Charles Whitman’s killing spree, 40 years later

Today marks the 40th anniversary of the tragic shooting spree of Charles Whitman. I remember someone saying that one of the legacies of this horrible event was the creation of SWAT teams. Most of the research I did about SWAT teams gives the credit to the LAPD. Maybe what happened in Austin was given as an example to strengthen the argument for their creation.  
 
When I moved to Austin in 1994, there was some mention of it and it was usually the explanation given for why there were no tours to the top of UT’s landmark tower. The event received a plug in Oliver Stone’s Natural Born Killers as the motivation for the policeman pursuing the movie’s protagonists. Not to be too morbid, before the 30th anniversary, I found a map showing Whitman’s range and accuracy. He was definitely pretty skilled unfortunately. If the map were correct, he could’ve hit someone from balconies, grounds or rooftop of the private dorm I worked for. On the upside, University Towers wasn’t built until the late 1960s or early 1970s. 
 
The link/story above from History.com is being pretty generous to the APD. Since Whitman was operating from what was one of the tallest buildings in Austin, it was pretty difficult to get in through stealth and I don’t think they wanted to wait until dark. From other accounts I read, the APD had no other choice but to charge up the tower and bum rush Whitman. 
 
So if you ever go to a concert at Emo’s in Austin, there’s a mural in the big stage with the heads of six infamous killers tacked on to the body of Lee Harvey Oswald. Charles Whitman is one of heads alongside Lt. Calley (My Lai massacre) and Richard Ramirez (the Nightstalker). Just a demonstration of some Austinites’ dark sense of humor. 
 
On the upside, UT opened the tower to visitors in 1999 and it’s more often remembered when Texas wins a championship, then the staff turns on the lights in specific rooms to form a number; usually “1,” but they did make “34” when Ricky Williams won the Heisman Trophy (couldn’t fit a pot leaf).