Texas mall shooting prompts Biden to renew gun control order

May 7 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden called on Congress on Sunday to pass gun control bills following another mass shooting that left nine people dead, including the shooter, at a Texas shopping center on Saturday. .

The Democratic president renewed calls for Congress to ban assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, as well as enact universal background checks and end immunity for gun manufacturers. The closely divided House and Senate are unlikely to pass such legislation, though polls show most Americans support background checks.

Police have released minimal details about the gunman who killed eight people and wounded at least seven shortly Saturday afternoon at the Allen Premium Outlets mall in Allen, a northern Dallas suburb. In his statement, Biden said the shooter was wearing tactical gear and wielding an AR-15 rifle.

Allen police said three injured victims were hospitalized in critical condition Sunday, and at least three were hospitalized in good condition, including one at a children’s hospital. The shooter fatally shot eight people, including at least one child, before a police officer killed him, police said Saturday.

As of Sunday night, law enforcement had not released details about a possible motive or the identities of the victims. A family member identified one of the murder victims on social media as Christian LaCour, a security guard.

“We watched this sweet little boy grow into a very sweet gentleman,” Kellie Smith wrote in a Facebook post Sunday, identifying LaCour as her son-in-law’s brother. “Words cannot even begin to describe the devastation our family is feeling.”

A graphic 10-second video was circulating on Twitter on Saturday showing several dead bodies slumped against a flower pot and a white wall with an H&M store sign.

At least one of the individuals, lifeless and bloodied, appears to be a small child. Reuters was able to verify that the video was taken at the mall where the shooting took place.

In previous shootings, social networking sites worked to remove links to such graphic images. An emailed request for comment to Twitter, which no longer has a communications team, returned an automated response with a poop emoji.

At least 199 mass shootings have occurred in the United States so far in 2023, the most at this point in the year since at least 2016, according to the gun violence file. The nonprofit group defines a mass shooting as any in which four or more people are injured or killed, not including the shooter.

TRAGEDY RESTARTS DEBATE ON GUN CONTROL

The tragedy in Allen, which occurred just over a week after another deadly shooting in the city of Cleveland, Texas, reignited the heated debate over gun control in the United States.

The Second Amendment to the US Constitution protects the right to bear arms, a hot topic for many Republicans who are backed by millions in donations from gun rights groups and makers.

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, a Republican, called the shooting “devastating” in a Sunday morning interview on Fox News, saying the way to effectively address gun violence lies in addressing mental health.

“There has been a dramatic increase in the amount of anger and violence that is happening in the United States,” he said. “We are working to address that anger and violence by going to its root cause, which is addressing the mental health issues behind it.”

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and other Democrats stressed the need to pass tougher gun safety legislation to reduce gun violence.

On Sunday night, community members packed Cottonwood Creek Church to hold a vigil for the victims.

“Our hearts broke yesterday,” Allen Mayor Ken Fulk told the congregation. “We thank you for your patience and understanding during this ongoing investigation.”

Reporting by Maria Caspani in New York, Brad Brooks in Lubbock, Texas, Moira Warburton in Washington, and Brendan O’Brien in Chicago; Edited by Lisa Shumaker

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