December 8, 2004 was 24 years to the day that Mark David Chapman fatally shot the former Beatle and prolific songwriter John Lennon. For the 38-year-old former Pantera and Damageplan guitarist Dimebag Darrell (Darrell Lance Abbott), it was supposed to be a new beginning.
Damageplan, formed by Dime and his brother Vinnie Paul, was only two shows away from the end of a tour. They were looking forward to the holidays and there was a crowd waiting to see them. Things were good. Then a man rushed the stage during the first song and stole the life of one of the best metal guitarists of all time.
Dimebag’s last show
The band arrived at the Alrosa Villa club in Columbus, Ohio for the soundcheck, Dime thanked the club owner for booking the band, and remembered playing the club with Pantera early in their career.
Dime was a living metal legend, a vision on stage with his shock red hair and braided beard. He would headbang so hard it was a miracle he could even move at all after a show. His guitar playing had the fluidity of Van Halen with the trashy energy of Metallica on a gallon of speed. With Pantera, Dime sold over 7 million records. Far Beyond Driven from 1994 is considered a metal classic and entered the Billboard charts at number one, a phenomenal feat for a metal band.
On the night of the show, Dime and his brother Vinnie were doing shots and watching the opening band. Right before they went on stage, Vinnie looked at his brother and said, “Van Halen?” They high-fived and Dime replied, “Van fuckin’ Halen.” It was their code for let’s let it all hang out on stage. It was the last time they ever spoke.
As the supporting bands played a tall ex-marine named Nathan Gale, 25, idled in the parking lot. He was six foot three and a hefty 250 pounds. He wore a Blue Jackets jersey over a sweatshirt. It was cold. Someone asked him why he wasn’t watching the show and he said he didn’t want to “see no shitty local bands.” The club’s manager thought Gale was just a harmless hanger-on. He also didn’t have a ticket and was told to leave by one of the club’s employees.
The murder
Damageplan took the stage to cheers from the 250-strong audience. There are conflicting reports about what song Damageplan was playing, some say it was “New Found Power,” others claim it was “Breathing New Life.” Regardless, as the music started and Dime started his trademark headbanging, Gale threw himself over a six-foot fence around the club and snuck in through a side door.
With single-minded murderous purpose, he glided past the pool tables, past the bar, past the sound booth. He was hard to miss with his shaved head. One witness thought he was about to stage dive. Billy Payne, a singer for the opening band Volume Dealer, noticed Gale’s determination. “He was on a mission. He looked angry. He was walking like he was going into battle.”
Gale knew his way around a handgun. He was from Marysville, a small town to the northwest of Columbus, about a 40-minute drive away. People who knew him say he was a weird guy, but not a violent one. In 2002, he joined the Marines but left 18 months later. He held odd jobs: landscaper, construction worker, oil changer at an auto shop. He played semi-pro football for the Lima Thunder as an offensive guard. Team members remember him jamming out to his favorite band Pantera.
About a month before the shooting, he was arrested for driving with a license that was suspended. He was also different lately. He would talk and laugh to himself often. He told friends that Pantera had stolen his thoughts and was considering legal action. An investigation after the shooting revealed that Gale was mentally ill and suffering from schizophrenia.
Gale appeared from behind a stack of amps and ran through the stage with a Beretta 9mm handgun. He shouted something, but it couldn’t be heard over the music. Dime was too busy performing to notice. Gale stopped in front of Dime and fired four times, at least one of the shots went through his forehead and he dropped to the floor. Gale killed three more people as the crew charged him. He then grabbed Vinnie’s drum tech John Brooks in a headlock as a hostage.
It took a second for the crowd to figure out what happened. One of the bartenders thought someone set off fireworks, and kept pouring drinks. Others thought maybe a speaker popped or there was a pop gun. Some pumped their fists. Then the music stopped and Dime’s guitar started to screech. A roadie for an opening band rushed Gale and was shot through his shirt.
People started to run. Dime bled on stage. A nurse named Mindy Reece started chest compressions and would continue them for the next 20 minutes until paramedics arrived. In the meantime, Officer James Niggemeyer had answered the 911 call and ran in without backup with a 12-gauge Remington 870 shotgun.
The death of Gale
Gale was moving to the back of the club with his hostage. In an interview with MTV News, the officer said it was the first time he had to fire his gun in five years on the job. Niggemeyer knew Gale hadn’t seen him yet. He was hoping that Gale would let the hostage go, but Gale stuck the gun to the hostage’s head.
Niggemeyer, who had only shot deer before, leveled his shotgun. “I knew from that distance I could shoot the suspect, as long as I aimed high enough and wouldn’t hurt the hostage,” he said. “At that point, almost immediately, I fired.”
Gale fell to the ground. Police descended on the club like vultures and Vinnie hobbled back to the Damageplan tour bus. He climbed into his brother’s bunk and wept. Eventually, he would move away from his native Texas, tired of people reminding him of what happened, and offering their condolences. He knew things would never be the same again.