ME - Lewiston, Mass Shooting, Multiple Scenes - Oct 2023

[vls12345]

Maine shootings: 'Helicopters, sirens. It's crazy' - Lewiston resident

Billie Jayne Cooke tells the BBC the whole city is in lockdown, describing the attack as "unimaginable".

www.bbc.com

 

[Colorado303]

My poor home state I haven't lived there for a few years but I was born and raised there. Thankfully all my family in the area are okay and accounted for but I still have friends I haven't heard from.

Lewiston population is just 37,000. Imagine how overwhelmed their emergency responders and hospitals are right now. I want to hug the whole town.

 

[IzzyBlanche]

Oh and then there's the trauma of people who were there and terrified but escaped uninjured. That's gonna take a toll too.

My heart goes out to everyone affected by this horrific event and all the others that preceded it.

 

[Dawookie]

If this guy is active military with easy access to weapons as well as spending time in a mental health facility why weren't his weapons taken away? Isn't there some kind of protocol for someone in the military who is experiencing mental health challenges to remove weapons? This reminds me of the guy who flew from Alaska to Florida who shot and killed numerous people in the airport in 2017. He'd even turned himself in to the FBI after reporting auditory hallucinations from PTSD from an Iraq tour. Why do these people get ignored. It's crazy.

I imagine that because he was in the Reserves his being committed probably slipped through the cracks because of the time they are required to be there. The fact that he was committed for hearing voices and threatening to shoot up a military base and allowed to keep his firearms blows my mind though. He should have been reported to the police and Maines yellow flag law been put into use.

 

[vls12345]

A list of mass killings in the United States since January

The latest mass killing in the U.S. happened Wednesday night in Lewiston, Maine. The shooting was the country’s 36th mass killing this year.

apnews.com

 

[Marysmith]

A list of mass killings in the United States since January

The latest mass killing in the U.S. happened Wednesday night in Lewiston, Maine. The shooting was the country’s 36th mass killing this year.

apnews.com

Just so sad and brutal. You just feel helpless.

 

[patternsfinder]

We've gone through enough/too many of these moments as a nation, and then read all the stories afterwards, that I just know right now there are families at the family reunification centers, not finding their kids/loved ones, and not able to get clear information, and they'll likely spend tonight hopeful against hope but terrified...before eventually learning that the loved ones they're trying to find are dead. Sending my prayers out to all those huddled up tonight waiting. This is ridiculous and we have to stop living (and dying) like this.

 

[LaborDayRN]

We've gone through enough/too many of these moments as a nation, and then read all the stories afterwards, that I just know right now there are families at the family reunification centers, not finding their kids/loved ones, and not able to get clear information, and they'll likely spend tonight hopeful against hope but terrified...before eventually learning that the loved ones they're trying to find are dead. Sending my prayers out to all those huddled up tonight waiting. This is ridiculous and we have to stop living (and dying) like this.

I couldn't agree more.....

 

[MassGuy]

If this guy is active military with easy access to weapons as well as spending time in a mental health facility why weren't his weapons taken away? Isn't there some kind of protocol for someone in the military who is experiencing mental health challenges to remove weapons? This reminds me of the guy who flew from Alaska to Florida who shot and killed numerous people in the airport in 2017. He'd even turned himself in to the FBI after reporting auditory hallucinations from PTSD from an Iraq tour. Why do these people get ignored. It's crazy.

He’s a reservist, and his military weapon(s) would be stored in the armory. The rifle he used would be his own personal one.

Maine doesn’t have red flag laws, and the process of removing weapons isn’t easy.

I’m wondering if he got some sort of medical discharge, or if this began after he got out. I’m sure we’ll learn a lot more in the coming days.

 

[branmuffin]

I guess it depends on what they reveal about their mental health issue? Or what’s known about it?

Actually, I don't think that's it at all. There always seems to be some kind of stigma related to mental health in the military and civilian police forces. Many members suffer because of this and don't disclose the challenges they are having. Yet this guy, had already experienced auditory hallucinations. He'd already threatened to shoot people. Just like the guy in Alaska. They still had their weapons and they still killed people.

The very first thing that should done with someone experiencing a mental health crisis is remove weapons because it's more than likely they'd kill themselves which in itself is a tragedy but when they decide to take out numerous innocents its criminally irresponsible. <modsnip: Gun control discussion and debate is not allowed>

 

[IzzyBlanche]

We've gone through enough/too many of these moments as a nation, and then read all the stories afterwards, that I just know right now there are families at the family reunification centers, not finding their kids/loved ones, and not able to get clear information, and they'll likely spend tonight hopeful against hope but terrified...before eventually learning that the loved ones they're trying to find are dead. Sending my prayers out to all those huddled up tonight waiting. This is ridiculous and we have to stop living (and dying) like this.

One thing I remember reading about the Pulse nightclub shooting were the investigators going in after the fact and there was so much noise from the victims' cellphones ringing. Frantic loved ones trying to contact them.

And here we are again.

 

[Colorado303]

Bless the management at the bowling alley for investing in excellent survellience cameras. Photo quality was among the best I’ve seen which not only helped LE ID the shooter quickly but also notifies the public who to look for.

 

[Auntie Cipation]

A list of mass killings in the United States since January

The latest mass killing in the U.S. happened Wednesday night in Lewiston, Maine. The shooting was the country’s 36th mass killing this year.

apnews.com

Interesting that a shooting on this list from earlier in the year took place in Bowdoin, ME. Isn't that the same town where Card is from?

 

[Lore Listener]

A bit ago I was listening to the Maine NBC affiliate while I tried to finish up some work, and the anchor said officials he spoke to revised the number of fatalities from 22 to “between 15-20.”

Let’s all send hope/prayer/vibes for that to be correct. Horrendous regardless, but even one family less losing their loved one is a huge deal.

 

[LAhiker]

There was a time when ordinary people doing ordinary things were safe - for the most part. I'm sorry if you don't remember those times.

I will grant you that mass shootings have increased over time, as detailed in this graph from this report.

Mass Shooting Factsheet – Rockefeller Institute of Government

rockinst.org

Still, we've had them for quite a while. And of course some groups have been targeted for much longer.

JMO

 

[LadyL]

I imagine that because he was in the Reserves his being committed probably slipped through the cracks because of the time they are required to be there. The fact that he was committed for hearing voices and threatening to shoot up a military base and allowed to keep his firearms blows my mind though. He should have been reported to the police and Maines yellow flag law been put into use.

maybe his guns were confiscated and he got more?

 

[gitana1]

Actually, I don't think that's it at all. There always seems to be some kind of stigma related to mental health in the military and civilian police forces. Many members suffer because of this and don't disclose the challenges they are having. Yet this guy, had already experienced auditory hallucinations. He'd already threatened to shoot people. Just like the guy in Alaska. They still had their weapons and they still killed people.

The very first thing that should done with someone experiencing a mental health crisis is remove weapons because it's more than likely they'd kill themselves which in itself is a tragedy but when they decide to take out numerous innocents its criminally irresponsible. <modsnip: Gun control discussion and debate is not allowed>

Well yeah, if someone reports they’re hearing voices and threatening to shoot people, there should be a protocol to remove their firearms. I think it’s against federal law for someone who has been involuntarily committed, to possess a firearm.

 

[gitana1]

So, he’s still out there? Did he harm himself and that’s why there’s been no more killings? Or is he just laying low for the moment?

 

[MassGuy]

So, he’s still out there? Did he harm himself and that’s why there’s been no more killings? Or is he just laying low for the moment?

I think he’s gotta still be alive, as he apparently switched vehicles. Out of all the mass shootings I’ve followed, this is the strangest and perhaps scariest.

This typically ends quickly, and ends one of three ways.

-The killer is confronted, and kills himself.

-The killer engages law enforcement, and is shot dead.

-The killer surrenders.

Any way you slice it, these guys don’t plan on getting away with it. It appears that this guy did have a plan to at least extend this, to what end, who knows.

Off the top of my head, I can’t think of any mass shooting in recent memory that has gone on this long without a resolution. He’s taken advantage of his rural surroundings, training, and planning, it appears.

There’s an expert shooter on the loose, and they’d better catch him before there’s a round two (those pockets looked heavy in those photos). Hopefully he’s still close by, so he doesn’t get that chance.

 

[ChatteringBirds]

Sincere condolences and support to all of the victims and their families.