A mass shooting in Louisville, Kentucky left four dead and nine hospitalized this morning. According to a law enforcement source the shooter had been notified he was going to be fired, and he wrote a note saying he was going to shoot at the bank. This marks the 146th mass shooting in the United States in 2023.
Salome Nebiyu reports.
An employee in his twenties of Louisville’s Old National Bank who knew he was about to be fired brought an AR-15 style rifle to his workplace Monday morning, opened fire on his colleagues and killed four. Nine others are wounded. He live-streamed his rampage on social media.
Each of the victims is a human being and each of their deaths a tragedy as Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear said in the wake of the shooting.
Beshear: “We lost four children of God today, one of whom was one of my closest friends. Tommy Elliott helped me build my law career, helped me become governor, gave me advice on being a good dad. One of the people I talked to most in the world and very rarely were we talking about my job.”
The shooter was killed by the police after exchanging gunfire with them on the scene. Annenberg Media will not disclose his name out of respect for the victims..
Louisville Metro Police Deputy Chief Colonal Paul Humphrey described the timeline of the officer’s response:
Humphrey: “Within three minutes of being dispatched, officers arrived on scene and encountered the suspect almost immediately still firing gunshots. Officers exchanged gunshots with that suspect and ultimately, the suspect did die at the scene. "
Gun control advocate Ashley Castillo is a high-school student.. She works with the group “Everytown for Gun Safety. "
Castillo: “Behind each and every one of those numbers is a loss, it’s a person. And that’s something that we tend to forget and become desensitized to because of the media and because of things like being able to live stream on these platforms. We’re not necessarily allowed to grieve properly anymore.”
And to avoid having to grieve over these shootings we need tougher gun laws. Castillo says.
Castillo: “Kentucky’s lawmakers have once again wasted an entire legislative session by gutting the state’s existing gun laws and taking no preventative action to save lives.”
Castillo: “Our message to lawmakers is clear: that inaction is not an option anymore and that we need more than thoughts and prayers. We need to demand policies and change...
This horrible attack at the bank unfolded as just one of so many in America. Soon after it happened police responded to a separate shooting at a community college less than two miles away. Another person was killed there in America, today.
For Annenberg Media, I’m Salome Nebiyu.