The assault weapons ban was passed in 1994. It expired in 2004
– but was not renewed.
The AR-style
rifle used in the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump was
purchased by the 20-year-old gunman’s father, according to a report.
Thomas Matthew
Crooks used a firearm purchased by his father to shoot at the former President
during a rally held in Butler, Pa. on Saturday, according to The Wall Street
Journal.
According to the
New York Post, Thomas Crooks had few friends, and spent a lot of time playing
video games. He also liked to hunt.
His weapon was
recovered from the scene after Secret Service snipers killed him moments after
he fired several rounds in Trump’s direction.
In Pennsylvania, and many other states, an individual as young as 18 can purchase an AR type rifle
https://giffords.org/lawcenter/state-laws/minimum-age-to-purchase-possess-in-pennsylvania/
California has the strictest gun laws in the country, and
Governor has talked about banning assault rifles – which is virtually
impossible.
Around
19.8 million AR-15 style rifles are in circulation in the US, a nationwide
tally that's surged from around 8.5 million since a federal assault weapons ban expired in 2004.
The
more recent estimate comes from a November 2020 statement by the National Shooting Sports
Foundation. In the statement, its President and CEO Joseph Bartozzi called the
AR-15 the "most popular rifle sold in America" and a
"commonly-owned firearm."
According to the Swiss-based Small Arms Survey, Americans own 393 million guns, more than there are people in this country. According to the most recent survey, there are 327 million people that live here.
Of the last 80 mass shootings in
the United States, more than a quarter, including the shooting in Boulder, Colorado, involved the
use of AR-15 rifles.
A Newsweek analysis
found that the semi-automatic rifle was used in 21 mass shootings over the past
decade.
Among
those incidents are some of the deadliest mass shootings in the nation's
history, including the Las Vegas shooting, which left 59 people dead; the
Orlando, Florida, nightclub shooting, which killed 50; and the Sandy Hook
Elementary School shooting in Connecticut, which killed 28.
In March of 2021, a gunman opened fire
at a grocery store in Boulder, killing 10 people, including 51-year-old veteran
police officer Eric Talley, who was the first to report to the scene.
A senior law enforcement officer with
the Boulder police told CNN that the weapon used was an
AR-15-style rifle, the same type of weapon used in the 2018 Parkland, Florida,
school shooting and the Colorado theater shooting in 2012.
While
there's no legal definition of a mass shooting, the federal government has said
that the killing of at least four victims constitutes a mass murder.
AR-15-style
assault rifles have been a common trend in some of the deadliest mass
shootings. These weapons possess an enormous amount of killing power because
they can inflict what one of their designers called "maximum wound
effect." These weapons are generally able to fire far more bullets at a
faster rate than manual-action hunting rifles.
Assault
weapons have become the target of many gun reform organizations pushing for
states to ban these types of guns. Currently, only seven states and the
District of Columbia prohibit assault weapons.
A
2018 study found that fatalities were lower when a federal ban on assault
weapons was in effect between 1994 and 2004. State assault weapons bans have
also been associated with a lower likelihood of an active shooter event.
Colorado does not have an assault weapons ban.
Of
the last 80 mass shootings in the country, an AR-15 gun was used in:
·
The Boulder shooting in
2021
·
The 2019 Jersey City, New
Jersey shooting
·
The Midland-Odessa
interstate shooting in Texas in 2019
·
The 2019 Dayton shooting
in Ohio
·
The Tree of Life synagogue
shooting in Pittsburgh in 2018
·
The Waffle House shooting
in Nashville in 2018
·
The 2018 shooting at
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
·
The 2018 Melcroft,
Pennsylvania, shooting
·
The shootings at Rancho
Tehama Reserve in California in 2017
·
The Sutherland Springs,
Texas, church shooting in 2017
·
The 2017 Las Vegas
shooting
·
The 2017 Plano, Texas,
shooting
·
The 2017 Lincoln County,
Mississippi, shootings
·
The Orlando nightclub
shooting in 2016
·
The 2015 San Bernardino,
California, attack
·
The 2015 Colorado Springs,
Colorado, shooting
·
The 2013 Santa Monica,
California, shooting
·
The 2013 homicides in
South Valley, New Mexico
·
The 2012 Webster, New
York, shooting
·
The Sandy Hook Elementary
shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, in 2012
Mass shootings rose sharply after Trump was elected, and
dropped dramatically after Biden was sworn in.
https://www.newsweek.com/ar-15-rifles-were-used-26-percent-last-80-mass-shootings-america-1578107
It will take a while to determine what went wrong in Pennsylvania.
There are rumors that a local policeman climbed a ladder to the roof of the
building where the shooter was, but backed down when the shooter pointed a gun
at him.
There also have been calls
for the head of the Secret Service to resign, and conservative commentators are
already blaming the Democrats.
Cheatle, 53,
served 28 years in the Secret Service and was part of its protective detail
guarding then-Vice President Dick Cheney before she left to become head of
global security at PepsiCo. She returned to the agency when President Biden
appointed her to its top post in 2022.
Tonight, president Biden while be talking to the nation again
from the Oval Office.
We will be sure to tune in.
In the meantime, all we have is thoughts and prayers.
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