Raleigh lawyer killed in murder-suicide at Goldsboro law firm praised for ‘heroic’ actions

A Raleigh lawyer was killed Monday in an apparent murder-suicide at a Goldsboro law firm, the Goldsboro Police Department said Tuesday.

Patrick White, 42, was fatally shot at the Goldsboro office of the Riddle & Brantley Law Firm, according to a police incident report. Police responded to the office on Spence Avenue around 4:14 p.m., according to the report.

The suspected shooter was Francisco Sanchez Cazarin, 46, of Greenville, who was one of the firm’s clients.

The bodies of both men were found at the law firm, where a weapon was also recovered. Officers did not locate any additional victims.

White is being praised by representatives of the law firm, who said that “his heroic, decisive intervention averted further tragedy.”

“Patrick was a skilled lawyer and a devoted, loving husband and father,” Riddle & Brantley said in a statement on its website. “His strong work ethic and dedication to excellence were coupled with genuine warmth and kindness. Patrick’s commitment to the service of others and engaging personality endeared him to all.”

White, who grew up in West Virginia, practiced personal injury law at Riddle & Brantley. He was married and has two children, according to the law firm’s website.

How the law firm shooting happened

Gene Riddle, a founding attorney of the law firm, told The N&O in an email that he is “struggling right now.” He referred The News & Observer to the company statement and interviews provided to other media outlets.

He said the shooting didn’t transpire due to an argument, as police had previously stated.

Sanchez Cazarin arrived with wife to White’s office around 9:30 a.m. Monday about a case, Riddle told WRAL and WITN. Riddle was helping White mediate the case.

The attorneys left Cazarin Sanchez and his wife alone to speak to each other privately at their request around 4 p.m. that day.

Minutes later, Cazarin Sanchez went to a nearby room where the attorneys had relocated and opened fire.

“The next thing I know, I see a figure come into the attorneys quarters and I hear a loud shot, and the glass breaking, I knew he had shot, I saw the gun,” Riddle told WRAL. “Patrick was close to him.”

The shooter fired twice at Riddle and missed, he said. There weren’t any “warning signs” that indicated the attack was imminent, he said.

“I thought, ‘There is no way I didn’t get shot,’” Riddle told WRAL. “I tried to dodge the bullet, and I tripped and I fell back into my office. Then, I got up and I saw that the shooter had drawn his attention to Patrick.”

Riddle told WRAL that White pinned Sanchez Cazarin to the wall and yelled at him to stop. Riddle heard another shot, and he saw Sanchez Cazarin on the ground.

White displayed “selfless courage in the face of unprovoked senseless violence,” the law firm said in a statement. “The firm sincerely appreciates the overwhelming output of love and support we have received from friends and the community. Please keep Patrick’s family in your thoughts and prayers during this difficult time.”

Wayne County Sheriff’s Office deputies and North Carolina State Highway Patrol troopers also responded to the scene.

Authorities said an investigation is ongoing.