Mass shooting

Parents of half a dozen victims of gun violence used artificial intelligence (AI) to recreate their children’s voices in calls to Congress, urging lawmakers to change the country’s gun laws as part of a new campaign launched on the sixth anniversary of the Parkland, Fla., shooting. The Shotline, created by gun control advocacy groups Change the Ref and March For Our Lives, allows people to send the AI-generated voices of six gun violence victims to members of Congress. The voice of Joaquin Oliver — who was…

The Justice Department released a 575-page report last month detailing law enforcement failures that exacerbated the massacre at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. The document identifies groups that were first to respond to the shooting, with one glaring omission: a citizen militia called Patriots for America. Shortly after the gunman was killed on May 24, 2022, members of the Texas-based militia posted footage approximately 40 feet from the shooter’s truck — revealing a loaded semi-automatic rifle that…

Jones, a serial provocateur who founded the far-right website InfoWars, has been ordered to pay nearly $1.5 bn in damages for calling a mass shooting in a school-- "hoax." American radio host Alex Jones reaped millions spouting conspiracy-laden falsehoods that helped drive up sales of products like libido boosters, exploiting an internet ecosystem that experts say makes misinformation a lucrative business.Jones, a serial provocateur who founded the far-right website InfoWars, has been ordered to pay nearly $1.5 billion…

Photo: Spencer Platt (Getty Images)New York’s Attorney General Letitia James wants to criminalize online homicide videos and see revisions to Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act to hold tech platforms liable for propagating violent livestreams.James hopes those proposals, which would almost certainly face legal scrutiny, could potentially help prevent a repeat of the racially motivated Buffalo, New York supermarket shooting that left 10 people dead. Rather than a one off case of evil, James said the Buffalo…

The families of victims of the Fourth of July mass shooting in Highland Park, Ill., are suing gun maker Smith & Wesson Brands Inc. for its alleged role in the attack that left seven dead and dozens injured.The civil lawsuits, filed Wednesday in Lake County Circuit Court, allege Smith & Wesson used deceptive and unfair marketing strategies that violate Illinois law and target “the risk-seeking—and often troubling—desires” of “disturbed young men.”  The gunmaker’s actions, the families…

The AR-15 is one of the most controversial weapons in America.Lightweight and easily customizable AR-15 style weapons have skyrocketed in popularity in recent years, taking center stage at gun ranges and shooting competitions across the country. Advocates say the weapons are a symbol of freedom, and important for personal safety."I am smaller and less capable to handle violence, and a firearm is the great equalizer," said Dianna Muller founder of the DC Project, which advocates for firearm education. "I go to bed…

Fourth of July parades and fireworks were interrupted in at least five U.S. cities by crowds fleeing what they thought were mass shooters on Monday. But only two of the incidents involved firearms, while the other three were misunderstandings that sent people running for their lives in a country overflowing with anxiety and drowning in guns.The danger was very real in some of those cities, like Highland Park, Illinois, where six people were killed and at least 36 were injured in a mass shooting, despite the area being…

Security camera footage from 11:52 a.m. at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 24, 2022, where cops with rifles just waited around as kids and teachers were massacred.Screenshot: Robb Elementary School / KVUE / YouTubeSecurity camera images leaked from inside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, where a mass shooting took place on May 24, reveal police officers were present with high powered rifles and ballistic shields, but stood around for over an hour, as 19 young students and two teachers were…

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) speaks at a rally with gun violence prevention organizations, gun violence survivors and hundreds of gun safety supporters demanding gun legislation, ouside the United States Capitol in Washington, June 8, 2022.Evelyn Hockstein | ReutersThe House on Wednesday passed a sweeping gun bill that would raise the minimum age to purchase an assault rifle in the U.S. from 18 to 21, even though the legislation doesn't stand much of a chance in the Senate.The bill, called the Protecting Our…

Kimberly Rubio broke down into tears as she described her ambitious and compassionate 10-year-old daughter Lexi to a room full of lawmakers who are weighing tighter gun laws following the massacre in Uvalde, Texas that took Lexi's life along with 18 of classmates and two teachers."We don't want you to think of Lexi as just a number. She was intelligent, compassionate and athletic. She was quiet, shy unless she had a point to make," she said Wednesday, crying next to her husband Felix at a hearing before the House…