Tag: mass shooting

Cleveland Shooting Sparks Calls for ‘Gun Safety’ Measures

The Center Square

Cleveland-area lawmakers are citing a Sunday-morning mass shooting that wounded nine people in the popular Warehouse District to push gun safety legislation already introduced in the House.

“What played out in our community is just one of more than 365 mass shootings in the U.S. this year already,” State Reps. Darnell Brewer, D-Cleveland, Terrence Upchurch, D-Cleveland, and Juanita Brent, D-Cleveland, said in a joint statement. “Ohioans can’t afford to wait for more proof that it is well past the time to pass common sense gun safety measures that will keep our children, families and communities safe. Congress must step up and we will continue to engage our Ohio House of Representatives colleagues in meaningful dialogue to come together and find common ground to reduce gun violence and keep people safe.” 

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Kamala Harris Takes Surprise Trip to Tennessee After Lawmakers Expelled

Peter D'Abrosca

After two Tennessee State Representatives were expelled for leading an unruly mob during a riot at the state Capitol, Vice President Kamala Harris Friday visited Nashville to meet with the expelled lawmakers. 

Video shows Harris hugging former State Reps. Justin Jones (D-Nashville) and Justin Pearson (D-Memphis), along with State Rep. Gloria Johnson (D-Knox County), who narrowly escaped expulsion by one vote. 

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Tennessee Authorities: No Arrests or Pending Charges for Capitol Rioters

Peter D'Abrosca

According to the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security (TDSHS), there will be no repercussions for a Thursday riot foiled by Tennessee State Troopers at the State Capitol. 

“There were no arrests made on Thursday,” TDSHS communications director Wesley Moster told The Tennessee Star Monday. “There are no investigations or criminal charges pending.”

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Security Expert Shares Thoughts on Fortifying Schools After Nashville School Shooting

Peter D'Abrosca

A security expert joined The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network’s Editor-In-Chief and CEO Michael Patrick Leahy on Tuesday’s episode of “The Tennessee Star Report” and discussed ways in which schools can fortify themselves against mass shooters. 

The discussion occurred less than 24 hours after transgender female (biological male) Aiden “Audrey” Hale shot and killed six people at The Covenant School in Nashville. 

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Metro Nashville Police Confirm: School Shooter Was Audrey Elizabeth Hale, Who ‘Identified as Transgender’

Peter D'Abrosca

The Metro Nashville Police Department (MNPD) Monday evening confirmed that the person who shot and killed six people on Monday morning at The Covenant Presbyterian School in Nashville is 28-year-old Audrey Elizabeth Hale, who “identified as transgender.” Hale was killed on scene by police that morning.

“Our investigations tell us she was a former student, at the school,” said MNPD Chief John Drake in a press conference, adding that he did not know how long Hale attended the school.

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Commentary: Mark Kelly Is Too Far Left for Arizona

RealClearWire

The U.S. Senate election in Arizona this year is not simply a choice between a Democrat and a Republican: It’s a choice between a dangerous, far-left radical in Mark Kelly, who does not represent the voters of his state, and Blake Masters, a patriotic America First conservative who will represent the people of Arizona in Washington.

When Mark Kelly first ran for the Senate in 2020, he labeled himself as a moderate who would continue the Arizonan tradition of “political mavericks” representing the state in the upper chamber of Congress. He largely rode into Congress by building a larger-than-life persona for himself from his time as an astronaut, and he also leaned heavily on sympathy votes as a result of the assassination attempt on his wife, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.

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Gov. Doug Ducey Orders Flags to Fly at Half-Staff Following the Loss of Pima County Constable

Neil Jones

Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey ordered state buildings to fly flags at half-staff Friday following a mass shooting in Tucson resulting in the loss of Pima County Constable Deborah Martinez-Garibay.

“The loss of Constable Deborah Martinez is felt across our state,” Ducey said. “Whether it was serving in the U.S. Army or carrying out her duties as a constable for Pima County, she dedicated her life to helping others and her community. Constable Martinez was a Tucson native who will be remembered for the way she treated others with dignity and respect. Our thoughts and prayers are with her friends and family, as well as those who also lost their lives in today’s tragic events.”

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DeWine to Ohio Superintendents: $100 Million Budgeted for School Safety Grants

Bradley Vasoli

Ohio schools will receive $100 million in total to purchase security equipment as part of the next round of K-12 School Safety Grants, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) wrote to superintendents on Friday.

The allocations, which come as a part of the state’s capital budget bill that DeWine signed into law last week, will go toward purchases such as outdoor lighting, facility-mapping software, school-radio systems, door-locking technology and visitor-badge systems. The Ohio School Safety Center in Columbus is now drafting the application for schools to access this money and expects to soon start the application process.

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Two Arrested in Florida for Threatening to Conduct a Mass Shooting at a School

Steve Stewart

In the wake of the mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas, two people have been arrested in Florida in separate incidents related to mass shooting threats.

In Tampa, officials arrested an 18-year-old Florida man after receiving a tip that he threatened a mass shooting at a school in a social media post. Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a press release that Corey Anderson’s social media showed him with a handgun, a rifle and a tactical-style vest along with a caption that said, “Hey Siri, directions to the nearest school.”

Anderson was arrested on Sunday, May 29th, and charged with a written or electronic threat to conduct a mass shooting or act of terrorism.

“This type of threat is unacceptable. This man intentionally instilled fear into our community as a sick joke, but be warned, this is no laughing matter,” Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a statement on Facebook.

In a similar incident, a 10-year-old Florida fifth grade student has been arrested in Lee County after making a school threat. Investigators learned of the threats made by the boy on Saturday and arrested him, said Lee County Sheriff Carmine Marceno.

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Push for Gun Control in Pennsylvania Expands to Body-Armor Control

Bradley Vasoli

A bill proposed last week by state Rep. Tim Briggs (D-PA-King of Prussia) would bar civilians from buying or possessing body armor in Pennsylvania. 

His legislation follows efforts on the federal level and in other states to prohibit civilians from acquiring protective shields. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called for a body-armor ban in 2019 after a mass shooting in Dayton, OH. The New York State Assembly has considered enacting state-level restrictions over the last few sessions, but a bill to do so has stalled.

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Rothman Proposal Would Make Death Penalty Likelier for Killings at Pennsylvania Schools, Certain Other Settings

Bradley Vasoli

Pennsylvania state Rep. Greg Rothman (R-Camp Hill) last week announced he intends to introduce a measure allowing courts to impose the death penalty for killings based on their taking place in some settings including schools.

Currently, a convict can receive a death sentence in the Keystone State if a court finds he or she committed a murder to which at least one of 18 statutorily defined “aggravating circumstances” and no “mitigating circumstances” apply. Aggravating circumstances include the victim having served as a police officer or other first responder, the defendant having committed the killing for hire or the killer having held the victim hostage. Mitigating circumstances include the perpetrator having no prior criminal history or the killer having committed his or her crime under “extreme duress.”

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Commentary: No Duty to Protect

Admin

The May 24 massacre in Uvalde, Texas outrages the conscience, though not for the facile and stupid reasons spewed by every prominent Democratic Party politician, half-witted newspaper columnist, and vapid television talking-head. 

Liberals and other simpering dunderheads make fetishes of objects, focusing on the tool rather than the tool’s misuser. “Nobody needs an AR-15,” goes the refrain, when need has nothing and right has everything to do with it. “But the tool is so easy to misuse and abuse!” comes the ovine rebuttal, when we know as a matter of fact the tool is used in a small fraction of violent crimes.  

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Pennsylvania Senate Democrat Proposes Eligibility License for Guns

Bradley Vasoli

A day after the school shooting in Uvalde, TX, Pennsylvania Democrats are calling for more stringent gun control in the state, with state Sen. Art Haywood (D-Abington) proposing eligibility licenses for firearm purchases. 

Pennsylvania already administers licenses to carry firearms in Pennsylvania, for which any person who is at least 21 years old and has a clean record may apply.

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Justice Department Plans Action in Two Ohio Communities

The Center Square
U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown speaks at 2008 Labor Day Festival

The U.S. Justice Department will spend a half-million dollars to help one Ohio community two years after a mass shooting, and it announced an assessment is planned into another city’s police department.

Nine people died and dozens were wounded when a gunman opened fire in the Oregon District in Dayton a little more than two years ago. A $488,054 DOJ grant will help pay for four additional mental health counselors and related costs at two mental health facilities to help those affected by the shooting.

“We have an obligation to help our communities recover from violent crimes, abuse, and other criminal activity. I am glad the Department of Justice is providing the necessary mental health resources to help those impacted by the tragic Oregon District shooting in Dayton,” U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said. “Families and communities that were directly or indirectly affected by this tragedy will have these additional resources at their disposal to begin healing and receive the necessary care they need to recover.”

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Man Arrested with Six Guns in Atlanta Grocery Store

Peter D'Abrosca

A day after a man in Colorado was charged with 10 counts of first-degree murder after opening fire in a grocery store, a man was arrested in Atlanta after bringing six guns and body armor into a Publix. 

“Preliminary investigation indicates the male entered the location openly carrying a rifle and entered the bathroom,” according to the Atlanta Police Department (APD). “A witness observed the male and alerted store management who then notified police. When the male exited the bathroom, arriving units immediately detained the male.”

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Thirteen Killed Including Suspected Gunman In Virginia Beach Municipal Center

Admin

by Evie Fordham   At least 13 people are dead after a Virginia Beach city employee opened fire on coworkers in a municipal building Friday around 4 p.m., authorities said. Four others were injured and taken to the hospital, reported The Virginian-Pilot. The suspected gunman, a longtime city worker identified as 40-year-old DeWayne Craddock, died when officers responded with gunfire and is counted among the 13 dead. The suspect was a public utilities department worker who was allegedly armed with a .45-caliber handgun with a sound suppressor, Virginia Beach Police Department Chief James Cervera said, according to The Virginian-Pilot. “This is the most devastating day in the history of Virginia Beach,” Mayor Robert M. Dyer said at a press conference. “The people involved are our friends, coworkers, neighbor, colleagues.” The names of the victims have not been released. The shooting occurred on multiple floors of Building 2 of the Virginia Beach Municipal Center, reported CNN. The building is the site of planning and public works offices near City Hall. The police department is nearby. One victim was shot in a vehicle outside the building, and the rest of the victims were shot inside. Democratic Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam responded to…

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‘Mass Shooting’ Reported In Jacksonville, Florida

Tennessee Star Staff

by Vandana Rambaran Police are asking that the public steer clear of the Jacksonville Landing area in Florida after a shooting Sunday reportedly killed several and injured others. Mass shooting at the Jacksonville Landing. Stay far away from the area. The area is not safe at this time. STAY AWAY #TheLandingMassShooting — Jax Sheriff’s Office (@JSOPIO) August 26, 2018 The shooting left “multiple fatalities,” according to police, reported CNN. A gunman allegedly opened fire at the Madden 19 Tournament at the GLHF Game Bar, according to the Twitter of CompLexity Gaming, a professional gaming team that had a player at the event whose hand was grazed in the shooting. At least 11 people were shot, according to News 4 in Jacksonville. In a video from the event, gunshots can be heard as the participants discussed the video games. CAUGHT ON VIDEO https://t.co/VQsIZbzlgI — DRUDGE REPORT (@DRUDGE_REPORT) August 26, 2018 This is a developing story and will be updated. – – – Vandana Rambaran is a reporter at Daily Caller News Foundation. Follow Vandana on Twitter @vandanarambaran.                       Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any…

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Florida School Schooter Wants to Donate Inheritance to Survivors

Admin

Parkland school shooter Nikolas Cruz wants to donate his inheritance — which could run to hundreds of thousands of dollars or more — to the bereaved families and survivors of his attack, his lawyers said Wednesday. Cruz walked into Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the south Florida city of Parkland on February 14 and opened fire at students and staff with an AR-15-style semi-automatic weapon. He stands accused of 17 counts of premeditated murder and 17 counts of attempted murder. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.

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March for Our Lives Event: An ‘Expose of the Highest Hypocrisy’

Admin

After the horrific display of ineptitude in Parkland, Florida by people wearing uniforms and carrying guns — people who could have acted to — a young political activist and Parkland survivor, David Hogg (shown above), rose up. He tweeted shaming threats to several car companies, airlines and other service industries that support or give special bonuses to those who belong to Planned Parenthood.

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Commentary: Our Public Schools Are Less About Learning and More About Indoctrination

Admin

By Printus LeBlanc   It has been almost a week since the “student” walkout over school safety. After studying the event and the aftermath, it has become increasingly clear the walkout was nothing more than a political stunt. It had nothing to do with safety; it had nothing to do with allowing students to voice their opinions, it was all about progressives in national politics and the schoolhouse using children as political props. This begs the question, why are we funding these political indoctrination camps? The students didn’t walk out over cellphones and driving. The students didn’t walk out over bullying which leads to thousands of teen suicides each year. No, the students walked out over the Second Amendment which the progressive left has been trying to eliminate for decades. Following the horrendous events in Florida, progressives seized on the opportunity to use the children to get what they wanted. A few examples across the nation show just how political the walkout was. A student in Hilliard, Ohio made the decision he did not want to get involved in the politics of the anti-gun debate. He chose to stay in class. The student should be celebrated for wanting to concentrate…

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Prosecutors to Seek Death Penalty for Florida School Shooter

Admin

Prosecutors in Florida said Tuesday they will seek the death penalty for Nikolas Cruz, the 19-year-old who killed 17 people last month in a shooting rampage at his former high school. “The state intends to seek the death penalty against defendant Nikolas Jacob Cruz,” the state attorney for Broward County, Michael Satz, said in a court filing on the eve of the next hearing in the case.

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Pressure Mounts for Broward Sheriff to Resign Following School Massacre

Admin

With pressure mounting on Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel to resign in the wake of this month’s Valentine’s Day shooting at a school in Florida, a Republican state lawmaker Monday added his voice to the chorus. Rep. Randy Fine [far right in photo above], appearing on “The Ingraham Angle” on Fox News, said he signed on to a letter calling for Israel’s suspension and supports a subpoena requiring him to appear in the state capital of Tallahassee to explain an apparent breakdown in which a school resource officer remained outside Parkland’s Marjorie Stoneman Douglas High School while Nikolas Cruz allegedly was gunning down 17 people.

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Kentucky Congressman Proposes to Repeal ‘Gun-Free Zones Act’

Admin

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) appeared on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, where he made the case that since the majority of mass public shootings take place in gun-free zones like schools, the Gun-Free School Zone Act on 1990 – which makes it a crime to bring a gun on school grounds – should be repealed. “This week I talked to two survivors of Columbine. One of them, Even Todd, related to me his story of being in the library when the two shooters came in. He was the first one shot. He hid under a desk. They found his and he pleaded for his life, then he escaped from the library, ran outside, and there were two police behind a shed.  They had taken up a position and weren’t going in. “Now,  he tells me he that forgives the adults that day. The legislators, the administrators, and the police, because they couldn’t foresee what was going to happen at Columbine. “He said it’s a shame, here we are 20 years later, it’s still happening, and people are rolling out these solutions that will do nothing.” Massie continued, “He supports my bill the ‘Safe Students Act’ which would repeal the federal Gun-Free School Zone Act.”…

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Commentary: Stop Disarming Teachers When They Enter Classrooms

Admin

by Tom Mullen   In the wake of yet another mass shooting in a public school, a host of familiar recommendations have resurfaced about how to “prevent this from ever happening again.” Predictably, both sides of the aisle are looking to the government for a solution. Americans have somehow arrived at a point where they cannot conceive of human action that is not either prohibited, mandated, or, at the very least, centrally planned. Just Like Drugs The first problem is the goal. It is absurdly unrealistic to believe any set of rules is going to prevent anything from “ever happening again.” If you doubt that, I invite you to examine the war on drugs. Many decades ago, politicians decided American citizens taking heroin was never going to happen again. They banned that drug completely. You aren’t allowed to possess or sell it under any circumstances. Not after a background check. Not with a doctor’s prescription. Not at all. Ban them completely for the civilian population, they say, and mass shooters won’t be able to obtain them. Today, that drug is at the center of what the same government calls an opioid “epidemic.” Epidemic. So much for heroin overdoses “never happening again.” Yet,…

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Three Months After Announcing His U.S. Senate Candidacy, Phil Bredesen Holds First Campaign ‘Stop’ in Chattanooga

Admin

Former Nashville Mayor, Tennessee Governor and now current candidate for U.S. Senate, Democrat Phil Bredesen appeared in Chattanooga Tuesday for his first campaign event since announcing his run December 6, 2017. After a tour of the TVA hydroelectric facility in nearby Raccoon Mountain, Bredesen met with members of the media, where he addressed issues on a wide range of topics. In a twelve minute video (embedded below) of an exchange between Bredesen and media obtained by Nooga.com, the former governor spoke on a variety of issues, albeit in a noticeably subdued voice. On gun control and reaction to the horrific Parkland school murders, Bredesen’s response to a News9 reporter’s question about the event seemed to focus narrowly on restrictions on firearm ownership by people who have been diagnosed with a mental or emotional disorder. “I do think it is time to – for everyone including, very strong supporters of the Second Amendment – to get reasonable about this,” Bredesen said, adding: This tragedy in Florida – the latest one – I’m one of those that agree that it’s beyond thoughts and prayers now. We need to do some specific things. I personally feel that there’s a lot of tightening up that could be done…

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Jeff Hartline Commentary on Florida School Shooting: Why Didn’t Law Enforcement Do Its Job?

Admin

by Jeff Hartline   In the aftermath of the Florida School Shooting last week, the handwringing continues. Why didn’t the FBI do their job? Why didn’t the adults in the shooter’s home sense a problem? What drugs was this kid on? Who was monitoring his social media? Why didn’t local Law Enforcement do its job? Law Enforcement has much to answer for, but they almost always come in after the fact and mop up the carnage. These good men and women can’t be everywhere all the time. But responsible adults in the schools can be present and ready to respond. In my last Commentary, I suggested that the simple solution to these type shootings was to immediately arm willing and capable schoolteachers and staff. I suggested rather than blame the NRA, we need to focus the blame on elected officials, school boards and teacher organizations for their refusal to eliminate schools as “soft targets” and remove the stigma of “gun-free zones” from them that make them such enticing targets for people bent on harming our most vulnerable. In Tennessee, there have been some encouraging signs. In 2015, Rep. David Byrd (R – Waynesboro), offered a bill in the Tennessee Legislature to allow…

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Autopsy Shows Vegas Shooter Stephen Paddock Had Anti-Anxiety Drugs in His System as Motive Remains a Mystery

Admin

Stephen Paddock was overweight, had some anti-anxiety medication in his urine, and suffered from the usual wear and tear that comes with aging. But the autopsy released Friday failed to help answer why Paddock chose to perch himself in the window of his 32nd-floor hotel room and kill 58 people while wounding hundreds in the worst mass shooting in modern American history. He committed suicide by shooting himself. No suicide note or manifesto has been found.

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