Florida video game contest shooting reignites gun rights debate

[webfact]

Florida video game contest shooting reignites gun rights debate

By Scott Malone

 

Police officers cordon off a street outside The Jacksonville Landing after a shooting during a video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida August 26, 2018. REUTERS/Joey Roulette

 

(Reuters) - The slaying of two competitors at a Jacksonville video game tournament on Sunday has stirred the long-simmering gun rights debate in Florida on the eve of its hotly contested state and federal primary elections.

 

With Florida voters scheduled to pick candidates for governor and Congress on Tuesday, some Democratic contenders said the shooting was further evidence of the need for stricter gun legislation while other hopefuls cancelled campaign appearances.

 

"We as society have to come together and say enough of this," Democratic U.S. Senator Bill Nelson told reporters in Jacksonville, near the site of the shooting at a Madden 19 online football game tournament.

 

The violence, which also injured 11 people, was the latest in a series of high-profile shootings in the state, following the killing of 17 students and educators at a high school in February and the massacre of 49 people at an Orlando nightclub in 2016.

 

The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office identified the shooter, who took his own life, as David Katz, 24, of Baltimore. Witnesses told local media Katz was angry because he lost the tournament.

 

Katz was hospitalized twice as a teenager for mental illness and prescribed anti-psychotic and anti-depressant medications, the Baltimore Sun reported, citing his parents' divorce filings.

 

Reuters could not independently confirm the report.

 

Nelson's re-election campaign is facing a November challenge by the state's Republican governor, Rick Scott, in one of the key races that will determine the balance of power in the Senate.

 

Gun rights, which are covered by the Second Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, are one of the most contentious themes of American politics. The debate breaks along party lines, with Republicans typically arguing that better enforcement of existing gun laws is the best way to deter shootings, while Democrats call for more restrictions on weapons ownership.

 

Given the partisan breakdown, the shooting may not change outcomes in Tuesday's primaries where people will pick candidates from within their own parties.

 

'SHAME ON YOU'

State Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam, one of the Republicans seeking to succeed Scott as governor, cancelled a campaign event in Jacksonville and on Twitter said his "prayers continue to be with the victims and their families."

 

Democratic front-runner Gwen Graham called on Putnam and his leading Republican rival, U.S. Representative Ron DeSantis, to offer a stronger policy response.

 

"@AdamPutnam and @RonDeSantisFL are avoiding Jacksonville because they are scared to answer questions on gun violence," Graham said in a Monday Twitter post.

 

DeSantis spokesman Stephen Lawson said it was not the time to talk policy.

 

"We chose not to politicize a tragedy," Lawson said. "This is a sad attempt to score a quick political point while families are still grieving. Shame on you."

 

One of the people slain was Elijah Clayton, 22, of Woodland Hills, California, a representative of his family told reporters on Monday. The other was Taylor Robertson, 27, of Ballard, West Virginia, local media reported, citing family members.

 

Robertson, a husband and father, won the tournament last year and Katz won it the year before, according to Madden publisher EA Sports, the unit of Electronic Arts Inc, which sponsored Sunday's tournament.

 

Katz had two handguns and extra ammunition but appeared to have fired only one gun, Jacksonville Sheriff Mike Williams said at a news conference. Katz bought the guns, at least one of which was equipped with a laser sight, legally in Maryland, Williams said.

Williams said the shooter targeted other gamers.

 

"The suspect walked past patrons who were in other parts of the business and focussed his attention on the gamers," he said.

 

(Reporting by Scott Malone in Boston; additional reporting by Colleen Jenkins in Winston-Salem, North Carolina; Letitia Stein in Tampa, Florida; Bernie Woodall in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Joey Roulette in Jacksonville, Florida; Rich McKay in Atlanta and Gina Cherelus in New York; Editing by Alison Williams, Bill Trott and Lisa Shumaker)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2018-08-28

[Get Real]

Idoits talking again, without no possible change. People in that country think it´s safer the more guns they have. Morons!

[riclag]

32 minutes ago, Get Real said:

Idoits talking again, without no possible change. People in that country think it´s safer the more guns they have. Morons!

Sounds like the guy was a moron not the handgun

[Tug]

A lot of gun owners are a lot are not just just need the tools to tell the difference 

[Snow Leopard]

A simple question and i know all the pro's and cons of gun rights and ownership in the US. I know this is a very sensitive subject for a lot of people with opinions on both sides.

 

How does a person with previous mental illness issues get 2 guns? That's the issue.

 

I think any reasonable person in the US that believes in the right to bear arms would have no issue with a background check being done to show that he or she is fit to carry around a weapon. I think this is done in most US States already but we keep coming back to the same problems again and again.

 

I am from the UK where gun ownership is a difficult process. I know i have owned guns in the past. In the UK right now the biggest issue is knife crimes and stabbings. You cant have a permit issued for every kitchen knife can you? Criminals and idiots always find a way. We still have shootings in the UK as well.

 

The issue is never the weapon or which type of weapon it actually is. It's always the idiot holding it or behind it.. I know one thing for sure about me. If someone entered my property with the intent of hurting my family or stealing my possessions i would have no issue with blowing his head clean off. 

[riclag]

11 minutes ago, Snow Leopard said:

A simple question and i know all the pro's and cons of gun rights and ownership in the US. I know this is a very sensitive subject for a lot of people with opinions on both sides.

 

How does a person with previous mental illness issues get 2 guns? That's the issue.

 

I think any reasonable person in the US that believes in the right to bear arms would have no issue with a background check being done to show that he or she is fit to carry around a weapon. I think this is done in most US States already but we keep coming back to the same problems again and again.

 

I am from the UK where gun ownership is a difficult process. I know i have owned guns in the past. In the UK right now the biggest issue is knife crimes and stabbings. You cant have a permit issued for every kitchen knife can you? Criminals and idiots always find a way. We still have shootings in the UK as well.

 

The issue is never the weapon or which type of weapon it actually is. It's always the idiot holding it or behind it.. I know one thing for sure about me. If someone entered my property with the intent of hurting my family or stealing my possessions i would have no issue with blowing his head clean off. 

Each state has it's own laws. The full details of the guy's past isn't known yet! 

https://www.gunstocarry.com/gun-laws-state/gun-laws-florida/

[lust]

If you think about it. Nearly 400,000,000 Americans. With billions of guns, I’m actually surprised there are not MORE shootings.

[riclag]

3 minutes ago, lust said:

If you think about it. Nearly 400,000,000 Americans. With billions of guns, I’m actually surprised there are not MORE shootings.

 I believe estimated 360 million guns

[Jonnapat]

Read the official 2016 gun related deaths yèsterday, USA v UK.

For every 1 death in the UK there are 423 in the US.

Does no one have the brains to recognise where the problem lies?

[Small Joke]

No need for removing the 2nd. 

These clowns will eventually all shoot each other into extinction. 

Bring It! ?

[riclag]

1 minute ago, Jonnapat said:

Read the official 2016 gun related deaths yèsterday, USA v UK.

For every 1 death in the UK there are 423 in the US.

Does no one have the brains to recognise where the problem lies?

It sounds like a small number of people slide through the many many laws that are in place.In this incident the details about this guy haven't come out yet

 

 

 

 

 

[riclag]

5 minutes ago, Small Joke said:

No need for removing the 2nd. 

These clowns will eventually all shoot each other into extinction. 

Bring It! ?

Thousands of  crimes are deterred because of citizens intervening with guns 

[riclag]

1 hour ago, riclag said:

Each state has it's own laws. The full details of the guy's past isn't known yet! 

https://www.gunstocarry.com/gun-laws-state/gun-laws-florida/

"Florida shooting suspect had history of mental illness, court records show" More details to come ! Look's like the parents and the professional mental illness staff let this guy fall through the cracks. Bad!

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/florida-shooting-david-katz-baltimore-twitch-shooter-mental-illness-gun-laws-a8510311.html

[Becker]

5 minutes ago, riclag said:

"Florida shooting suspect had history of mental illness, court records show" More details to come ! Look's like the parents and the professional mental illness staff let this guy fall through the cracks. Bad!

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/florida-shooting-david-katz-baltimore-twitch-shooter-mental-illness-gun-laws-a8510311.html

Yes, and if he hadn't had access to guns this wouldn't have happened.

[riclag]

4 minutes ago, Becker said:

Yes, and if he hadn't had access to guns this wouldn't have happened.

Yup, Those liberal ACLU people got to get these people help along with people like the parents giving up infoe to the police that this guy had issues! They give gun's a bad name along with the millions who abide by the laws

[Get Real]

4 hours ago, riclag said:

Sounds like the guy was a moron not the handgun

Okey, so easy guns to everybody, means that more morons get guns, right?

[riclag]

1 minute ago, Get Real said:

Okey, so easy guns to everybody, means that more morons get guns, right?

I have know idea what your saying!

[guest879]

I license system like we have here in New Zealand would go a long way to solving this problem. it seems strange it is never even bought up for discussion.

[riclag]

1 minute ago, guest879 said:

I license system like we have here in New Zealand would go a long way to solving this problem. it seems strange it is never even bought up for discussion.

It's not a federal thing as much as it is   each individual state enacts  laws.

[Get Real]

36 minutes ago, riclag said:

I have know idea what your saying!

I know that, you didn´t get anything from the first one you comment either. Cheers and thanks for admitting!

[riclag]

3 minutes ago, Get Real said:

I know that, you didn´t get anything from the first one you comment either. Cheers and thanks for admitting!

I don't understand your meaning perhaps if you can explain your comment another way.

"Okey, so easy guns to everybody",

[Snow Leopard]

3 hours ago, Jonnapat said:

Read the official 2016 gun related deaths yèsterday, USA v UK.

For every 1 death in the UK there are 423 in the US.

Does no one have the brains to recognise where the problem lies?

We all know what the problem is. How do you solve it? 

[Get Real]

55 minutes ago, riclag said:

I don't understand your meaning perhaps if you can explain your comment another way.

"Okey, so easy guns to everybody",

Meaning like if everybody continues to get guns, the morons will also get them. That US gun law in a nutshell, because they do not understand action and reaction.

[Berkshire]

1 hour ago, guest879 said:

I license system like we have here in New Zealand would go a long way to solving this problem. it seems strange it is never even bought up for discussion.

Everything has already been discussed ad nauseam.  But the gun lobby in America, the NRA, is against all of it.  And the lawmakers in the US are deathly afraid of the NRA. 

[riclag]

16 minutes ago, Get Real said:

Meaning like if everybody continues to get guns, the morons will also get them. That US gun law in a nutshell, because they do not understand action and reaction.

So what do we do, take away the millions of guns that people have to protect themselves from the many  people who don't abide and abuse the laws!Sorry that's not going to happen, as long as American's have the right to have them. You don't give up rights because anti gun  people say that it's the only way.Did you know if a gun owner has mental issues in many states they can have their right to own a fire arm taken away only after due process.  In the mean time they are walking around.Thousands of crimes are deterred each year by people who carry.

[lust]

5 hours ago, riclag said:

 I believe estimated 360 million guns

That’s enough for every man, woman and child living there.

[ResandePohm]

5 hours ago, Snow Leopard said:

A simple question and i know all the pro's and cons of gun rights and ownership in the US. I know this is a very sensitive subject for a lot of people with opinions on both sides.

 

How does a person with previous mental illness issues get 2 guns? That's the issue.

 

I think any reasonable person in the US that believes in the right to bear arms would have no issue with a background check being done to show that he or she is fit to carry around a weapon. I think this is done in most US States already but we keep coming back to the same problems again and again.

 

I am from the UK where gun ownership is a difficult process. I know i have owned guns in the past. In the UK right now the biggest issue is knife crimes and stabbings. You cant have a permit issued for every kitchen knife can you? Criminals and idiots always find a way. We still have shootings in the UK as well.

 

The issue is never the weapon or which type of weapon it actually is. It's always the idiot holding it or behind it.. I know one thing for sure about me. If someone entered my property with the intent of hurting my family or stealing my possessions i would have no issue with blowing his head clean off. 

But then you wouldn't take two of your guns to a digital gaming competition. That is the difference. You would use your gun for protection not for vengence. The question then is How to tell the difference.

 

[Get Real]

2 hours ago, riclag said:

You don't give up rights because anti gun  people say that it's the only way

No, of course not, but keeping them because gun lovers like them is totally okey? Or??? Do you realize how meaningless your comment was now?

[starky]

8 hours ago, Snow Leopard said:

A simple question and i know all the pro's and cons of gun rights and ownership in the US. I know this is a very sensitive subject for a lot of people with opinions on both sides.

 

How does a person with previous mental illness issues get 2 guns? That's the issue.

 

I think any reasonable person in the US that believes in the right to bear arms would have no issue with a background check being done to show that he or she is fit to carry around a weapon. I think this is done in most US States already but we keep coming back to the same problems again and again.

 

I am from the UK where gun ownership is a difficult process. I know i have owned guns in the past. In the UK right now the biggest issue is knife crimes and stabbings. You cant have a permit issued for every kitchen knife can you? Criminals and idiots always find a way. We still have shootings in the UK as well.

 

The issue is never the weapon or which type of weapon it actually is. It's always the idiot holding it or behind it.. I know one thing for sure about me. If someone entered my property with the intent of hurting my family or stealing my possessions i would have no issue with blowing his head clean off. 

Yep and how many can you fatally wound a kill with a semi auto pistol compared to a kitchen knife in less than a minute? You reckon the same amount?

[rosst]

8 hours ago, riclag said:

 I believe estimated 360 million guns

Is that just the legal ones?