What To Know Today
Six dead, 12 injured in mass shooting in Sacramento. Gunfire rang out at around 2 a.m. on Sunday as bars closed in the city’s nightlife district and patrons dispersed. Police are searching for at least one suspect and said they were looking into the possibility that an altercation led to the rampage. Some witnesses described hearing fully automatic gunfire, and authorities are investigating whether an automatic weapon was involved. It was the second mass shooting in the capital in five weeks: A man killed his three daughters and a fourth person before turning the gun on himself at a court-ordered custody visit on February 28. Condemning a national epidemic of gun violence, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said, “Thoughts and prayers are not nearly enough. We must do more as a city, as a state, and as a nation.” Related: Last month, The Trace’s Alain Stephens reported in partnership with VICE News that a device called an auto sear, which can convert semi-automatic weapons into full auto, has resulted in a spike in federal prosecutions.
In Dallas, 12 people were shot at a concert, one of them fatally. Police are investigating whether the shooting was prompted by one person firing a gun into the air and someone else firing into the crowd in response. A 26-year-old man was found near the stage with a gunshot wound to his head, and three minors were among the wounded. There were six other mass shootings on Saturday and Sunday, according to the Gun Violence Archive: two in Louisiana and one in California, Colorado, New York, and North Carolina, respectively.
A trauma surgeon in Baltimore is shot on his way to work. Dr. Madhu Subramanian was on his way to the trauma center at Johns Hopkins Hospital, where he specializes in burn treatment and critical care surgery, when he was shot during an attempted carjacking in Northeast Baltimore on Friday morning. His colleagues quickly prepared for Subramanian’s arrival at the hospital, now as a patient. His colleague Dr. Joseph Sakran, who survived a shooting in his youth, tweeted: “I can tell you that the physical wounds will heal much quicker than the emotional / mental trauma that this type of tragic incident has on a person.” Subramanian was treated and released that same day.
Maryland legislature sends gun dealer requirements bill to governor. Following the passage last week of a bill banning the possession and sale of ghost guns, HB 1021 would require federally licensed firearm dealers to lock up weapons after hours and install security cameras, anti-theft measures like bars or grates, a burglary alarm system, and physical barriers that would prevent a “smash-and-grab” involving a vehicle. The bill was sent to Republican Governor Larry Hogan’s desk on Friday, though its passage is furiously opposed by gun rights groups. Context: Our 2019 investigation with The New Yorker, Easy Targets, revealed how gun stores, which are not required to secure the weapons they sell, are vulnerable to thieves.
After victory against troubled gun maker, advocates face down allegedly corrupt gun seller. The ATF last week moved to revoke the license of gun maker JA Industries, a Nevada-based gunmaker that declared bankruptcy and rebranded itself more than once in an attempt to sidestep lawsuits and investigations over its allegedly unscrupulous business practices. The development was the result of a lawsuit filed by government officials in Illinois and Missouri, and Everytown Law, the litigation arm of the gun reform group Everytown for Gun Safety (which provides funding to The Trace). Everytown, alongside the city of Chicago, is also suing Chicago gun seller Westforth Sports, alleging negligence and unlawful sales. ICYMI: As Jennifer Mascia reported last week, gun reform groups have been employing novel strategies to penetrate the gun industry’s special legal protection from most lawsuits, most recently by suing the ATF.
Data Point
107 — the number of gun control laws on the books in California, more than any other state. Massachusetts is second, with 103. [The Sacramento Bee]
