The "deadliest" shooting case has reappeared in the United States, and under the "cycle of terror", it is difficult to achieve a practical breakthrough in the dilemma of gun violence in the United States. In total, at least 22 people have been killed and more than 50 injured in successive deadly shootings at three locations.
(The picture shows the suspect recorded by the camera of the bowling alley Source: "Fox News")
The shooting was repeated, and the murderer committed suicide
On Oct. 25, 2023, the series of shootings began at a Just-In-Time Recreation bowling alley in Lewiston where a youth league event was being held. Many people heard several sounds at the scene that appeared to be balloon bursts, and someone later spotted the gunman and immediately called the police.
A few minutes later, there was a second shooting at a restaurant called Schemengees. Subsequently, another resident called the police to report that similar gunshots were heard at a Walmart distribution center near the shooting. Maine Central Medical Center began coordinating with local hospitals to treat victims.
Immediately after the shooting, the Lewiston government issued a shelter-in-place order, the local school went into lockdown, and the masses also fell into panic and quickly evacuated the place of the incident. Maine Gov. Janet Mill posted on social media calling on residents that "all people in the area remain calm and follow the instructions of state and local law enforcement." ”
Subsequently, the Sheriff's Office of Andros Coquin County, Maine, posted a photo of the shooting suspect in the shooting, who was Robert Card, a U.S. Army Reserve. On October 26, 2023, police issued an arrest warrant for Robert Card on eight counts of murder.
(The picture shows the suspect Robert Card and the scene of the crime released by the police, source: "Marca")
According to NBC, after two days of manhunting, suspect Robert Card was found on October 27, 2023, in a wooded area near a recycling center in the town of Lisbon, Maine, who committed suicide by swallowing a gun. The incident was undoubtedly the deadliest mass shooting in Maine's history.
Born in the military, he behaves abnormally
The killer, Robert Card, is 40 years old and lived in Bowdoin, Maine, for a long time before his death. Robert Carder is a U.S. Army Reserve Sergeant I who enlisted in the U.S. Army in December 2002.
For more than two decades, Robert Card has felt like an ordinary person and hasn't done anything crazy. Prior to 2023, Card's only record in law enforcement was a DUI arrest and guilty plea in 2007, as well as two speeding charges in 2001 and 2002, according to the BBC.
On July 16, 2023, military personnel who had trained with Card at West Point said they noticed the suspect's unusual behavior and asked law enforcement to intervene. New York State police received the report and sent him to Keller Army Community Hospital for a two-week medical evaluation.
(The picture shows the scene of the police search, source: "Fox News")
Robert Card's sister-in-law said he began experiencing auditory hallucinations after wearing "high-powered hearing aids." The humiliation of hearing others speak and think they are belittling and laughing at him may also be one of the reasons why Robert Card pulls the trigger and chooses to kill people randomly.
Shootings are frequent, and tragedies are repeated
Throughout the past few years, the shooting in the United States has become a world-renowned and frequent incident. According to Time magazine, there have been at least 50 school shootings in the United States since 2024, resulting in 16 deaths. As of April 14, there have been 108 mass shootings in 2024. As of June 16, 2024, 7,695 people have been killed and 14,565 injured in various gun-related incidents in the United States in 2024, and there have been 227 mass shootings that have caused four or more casualties.
Looking back on 2023, shootings in the United States have often "grabbed" major media and social media headlines. According to the BBC, there were a number of shootings across the United States during this year's Labor Day holiday.
On September 4, 2023, a shooting occurred at a nightclub on Fifth Avenue North in Birmingham, Alabama, USA, and a car carrying the injured was attacked by gunmen when it arrived outside the emergency room of the University of Alabama at Birmingham Hospital, killing two people and injuring three others. In Chicago, Illinois, more than 30 local shootings over Labor Day weekend killed five people and injured at least 34; There were also two shootings in Washington, D.C., resulting in one death and one injury.
(The picture shows the Chicago City Police arresting the shooting suspect Source: "CCTV News")
For the vast majority of victims, they did not commit any illegal deeds, but just appeared in an inappropriate place at an inappropriate time and met a suspect with a gun. For decades, innocent victims have been shot indiscriminately in the wrong places, and such gun violence is "a tragedy unique to America."
Gun laws, controversy
And in the final analysis, the topic of whether or not to "restrict gun ownership" has always been a point of debate among American citizens. Guns can protect themselves in the event of a sudden crisis, and they are also cruel murder weapons.
First, from a constitutional rights perspective, the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution supports individual possession and carrying of firearms. The amendment states: "It is necessary for the security of a free nation; Therefore, the right of the people to keep and bear arms must not be violated. This amendment is seen as a means of protecting citizens against government abuses, and as such holds a pivotal place in U.S. national history and law.
American pediatrician EJ Montini also strongly expressed his opposition to gun ownership orders in his personal column, and gun laws in the United States must be changed. He has seen too many gun victims, many of them even minors and children. He is skeptical that the United States can protect children from gun violence.
(The picture shows the scene of parents crying after the shooting in Uvalde, Source: "BBC")
Montini's fears are not unfounded. According to NBC, on May 24, 2022, an 18-year-old high school student shot and killed 19 students and two teachers in an elementary school in Uvalde, South Texas, USA, and was later shot dead by law enforcement officers. On May 18, 2018, a 17-year-old high school student shot and killed 10 people with a shotgun and a pistol at a high school in Santa Fe, Galveston County, Texas, and injured more than 10 others.
Montini even believes that the shooting has evolved into a natural disaster throughout the United States. The National Rifle Association, which supports gun orders, is now doing nothing in the face of gun incidents one after another. Gun violence is already a natural disaster like floods, tornadoes, and wildfires, rather than a man-made disaster, and they seem to believe that the United States is powerless to stop such a "natural disaster."
The government is inactive, and the guns are constantly being fired
American journalist Rex Huppke published an article in USA Today. He sarcastically said that the Republican Party in the United States will only hope that the society will reduce the occurrence of shootings through "prayer". He believes that the U.S. government should at least enact some basic laws to curb the rising gun violence.
In fact, every change of U.S. government and change of leadership has a discussion about changes to gun laws. But there has been no substantial change each time, which has also made the masses lose confidence in the credibility of the government.
(The picture shows US President Joe Biden Source: Xinhuanet)
According to NBC, on September 22, 2023, President Biden established the first "Office of Gun Violence Prevention" in U.S. history.
The American people are not "cold" about this policy. They are all already familiar with such "routines", and the best proof is to truly reduce the frequency of shootings and fatalities. The media also believes that this is just a means for the Biden team to increase support for the election.
Threats have increased dramatically, and elections have been volatile
The proliferation of guns in the United States not only threatens the safety of ordinary people, but also increases the risk of political violence in the country as the 2024 U.S. presidential election looms.
(The picture shows the American people holding up slogans protesting against gun orders Source: "Sohu")
In September 2023, the British newspaper The Independent cited a report by the Giffords Law Center and the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law as saying that there are "huge gaps" in the protection of voters and election workers in the United States ahead of the presidential election on November 5, 2024.
At the same time, the report notes that with the increasing number of guns, political polarization and violence, strong laws need to be implemented in states across the country to limit and stop risks. Only 12 states and Washington, D.C., explicitly prohibit the overt or covert carrying of firearms at polling stations, and even fewer states enforce gun control at ballot drop off points and ballot disposal facilities.
As a result, the number of shootings has remained high for several months, and the public is also panicking. In such a situation, people will reduce going out and other measures, which will also have a negative impact on social consumption and economic pull.
For the public, life safety is undoubtedly the most important point. The interweaving of multiple factors has made the problem of gun violence in the United States a stubborn disease that has always been incurable. The Innocent King believes that only by truly addressing this threat can the government truly win the hearts and minds of the people.