One of the four victims in a shooting at a Tulsa medical office on Wednesday had ties to the Boston area.
Dr. Preston Phillips, an alum of Harvard Medical School, was who officials called the primary target of a gunman who blamed the doctor for his continuing back pain. According to police, the gunman, later identified as a Michael Louis of Muskogee, Oklahoma, killed himself once police arrived
According to Tulsa Police Chief Wendell Franklin, a letter was found on Louis’ body explicitly naming Phillips as the primary target.
“[The letter] made it clear that he came in with the intent to kill Dr. Phillips and anyone who got in his way,” Franklin said. ”He blamed Dr. Phillips for the ongoing pain following the surgery.”
Franklin said Phillips performed the surgery on May 19 and Louis was released from the hospital on May 24.
Phillips had previously been employed by the WNBA’s Tulsa Shock as their orthopedic surgeon before the franchise’s move to Arlington, Texas in 2015.
Phillips was also previously a fellow at Boston Children’s Hospital.
“On behalf of the entire Boston Children’s Hospital community, I extend my deepest sympathies to the family, friends and colleagues — current and former — of Dr. Preston Phillips and the other victims of the Tulsa shootings,” said Boston Children’s President and CEO Kevin Churchwell. “I condemn in the strongest possible terms the senseless and violent act that took Dr. Phillips’ talented and committed life. This is yet another reminder of the pressing need for strong, effective and comprehensive national gun safety legislation that addresses the escalating public health crisis of gun violence.”
Dr. Edward Rodriguez, Chief of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center’s orthopedics group, called former fellow Phillips “an exemplary surgeon and individual who represented all that is best in Orthopedics.”
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