Politics of Gun Violence
In the aftermath of two deadly mass shootings in Texas and Ohio, U.S. political leaders made a series of statements on gun violence that were unsubstantiated, lacked context or were seemingly contradictory.
Here we look at some of those statements and present the facts.
As of this writing, 22 people were killed and 26 were injured on Aug. 3 in a shooting at a Wal-Mart in El Paso, Texas. Police reportedly believe the alleged shooter, Patrick Crusius, 21, who is being held in custody, posted an anti-immigrant manifesto shortly before the shooting. “This attack is a response to the Hispanic invasion of Texas,” the document reads.
Hours later, in the early morning hours of Aug. 4, nine people were killed and 27 were injured in the streets of Dayton, Ohio. The alleged shooter, Connor Betts, 24, was killed at the scene by police. Law enforcement officials have yet to establish a motive for the shooting, which claimed the life of Megan Betts, the shooter’s 22-year-old sister.
Mass Shootings/Mass Killings
The statements: “Well, first of all, our condolences to the victims and families in Dayton. Miles separate us, but our grief unites us. So be strong Dayton. You know, it’s a tragic thing. Something like this is just shocking. It is the 250th mass shooting. El Paso is 249. It is unfathomable these things continue to happen all over the country.” — Democratic state Rep. César Blanco of Texas, “CNN Newsroom,” Aug. 4
“When you look at the 250-plus mass shootings in this country this year, about 17 to 20 of them led to the loss of four lives or more. About half of those were suicides and/or domestic situations.” — Republican Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina, CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Aug. 4.
The facts: Both men are referring to a list of mass shootings so far this year, as compiled by Gun Violence Archive. The nonprofit defines mass shooting as any single incident that involved four or more people shot or killed, excluding the shooter.
As of Aug. 3, the day of the shooting in Texas, there had been 250 mass shootings, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
Using the nonprofit’s list, we found that there have been 31 “mass killings,” which federal law defines as “3 or more killings in a single incident.” (The law does not specify if the number of those killed in a “mass killing” should include the shooter, so incidents in which the shooters were among the dead are included in our count.)
Scott used a higher death toll
