WROTE THE STORY. HE SUED THEM FOR DEFAMATION. HE SUED ATTORNEYS AND JUDGES. WHEN HE EXHAUSTED ALL HIS APPEALS, HE BOUGHT A SHOTGUN .
the story
After losing five employees of its small staff, it seemed impossible that The Capital would publish the next day. But through a herculean effort, a grieving staff refused to betray the mission embodied by the journalists who gave up their lives on June 28, 2018. Not only did the staff persevere, but it went on to win a number of awards, including a Pulitzer Prize citation. They channeled their anger into a winning crusade to change gun laws and draw attention to the proliferation of mass shootings.
An assistant editor with a warm smile, a mentor for young journalists…the mother of the newsroom who charged the shooter to give reporters a chance to escape…an editor with a hearty laugh who knew University of Maryland sports better than anyone….an advertising assistant who always smiled even through her pain…a bright editorial writer who finally found love.
THE VICTIMS
Rob Hiaasen Wendy Winters John McNamara Rebecca Smith Gerald Fischman
(Photos from Anne Arundel State’s Attorney’s Office)
getting out the word
Press Club of Southwest Florida, March 11, 2025
Tom Marquardt: “Be aware, be aware”
by David Silverberg • March 18, 2025 •
Tom Marquardt has a warning for all journalists: “Number one, is that you have to be alert to your surroundings,” he told the Press Club of Southwest Florida in a presentation at its March 11 meeting, held at the Naples Hilton.
“My life has changed. I have weapons in my house now and my wife knows how to operate them. I don’t go into a room now without looking around me all the time.”
Marquardt has reasons for caution. He served as editor and publisher of the Capital Gazette in Annapolis, MD, retiring to Naples in 2012 after a 35-year career.
That’s where he was on June 28, 2018, when 38-year old Ramon Escara blasted his way into the newsroom of Marquardt’s former newspaper and killed five members of the staff. It was the worst mass murder of journalists in American history.
Escara had been covered in a 2011 article for stalking and sexually harassing a high school classmate. Enraged by the coverage, Escara attacked the newspaper on social media and sued it in court. The judge dismissed the rambling, unfocused complaint, leading Escara to spend the next three years plotting revenge of a different sort.
By 2018 he was ready to strike the newspaper’s offices. He blocked an exit, shot his way through the front door, killed five staffers, then called police and surrendered after hiding under a desk.
In his presentation to the Press Club, Marquardt provided a detailed account of the events leading up to the shooting, including police body camera video of the arrest. Although he was long gone from the newsroom, in the years that followed the attack he reviewed police and court files, eyewitness accounts and a psychiatrist’s interview with the killer. The result is a just-published book, Pressed to Kill: Inside Newspaper’s Worst Mass Murder.
In responding to a question from Press Club President Tom Doerr, Marquardt identified three lessons that journalists should take away from the incident.
Elaborating on the need to be aware of surroundings, he said: “What I’m suggesting is that every reporter, number one, be aware of who’s in the newsroom, or who’s in the public where they’re at. It’s really important to think about, whatever story you’re writing. If you do your feature story on somebody, chances are you’re not going to be getting any kind of physical attack. But if you’re reporting crime, if you’re reporting wrongdoing, any kind of political corruption, be aware, be aware.”
As another example of this kind of danger, Marquardt cited the 2015 shooting of reporter Alison Parker and photographer Adam Ward in Moneta, VA. Both were killed by a disgruntled former employee of their television station, who also shot the person they were interviewing. (She survived.)
A second lesson from the Capital Gazette incident, Marquardt said, was that “if you do feel threatened there are things you can do. You can walk away from the incident. …There’s a way of walking away from something if you feel in danger.”
However, if walking away is not an option, “you seek some sort of remedy for whatever’s happening.”
This is especially true for long-term issues like the one faced by the Capital Gazette, where Escara spent years complaining, harassing and suing the newspaper, his rants and threats becoming progressively more unhinged.
“You can go back to your boss and say, ‘Hey, this is happening here’ and ‘I think it’s happening more often,’” Marquardt said. “You see [reporters] out there being hassled just for doing their jobs, by people who are upset with stories that air. Now, most of these people haven’t done anything but it’s not going to take much to trigger a response similar to this [one in Annapolis].”
He also noted that in today’s environment, “There seems to be a license to go out and attack the media.”
Indeed, Southwest Florida had its own experience with a physical attack on a journalist on Nov. 28, 2019, when NBC2 reporter Delia D’Ambra was attacked—without warning or provocation — in North Fort Myers while doing a stand-up report on a street corner. The attacker was swiftly arrested.
Both D’Ambra and WINK security specialist Rich Kolko addressed the Press Club at that time to give the same warning that Marquardt conveyed: always be aware of your surroundings.
Also at that time the Press Club considered a resolution opposing violence against journalists.
A draft of that resolution stated:
“The Press Club of Southwest Florida condemns in the strongest possible terms any and all violence against journalists in the performance of their duties;
“Condemns hateful and violent rhetoric against journalists and media by all public figures and elected officials;
“Calls on law enforcement officers to vigorously enforce the law and fully prosecute to the greatest extent possible any and all perpetrators of violence against journalists;
“Calls on news organizations to provide the maximum possible protection for their employees and journalists in the performance of their duties… .”
Although not formally passed by the Club, as Marquardt’s story makes clear, those principles remain as relevant today as they were back then.
Editor’s Note: Tom Marquardt will be available to sell and autograph copies of his book at the upcoming April 9, 2025, Press Club luncheon at Season’s 52.
“Tom Marquardt’s narrative is a gripping, necessary addition to the discourse on mass shootings and media resilience. It is a testament to the strength of those who, in the face of unimaginable loss, stand firm in their quest for justice and remembrance. This book is a beacon of hope and a sobering reminder of the cost of inaction in the face of clear threats. ”
— Kristen Ziman, author of “Reimagining Blue,” and former police chief in Aurora, Illinois, during its mass shooting in 2018. Ziman served on the U.S. Justice Department panel that investigated the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
“I found Pressed to Kill emotionally compelling and so factually accurate – from the case details to the astonishing reality of gun violence in America. You have done a deep service to both the victims of that horrible day and your chosen profession.”
-- Dr. J. Reid Meloy, Ph.D, board-certified forensic psychologist, threat assessment consultant and author of “International Handbook of Threat Assessment (Oxford University Press).
“Pressed to Kill is an important book that offers a sobering look at the dangers faced by journalists. It is a must-read for anyone interested in journalism, freedom of the press, and the fight against gun violence.”
— Kathleen Riggs, author of “Manatees.”
“This was a short, nonfiction book that was packed with information! A solid 4-star read for me.”
— Erica Gordon, author, “Rabbi’s Mission."
About tHE AUTHOR
I always wanted to write a book. Just not this one.
The killer should be forgotten, but not the innocent victims who were simply doing their job as journalists. This book is about their lives, but also the lives of the six journalists who managed to escape that day. It is about a system that let a killer slip through the cracks despite his haunting missives on social media. And, it is about a hardy, motivated staff who refused to give up their drive to publish a newspaper despite the setback.
—-
I spent 40 years in newspapers, first at small newspapers in Michigan and finally at Capital Gazette Newspapers in Annapolis, Maryland. I served in various positions from editor to publisher before retiring in 2012.
A native of Dearborn, Michigan, I graduated from Central Michigan University in 1970 with a major in journalism. In 2013 I was inducted into the Central Michigan University Journalism Hall of Fame.
I currently live in Naples, Florida, with my wife Sue and remain involved on the boards of several non-profit organizations.
Tom Marquardt, author, “Pressed to Kill”
All profits from the sale of the book will be donated to the Fallen Journalists Memorial Foundation.
TO REACH THE AUTHOR
“ACTIVE SHOOTER!”
Cars trickled down Bestgate Road, a divided boulevard that provided entry to the Annapolis' Westfield Mall and served as an artery around the city. Cpl. Gregory Lesane and Cpl. Danelo Sobers of Anne Arundel County Police had just finished policing an automobile collision outside of the mall and were seated in their cars writing reports when they received an urgent call about an active shooter at 888 Bestgate Road. The closest officers to the office building, they activated their lights and shifted into gear.
In less than three minutes they were racing into the lobby, guns drawn and less than a minute after Escara had killed his last victim. But neither did they hear that final shot nor did they see anyone who posed a danger. Could the gunman – or gunmen -- be hiding in an office? Had he escaped or was he preparing to burst out of a door wielding his long gun? The perpetrator could have been lurking on any one of the four floors of office space. There were no sounds of gunfire or cries for help from victims. The sparse description they had gotten of the shooter – male with long hair and wielding a shotgun – did not fit any of the people they’d seen so far.
County Police Officer Ryan McGeeney, who was at a nearby fire station when the call came in, arrived at the crime scene about the same time as Lesane and Sobers. McGeeney later told investigators, “It was kind of odd because when we pulled up, you’re expecting people to be running out screaming. (It was) just a regular business day. And when we get into the lobby, even more odd, there are people standing around, coming and going from the elevator...just walking around in the lobby.” 