Details Revealed About Dallas ICE Facility Shooter: NPR

DALLAS– A newly released police report offers personal details about the person responsible for last month’s filming at a Dallas immigration center that killed two detainees and injured another, and experts believe he may have been motivated more by notoriety than ideology.

The parents of Joshua Jahn, who died by suicide, told local police that their 29-year-old son was a “loner,” according to a Fairview police report recently obtained by NPR. Fairview is a suburb north of Dallas, where he lived with his parents.

According to the incident report, Jahn was unemployed and had no friends or romantic partners.

The parents told police that Jahn “spent much of his time playing games on his computer and was ‘obsessed’ with AI technology.” They said Jahn rarely engaged in conversation and they “were generally unaware of his daily activities.”

The shooting at the Dallas Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office was the second shooting at an ICE facility in North Texas in recent months.

All of those who were killed were immigrants in ICE custody.

Jahn left a note saying the attack targeted ICE agents, law enforcement said at a news conference the day after the shooting.

Assigning Blame

Acting U.S. Attorney Nancy Larson said at a news conference a day after the shooting that Jahn likely acted alone and was not affiliated with any particular group or entity.

Public records in Oklahoma, where Jahn voted in the 2024 general election, indicate he was a registered independent. Jahn’s brother, Noah, told NBC News that he didn’t think Jahn was interested in politics.

Yet several conservative elected officials and government officials cite his actions as an example of far-left extremism.

The true political philosophy of individuals who commit this type of violence can be difficult to identify.

Often their views are a mix of left and right, said Rachel Kleinfeld, an expert on political violence and a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment’s Democracy, Conflict and Governance program.

“These shooters tend to want to resort to violence to give meaning to their lives,” Kleinfeld said. “They often feel like their lives are really insignificant, unimportant. But if they commit an act of violence, they will be appreciated by one side or the other.”

“Me and my brain”

Larson said FBI agents found a collection of notes at Jahn’s home in Fairview where he took sole credit for the attack. One note said “yes, it was just me and my brain.” Another said: “Good luck with the digital footprint.”

The FBI’s Dallas office told NPR it is unable to comment on the investigation at this time due to the ongoing government shutdown.

For someone desperate to feel heard, any form of infamy can be appealing, said Jon Lewis, a researcher at George Washington University’s Program on Extremism.

“A lot of these individuals who are so deeply immersed in this hyper-violence, which just dehumanizes online spaces, the idea of ​​committing this very public act of violence is appealing,” Lewis said. “It gives them a way to get their name out there, to become someone who matters.”

Lewis said ideology is not the purpose of online forums that promote extremism

“Violence for the sake of violence can do the trick,” he said.

Social isolation

People who commit acts of political violence are often socially isolated. And many have mental health issues.

Jahn’s parents told Fairview police that he was not being treated or diagnosed for mental health issues.

Jahn, who was born and raised in Allen, Texas, was described in the report as “completely normal” until he returned from his time in Washington state four or five years ago, according to the Fairview police incident report.

Kleinfeld said perpetrators of public violence struggle with their self-esteem and are looking for a target for their aggression.

“People who commit ideological violence tend to have experienced identity disturbances over the course of their lives,” she said. “They don’t really know who they are and they’re looking for a new identity.”