Two mass shootings in the United States over the weekend added to the country’s terrible legacy of mass killings. According to a report published on Monday (Dec 4) by The Washington Post, the shootings in Texas and Washington last Sunday were the 37th and 38th this year in which four or more people were slain, the largest number of mass homicides since at least 2006. In 2022, 36 mass shootings were reported, which was the highest number at the time.
In Dallas, a 21-year-old man previously charged with aggravated assault shot four people inside a house, including a youngster. According to ABC News, a teenage girl was taken to the hospital with bullet wounds. The incident happened on Sunday afternoon in a southeast Dallas neighbourhood. The police stated the fatalities were the result of a single event and that there was no danger to the public. Meanwhile, in Vancouver, Washington, five members of a family were found dead in their house in what investigators described as an apparent murder-suicide. According to reports, a guy shot his wife, two daughters, and brother before killing himself.
26 of the 38 shootings this year were in homes or shelters
In a statement, the Clark County Sheriff’s Office said it was contacted by a person requesting welfare on Sunday afternoon after “receiving a text message from a family member stating they had harmed others at the residence.” According to a Washington Post story published on Monday, the killings in Dallas and Washington raised this year’s death toll to 197, with 91 people injured but surviving. According to the article, mass shootings soared in 2019 but decreased the following year due to COVID-19 pandemic limits. However, once limitations were eased and daily life returned to normal, the number of fatal gunshots increased. This year, like every year since 2006, the majority of mass killings took place in private houses or shelters. 26 of the 38 shootings this year were in homes or shelters.
According to Thomas Abt, founding director of the Center for the Study and Practice of Violence Reduction, the record is a tragic, shameful milestone that should – but probably will not – serve as a wake-up call to lawmakers who oppose gun laws. “The rise in mass shootings is driven by many factors,” said Abt, who is also an associate research professor at the University of Maryland. “But increasingly easy access to firearms is the primary cause.”