At least 8 people died on Monday, July 3, 2023 in mass shootings that occurred in the states of Texas and Pennsylvania, produced in the hours before the US celebrated Independence Day on Tuesday, a day that, according to statistics, It is usually one of the most violent of the year.
The Philadelphia City Police, in Pennsylvania, reported Tuesday that a man was arrested Monday night after shooting indiscriminately against several people in the Kingsessing neighborhood, in the south-west of the city.
Five people died in this event and two more, two children, ages 2 and 13, were injured. The man was wearing a bulletproof vest and had several magazines, an AR 15 assault rifle and a pistol.
In another violent event in the city of Fort Worth, in the state of Texas, at least three people died and eight were injured (including a minor) after a mass shooting in a parking lot, the city Police Department reported. .
So far no arrests have been made and the motive for the shooting is unknown. The event occurred on the day in which the neighborhood of Como celebrated their local festivals and when in the parking lot there was a large crowd gathered.
According to the Gun Violence Archive (GVA), a non-profit project that follows armed violence in the United States, a mass shooting is one that ends with four victims, whether dead or wounded, not including the perpetrator if he or she is deceased. or suffered injuries during the event. So far in 2023, there have been 346 mass shootings.
These two events were the deadliest in recent hours, in which at least 39 people died in other types of violent events, with dozens of injuries.
In Lansing, Michigan, five people were injured in a shooting at a party early Tuesday morning and four others were injured in another shooting at a home in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The United States celebrates Independence Day this Tuesday, a day that according to statistics usually be more violent than usual.
According to research by Professor James Alan Fox of Northeastern University in Boston, using figures from the Gun Violence Archive, the country has seen five mass shootings every Independence Day on average over the past decade, more than any other. day of the year
Last year, for example, an armed man with a semi-automatic rifle opened fire at a parade 4th of July in Highland ParkIllinois, killing seven people and injuring nearly fifty.
This year, the municipality will hold a remembrance ceremony and a march, without floats or artists, along the route that the parade normally travels.
Through a statement, US President Joe Biden today referred to this event and the need to ban assault weapons, as happened after the shooting in the state of illinois.
“I urge other states to follow Illinois’ example, and I continue to urge Republican lawmakers in Congress to come to the table to make the common-sense, meaningful reforms the American people support,” he said.
Biden called for laws banning assault weapons and high-capacity magazines, rules mandating safe gun storage, ending immunity from liability for weapons manufacturers and that universal background checks be carried out.
The president also made reference to one of the events that has shaken the country in recent hours, the shooting in Baltimore last Sunday, at a party, which ended with the death of two people and 28 wounded.
Baltimore Police continue to search for those responsible and have offered a reward of $28,000 for information leading to an arrest.
During a news conference Monday, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott expressed concern about the outbreak of more violence during the 4th of July gatherings and He stated that a special operation has been launched to react to possible violent events. EFE