In the incident, a disgruntled former postal worker, identified as 31-year-old Thomas McIlvane, shot and killed four post office employees before committing suicide.

At the hearing, McIlvane told a union official that, if he did not get reinstated, he would make the 1986 Edmond post office shooting "look like Disneyland".

[1] McIlvane's threats were relayed to one of the bosses at the Royal Oak post office and resulted in the revocation of his gun permit.

[9] William L. Clay, chairman of the House Committee on Post Office and Civil Service, described the Royal Oak Post Office as a "powder keg" and pointed that "autocratic, para-military management techniques used there helped create an environment that drove a man to kill".

"[9] In his book The Tainted Eagle, Charlie Withers wrote: "The environment was so tense, it is hard to describe the hatred that was felt against management due to the way they mentally bullied the workforce.

"[12] In May 1993, the Detroit Free Press reported that, after the shootings, the Postal Service eliminated the management at the Royal Oak post office.