Surgeon dead in shooting at Campbell Clinic in Collierville; suspect detained
A surgeon was killed in a shooting Tuesday afternoon at Campbell Clinic in Collierville.
Tuesday evening, Campbell Clinic identified the shooting victim as Dr. Benjamin Mauck. The suspected shooter was identified by police on Wednesday morning as Larry Pickens, 29, of Memphis. Pickens has been charged with first-degree murder and aggravated assault.
According to Mauck's bio on the Campbell Clinic website, he specialized in elbow surgery and hand and wrist surgery. He joined the Campbell Clinic staff in August 2012.
In a statement, Campbell Clinic said:
“Earlier today, we experienced a single shooter event inside our Collierville clinic.
“We are shocked and heartbroken to confirm the incident resulted in the tragic loss of one of our highly respected and beloved physicians, Dr. Ben Mauck. We ask that you please lift his family in prayer.
“During this difficult time, we will be working through many details and will keep you updated as we are able.
“We have decided to close all Campbell Clinic locations tomorrow, July 12 and will communicate the reopening of all facilities at a later time.
“We appreciate our local law enforcement officers who responded within minutes. We will continue to work closely with authorities as this remains an active investigation.
“Our priorities remain Faith, Family and Patient Care. At this time, we ask for your prayers for the entire Campbell Clinic family, as well as for the privacy of Dr. Mauck’s family.”
— Campbell Clinic
During a press briefing Tuesday, Collierville Police Chief Dale Lane said a suspect was taken into custody without incident within five minutes of the shooting. The suspect, who was a male patient at the hospital, shot the healthcare worker in an exam room, Lane said. Police did not release the name of the shooter or the victim at that time. Lane said the suspect was at the scene for several hours before the shooting.
What we know: A doctor was killed in at shooting at Campbell Clinic in Collierville
"This appears to have been a one-on-one encounter that happened in the exam room," Lane said. He noted that many patients and employees were present in the clinic when the shooting happened. Lane praised Campbell Clinic workers for their efforts to protect others following the shooting. "They were practicing what they had been trained to do" in the case of an active shooter, he said.
Lane added the investigation is continuing.
Lane also emphasized the targeted nature of the shooting. "This is not the mass shooting we experienced at Kroger a few years ago," he said, referring to the mass shooting at a Collierville Kroger in September 2021, when 1 person was killed and 13 were injured.
The shooting happened around 2:25 p.m. at the clinic located at the intersection of West Poplar Drive and Shea Road.
Tennessee Senate minority leader Raumesh Akbari, D-Memphis, called for gun reform late Tuesday following the deadly Clinic shooting. She noted in a news release that a witness reportedly said the shooter had been threatening a staffer at the clinic for a week.
“For a decade, Republicans have been loosening Tennessee’s gun laws and making our community more dangerous," Akbari said. "Tragedies like this underscore the urgent need for common sense – like reinstating background checks and gun licenses, and establishing new reforms like an order of protection so police can remove firearms from a person who is threatening others.
“Whether you’re at school, a grocery store or on the job, you deserve to live and work free from gun violence,” she said.
Campbell Clinic, which has seven area locations, is a leading orthopedic clinic specializing in sports medicine, oncology, rehabilitation and surgery.
Jacob Wilt is a reporter for The Commercial Appeal. You can reach him at jacob.wilt@commercialappeal.com.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Dr. Ben Mauck killed in shooting at Campbell Clinic in Collierville
