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The McDonald’s Massacre In 18 Photos

The McDonald's Massacre In 13 Photos

On July 18, 1984, James Huberty entered a crowded McDonald’s in San Ysidro with a plan: “hunting for humans.”

Armed with a small arsenal of guns, Huberty instructed everyone to get down on the floor. He then began shooting the patrons point-blank, killing 21 and wounding 19 others.

Huberty’s youngest fatal victims were an 8-month-old baby, a 9-year-old girl, and three 11-year-old boys.

A San Diego police officer squats over the body of a child killed in the McDonald’s massacre
A San Diego police officer squats over the body of a child killed in the McDonald’s massacre.

Huberty was killed by a police sniper approximately 77 minutes after he first opened fire.

Three days prior to the incident, Huberty told his wife, Etna, that he suspected he had a mental health problem.

Two days later, Huberty called a mental health clinic, requesting an appointment. Huberty was assured that the clinic would return his call within hours.

They didn’t.

The exterior of the San Ysidro McDonald's where James Huberty killed 21 and wounding 19 others
The exterior view of the San Ysidro McDonald’s, shown July 19, 1984. Most of the bodies found outside the restaurant were along this side, in front of the parked cars alongside the store.

On the day of the massacre, Huberty walked into his bedroom with a gun across his shoulder and told his wife, “I want to kiss you goodbye.”

When asked where he was going, Huberty said: “Going hunting… hunting for humans.”

A bloodied young girl sits outside the San Ysidro McDonald's
A bloodied young girl sits outside the restaurant.

In the months following the incident, several police officers who responded to the scene experienced symptoms of psychological trauma, including sleep withdrawal, memory loss, and guilt.

Two years after the massacre, Etna Huberty filed a lawsuit against both McDonald’s and her husband’s former employer, Babcock & Wilcox, seeking $5 million in damages.

Huberty claimed that her husband’s murder spree had been triggered by a combination of a poor diet and her husband working around highly poisonous metals without adequate protection over the course of many years. The lawsuit was dismissed in 1987.

Three bodies lie on the sidewalk of the San Ysidro McDonald's restaurant
Three bodies lie on the sidewalk of the San Ysidro McDonald’s restaurant.

In a 2015 interview, Huberty’s daughter, Zelia, who was just 12 years old at the time, said she watched the bloody tragedy unfold from her window.

“I had a perfect view of it,” she said. “I saw the car there. I saw everything. I saw people I knew, who I went to school with.”

“I wasn’t thinking anything at that time, except: ‘Better them than me.’ I know that’s a horrible thing to say, but as a 12-year-old, that’s the sort of thing you think,” she said.

Huberty said that if she could turn back the clock, she “probably would have killed my father before any of this occurred.”

San Diego Police officers escort out McDonald’s employees after the shooting
San Diego Police officers escort out McDonald’s employees after the shooting.

To this day, the McDonald’s massacre remains the deadliest mass shooting in California’s history.

Behind the Tape Photobook
Behind the Tape Photobook features 18 photos documenting the McDonald’s massacre, as well as of the over a thousand more hand-picked crime scene photos.
Filled with exclusive case file information and never-before-heard facts, the Photobook is the ULTIMATE treat for every true crime junkie!
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