The drama immediately reignited the debate about the ravages of guns, the leading killer of minors in the United States.
The assailant, a 28-year-old woman, was armed at least two assault rifles and a pistol
detailed the spokesman for the local police, Don Aaron, during a press conference.
In the middle of the morning, she entered through a secondary door into the premises of a small private Christian school, The Covenant School, of which she would be, according to the first elements of the investigation, a former student.
She crossed the ground floor, then headed for the first floor firing numerous shots. Three children were fatally affected, along with three adults
and there are no other victims, detailed Mr. Aaron.
Officers were quickly dispatched to the scene. After hearing shots upstairs, they went there. immediately
returned and have kill
the assailant, who was pronounced dead at 10:27 a.m. (11:27 a.m. EDT), a quarter of an hour after the first call for help, he continued.
Later that day, law enforcement conducted a search of his home and discovered a map showing the accesses
from school and a manifesto with some writings
said John Drake, local police chief.
While praising law enforcement for their quick response, President Joe Biden expressed his shock at the crime repugnant
.
Gun violence tears at the very soul of our nation
he commented from the White House, again calling on Congress to ban assault rifles.
The Democrat has long pleaded for the US Congress to prohibit or restrict the possession of these weapons designed to cause maximum casualties, but he comes up against the refusal of elected opposition officials.
How many more children will have to be killed before Republicans in Congress
agree to ban this type of weapon? was indignant the spokesperson for the White House, Karine Jean-Pierre. Enough is enough.
Republican elected officials from the state of Tennessee, of which Nashville is the capital, also expressed their emotion on social networks, being careful not to raise the sensitive subject of firearms.
I am devastated and heartbroken over the tragic news from the Covenant School
tweeted Republican Senator Bill Hagerty. Her colleague Marsha Blackburn called for pray
for the victims.
In the United States, since the beginning of the year, 129 mass shootings have broken out, including 19 in schools.
Photo : Associated Press / Andrew Nelles
A recurring phenomenon
About 400 million firearms are in circulation in the United States, where they caused more than 45,000 deaths in 2020, by suicide, accident or homicide, according to the latest figures published by the Centers for Prevention and diseases (CDC).
In addition, for the first time that year, weapons became the leading cause of death among young people aged 1 to 19, with 4,368 deaths, ahead of car accidents and overdoses, according to CDC.
Bloodbaths in schools represent only a tiny portion of the total, but mark the spirits more.
The United States was particularly shaken by the carnage committed in 2012 in a school in Sandy Hook, Connecticut (20 children killed), and in May 2022 in Uvalde, Texas (19 children and 2 teachers).
Between these two tragedies, a massacre committed in 2018 in a high school in Parkland, Florida, sparked a vast national movement, carried by young victims, to demand stricter supervision of individual weapons.
Since the beginning of 2023
- 129 mass shootings have broken out in the United States
- 19 of these shootings took place in schools
Source : Gun Violence Archive
Despite the mobilization of more than a million demonstrators, Congress failed to enact meaningful reforms, as many elected officials were under the influence of the powerful National Rifle Association (NRA) pressure group and were anxious not to not displease a majority still very attached to the right to bear arms.
Joe Biden’s calls to ban assault rifles are hardly more likely to succeed. An ABC News poll/Washington Post of February showed that 51% of Americans oppose it and that only 47% are in favor.