Ralph J. Tortorici, 26, a military veteran and psychology major at the State University of New York at Albany, held hostage a large lecture hall. Tortorici, armed with a .270-caliber rifle with more than two dozen rounds of ammunition and a hunting knife, walked into the ancient history class of Hans Pohlsander, saying, ‘Don’t worry. Nobody move. You guys are getting held hostage.’ The standoff ended when Tortorici had his gun taken away by 19-year-old student Jason McEnaney, who was shot in the leg, groin, and abdomen in the exchange. Tortorici, who suffered from a well-documented history of mental illness, argued during the hostage crisis that the government had implanted a control chip in his head during a procedure at Albany Medical Center. He committed suicide in 1999 in prison while serving a 15½-year sentence.
