Shareef Allman, an employee of the Lehigh Southwest Cement Permanente plant in Cupertino ,opened fire at a meeting early this morning, killing three people and wounding six. Police say he shot and wounded a seventh person in an attempted carjacking. Police are currently engaged in a massive manhunt for Allman near the-Cupertino-Sunnyvale border.

5:57 p.m.: Cupertino and Santa Clara schools expected to be back to normal Thursday

Cupertino Union and Santa Clara Unified schools will be back to normal Thursday, according to officials. No word yet from the Fremont Union High School District.

5:09 p.m.: Schools in search area drawing up contingency plans for Thursday

Schools near the area where the alleged gunman was last sighted are consulting with law enforcement in drawing up plans for school on Thursday.

4 p.m.: Police say report of Allman’s tie to Mountain View address inaccurate

Mountain View police officials say the information about Shareef Allman’s connection to a Truman Avenue address was no longer valid.

3:59 p.m.: Peterson Middle School students leave campus

Around 3:30 p.m., Sunnyvale police gave permission for students at Peterson Middle School to leave campus. The Santa Clara Unified School District notified parents via an automated dialing system to pick up their children.

Those who identified themselves as parents picking up children were allowed to drive past the police security check and meet students at the Peterson gym, district spokeswoman Tabitha Kappeler-Hurley said.

Teachers, police and other staff escorted students from classrooms, where they had been holed up all day, into the gym. They were sorted alphabetically by name — “So we know where all our A’s are, and all our B’s are,” Kappeler-Hurley said — and released to parents with identification.

Peterson normally dismisses students at 1:35 p.m., but had been in a lockdown while officers searched for the suspected gunman.

3:27 p.m.: Official: No other related carjacking attempts or hostage situations reported

Sheriff’s Lt. Rick Sung repeated that suspect Shareef Allman has not been seen since 7 a.m. There are canine units, helicopters and law enforcement all over the area where he was last seen, heading across Homestead near Homestead and Tantau.

Sung said the agencies involved in the investigation are: Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office; the Santa Clara, San Jose, Morgan Hill and Gilroy police departments; and California Highway Patrol. An FBI tactical SWAT team is standing by and U.S. Marshals are on the scene.

There are canine units and helicopters and law enforcement all over.

3 p.m.: 3 Mountain View schools closed; suspect had ties to address nearby

Three Mountain View schools were closed at 1:30 p.m. because of the Lehigh concrete plant shooting, according to Mountain. Mountain View officials said the decision to evacuate and close the schools was “made due to limited and unconfirmed information” police received that the suspect “has ties to an address located nearby” the schools.

Mountain View High School, Alta Vista High School and Mountain View Parent Nursery (all located on the same campus on Truman Avenue) were advised to close down and send all remaining students, children and staff members home.

“The two high schools had early release days today and most students were already gone when the recommendation was made. By 2:30 p.m., all three schools were completely evacuated and closed for the day,” according to a news release from Mountain View police.

Police say there is no indication Shareef Allman is in Mountain View.

2:49 p.m.: House-to-house search continues

Sheriff’s Lt. Rick Sung says officers are looking looking for Allman, but there have not been any reliable sightings of him since he tried to carjack a woman at 7 a.m. on the HP campus on Homestead and Tantau.

2:32 p.m.: SWAT team leaves Raynor Park

A SWAT team has left Raynor Park, but sheriff’s deputies are still there.

2:22 p.m.: Might be a false alarm at the Raynor Park restroom

A robot could be seen going into a restroom, but a Mercury News photographer says it might be a false alarm.

2:10 p.m.: Cops sending robot into park restroom

Police are sending a robot into a restroom at Raynor Park, near the scene where a manhunt is under way for Shareef Allman.

2:09 p.m.: Students being kept at Peterson Middle School

At Peterson Middle School in Sunnyvale, dismissal time came and went while students remained in classrooms. Sunnyvale Police have not given clearance for children at the school, near Wolfe Road and El Camino Real, to be released, said Tabitha Kappeler-Hurley, spokeswoman for the Santa Clara Unified School District.

On Wednesdays school ends at 1:35 p.m., but the district notified parents not to pick up their children then. “Our bus drivers are on hold, our parents are on hold,” Kappeler-Hurley said. The school made arrangements for lunch and restroom breaks. “Our teachers and staff are doing a great job.”

Farther away from the perimeter, students at other schools in the Cupertino Union and Fremont Union High School districts were being permitted to leave campuses with a parent, guardian or other adult approved by their families.

After-school child-care programs, such as those run by the YMCA, are continuing as usual, but after-school enrichment activities like chess club have been cancelled, district spokesman Jeremy Nishihara said. Parents were notified to pick up their children, he said.

Parents were also called to pick up their high school students, said Bettylu Smith of the Fremont district. Students who drove to school were required to get parent authorization to drive home today

2 p.m.: Neighbor urges Allman to ‘do the right thing’

Vernice Beckum, a neighbor of Shareef Allman, said he should pray, contact a preacher and “do the right thing and turn yourself in.”

1:56 p.m.: More of Allman’s friends speak

Johnnie Gray, founder of the East Palo Boxing Club has known Allman for the past 10 years. He said both Allman and his daughter had been involved with boxing and martial arts for many years in East Palo Alto and San Jose.

Gray described him as “always a mild-mannered-type guy.”

But he assumed something went wrong at work, and Allman feared losing his livelihood after 15 years at the plant.

“Nobody should go kill anyone or do all these crazy things like that, but some people just can’t take it, and he couldn’t take it,” Gray said.

He also said he assumes another life will inevitably be lost before this ordeal ends.

“If they don’t catch him today, whenever they do, they’re going to take his life or he’ll take his own life,” Gray said. “Its crazy when you know someone and they get caught up in a situation like this.”

James Ragland, a janitorial supervisor at Valley Medical, is good friends with Shareef Allman.

“It’s not him. Something happened between the job and whatever else personally was going on in his life, a breakdown maybe.” I saw him a couple months ago down at the San Jose Jazz Festival. He’s also a Christian man, and we spoke. I asked how his comedian project was going. That was his lifelong dream to be a comedian. He was pretty funny.

There were no signs, no warning no nothing. He was smiling. He was always jolly.

Overall he was a really good person a really committed father. He was a single parent so we had a lot in common.

We also talked about being single parents and life in general.”

Years ago, Ragland worked as head bouncer at the French Quarter in Sunnyvale off Murphy Road. Allman was a bouncer at the nightclub too.

“He’s a good guy. He’s a single parent raising his daughter. Any time you saw him he was happy or cheering people up or telling them they were doing a good job. He always had something humorous to say I don’t know what could have happened to make him snap.

You couldn’t see it coming from that kind of person such as he is with custody of his daughter.”

He and Ragland attended church together at Emanual Baptist Church. “He’s a Christian man. He worshipped Jesus Christ.”

“I never knew that he had any firearms. He never had a violent nature. As a bouncer he always had to be peaceful. He was always able to resolve conflict and be in control. But he was forceful enough to get people out. He was pretty good at it.

He was a peaceful person.”

1:48 p.m.: Three women leave Allman’s apartment

Three women left Allman’s San Jose apartment, but did not stop to answer reporters’ questions.

“He’s a good man. We love him,” one of the women said as they walked away.

1:45 p.m.: Friends urge Allman to turn himself in

Three long-time friends of shooting suspect Shareef Allman asked Allman to surrender to authorities and pledged their support to help end the manhunt peacefully. The three are Walter Wilson, a community activist; Jethro Moore, local head of the NAACP; and Pastor Lee Wilson, of the South Bay Christian Ministers’ Union.

Also attending to lend his support was Police Chief Chris Moore, who indicated he does not know Allman.

1: 14 p.m.: Allman’s friends to hold press conference at 1:30 p.m.

Some of Shareef Allman’s friends are going to hold a press conference to urge him to turn himself in peacefully. The press conference is scheduled at 1:30 at the African American Community Service Agency on 6th Street in San Jose.

12:30 p.m.: Police searched dumpster

Officers searched a dumpster in the same parking lot where Shareef Allman’s car was abandoned on Homestead Road. They appeared to box up something found in the dumpster.

12:25 p.m.: FBI, Homeland Security helping in the manhunt

During the press conference, Sheriff Laurie Smith named a host of law enforcement agencies involved in the manhunt, including the FBI, US Marshals, Homeland Security, and San Jose, Santa Clara, Campbell, and Sunnyvale police departments.

Smith said all those shot at the Lehigh cement plant are men.

She said they recovered a shotgun, handgun and two assault rifles, some of them inside Allman’s abandoned vehicle. But she still believes he is armed.

12:20 p.m.: Sheriff urges Allman to surrender

During a press conference at the Lehigh plant, Sheriff Laurie Smith called on Allman to surrender. She also asked anyone who knows his cell number to call 408-808-4500.

12:16 p.m.: Sheriff: Some of the wounded are in critical condition

Sheriff Laurie Smith said Allman was last seen leaving his vehicle at about 7 a.m. near Wolfe and Homestead. Some of the wounded are in critical condition.

She said there were 15 people in the meeting at the Lehigh cement plant when the shooting broke out.

12:14 p.m. Sheriff says four weapons recovered, believes suspect is armed

Sheriff Laurie Smith says three dead, seven wounded. Officers have recovered four weapons, but she said she believes he is armed.

12:12 p.m.: Third person dead

A third person has died, according to Sheriff Laurie Smith

12:06 p.m.: Two victims taken to Regional Medical Center, one released

A spokeswoman for Regional Medical Center in San Jose said two of the shooting victims where brought to the hospital. One was treated and released and the spokeswoman would not release information on the other.

12:06 p.m.: Friend says she has offered her help to police

Lavella Benton says she’s offered police her help if they get into contact with Allman.

12:02 p.m.: Friend says Allman will ‘listen to me’

“We want them to talk to him,” Lavella Benton said. “He’ll listen to me.”

12:01 p.m.: Friends want to help bring Allman in alive

Nia Harris and Lavella Benton, Allman’s friends, drove to the neighborhood where the search is under way in the hopes they could help bring him in alive. Harris said Allman is not answering his cell phone.

11:47 a.m.: Three victims treated at Valley Medical, one released

Joy Alexiou, at Valley Medical Center, said that two victims of the quarry shooting were brought in about 6 a.m.

One man has been released and the other man is in the hospital in fair condition.

Alexiou also said that, at about 7:30 a.m., another woman, the victim of an alleged carjacking, was brought in to Valley Med. She is in fair condition. Fair condition means the patients are stable, conscious, may be uncomfortable, but all indications are favorable.

11:42 a.m.: More friends talk about Allman

Two women who identified themselves as Shareef Allman’s friends were shocked to hear about the shooting. Lavella Benton and Nia Harris described Allman as a “mentor” to young men and said he always had a smile on his face.

“I would trust my kids with him,” Benton said.

The women were trying to reach out to police in hopes that Allman could be taken alive.

They fear he will be shot and killed.

The women said Allman is active in the community, works as a trainer in a gym and is a dedicated single father.

Benton said Allman is her best friend and is a mentor to her son.

11:30 a.m.: Friend says Allman is ‘not a monster’

Mitchell Julien, a longtime friend of Allman’s, drove from San Lorenzo to the Lehigh plant to tell reporters about his friend.

“I’ve never seen him violent,” Julien said “This guy is not a monster.”

But he said he did know that Allman owned a 40-caliber handgun and liked to practice at shooting ranges. He said he did not know if Allman owned an assault rifle.

Julien said he met Allman back in the 1980s at the Garden City boxing gym in San Jose, where they sparred with each other. He said Allman wrote books about black enpowerment, including one titled “Amazing Grace.”

11:20 a.m.: Manhunt continues

Sheriff’s Sgt. Jose Cardoza said the house-to-house search is continuing. SWAT teams from Santa Clara, Sunnyvale and San Jose are helping in the search.

Allman was last seen walking north across Homestead from the HP parking lot, where he attempted to carjack a vehicle and shot and wounded a woman,

11:17 a.m.: Supervisor says Allman felt people were ‘out to get him’

A supervisor at Lehigh, who asked not to be named, said Shareef Allman was likable, but had recent issues at work. Allman felt people “were out to get him at work” and that sometimes he felt it was racially motivated.

A Lehigh truck driver, who also didn’t wanted to be named, said Allman seemed to be grimacing Tuesday and didn’t seem like himself.

11 a.m.: Laurelwood Elementary in Santa Clara is closed

Laurelwood Elementary School , near Homestead Road and Lawrence Expressway, is closed to students today, although teachers and support staff are working, said Tabitha Kappeler-Hurley, spokeswoman for the Santa Clara Unified School District.

The district sent out a “voice blast,” alerting parents with automated phone calls sometime around 7:30 a.m. to keep their children at home, she said.

But the district found out about the at-large shooter too late to close Peterson Middle School, near Wolfe Road and El Camino Real. So the message to Peterson parents this morning was that students may stay home, but those who did arrive at school would go to class and be kept in a lockdown until the area was safe. Parents were not asked to pick up their children, Kappeler-Hurley said. “We didn’t want people driving in and out of the school area.”

Peterson dismissal is scheduled for about 1:30 p.m., but “we won’t be releasing kids to walk home,” Kappeler-Hurley said

10:51 a.m.: Neighbor says suspect was recently moved to night shift

Rose Douglas, a neighbor who has known him for 12-13 years, said she was aware he was having problems at his job. One of the major issues Allman had at work, Douglas said, was a recently move from the day shift to the night shift. Douglas said the shift change interfered with Allman’s plans to spend more time with his daughter.

Douglas said she believes Allman was a former semi-professional boxer.

Two Santa Clara Sheriff’s Office police cars are parked in front of the apartment and there is police tape in front of Allman’s apartment to keep people away. It is believed Allman’s daughter is inside the apartment.

The apartment complex is described as a tidy series of buildings. Allman’s unit is indistinguishable from the others.

10:50 a.m.: Statement from Rep. Mike Honda on shooting

“Earlier today, tragedy struck our community with shootings in Cupertino and Sunnyvale. While exact details still remain unclear, I want to express my condolences to those who lost loved ones today. For neighboring residents, I encourage you, for your safety, to follow the instructions of the local authorities. Having worked with the public safety officials in Santa Clara County for many years, I have the utmost confidence in the job that public safety personnel are doing right now. My office is working with them closely to monitor the situation and ensure the safety of all area residents.”

“Today is a somber day. Our close-knit community was violently attacked and we will continue to feel the shocks of this violence for some time. These events will undoubtedly lead to difficult questions about safety, public policy and emergency preparedness. This self-reflection is natural and it is my hope that we can address any concerns that arise together, as a community, once all the facts have come to light.”

http://honda.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1121:rep-honda-press-shootings-cupertino&catid=19:press-releases&Itemid=555

0:49 a.m.: Report on two victims

Fred Romero, whose two brothers were injured in the shooting, came up from Gilroy after getting a phone call at 4 a.m. “saying there had been an incident at the quarry.”

When they arrived, they learned one of the brothers had been killed and the other was on his way to Santa Clara Valley Medical Center.

“Both of my brothers were long-term employees,” Romero told NBC 11, asking that his brothers’ names be withheld. “Both of them were union safety leaders.”

“They were in a safety meeting at 4 a.m. and things escalated out of control. It’s been an ongoing situation, a labor dispute.

Romero told NBC 11 that the dispute was over budget cuts and hours, because there’s been a slowdown in construction.

The brother who was killed had worked at the plant for 30 years, Romero said, and leaves behind a son and daughter and five grandchildren.

10:47 a.m.: Where suspect’s car was found

Shareef Allman’s 1999 Mercury 2-door hatchback was found in the middle of the Pho Little Saigon restaurant, 855 Homestead Road, near the perimeter where police are conducting the search.

10:40 a.m.: Relative identifies one of the victims

One of the dead is Mark Munoz, according to Carmen Rodriguez, who told reporter she was his sister-in-law.

Munoz, who was in his 50s, worked at Lehigh for 20 years, was the grandfather of two and cared for his mother, Rodriguez said. “He was very loving, very caring, and he couldn’t wait to retire,” she said.

10:28 a.m.: Schools are being cautious

As of 10:15 a.m., officials in the Cupertino Union School District were preparing for kindergarten dismissal later this morning.

“Everything is 180 degrees different from a normal day,” spokesman Jeremy Nishihara said.

Children will be released only to parents, guardians or adults who have prior permission to take childen, he said. All the district’s schools remain in lockdown, with children in classrooms behind locked doors. “Really, it’s an abundance of caution,” Nishihara said.

10:27 a.m.: Suspect’s car found

Shareef Allman’s car was found near Homestead Road and Wolfe Road.

10:22 a.m.: Neighbor describes police approaching suspect’s daughter

Suspect Shareef Allman lives at Stonegate Apartments on Renaissance Drive in San Jose. Police are keeping reporters away from the apartment complex.

Paulette Conner said she saw police as they approached Allman’s daughter earlier this morning.

“He’s my dad,” Conner overheard the daughter tell officers. She looked scared and terrified, Conner said. Officers took her into an apartment.

Neighbors describe Allman as really likeable. A sharp-dressed guy who works out a lot. A single parent who goes to church. All were shocked to hear he is a suspect in a mass shooting. He is very popular with his neighbors. Neighbors said they never saw him do anything violent.

Neighbor Albert Salazar, 51, says he’s known Allman a long time. He spoke to him three days ago and didn’t notice anything unusual. They talked about growing up in the hood under hard circumstances and how they turned their lives around.

“It makes no sense,” Salazar said. “Nobody can understand what happened. He must have snapped. I couldn’t believe it when I heard it was him this morning.”

A lot of his neighbors used to watch his cable show and saw him as a succesful entrepreneur.

Neighbor Wayne Riley went to high school with Allman’s daughter. “He was a good parent. He was always doing something to take care of his kids,” Riley said. “I do not know what happened.”

Maybe it had something to do with his job, Riley speculated.

10:15 a.m.: “I just can’t believe it”

The executive director of CreaTV, the public access Channel 15, said this morning she couldn’t be more shocked: “He was spreading the word on non-violence. He was a mediator. He’s just a person that would try to resolve conflict. I just can’t believe it,” Suzanne St. John-Crane said. “The way he was living his life was to use his program to try to talk things through, to discuss pertinent issues. He was real passionate about that.”

As a host of Real 2 Real, Allman would interview divergent groups, she said, and encourage them to get along. He was not an employee of the station, but one of 130 community producers who turned in a show to air on the channel.

10:14 a.m.: Neighbor said suspect was having problems at work

Paulette Conner, a neighbor of Shareef Allman, said he was having problems at work, but she didn’t know exactly what.

10:08 a.m.: Two dead, seven wounded, suspect still at large

Officials say there are two dead, seven wounded, including the woman who was the victim of an attempted carjacking. She was shot in the arm.

9:58 a.m.: Perimeter of the search

It looks like the perimeter of the search is roughly Homestead Road, Inverness Way, Quail Avenue and Nightingale Avenue.

9:53 a.m.: Update on schools

Cupertino High School, near Stevens Creek Boulevard and Tantau Avenue, was in lockdown this morning, said Bettylu Smith, spokeswoman for the Fremont Union High School District. But only a small portion of the school’s 1,800 students showed up on campus. The district sent emergency e-mails and phone calls between 7:15 and 7:30 this morning, telling the parents of its 10,400 students to keep them home from school.

For Homestead High in Cupertino, by that time many students were already on their way to school, said Principal Graham Clark. Only about 25 percent of Homestead’s 2,235 students arrived on campus, he said. While the school is open and has not been in lockdown, Clark planned to keep students inside classrooms during tutorial — an instructional time just after first period — and brunch.

At the district’s other four high schools, classes weren’t scheduled to begin today until 9:30 a.m., Smith said. Of those who did come to school, she said, “students are in classrooms with adults and are safe,” she said. Some parents have picked up their children from school.

9:36 a.m.: Suspect has minor criminal record

Shareef William Allman, the suspect, has a relatively minor record mostly consisting of driving with a supspended license dating back to the 1990s. His last conviction was in 1994. His most serious conviction was a 1992 misdemeanor charge for forgery for which he served a small amount of jail time.

He sometimes goes by Frank Allman.

9:35 a.m.: 15 employees found safe at cement plant

Sheriff’s Lt. Rick Sung says 15 employees were found safe at the Lehigh cement plant.

Sung also said suspect Shareef William Allman attended a 4:30 a.m. safety meeting at the facility. He left for a period of time, came back with weapons and started shooting.

Sung said officers are searching locations in Cupertino and Sunnyvale.

9:28 a.m.: Emergency e-mail sent by Fremont Union High School District

Fremont Union High School District sent an emergency e-mail between 7:15 and 7:30 this morning, telling parents of its 10,400 students to keep them home from school. But by then, “a lot of kids were on their way to school,” said Graham Clark, principal of Homestead High School in Cupertino. Only about 25 percent of Homestead’s 2,235 students showed up for class, he said. Campuses are open and accepting students. Homestead has not been in lockdown, Clark said. but plans to keep students inside classrooms during tutorial — an instructional time just after first period — and brunch.

9:24 a.m.: Shooter has not been located

Sheriff’s Lt. Rick Sung says they do not know the location of the shooter. He said officers are using dogs and helicopters in the search.

9:22 a.m.: Police may be searching house-to-house

It appears police are engaged in a house-to-house search for the shooter.

9:20 a.m.: Police moving in on house on Lorne Way

Police, with guns drawn, can be seen approaching a house on Lorne Way.

9:16 a.m.: Suspect may be surrounded

Santa Clara Police Sgt. Ray Carreira said police believe they have suspect Shareef Allman “contained” in the area of Homestead and Tantau.

9:06 a.m.: Background on the suspect

Shareef Allman is a producer of a show called Real 2 Real on San Jose’s CreatTV. In a video interview, he told the host that his “day job” is as a miner who drives heavy equipment. He also has written a book called “Amazing Grace,” a book intended to empower women against domestic violence.

“It’s fiction but deals with people I’ve met throughout my life,” Allman said in the interview. “I’m a father and raised a daughter from birth, and growing up in that type of environment and seen men abuse women, I said I can do something as an individual to make a difference.”

In one of Allman’s Real 2 Real shows, he conducts a sidewalk interview with Jesse Jackson. He also interviews young men about what it’s like to grow up without a father.