Gary Clark was a grieving widower whose wife, Alison, was taken off life support at Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital. He eventually was the perpetrator of a mass murder at the hospital.
History
Alison's Death
Alison had cancer and went in for surgery. At first, it seemed that the surgery went well, but there were complications. Gary was devastated when his wife had to be taken off life support. He was insistent that she could wake up, despite several doctors' professional opinions stating otherwise. Alison had signed forms three years prior to her death stating that if her survival was dependent on machines, she would like to be unplugged and allowed to die. Gary would not accept this as it was so long ago that she signed the forms. ("Sympathy for the Parents")
Lawsuit Against the Hospital
He filed a lawsuit against Derek Shepherd and Seattle Grace Mercy West Hospital over the death of his wife. Derek's lawyer stated that Gary had no case, as the hospital had acted in accordance with her advanced directive. ("How Insensitive")
Shooting at the Hospital
Mr. Clark, grieving heavily, proceeded to stage a hospital killing spree. He purchased a gun and a large amount of ammunition. On his way to the hospital, he was in a car accident with Pete. When Pete got out to give Clark his insurance information, Clark shot him. He then proceeded to the hospital, where he tried to get someone to direct him to Derek's office. After being dismissed several times, he went into a supply closet, where he asked Reed Adamson to help him. When she said she was busy, he shot her in the forehead, killing her instantly. When Alex Karev came to investigate the gunshot, Clark shot him in the lower chest. He then met Cristina Yang on an elevator and she gave him directions to Derek's office, not knowing why he wanted to know.
Gary then went into an open area near a nurses' station where he shot Vivian when she told him he couldn't leave the area.
He continued to move around the hospital, making his way to the floor where Mary Portman was in a room with Bailey. Charles Percy entered her room, saying the shooter was on the floor. Mary was frightened when Bailey looked through the window and saw Gary coming their way after shooting a security guard. She told Mary to play dead and covered her with the bed sheet. Charles hid himself in the bathroom and Bailey hid herself under Mary's bed.
Clark entered the room and started crying because he thought the hospital had killed another patient, like his wife. He pulled open the bed sheet and she nervously played dead and tried not to breathe. He was about to leave the room when he heard a noise in the bathroom. He discovered Charles, who confessed he was a surgeon. Gary then shot him in the abdomen and also pulled Bailey from under the bed. However, she said she was a nurse and Gary apologized and left the room after reloading his gun.
He then found Derek on the catwalk. Derek initially didn't recognize him, but then told him to find someplace safe. Clark told him that nowhere was safe in that hospital and held his gun up to Derek. Derek talked to him for a moment about how he was human and he was flawed. He had Clark lowering his gun when April came out of the office onto the catwalk and startled him. He shot Derek in the chest. ("Sanctuary")
After shooting Derek, he aimed at April, but she talked to him, telling him about her life, showing him that she was a human being, and he told her to run. He then left the area when he saw members of the SWAT team.
He found Lexie Grey, who was taking blood back to Alex Karev. He told her what he had intended to do, which was to shoot Derek, Webber, and herself. He went to shoot her, but he before he could, he was shot by a member of the SWAT team and Lexie ran away safely.
From there, he went to peds, where he told Callie Torres he was bleeding. Arizona Robbins told him that there were only children in that ward. Callie gave him bandages and told him to press them to the wound to stop the bleeding. He took the bandages and left.
From there, he went to the OR where Cristina was operating on Derek. He tried to get her to stop, but she refused. Meredith then offered herself up as the eye for an eye, saying that Lexie's her sister, Richard sees her as a daughter, and Derek's her husband. Cristina stopped him by telling Meredith was pregnant. When he hesitated, Owen tried to charge him, but Clark shot him. Jackson then told Cristina to stop operating and they made him believe that Derek was dead. He left and once he was gone, they started operating again.
Death
From there, he went to the room where his wife died and he sat by himself. He realized that he only had one bullet left. He wanted to shoot Richard and then shoot himself, but he only had enough bullets for one of them, which caused him to want a drink from the flask he'd brought in place of additional ammo. Webber poured out the vodka in his flask and talked to him, saying that killing him wouldn't get him justice. He'd get arrested and taken to prison, but if he shot himself, he'd be free and might get to see his wife again. He shot himself rather than be arrested. ("Death and All His Friends")
Relationships
Romantic
He and Alison Clark had been married for 32 years at the time of her death. He was very upset when she died.
Notes and Trivia
- Cristina Yang operated on a man named Gary Clark in the episode New History. It's possible that man was the same as this Gary Clark, but this is merely a theory and has never been confirmed.
Gallery
Appearances
| Grey's Anatomy, Season 6 | |||||
| #01 | "Good Mourning" | #09 | "New History" | #17 | "Push" |
| #02 | "Goodbye" | #10 | "Holidaze" | #18 | "Suicide is Painless" |
| #03 | "I Always Feel Like Somebody's Watchin' Me" | #11 | "Blink" | #19 | "Sympathy for the Parents" |
| #04 | "Tainted Obligation" | #12 | "I Like You So Much Better When You're Naked" | #20 | "Hook, Line and Sinner" |
| #05 | "Invasion" | #13 | "State of Love and Trust" | #21 | "How Insensitive" |
| #06 | "I Saw What I Saw" | #14 | "Valentine's Day Massacre" | #22 | "Shiny Happy People" |
| #07 | "Give Peace a Chance" | #15 | "The Time Warp" | #23 | "Sanctuary" |
| #08 | "Invest in Love" | #16 | "Perfect Little Accident" | #24 | "Death and All His Friends" |