Threee dead in Columbia, Maryland Mall shooting

[Paladin-Hoss]

(CNN) -- A gunman carrying "a large amount of ammunition" and apparent makeshift explosives killed two workers at a busy Columbia, Maryland, mall before turning a shotgun on himself, police said.
The shooting, which also left five others injured, ended a violent week which saw shootings or gun scares at American schools or shopping centers -- ordinary places where people once felt safe.
"This should not happen at the Columbia Mall," Howard County Police Chief Bill McMahon told reporters. "This shouldn't happen anywhere."

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/25/us/maryland-mall-shooting/
geez

 

[Teelie]

More details on the shooting, including the names of the shooter and the two fatalities.

The gunman who killed two workers Saturday at a Maryland mall was identified Sunday as Darion Marcus Aguilar, Howard County Police Chief Bill McMahon said.

Aguilar arrived by cab about an hour before the shootings, and his movements at the mall were limited, McMahon said. He added that Aguilar, 19, fired between six and eight shots from a 12-gauge shotgun. That included a self-inflicted fatal shot.

On Saturday, police said the gunman carried "a large amount of ammunition" and apparent makeshift explosives. He killed 21-year-old Brianna Benlolo and 25-year-old Tyler Johnson at the busy Columbia mall before turning the shotgun on himself, police said.

Aguilar purchased the gun, made by Mossberg, in December, the chief said Sunday at a morning update for reporters.

The shootings, which also left five others injured, ended a violent week which saw shootings or gun scares at American schools or shopping centers -- ordinary places where people once felt safe.

McMahon told reporters that the shooter's motive was unclear. He said authorities were investigating whether Aguilar knew either of the victims.

Both worked at Zumiez, a shop that caters to skaters, on the second floor of The Mall in Columbia.

Benlolo was an assistant manager at the store and had worked there since November 2012, according to her Facebook page.

Johnson had worked at the store for about three months, according to his Facebook page.

The body of the suspected shooter was found near a shotgun on the floor of Zumiez, police said, along with unspent ammunition.

Late Saturday, police revealed that "two crude devices that appeared to be an attempt at making explosives using fireworks" were found inside the shooter's bag inside the store. "Both were disabled," police added.

Thousands in mall at time of shooting

The first 911 call about the shooting came at about 11:15 a.m. and officers were in the mall within two minutes, police said.

The shooting "seems to have been very contained to that store and the area just outside," McMahon told reporters.

Police entered the mall within minutes of the first 911 calls and found three people dead. The scene was secure shortly before 1 p.m., police said.

Investigators said there were thousands of people in the mall at the time, with many hiding in fear behind store counters, in restrooms or in fitting rooms for hours after the shooting stopped.

"Think about this, on a Saturday afternoon at the mall, how many people may be in there," McMahon said. "Something like this happens and people run in many directions, and they also do what we train them to do -- to shelter in place."

Five people were transported to Howard County General Hospital, a hospital spokeswoman said in a statement. All were treated and later released.

Four of them suffered injuries related to the chaotic scene after the shots rang out, including one with a seizure and at least one with a sprained ankle, according to McMahon.

The other injured victim suffered a gunshot wound to the foot. Police said Saturday night that that woman wasn't in Zumiez; rather she was on the first floor when she was struck.

A federal official briefed on the shooting told CNN that preliminary information indicates the shooting may have been related to a domestic dispute.

McMahon said Sunday that police had yet to determine that but learned Saturday night that one of the victims lived near the shooter.

Worker at mall: 'It was just crazy'

The gunfire sent shoppers and workers running for cover, witnesses told CNN.

"It's a mall shooting," one mall worker, identified only as K.T., told CNN. "No one knows what's going on. In today's world, you hear gunshots and you run."

The staccato of gunfire was followed by the cries and screams of children and adults running or ducking for cover, the employee said.

"A lot of kids were crying, and mothers were holding onto them," K.T. said. "I wasn't worried about me. I was just making sure everybody was OK."

Once the shooting stopped, SWAT team members moved from store to store.

"It was just crazy," said K.T., who snapped a picture of a bullet-riddled wall near the shooting scene. "It's one of those things you see on TV but never expect you'll go through."

Colin Ready, another employee, said he heard a couple of booms and thought the sounds were from construction. Then, there were several more booms and people were screaming and scattering, he said.

The manager of the store where Ready works closed the front gate, he said. When a police officer, not in uniform, came to the gate later to say the mall had been secured, Ready said workers didn't believe he was a cop.

Laura McKindles, another mall employee, told CNN affiliate WJLA that she heard eight to 10 gunshots.

"I have never experienced anything like this in my life," she said. "I was standing there talking to a customer and I started hearing all this banging coming from the food court ... and people started running. And they said somebody's down there and they got a gun."

Near tears, she added: "This country needs a lot of help. When somebody is that angry to go to a mall on a Saturday morning and shoot people, we're in a lot of trouble. ... To push people to those limits where things like that happen makes no sense."

Images on Twitter reportedly from the scene showed mall employees and customers hiding in a stockroom. The mall was on lockdown for some time.

In the moments after the shooting, the fire department, via Twitter, advised people to avoid the area.

"I'm terrified," said Lauryn Stapleton, a mall employee who barricaded herself in a room for an hour and half after the shooting."It's just something I never want to experience again. I'll go back to work but it will be hard."

Several university shootings earlier last week

The Mall in Columbia released a statement hours after the shooting, announcing it would remain closed for the remainder of Saturday. Police said later that the mall would be shuttered Sunday as well, while K-9 units continued checking the mall "through the night" to make sure all was safe.

"We are deeply saddened by the violence that has occurred this morning within our store in Maryland at The Mall in Columbia," Zumiez CEO Rick Brooks said. "We're making arrangements for counseling to be made available to Zumiez employees in the area."

The mall shooting was the latest instance last week of gun violence or threats of it in ordinary places across the country.

A student was shot dead Friday afternoon at South Carolina State University, prompting a manhunt for several suspects that extended beyond the school's Orangeburg campus.

On Wednesday, the University of Oklahoma in Norman briefly shut down after a report of a possible shooting that apparently turned out to be a false alarm, the university's president said.

On Tuesday, a gunman shot and killed another student inside Purdue University's electrical engineering building. Police said Cody Cousins, 23, an engineering student, killed Andrew Boldt, 21, of West Bend, Wisconsin. Cousins was charged with murder.

On Monday, a student was shot and critically injured near a gym at Widener University near Philadelphia. Police were looking for a suspect.

CNN

 

[Spider-X]

"This country needs a lot of help. When somebody is that angry to go to a mall on a Saturday morning and shoot people, we're in a lot of trouble.

amen...and the last thing we need is more guns.

 

[SV Fan]

amen...and the last thing we need is more guns.

But if everybody in the mall had a gun, the guy might have only killed 1 or 2 people(that of coarse is not counting everybody in the mall pulling out there gun and misfiring and killing other people)

 

[charl_huntress]

This sounds like a domestic dispute and not a mass killing spree.

 

[Specter313]

This sounds like a domestic dispute and not a mass killing spree.

That's been a theory that's been batted about since this happened.

I live literally less than 10 minutes from this mall, and it just goes to show you that stuff like this can happen anywhere, because this area in general is considered pretty safe, and one of the top places to live in the country, so it is very shocking to see. Thankfully the casualties were pretty small in number, though the psychological toll is pretty bad as well.

 

[Kelly]

This sounds like a domestic dispute and not a mass killing spree.

Definitely a possibility....

 

[Teelie]

Yeah, most likely it is. "A federal official briefed on the shooting told CNN that preliminary information indicates the shooting may have been related to a domestic dispute." I think the man who was killed was unfortunately in the wrong place at the wrong time. Maybe he was trying to save his co-worker or he got in the way. At this point there is no way to know.

 

[Feenix]

But if everybody in the mall had a gun, the guy might have only killed 1 or 2 people(that of coarse is not counting everybody in the mall pulling out there gun and misfiring and killing other people)

I bet the NRA is salivating at the mouth on this one.

 

[Teelie]

He did only kill two people, and himself. And I doubt more people shooting more guns would have resulted in less dead people but more dead people.

When everyone is pointing a gun, how do you know who the bad guy is? Will he have a shirt proclaiming "bad guy" in bright, bold letters for everyone to easily recognize him?

 

[Hal_Jordan]

But if everybody in the mall had a gun, the guy might have only killed 1 or 2 people

He only did kill 2 people.

(that of coarse is not counting everybody in the mall pulling out there gun and misfiring and killing other people)

So more people could have been killed accidentally?

This sounds like a domestic dispute and not a mass killing spree.

It definitely seems like that's the case(since he didn't go from store to store just shooting random people), but I wonder why he brought his home made explosives.

 

[Octoberist]

jesus

 

[SV Fan]

He only did kill 2 people.

Sorry I thought for some weird reason 3 people died

So more people could have been killed accidentally?

Well if everybody pulled out a gun and started shooting, yeah chances are one or 2 people would misfire and somebody else gets shot. But the only way to stop a bad man with a gun is 20 or so good people with guns all shooting at once randomly, or so the NRA tells me.

 

[Hal_Jordan]

Sorry I thought for some weird reason 3 people died

If you include the shooter, 3 people died.

Well if everybody pulled out a gun and started shooting, yeah chances are one or 2 people would misfire and somebody else gets shot. But the only way to stop a bad man with a gun is 20 or so good people with guns all shooting at once randomly, or so the NRA tells me.

Of course the NRA says that. They're being paid to say stupid things like that. And really, just how stupid is that? Imagine 20 people in a mall hearing gunshots, pulling out their guns and not knowing who is actually doing the shooting. How do you tell who the "bad guy" is and who the "good guys" are? Paranoid people with guns will just start shooting at anyone with a gun, assuming they are the shooter. It wouldn't go well at all.

 

[Xeno]

If you include the shooter, 3 people died.




Of course the NRA says that. They're being paid to say stupid things like that. And really, just how stupid is that? Imagine 20 people in a mall hearing gunshots, pulling out their guns and not knowing who is actually doing the shooting. How do you tell who the "bad guy" is and who the "good guys" are? Paranoid people with guns will just start shooting at anyone with a gun, assuming they are the shooter. It wouldn't go well at all.

Not to mention the fact that the SWAT team that responded to the scene wouldn't know who was an "innocent bystander" with a gun and who was the original shooter. So not only would a bunch of armed people trying to take out the shooter cause casualties themselves, they would also become targets for the police and some would probably be killed. Smart thinking there by the gun lobby.


Back on topic, we've recently had several incidents of people hoarding guns and illegal explosives here in Maryland. A month or so ago a man in another suburban county was caught making explosives in his home after he injured himself with chemicals. Another whackjob has amassed a legal arsenal and was arrested for threatening to go to his former job site and massacre people. We have very restrictive gun laws but no law on the books will get rid of sick people like these.

 

[charl_huntress]

We have very restrictive gun laws but no law on the books will get rid of sick people like these.

Laws aren't what is needed to "get rid of sick people". What's needed is better attention and focus on mental health and mental health issues. We can talk all day about gun rights and the NRA, but that's not actually the real problem.

 

[Teelie]

The assumption it's only "sick people" who are doing shootings is a problem in itself. It's deflection.

 

[charl_huntress]

Deflection from what?

 

[Teelie]

It's saying that the only people who shoot other people are mentally ill. That no one who is just angry, jealous, frustrated or wanting revenge wouldn't use a gun. There doesn't need to be a mental illness in any of those cases.

This isn't about banning guns, or denying legal rights to guns though. It's about the lax attitude and downright resistance to controlling deadly weapons. Even the NRA is hesitant to disallow the mentally ill to possess weapons while they blame every shooting on them.

 

[charl_huntress]

Most states have very restrictive gun laws though. I don't understand the notion there is resistance to controlling deadly weapons, when that is not the case.

 

[Teelie]

Very restrictive is open to interpetation, and so is the enforcement of the laws. Add their loopholes, exceptions, waivers and so on. A law filled with holes and unenforced doesn't mean anything.

 

[charl_huntress]

I don't know how restrictive can be open to interpretation, but there seems to be some idea anyone can legally own a gun. That's not true. Now if you want to talk about illegalities that's another matter.

 

[The Endless]

Stop selling guns and ammo in supermarkets like Wal-Mart is a good way to start. Going out to buy some groceries and walking past a gun rack with AR-15s etc is just... insane.

What happened to just knocking someone the **** out if you've got a problem with them? Why be a coward and use a gun?

 

[Teelie]

I don't know how restrictive can be open to interpretation, but there seems to be some idea anyone can legally own a gun. That's not true. Now if you want to talk about illegalities that's another matter.

Simple examples of interpetation often seen in the news. Assault weapons. Owning one should be illegal, owning one should be legal. The number of bullets a gun can hold. Anything from less than 6 to as much as possible.

Some people think owning a gun is a right under any circumstances. Others see it as something only specifically trained and licensed law enforcement should have.

That is just scratching the surface. It's easy to counter this claim about gun laws being too restrictive. Or too lax.

 

[charl_huntress]

I don't see the issues you mention having anything to do with the laws being less restrictive when it comes to owning a gun. The problems you mention have more to do with poorly written laws and people interpreting their right to own a gun, which is not absolute for every single person.