The Perpetrators Of America's Worst Mass Shootings Have One Glaring Thing In Common
According to an analysis of mass shootings released by Everytown for Gun Safety earlier this year, 54 percent of mass shooters target intimate partners or family members among their victims, and 16 percent of mass shooters had previously been charged with domestic violence.
Most of these mass shootings don't make national headlines, but when they do, it's almost a given that authorities will find that the shooter had a history of misogyny or intimate partner violence. The six deadliest mass shootings of the last five years — two of which took place in the last two months — are sadly reflective of this general trend: All of the shooters had had brushes with domestic abuse or violence against women in their past. Here's what we know about the mass shooters' history of domestic violence.
Sutherland Springs, Texas
On November 5, 2017, Devin P. Kelley shot and killed at least 26 people and injured another 20 at a Baptist church in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Previously, he was discharged from the Air Force after receiving a conviction for assaulting his wife and child:
In 2012, while stationed at Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico, Devin P. Kelley, 26, was charged with "assault on his spouse and assault on their child," according to the Air Force.
"He assaulted his stepson severely enough that he fractured his skull, and he also assaulted his wife," said Don Christensen, a retired colonel who was the chief prosecutor for the Air Force. "He pled to intentionally doing it."
He was sentenced in November of that year to 12 months' confinement and reduction to the lowest possible rank. After his confinement, he was discharged from the military with a bad conduct discharge.
Law enforcement officials have called the mass shooting "a domestic situation" and suggested that Kelley targeted the church that his mother-in-law attended.
Las Vegas, Nevada
On October 1, 2017, Stephen Paddock shot and killed 58 people and injured another 546 from a room at the Mandalay Bay hotel on the Las Vegas strip. Paddock had a history of verbally abusing his girlfriend, Marilou Danley, according to Starbucks employees who witnessed the abuse.
… Paddock had a nasty habit of berating Danley in public. "It happened a lot," Esperanza Mendoza, supervisor of the Starbucks, said…
The abuse would come when she asked to use his casino card to make the purchase, Mendoza said. The card enables gamblers to use credits earned on electronic gambling machines to pay for souvenirs or food in the casino.
"He would glare down at her and say — with a mean attitude — 'You don't need my casino card for this. I'm paying for your drink, just like I'm paying for you.' Then she would softly say, 'OK' and step back behind him. He was so rude to her in front of us."
Orlando, Florida
On June 11, 2016, Omar Mateen entered the Pulse Nightclub and began shooting, killing 49 people and wounding 58. Mateen's ex-wife says that Mateen physically abused her during their short marriage in 2009.
Omar Mateen's former wife says the man responsible for [the] mass shooting was physically abusive towards her, had mental health issues and was "obviously disturbed, deeply, and traumatised".
Sitora Yusifiy was married to Mateen for four months in 2009 until her family was forced to "literally rescue me" after he kept her "hostage", she said…
"He would often get into fights and arguments with his parents but because I was the only one in his life most of the violence was towards me at that time," Yusifuy said.
San Bernardino, California
On December 12, 2015, married couple Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik shot 14 people to death and injured 22 others at an office holiday party for the local health department, where Farook had worked. Although Farook was never personally accused of domestic abuse (as far as we know), his father and brother were.
Officers were called to the home of Syed Raheel Farook in the 1700 block of Forum Way about 2:30 p.m. Saturday after the victim, an unidentified woman, reported a domestic disturbance at the residence, said Corona police Sgt. Paul Mercado.
Allegations of domestic violence were raised during Farook's parents divorce, according to court papers reviewed by The Times.
In multiple requests for domestic-violence protection, Farook's mother detailed the maltreatment she said she encountered and that her children witnessed: Her husband had once drunkenly dropped a TV on her. Another time, he pushed her toward a car. After a drunken slumber, he shouted expletives and threw dishes in the kitchen, records show.
Washington, DC
On September 16, 2013, a civilian contractor named Aaron Alexis killed 12 people and injured 3 others at the Washington Navy Yard. He had previously shot into a former neighbor's apartment, among other violent incidents.
On September 5, 2010, Alexis was arrested in Fort Worth, Texas on suspicion of reckless discharge of a firearm, a misdemeanor offense. According to the police report, Alexis claimed he had been cleaning the gun while cooking and accidentally fired a round through the ceiling of his apartment. His neighbor upstairs told police the round missed her by approximately two feet. She also told them she was "terrified" of Alexis, who had previously confronted her about making too much noise. She believed the shooting was "intentional."
[HuffPost]
Newtown, Connecticut
On December 14, 2012, Adam Lanza killed 20 first-graders and six adults at Sandy Hook Elementary School, after killing his mother at home. According to an acquaintance, he had threatened his mother prior to the shooting.
One woman told investigators that she overheard Adam Lanza threaten his mother. She said that he "had an assault weapon and that she was scared of him." She said she overheard Lanza say that he "planned to kill his mother and children at Sandy Hook in Newtown, Connecticut."
According to investigators' interview notes, she said she called Newtown police and Sandy Hook and told them about the threats, but police said Lanza's mother owned the firearms and there was nothing they could do; they were told to call state police.
[CBS News]