Louisville — After a shooter opened fire at a Louisville bank days earlier, the United States is once again confronted with the age-old subject of mass shootings.
Police in Louisville are still collecting evidence to determine what caused the deadly shooting inside a downtown bank.
The incident claimed the lives of five people and injured many more, including a police officer who was critically injured during a confrontation with the shooter.
What happened?
Louisville police identified the shooter as Connor Sturgeon, a 25-year-old bank employee.
According to authorities, Sturgeon was livestreaming when he opened fire at Old National Bank.
According to Rebecca Buchheit-Sims, a bank manager, he gained access to the conference during a morning staff meeting.
Buchheit-Sims was practically there at the meeting, and she felt powerless as she watched in dread as the catastrophe unfolded on her computer screen.
“I witnessed people being murdered,” she said. “I don’t know how else to say that.”
Deana Eckert, 57, was one of the hospitalized patients, but she died on Monday, according to authorities.
It’s unknown if Eckert was one of the three critically ill patients earlier that day.
According to Louisville police, the following victims died early Monday morning:
- Joshua Barrick, 40
- Tommy Elliott, 63
- Juliana Farmer, 45
- James Tutt, 64
The gunman
According to his LinkedIn page, Connor Sturgeon interned at the bank for three summers and worked full-time for nearly two years.
The bank informed him that he would be dismissed, according to a law enforcement source close to the inquiry.
According to the source, Sturgeon wrote a message to his parents and a buddy indicating his intention to shoot the bank.
However, the exact time the message was discovered is uncertain.
When authorities arrived, the shooter was still firing, according to officials.
Later, Sturgeon was murdered in a gunfight with police, injuring two cops, one of whom was shot in the head.
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The shooting
The shooting started at 8:30 a.m., 30 minutes before the bank opened to the public, according to Louisville police.
A bank employee, Rebecca Buchheit-Sims, claimed Sturgeon opened fire in a conference room during a morning meeting.
Caleb Goodlett, a bank employee’s husband, said his wife phoned him after sheltering inside a locked vault.
Officers were already on the case when he called 911.
“Just a very traumatic phone call to get,” said Goodlett.
He afterwards saw his wife, who was uninjured.
According to authorities, Connor Sturgeon died after being shot by police.
Nickolas Wilt, a 26-year-old rookie police officer, went to the gunfight and was shot in the head.
He had recently completed the police academy.
Wilt underwent brain surgery, according to interim Louisville Metro Police Chief Jacquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel.
He remained in a serious state as of Monday afternoon, but his condition was stable.
The weapon
According to a federal law enforcement source, Connor Sturgeon used an AR-15-style firearm.
In the United States, the semi-automatic rifle is the most popular sports firearm.
According to the 2021 National Firearms Survey, 30% of gun owners own an AR-15 or a similar-style firearm.
Many previous mass shootings have employed the weapon or versions of it, including the two-week-old Nashville Covenant School tragedy.
2023 shooting numbers
The Louisville event was the 146th mass shooting in 2023, according to the Gun Violence Archive.
Mass shootings continue to occur in the United States on a daily basis.
The crime in Louisville occurred just two weeks after three students and three adults were slain in a shooting at a Tennessee Christian school.
The two shootings have sparked a heated debate over gun control among Democratic and Republican state lawmakers.
Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has ordered the flags be flown at half-staff until Friday evening in remembrance of the victims.
Some Democratic officials, though, are concerned that the outpouring of grief will not result in serious gun violence remedies.
State Senator David Yates said:
“My worry is that everybody will raise their firsts in anger and mourn and then in six weeks, eight weeks we go back to doing the same thing – nothing.”
“I hope that they all don’t have to die in vain like so many of the other victims of these mass shootings. Maybe something positive can come from it.”
President Joe Biden has reiterated his appeal for gun control legislation, this time aimed at Republican senators.
“Too many Americans are paying for the price of inaction with their lives,” Biden tweeted.
“When will Republicans in Congress act to protect our communities?”
According to the Old National Bank Facebook page, CEO Jim Ryan and other top team members were in Louisville following the news of the adversity
“As we await more details, we are deploying employee assistance support and keeping everyone affected by this tragedy in our thoughts and prayers,” said Ryan.
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