American culture is rife with gun violence.
Advocates of gun control are up against those who fiercely defend their right to keep and bear arms in this highly politicised debate.
The latest mass shooting in the United States took place on Wednesday in Georgia’s Winder, where four people were fatally shot at Apalachee High School.
Students scrambled for shelter in their classrooms and eventually to the football stadium.
Officers swarmed the campus near Atlanta and parents raced to find out if their children were safe.
There have been over 30 mass killings this year, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.
As many as 131 people have died in those killings, which are defined as incidents in which four or more people die within a 24-hour period, not including the killer – the same definition used by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
Last year, the death toll from 42 mass killings in the country was 217, making 2023 one of the deadliest on record.
Here’s a list of US mass killings this year.
September 4: Atlanta, Georgia
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14-year-old student opened fire at a Georgia high school and killed four people on Wednesday.
The dead were identified as two students and two teachers at Apalachee High School in Winder, about an hour’s drive from Atlanta.
Mourners pray during a candlelight vigil for the slain students and teachers at Apalachee High School. AP
Two others were 14-year-olds, Mason Schermerhorn and Christian Angulo, and instructors Richard Aspenwall and Christina Irimie, Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Chris Hosey said in a night-time news conference.
At least nine other people — eight students and one teacher — were taken to hospitals with injuries. All were expected to survive, Barrow County Sheriff Jud Smith said.
September 2: Forest Park, Illinois
On Labour Day morning, four people who were asleep on a train in the Chicago area were shot dead.
A Chicago Transit Authority station just outside of the city received a call from the police.
Yellow tape blocks off the parking lot of the Forest Park Blue Line train station in Forest Park, Ill., after four people were fatally shot on the train early Monday, Sept. 2, 2024. AP
A man in his 30s was taken into custody.
A woman and three men were among the victims. A motive wasn’t immediately disclosed.
August 31: Irondequoit, New York
Firefighters had put out several fires at a house in upstate New York when they discovered four bodies, though they were probably killed by something else, according to the authorities.
The bodies of two people, a four-year-old girl and a two-year-old boy, were discovered by firefighters.
August 24: Dalton, Georgia
At a park, four men, ages 17 to 21, were fatally shot by gunfire.
According to the authorities, the teenager involved in the violent robbery was charged with murder.
There were multiple weapons in play.
July 31 – Plant City, Florida
Four people died in an intentional fire near Tampa, according to the police.
One of the housemates, a 25-year-old man, was accused of murder while committing arson.
Three dogs also died.
July 19: New York City
At a Brooklyn apartment, a grandmother, a mother, and her two children, ages four and five, were fatally stabbed.
The four were known to a 24-year-old male who was detained.
July 18: West Blocton, Alabama
In a small Bibb County town, a man was accused of killing his wife and four children, ages two to nine.
When placed under arrest, the individual remained silent regarding his motive.
“Even seasoned officers told me it is the worst thing they’ve ever seen,” Sheriff Jody Wade said.
July 13: Birmingham, Alabama
It was in a nightclub that the victims were shot.
Two women were killed inside the club, while a man died on the sidewalk.
At a hospital, another man was pronounced deceased.
Investigators surmised that gunfire may have originated from outside the club.
July 10: Alameda, California
In the San Francisco Bay area, a man was taken into custody by police after shooting his wife, two children, and his wife’s parents.
Before he died, the man’s father-in-law asked a neighbour for assistance and spoke with the police.
July 6: Florence, Kentucky
A birthday party turned deadly in the wee hours when four people were shot.
The 21-year-old suspected gunman crashed his car in a ditch during a police chase and was found dead from a self-inflicted gunshot.
Also read: US mass shootings have risen to a high not seen since 2006. Here’s why
June 24: North Las Vegas, Nevada
According to authorities, a 48-year-old man with a criminal record who was prohibited from owning a gun killed himself after shooting five people to death.
The violence began after the man had an argument with a former girlfriend.
A neighbour who attempted to assist, as well as the neighbour’s mother and grandmother, were among the victims in the apartment complex.
June 21: Fordyce, Arkansas
Four people were killed by gunfire from a 44-year-old man who opened fire in the parking area and then inside the Mad Butcher grocery shop.
Damage can be seen to a front window as law enforcement officers work the scene of a shooting at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce, Ark., June 21, 2024. AP
He didn’t seem to be related to the victims, according to the police.
The incident took place at Fordyce, approximately 65 miles (105 kilometres) south of Little Rock, during the middle of the day.
June 12: Hudson, Florida
A four-member family was allegedly killed by a landlord, who then set their bodies on fire.
The two kids were five and six years old.
Relatives reported the family missing.
A backyard fire pit was smouldering when Pasco County police searched the property, according to reports.
June 5: Marion, Iowa
Police said a metal pipe was used to kill four people in an outbuilding of a rural home near Cedar Rapids.
April 29: Charlotte, North Carolina
Four officers were shot in the deadliest attack on US law enforcement since 2016.
They were killed when a task force of officers from different agencies tried to capture a 39-year-old man for illegally possessing a firearm and fleeing to elude in a different county.
Also read: How AR-15, the gun used by the Trump shooter, is America’s most popular weapon
April 22: Yukon, Oklahoma
When the 10-year-old boy woke up, his father had shot all three of his siblings and parents to death at their house close to Oklahoma City, according to the police.
It is believed by the authorities that the 42-year-old man shot himself after killing his wife and three boys, who were ages 18 and 14.
Police said they did not immediately know why the fourth child was spared or have a motive for the shootings.
March 27: Rockford, Illinois
A frenzied stabbing and beating rampage left four people dead in a matter of minutes and at least seven people injured.
Authorities said a 22-year-old man was charged.
Police didn’t immediately know his motive.
Rockford’s mayor said the victims were 63, 23, 49 and 15.
March 11: Ireland, West Virginia
The bodies of four people, ages 3 months to 90 years, were found inside the remains of a burning home.
A fifth person with an apparent gunshot wound was discovered dead behind a chicken coop nearby, authorities said.
A 45-year-old male suspect was found dead by suicide about 110 miles (180 kilometres) away, parked in a vehicle outside his relatives’ home.
Authorities did not immediately share details about a motive.
March 10: Honolulu, Hawaii
Authorities reported that three children, aged 10, 12, and 17, as well as a woman, were fatally stabbed in a Manoa residence.
The woman’s husband was also found dead.
According to police, the man fatally stabbed his wife and kids during a preliminary investigation. The motive was not immediately shared by the authorities.
They say the five deaths represent the biggest mass murder in the state since 1999.
They added that the residence had never received any domestic calls in the past.
Also read: Why the US sees a surge in mass shootings on Fourth of July
March 3: King City, California
Police said three men with dark masks got out of a silver Kia and opened fire at an outdoor party in central California, killing three men and a woman and wounding seven others.
The shooting happened on a street with modest homes facing a commercial district in King City, close to Pinnacles National Park.
February 19: Ferguson, Missouri
Authorities said that a 39-year-old mother killed herself and her four children, ages two, five, nine, and nine, by purposefully starting a fire in her home.
Investigators think the mother left a note indicating her intention to kill herself and her kids and set fire to a mattress.
When firefighters arrived, the house was destroyed by fire. Neighbours tried to save the family, but the fire was too intense.
February 16: Birmingham, Alabama
Officials said four men were killed in a drive-by shooting.
Dozens of shots were fired outside a Birmingham home, police said.
People were standing outside a house as they got their cars washed when someone drove by and opened fire.
No arrests were immediately reported.
February 11: Huntington Park, California
Four people were killed in shootings that lasted for several hours, according to the authorities.
The victims were a man in Bell, a man in the parking lot of a Los Angeles shopping centre, a 14-year-old boy in Cudahy, and a homeless man in Huntington Park.
At least one more youngster was injured. According to officials, two alleged gang members were taken into custody in relation to the shootings.
February 7: East Lansdowne, Pennsylvania
Six sets of human remains were recovered from the ashes of a fire that destroyed a home near Philadelphia, according to the county district attorney’s office.
Authorities suspect those who died — including three children — were killed by a 43-year-old male relative who also died after shooting and wounding two police officers, the office said.
A motive was not immediately identified.
January 23: El Mirage, California
Authorities found the bodies of six men in the Mojave Desert outside the sparsely populated community of El Mirage after someone called 911 and said he had been shot, according to sheriff’s officials.
The men were likely shot to death in a dispute over marijuana, authorities said.
The bodies were found about 50 miles (80 kilometres) northeast of Los Angeles in an area known for illegal cannabis operations. Five men were arrested and charged with murder.
January 21: Joliet, Illinois
In a Chicago suburb, authorities said that a 23-year-old man had shot eight people, including seven of his relatives, and injured a ninth.
Later, during a Texas confrontation with local officers, he tragically shot himself. Authorities surmise that he was attempting to enter Mexico.
His mother, siblings, aunt, uncle, and two men he might not have known were among the victims, according to the police.
They were discovered on a residential street, outside an apartment complex, and in two different homes.
January 21: Tinley Park, Illinois
A 63-year-old man in suburban Chicago killed his wife and three adult daughters a domestic-related shooting, police said.
The man allegedly shot the four family members — ages 53, 24 and two 25-year-old twins — after an argument at their home.
He was charged with four counts of first-degree murder.
January 13: Richmond, Texas
At a suburban Houston home, a 46-year-old man shot and killed his estranged wife, and three other relatives, including his eight-year-old niece, before taking his own life, according to the authorities.
According to the authorities, the man expressed his desire to reconcile with his estranged wife, but she declined.
He killed his niece’s brother and sister, ages 43 and 46, in addition to his estranged wife and niece.
January 6: Reedley, California
A 17-year-old boy was charged with killing four members of a neighbouring family in central California.
He lived next door to the victims — ages 81, 61, 44 and 43 — in Reedley, a small town near Fresno.
Three bodies were found in their backyard, including one buried in a shallow grave, while another was found in the detached garage of the teenager’s home, police said.
With inputs from The Associated Press
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Publish date : 2024-09-04 18:21:00
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