An Ohio pastor with deep roots in the Dayton community was shot and killed in his church office as service was winding down Sunday, and police say they plan to charge his brother.
The Rev. William B. Schooler, 70, was shot around 12:30 p.m. at St. Peter’s Missionary Baptist Church, Dayton police said.
His brother, Daniel Gregory Schooler, 68, was arrested at the church and taken to the Montgomery County jail. He faces a murder charge on Monday, said Sgt. Richard Blommel.
Police said they did not know Sunday what led to the shooting but said the pastor was the only intended victim.
Joyce Napier, the niece of the brothers, told the Dayton Daily News that Daniel Schooler had a history of mental illness, which she believes played a role in the shooting.
“I would think it has to be something’s going on in his head to do something like that, because we were raised to love,” she told the newspaper. “Family matters — that’s the way were raised.”
Besides being pastor at the church, William Schooler was a past interim president of the Dayton school board and current president of the local Baptist ministers union.
He was a teacher in the Dayton school district in the 1970s and served as a principal in the Jefferson Township district for nearly two decades, according to the Daily News. He also held other positons with community organizations and local governments, including serving as a certified city of Dayton mediator.
“He had deep roots in the community,” a friend, Ronnie Moreland, told the newspaper. “He was a beloved leader. It’s hard to put into words what has happened.”
Dayton City Commissioner Joey Williams told the Daily News he had discussed with Schooler ways to reduce violence in the community.
“For him to be a victim of violence is just extremely saddening,” Williams said.
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Information from: Dayton Daily News, https://www.daytondailynews.com
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