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Mass shootings grab headlines, but others go under radar
Oct 5, 1:43 AM (ET)
By RIK STEVENS
The numbers jump off the page: Nine dead on an Oregon college campus, 12 in a theater in Aurora, Colorado. Thirteen soldiers and civilians at Fort Hood, Texas; 32 people at Virginia Tech; 13 at a community center in Binghamton, New York. Twenty-six dead — 20 of them young children — at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
Mass killings like the one Thursday at the Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, scraped nerves raw, commanded headlines and prompted an anguished President Barack Obama to take to the airwaves — again — to condemn gun violence.
Here's another number: 8,124. That's the total of homicides by gun in 2014, according to the FBI's Crime in the United States report. That works out to an average of 156 a week, more than 22 people shot to death every day across the country.
Dr. Helen Farrell, a forensic psychiatrist who teaches at Harvard Medical School and is on staff at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, said people do have more interest in — and there is certainly more intense media coverage of — mass killings because they are relatively uncommon.
"That's unfortunate because those single homicides are far more prevalent and cause just as much pain and suffering to the people involved," she said.
In just the 24 hours surrounding Thursday's Oregon killings, there were at least a dozen shooting deaths. A look at them:
---
CLEVELAND
Five-month-old Aavielle Wakefield died Thursday when more than a dozen shots were fired into a car. An angry Police Chief Calvin Williams broke down crying while briefing the media on the shooting. It was the third time in a month that Williams' department has investigated the shooting death of a child. Three-year-old Major Howard was killed in a drive-by shooting, and 5-year-old Ramon "Dink" Burnett was hit and killed by crossfire while playing football in a courtyard behind his grandmother's house on Sept. 4.
"It's been hard to stomach," said Williams.
---
FLORIDA
A man in the northern Florida community of Inglis shot two people to death, including his estranged wife, and critically injured a third before killing himself. Police received 911 calls of shots fired Thursday evening and when they arrived at the home about 50 miles from Gainesville, they surrounded the home, believing the gunman was inside. Levy County Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. Scott Tummond said officers saw a man appear in a second-floor window, then vanish from view. Officers then heard a single gunshot. The shootings took the lives of Walter Terhune, 68, Patricia Tyson, age unknown, and the gunman, 57-year-old Walter Tyson. Police said they believe the Tysons recently split up. It appears that Terhune, a Vietnam veteran, heard shots from across the street, noticed there were children nearby and went to intervene when he was shot. "This is a very ... tragic incident for this small community," Tummond said.
---
BALTIMORE
Three shootings Wednesday night and Thursday morning left two men dead and another injured, The Baltimore Sun reported. Just before 10 p.m., police found Deyquawn Charvez Cooper, 21, with a single gunshot wound to his upper body. They announced the next day that he had died and a family member was in custody. A 32-year-old found with gunshots in his upper body also died from his injuries.
---
MARYLAND
Two people died in Capitol Heights, a Washington suburb, after a triple shooting Wednesday night. Ernest Gene Lott, 37, and Garland Johnson, 43, both of Washington, D.C., died about a block away from where a security guard at an apartment complex in Capitol Heights was shot and killed in July. Lott and Johnson were pronounced dead outside a three-story apartment building where they were found around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, police said. Detectives are investigating the case as a double homicide but don't believe it was random.
---
ATLANTA
Police responded to an upscale high-rise in Buckhead about 5 a.m. Thursday and found security guard Emmanuel Nwankwo, 23, shot several times. Another guard, Dexter Harper, was taken into custody and charged with murder. Police said an argument led up to the shooting. Another security guard, Ronald Harrison, told WSB-TV that he learned of the shooting when he arrived for work. "With all that's been going on, even with a badge on my chest, it doesn't make me feel better," Harrison told the television station.
---
FRESNO, CALIFORNIA
The Fresno Bee reported that a midday gunfight near a busy intersection late Thursday morning left two brothers dead and a bystander wounded. "I heard four shots and a pause and then like three or four more," Katherine Allington told KFSN-TV in Fresno. When police arrived, they learned that the possible gunman was holed up in an apartment. They surrounded the building and ultimately took the man into custody. Fresno police identified the brothers as Willie Ford, 19, and Denzel Ford, 18. Police said Willie Ford was a gang member who was arrested in 2014 when he was caught hiding a loaded handgun in a bag of Cheetos Hot Fries, the paper reported. A third brother, 17-year-old Benzo Ford, died July 12 when a bullet fired from a nearby alley came through a window into a bedroom. Police say they believe he was targeted.
---
KENT, WASHINGTON
Police say a confrontation led to the shooting death of a 23-year-old man found in his car in a Target shopping center parking lot. Witnesses reported that the driver of another vehicle fired shots just before 7 p.m. Wednesday, sending shoppers scrambling to stay inside the store. Several shoppers saw shattered glass and bullet casings on the ground as medics tried to save the victim, according to KOMO-TV. "We saw them doing CPR on him when he got taken out of the car for a good five or ten minutes. And then they just stopped and called it," Slav Styrenko told the station. The gunman immediately fled the scene with another person in the car.
Stevens reported from Concord, New Hampshire.
http://apnews.myway.com//article/20151005/us--gun_killings-one_day_in_america-6ac10eb3f0.html
By RIK STEVENS
The numbers jump off the page: Nine dead on an Oregon college campus, 12 in a theater in Aurora, Colorado. Thirteen soldiers and civilians at Fort Hood, Texas; 32 people at Virginia Tech; 13 at a community center in Binghamton, New York. Twenty-six dead — 20 of them young children — at an elementary school in Newtown, Connecticut.
Mass killings like the one Thursday at the Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, scraped nerves raw, commanded headlines and prompted an anguished President Barack Obama to take to the airwaves — again — to condemn gun violence.
Here's another number: 8,124. That's the total of homicides by gun in 2014, according to the FBI's Crime in the United States report. That works out to an average of 156 a week, more than 22 people shot to death every day across the country.
Dr. Helen Farrell, a forensic psychiatrist who teaches at Harvard Medical School and is on staff at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, said people do have more interest in — and there is certainly more intense media coverage of — mass killings because they are relatively uncommon.
"That's unfortunate because those single homicides are far more prevalent and cause just as much pain and suffering to the people involved," she said.
In just the 24 hours surrounding Thursday's Oregon killings, there were at least a dozen shooting deaths. A look at them:
---
CLEVELAND
Five-month-old Aavielle Wakefield died Thursday when more than a dozen shots were fired into a car. An angry Police Chief Calvin Williams broke down crying while briefing the media on the shooting. It was the third time in a month that Williams' department has investigated the shooting death of a child. Three-year-old Major Howard was killed in a drive-by shooting, and 5-year-old Ramon "Dink" Burnett was hit and killed by crossfire while playing football in a courtyard behind his grandmother's house on Sept. 4.
"It's been hard to stomach," said Williams.
---
FLORIDA
A man in the northern Florida community of Inglis shot two people to death, including his estranged wife, and critically injured a third before killing himself. Police received 911 calls of shots fired Thursday evening and when they arrived at the home about 50 miles from Gainesville, they surrounded the home, believing the gunman was inside. Levy County Sheriff's Office spokesman Lt. Scott Tummond said officers saw a man appear in a second-floor window, then vanish from view. Officers then heard a single gunshot. The shootings took the lives of Walter Terhune, 68, Patricia Tyson, age unknown, and the gunman, 57-year-old Walter Tyson. Police said they believe the Tysons recently split up. It appears that Terhune, a Vietnam veteran, heard shots from across the street, noticed there were children nearby and went to intervene when he was shot. "This is a very ... tragic incident for this small community," Tummond said.
---
BALTIMORE
Three shootings Wednesday night and Thursday morning left two men dead and another injured, The Baltimore Sun reported. Just before 10 p.m., police found Deyquawn Charvez Cooper, 21, with a single gunshot wound to his upper body. They announced the next day that he had died and a family member was in custody. A 32-year-old found with gunshots in his upper body also died from his injuries.
---
MARYLAND
Two people died in Capitol Heights, a Washington suburb, after a triple shooting Wednesday night. Ernest Gene Lott, 37, and Garland Johnson, 43, both of Washington, D.C., died about a block away from where a security guard at an apartment complex in Capitol Heights was shot and killed in July. Lott and Johnson were pronounced dead outside a three-story apartment building where they were found around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday, police said. Detectives are investigating the case as a double homicide but don't believe it was random.
---
ATLANTA
Police responded to an upscale high-rise in Buckhead about 5 a.m. Thursday and found security guard Emmanuel Nwankwo, 23, shot several times. Another guard, Dexter Harper, was taken into custody and charged with murder. Police said an argument led up to the shooting. Another security guard, Ronald Harrison, told WSB-TV that he learned of the shooting when he arrived for work. "With all that's been going on, even with a badge on my chest, it doesn't make me feel better," Harrison told the television station.
---
FRESNO, CALIFORNIA
The Fresno Bee reported that a midday gunfight near a busy intersection late Thursday morning left two brothers dead and a bystander wounded. "I heard four shots and a pause and then like three or four more," Katherine Allington told KFSN-TV in Fresno. When police arrived, they learned that the possible gunman was holed up in an apartment. They surrounded the building and ultimately took the man into custody. Fresno police identified the brothers as Willie Ford, 19, and Denzel Ford, 18. Police said Willie Ford was a gang member who was arrested in 2014 when he was caught hiding a loaded handgun in a bag of Cheetos Hot Fries, the paper reported. A third brother, 17-year-old Benzo Ford, died July 12 when a bullet fired from a nearby alley came through a window into a bedroom. Police say they believe he was targeted.
---
KENT, WASHINGTON
Police say a confrontation led to the shooting death of a 23-year-old man found in his car in a Target shopping center parking lot. Witnesses reported that the driver of another vehicle fired shots just before 7 p.m. Wednesday, sending shoppers scrambling to stay inside the store. Several shoppers saw shattered glass and bullet casings on the ground as medics tried to save the victim, according to KOMO-TV. "We saw them doing CPR on him when he got taken out of the car for a good five or ten minutes. And then they just stopped and called it," Slav Styrenko told the station. The gunman immediately fled the scene with another person in the car.
Stevens reported from Concord, New Hampshire.
http://apnews.myway.com//article/20151005/us--gun_killings-one_day_in_america-6ac10eb3f0.html
There is a relationship between, the 2 articles, though it isn't really what I intended when I originally posted. My article said: "Mass killings like the one Thursday at the Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon, scraped nerves raw, commanded headlines and prompted an anguished President Barack Obama to take to the airwaves — again — to condemn gun violence." That was frustration over Obama using a mass killing to further his own agenda on gun control.
desrt said: "My article was posted to show the futility of 'gun control' as a stand alone issue."
I think most of us realize the futility of gun control as a stand alone issue; where many of us differ, I think is how far gun control should go and what issues should accompany it.
The point being made in the article I posted is that it's the mass killings that jump off the page to get attention, while thousands of individual killings go unnoticed (under the radar) every year. We know that mass murders are relatively uncommon and of course, they get much more media attention...
As the article points out, in the 24 hrs surrounding the OR killings at least a dozen killing deaths took place around the country... how many of those listed in the article did anyone even hear about, except maybe in passing on your local news, if you live in one of those areas? Also as pointed out, those individual killings cause just as much hardship and heartache as a mass murder; we just don't see it, because it's not big news, so the media doesn't bother with it. Imagine how you'd feel if that had been your 5 month old, your 3 or 5 yr old in one of those drive-bys, or caught in cross fire...
An important issue about gun control is that the people doing the individual killings are, typically, criminals, gang members, etc. They're using stolen guns or guns they've purchased on the black market. They do not go into the gun shop to purchase their guns, so no matter what gun control laws are in place, these people are not going to comply. That seems to be something that gun control advocates have a hard time understanding. You can make if difficult to impossible for a law abiding citizen to by a gun, but criminals will still get theirs.
Another issue is that people like Chris Mercer, Adam Lanza and some of the others had mental health issues. Mental health records are sealed, and can't be used when doing background checks, due to privacy issues, so no matter how extensive the background checks or how long the waiting period to get a gun, mental health issues aren't likely to surface...
I don't know the right answers, but we can clearly see some of the wrong answers.
desrt said: "My article was posted to show the futility of 'gun control' as a stand alone issue."
I think most of us realize the futility of gun control as a stand alone issue; where many of us differ, I think is how far gun control should go and what issues should accompany it.
The point being made in the article I posted is that it's the mass killings that jump off the page to get attention, while thousands of individual killings go unnoticed (under the radar) every year. We know that mass murders are relatively uncommon and of course, they get much more media attention...
As the article points out, in the 24 hrs surrounding the OR killings at least a dozen killing deaths took place around the country... how many of those listed in the article did anyone even hear about, except maybe in passing on your local news, if you live in one of those areas? Also as pointed out, those individual killings cause just as much hardship and heartache as a mass murder; we just don't see it, because it's not big news, so the media doesn't bother with it. Imagine how you'd feel if that had been your 5 month old, your 3 or 5 yr old in one of those drive-bys, or caught in cross fire...
An important issue about gun control is that the people doing the individual killings are, typically, criminals, gang members, etc. They're using stolen guns or guns they've purchased on the black market. They do not go into the gun shop to purchase their guns, so no matter what gun control laws are in place, these people are not going to comply. That seems to be something that gun control advocates have a hard time understanding. You can make if difficult to impossible for a law abiding citizen to by a gun, but criminals will still get theirs.
Another issue is that people like Chris Mercer, Adam Lanza and some of the others had mental health issues. Mental health records are sealed, and can't be used when doing background checks, due to privacy issues, so no matter how extensive the background checks or how long the waiting period to get a gun, mental health issues aren't likely to surface...
I don't know the right answers, but we can clearly see some of the wrong answers.
Why not start your own thread? It really has nothing to do with what Barb had posted.
So what do you suggest for gun control?
So this woman had weapons and said she was not going to be a victim, nothing wrong with that unless you are anti-protection.
So what do you suggest for gun control?
So this woman had weapons and said she was not going to be a victim, nothing wrong with that unless you are anti-protection.
Not sure whether you're referencing my article or Barb's, so I'll answer for myself.
My article was posted to show the futility of 'gun control' as a stand alone issue. Even if the shooter had been denied the right to purchase weapons, he could have gotten them very easily from his mother, who sounds like your run-of-the-mill NRA member. The race baiters and arms manufacturers looove the climate of fear that produces people like this woman.
Gun violence will end when our society regains its overall health. Then you can start thinking of measures such as tracing responsibility for the crime back to the provider of the weapon - whether it was the gun dealer, mother, or manufacturer who allowed the weapon to fall into the wrong hands.
My article was posted to show the futility of 'gun control' as a stand alone issue. Even if the shooter had been denied the right to purchase weapons, he could have gotten them very easily from his mother, who sounds like your run-of-the-mill NRA member. The race baiters and arms manufacturers looove the climate of fear that produces people like this woman.
Gun violence will end when our society regains its overall health. Then you can start thinking of measures such as tracing responsibility for the crime back to the provider of the weapon - whether it was the gun dealer, mother, or manufacturer who allowed the weapon to fall into the wrong hands.
What is the point of sharing this article?
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/oregon-college-shooting/mother-oregon-college-shooter-wrote-about-guns-autism-n439766
"The mother of the gunman who killed nine people in a rampage at an Oregon community college wrote in online postings years ago that she was a gun enthusiast and her son had a form of autism.
Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, killed himself as police responded to the scene of the shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg on Thursday, authorities have said.
His mother, Laurel Harper wrote about her passion for firearms in online postings to Yahoo! Answers three years ago. "I keep all my mags full. I keep two full mags in my Glock case. And the ARs & AKs all have loaded mags," she wrote, referring to magazines of ammunition, a Glock handgun and military-style rifles.
"No one will be 'dropping' by my house uninvited without acknowledgement," the post went on to say. Another post criticizes another person over poor judgement using "airsoft" pellet guns, and emphasizes gun safety.
Harper did not return phone calls and emails from NBC News. The email address used in some of the postings appears to be linked to her.
In another post nine years ago about autism, Laurel Harper said: "My son has Asperger's. He's no babbling idiot nor is his life worthless. He's very intelligent and is working on a career in film making."
Asperger's syndrome is the name sometimes used for a form of disorder on the mild end of the autism spectrum. Many of those posts offered advice for parents of children with autism.
Experts note that people with autism are no more violent than anyone else. "They have no higher rate of committing crimes," Dr. Andrew Solomon, an expert on autism and author of "Far From The Tree," said.
A note was found at the scene of the rampage in which Christopher Harper-Mercer said he was "in a bad way" and was depressed, law enforcement officials said. His mother told investigators that he struggled with mental health issues, The Associated Press reported.
Authorities recovered 14 firearms in all from the home Christopher Harper-Mercer shared with his mother and from the scene of the Thursday's shooting. All were legally purchased.
Neighbors of the mother and son from when they lived in California told The Associated Press that Laurel Harper and her son would often go target shooting together.
In one of the online posts, Harper discussed her passion for firearms that she shared with her son.
"My son ... has much knowledge in this field," one post said.
Investigators have not released a motive in the killings. President Barack Obama plans to meet with the families of victims in Oregon later this week."
"The mother of the gunman who killed nine people in a rampage at an Oregon community college wrote in online postings years ago that she was a gun enthusiast and her son had a form of autism.
Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, killed himself as police responded to the scene of the shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg on Thursday, authorities have said.
His mother, Laurel Harper wrote about her passion for firearms in online postings to Yahoo! Answers three years ago. "I keep all my mags full. I keep two full mags in my Glock case. And the ARs & AKs all have loaded mags," she wrote, referring to magazines of ammunition, a Glock handgun and military-style rifles.
"No one will be 'dropping' by my house uninvited without acknowledgement," the post went on to say. Another post criticizes another person over poor judgement using "airsoft" pellet guns, and emphasizes gun safety.
Harper did not return phone calls and emails from NBC News. The email address used in some of the postings appears to be linked to her.
In another post nine years ago about autism, Laurel Harper said: "My son has Asperger's. He's no babbling idiot nor is his life worthless. He's very intelligent and is working on a career in film making."
Asperger's syndrome is the name sometimes used for a form of disorder on the mild end of the autism spectrum. Many of those posts offered advice for parents of children with autism.
Experts note that people with autism are no more violent than anyone else. "They have no higher rate of committing crimes," Dr. Andrew Solomon, an expert on autism and author of "Far From The Tree," said.
A note was found at the scene of the rampage in which Christopher Harper-Mercer said he was "in a bad way" and was depressed, law enforcement officials said. His mother told investigators that he struggled with mental health issues, The Associated Press reported.
Authorities recovered 14 firearms in all from the home Christopher Harper-Mercer shared with his mother and from the scene of the Thursday's shooting. All were legally purchased.
Neighbors of the mother and son from when they lived in California told The Associated Press that Laurel Harper and her son would often go target shooting together.
In one of the online posts, Harper discussed her passion for firearms that she shared with her son.
"My son ... has much knowledge in this field," one post said.
Investigators have not released a motive in the killings. President Barack Obama plans to meet with the families of victims in Oregon later this week."
In one news article, the OR shooter was said to have left the following message: “I have noticed that people like him are all alone and unknown, yet when they spill a little blood, the whole world knows who they are.”
The entry continues, “Seems the more people you kill, the more you’re in the limelight.”"
The "him" referred to was Vester Lee Flanagan who killed 2 former co-workers in Roanoke, VA...
I agree that the media needs to stop giving these people their 5 minutes of fame and maybe they'll realize their names won't become household words.
The entry continues, “Seems the more people you kill, the more you’re in the limelight.”"
The "him" referred to was Vester Lee Flanagan who killed 2 former co-workers in Roanoke, VA...
I agree that the media needs to stop giving these people their 5 minutes of fame and maybe they'll realize their names won't become household words.
Regarding the media, and their part in this: stop the redundant coverage.
Anyway, when the media over- publicizes the mentally ill and their vengeance shootings, it fuels the fire for more to act out. Stop publicizing names and motives. Start pointing the finger at the absentee parent(s) who should have a stronger grip on their child, and far more awareness!
Anyway, when the media over- publicizes the mentally ill and their vengeance shootings, it fuels the fire for more to act out. Stop publicizing names and motives. Start pointing the finger at the absentee parent(s) who should have a stronger grip on their child, and far more awareness!
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