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Updated at 1pm
SUSPECTED GUNMAN NIKOLAS Cruz has been charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder after 17 people were killed during a school shooting in Florida.
Broward County Sheriff Scott Israel told reporters yesterday evening that 12 people were killed inside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. The others died outside the school premises.
Cruz was armed with an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and was carrying multiple magazines of ammunition when he was arrested in a nearby residential area.
17 patients were taken Broward Health hospitals with injuries. 8 patients were taken to Broward Health North hospital – two subsequently died, three are in critical condition and three are in stable condition. The suspect was taken to hospital for treatment.
Speaking to reporters yesterday evening, a doctor from Broward Health North said: ”We routinely run drills to be ready for instances like this. We have a process in place that gets initiated so there is calm, collected care that our patients receive.”
He said that three patients were undergoing surgery, but were in a stable condition.
The doctors declined to comment on the ages of those injured.
Israel identified the gunman as Nikolas Cruz, 19, a former student at the school who had been expelled for “disciplinary reasons,” but was currently enrolled in Broward County Public Schools.
Cruz, whose fellow students described him as “troubled,” was arrested without incident in the nearby town of Coral Springs after the Valentine’s Day rampage and taken to hospital with minor injuries, the sheriff said.
“We have already begun to dissect his websites and things on social media that he was on and some of the things… are very, very disturbing,” Israel said.
If a person is predisposed to commit such a horrific event by going to a school and shooting people … there’s not anybody or not a lot law enforcement can do about it.
It is understood that the shooter began shooting outside the school and proceeded inside.
Israel says the man had at least one rifle and multiple magazines.
Reactions
US president Donald Trump tweeted his condolences to those affected by the shooting yesterday evening.
“My prayers and condolences to the families of the victims of the terrible Florida shooting. No child, teacher or anyone else should ever feel unsafe in an American school,” Trump said.
The shooting, one of several in the United States since the start of the year, will once again throw the spotlight on the country’s epidemic of gun violence and the ready accessibility of weapons, with 33,000 gun-related deaths annually.
Len Murray’s 17-year-old son, a junior at the school, sent his parents a text around 2.30pm: “Mom and Dad, there have been shots fired on campus at school. There are police sirens outside. I’m in the auditorium and the doors are locked.”
A few minutes later, he texted again: “I’m fine.”
Ambulances converged in front of the school, and TV news broadcasts showed at least one person being wheeled to an ambulance on a gurney.
Live footage also showed emergency workers appearing to treat possibly wounded people on the sidewalks. It wasn’t immediately clear how many were wounded.
Television footage showed police in olive fatigues, with weapons drawn, entering the school, then dozens of children frantically running and walking quickly out.
[image alt="School Shooting Florida" src="http://cdn.thejournal.ie/media/2018/02/school-shooting-florida-4-296x195.jpg" width="296" height="195" credit-source="WPLG-TV" credit-via="AP" caption="Students%20exiting%20the%20school%20after%20being%20alerted%20to%20an%20active%20shooter" class="alignnone" /end]
A police officer waved the students on, urging them to quickly evacuate. Some students exited the building in single-file rows with hands raised overhead to show they carried no weapons.
Others held onto other students as they made their way out past helmeted police in camouflage with weapons drawn.
The Broward Schools department said on its website earlier yesterday evening that it had received reports of “possible multiple injuries” and was dismissing students. The department said students and staff heard what sounded like gunfire and the school immediately went on lockdown.
Murray said he raced to the school only to be stopped by authorities under a highway overpass within view of the school buildings. He said he told his son to save his battery and stop texting, while the boy’s mother told him to turn off his ringer.
‘I love you’
Murray said he had just one thought running through his mind since he got his son’s text: “All I keep thinking about is when I dropped him off this morning – I usually say, ‘I love you’, and I didn’t think this morning.
“He’s 17, he’s at that age, and I didn’t say it this morning, and I’m just kicking myself right now over and over and over. Say it early and often, I’m telling you.”
The high school is a sprawling complex set on a track in the South Florida community of Parkland, about 70 kilometres north of downtown Miami.
The school had just over 3,100 students in the 2016-2017 academic year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. Major streets run along two sides and an expressway passes nearby on the other not far from a residential neighbourhood of single-family homes.
Coral Springs Police have warned the local public to avoid the area. The school was placed on lockdown following the shooting, as students and teachers were barricaded in.
‘Just a horrible day for us’
Teacher Melissa Falkowski told US networks that she had helped 19 students squeeze into a closet with her.
“We were in there for probably 40 minutes. We were locked in the closet until SWAT came and got us,” she told CNN.
Police officers in helmets, bulletproof vests and armed with automatic weapons could be seen stationed at several points around the sprawling school complex, which serves nearly 3,000 students.
“Just a horrible day for us,” said the superintendent of the county’s school district, Robert Runcie.
“This is very sad to me and our family too,” 61-year-old Joseph Panikulangara, whose 17-year-old niece Dhiya attends the school, told AFP.
The FBI said it was assisting local law enforcement with the investigation.
When asked about security, Hunschofsky said a police officer is always stationed at the school and there is a “single point of entry.”
With reporting by Associated Press and AFP
Here come the trump types who spent the last few days here screeching their defence of the policy, only now they’ll claim their great leader was wise to want to end it.
@Chucky Arlaw: not the brightest bunch
@neilo: ahh so politican or leader has made a wrong judgement when it comes to a decision of regret. Got ya. ! Whoo thanks for clearing that up.
@neilo: whatabout the Dems, crooked Hillary, Obama, the emails!! Whatabout the EMAILLSSS!! Deep state, snowflake, make America great, Chinese Leberal hoax, fake news, conspiracy, deep state conspiracy, pizzagate, liberal hoax #alternate facts
@neilo: Still waiting on Mr. Fake Facebook send me your name, address, copy of passport clown “Joe Caulfeld” to come on, along with that wet behind the ears kid “Daniel Carson” and “Sleepy Eyes Chuck Todd” etc…
@neilo: Its thoroughly depressing to read the drivel spouted by them
@Mark Fitzmaurice: haha them, que( Darth Vader theme song).
@neilo: please look up The NY Times 2014/2015 same photos same reason. When a Parent is arrested the children cannot be taken into custody with them it’s a law that goes back to the 90s. Obama had it wrong also. If they go to a border post they will not be arrested and can claim asylum they will not be separated. They only get arrested When they cross illegally.
@james s: except when they get to a border post they are being turned away whether they seek asylum or not which leaves illegal entry or returning to whatever persuaded them to travel thousands of miles in perilous conditions. They have tried to do it the right way.
@james s: yea,all 11 MILLION of them
@neilo:
My basic point is Republican, Democrat, Trump, Obama there all the same.
@Dave O Keeffe: incorrect when you claim refugee status they have to process you. But unlike here it doesn’t take years. Most likely they’re not legitimate refugees that’s why they choose the illegal crossing
@james s: https://www.theatlantic.com/video/index/563084/us-border-asylum/ stop lying child
This guy is out of control, strangely moving towards a dictator state.
How telling the only other foreign leader he gets on with is Kim. Who has his opponents (uncles) saveged to death by starving dogs.
The world should organise a boycott of American goods including movies untill they sort him out.
@Cathal Leonard: that wasn’t true about feeding the uncle to dogs and the boycott you describe will hurt the American people who are as bewildered by all of this as we are.
@Keith Fay: I know kim is cool a nice guy and we should just be nice to each other ahhhhh.
@Cathal Leonard: i think he’s a sc-mbag… but he still didn’t feed his uncle to dogs and you are wrong to call for a boycott of innocent americans
@Keith Fay: I guess you are all for removing the sanctions on Russia then, why should innocent Russians suffer for Putin’s actions?
@Zmeevo Libe: You know what, I have a lot of friends in Russia who are not complaining. You do know the difference between a boycott and a sanction? a sanction is usually aimed at affecting the government, a boycoot can affect governments too but also people, the man on the street. Some guy growing vegetables having his food boycotted because it comes from the US etc etc
@Cathal Leonard: should boycott you !
@Cathal Leonard: Humorous comment. How is America moving towards a dictator state. What institutions of democracy have been infringed here?
Very misleading headline. TDS…
Congress makes the laws this one was jointl made by both parties). Trump is choosing to enforce it (Obama decided not to). The Republicans are now going to change the law.
Btw, any “family” that walks up to a border crossing and asks for asylum will not be split up (but will be detained). It’s only those that get caught illegally crossing and then claim they are looking for asylum that are detained seperatly.
It was the very left wing 9th circuit that created this problem.
@neilo: I’m not sure if the last sentence is saying I’m lying? If so. Bad form. I just the facts.
Donald Trump is choosing to enforce the law. Obama choose not to. The President cannot make laws. Only Congress.
This is manufactured outrage.
@Fiasco99: Youre talking total BS there, stop trying to twist the facts in order to defend this Trumpian policy
@Fiasco99: yawn lies, lies, lies
@Fiasco99: FACT: families walk up to border crossings are being turned away regardless of what they say. FACT: That leaves families with the option of entering illegally or returning the the situation that was bad enough for them to need to walk thousands of miles to seek asylum in America. FACT: Arresting asylum seekers is a Trump/Sessions policy.
@neilo: well congratulations, you’ve won nothing ! He’ll still be president.
@Dave O Keeffe: fact, they are aware of the consequences, of being migrants an this might occur?
@neilo: thank you for knowing me, your so intellectual. Ohhh this is about popularity. Well sh#t
@neilo: notice how they always shoehorn Obama in there. Even though everybody knows he’s got nothing to do with this… Like Obama or not, he didn’t spend 8 whole years saying “Bush did it”.
@neilo: em, I don’t care because our opinion has now consequence at all.( I know there’s a radiohead song in their somewhere)
@neilo: sean Hannity, how did you know ? Ah shucks ! Well I guess my politcal identity is over now. Thank you for telling me who my media political hero’s are, on tv. You know me better than I do,
@neilo: as you would !
@Jonathan Byrne: fact, They are trying to do it the legal way and not being allowed to do that by border police. Fact, having a hit out on you as a cop in Mexico fighting a cartel is not grounds for asylum anymore because Sessions said so.
@neilo: do you do stand up? Because that’s hilarious,
@Fiasco99: erm , you are not helping – this shouldn’t be a partisan issue , a pro trump anti trump issue , it should be about how to treat people humanely under the circumstances regardless of the politics – it is not acceptable in this day and age to inflict misery by splitting families, especially the long term damage on the kids – building new tents and cages to manage that process which was in effect IMPOSED by this administration by their introduction of a new Zero tolerance policy – it is a policy not a law. The President has the power to change the policy not congress – – oh – and you are being an idiot.
@Dave Hammond: your name calling me for some fairly middle of the road comments that even the Democratic party were agreeing with as recent as 2014.
And I’m not being helpful?
Manufacturered outrage. And apparently you are out raged.
@Fiasco99: i wasn’t named calling you… i was pointing out your were an idiot… this idiotic policy and what you called the manufactured outrage has seen the administration to buckle and the President has announced he will sign an order to stop the separations ( as I predicted earlier today ) – but your pretty selfish and totally classless attitude to the problem is there for all to see in your comments. I am sure you are proud of yourself.
Too late. His Katrina moment has happened.
@DJ François:
I hope you are right, but I doubt it.
@DJ François: How many Katrina moment’s need to happen before someone sorts this horrific human out.
@Kevin Conway: How? If he gets toppled then Pence takes over by-default for ATLEAST 18 months.
Trump is a brash embarrassing mouth-piece but Pence; now that’s a man that would scare the colour out of Old’Scratch
@P.J. Nolan: No I agree this is a Katrina moment of sorts for Trump himself , how he handles major issues that resonate with people that can occur and cut thru the partisan politics can be pretty defining – it’s already been in the mainstream US news cycle for a few days that the quick fix would be for HIM to just pick up the phone , halt the new zero tolerance policy and then sort out – but he is JUST playing politics with it – they will put a band-aid fix in this week – but he missed the chance to be decisive and act like a President for all Americans this week -politically he chose to be partisan – blame the democrats for everything and rally his base instead – everyone knows he wants funding for his wall and is using tearing families apart as some sort of negotiating tactic – i think they will be punished in midterms in November and try hard as he may to claim HE fixed the mess at the border – the majority will only think he made the problem worse. Sad to see America in such moral decline.
The greatest President in the history of the United States.
@Mark Jones: ……was Barrack Obama…..
just finished your statement for you.
@Dotty Dunleary: Fake news
@Dotty Dunleary: I like Obama but Lincoln was probably the best……. I read Team of Rivals, at points I was like “they’re making this up, no way this guy was THIS good” but it was meticulously indexed and researched…..
So, I’d have to go with Lincoln if picking the best US President ever.
@Tricia G: Sure, Nixon was even better than the Trump and his child prisons..
@Mark Jones: I really wouldn’t go that far Mark, greatest since Reagan perhaps. No comparing him to presidents such as Lincoln, Washington or Calvin Coolidge.
@Tricia G: Agreed.
It won’t take long for Trump to congratulate himself over twitter for overturning Obama’s cruel immigration policy
@alphanautica: and rightly so
This is only starting to be a PR disaster? Says enough about Republicans. And the fact that they believe him is a joke. He could just turn around and withdraw his support and no one here would even blink. The man is pure evil.
@Deborah Behan: yes pure evil, gotta love those action catchphrases. If ya look up a history book say from the last century then there was actions of evil. In comparison to now, ya having a laugh.
@Deborah Behan: so now you’re worried about children …wow
@Joe O’riordan: children are born,ffs..
@Joe O’riordan: sounds like she’s a lot more worried than you.
“solve the border crisis and family separation issue by allowing for family detention and removal”.
Family detention means the kids will be placed in holding cells with adult and young males while being processed and waiting for removal. Is this really safer for the kids ? Would the Supreme court allow kids to be incarcerated in this manner ? The same people who opposed separation will now oppose incarceration.
Either way Trump closes the loophole. Fair play to him.
@neilo: Please post your real name with an open account so I can respond to your post.
@neilo: when one of your election backers are folks that will benefit the most from having these people locked up,then it’s best not to deport them straight away..
please don’t respond Joe
thanks
@Francis Mc Carthy: Which election backer benefits from locking them up?
@Joe Caulfield: Are you asking if putting families in supervised detention centres is better than creating thousands of unaccompanied minors and locking them in cages where they are forced to change the nappies of the infant children amongst them due to lack of care?
@Dave O Keeffe: Are you endorsing the incarceration of children in a zoo with potential pedophiles, drug traffickers, gang members etc ?
Do you think the Supreme Court will allow the incarceration of toddlers ?
@Francis Mc Carthy: Conspiracy theory .
@Joe Caulfield: are you avoiding answering a straight forward question? Hint: mass incarceration of toddlers is what this policy is, the supreme court are allowing it. The detention centres allow them to be with their families.n
@neilo: looks like you’ve been proven to be correct.oh well..
Liberals live babies being cut up and aborted from their mother’s womb and tossed into trash cans or dissected for stem cells. Cry because illegals cannot just march into the country without going through processing and rightfully being separated from their children temporarily after committing a crime, even though they KNEW THIS when they chose to come in, and could turn around at any point.
@Daniel Doran: The key to good trolling is adding some nuance so you’re not so obvious.
C-
Must try harder.
@Daniel Doran: The Democrats want to incarcerate the kids in large holding cells with adult males. Would it not be safer to place them in a separate situation while the parents are processed ?
@Kem Trayle: you would know from experience of course, or how would you know?
@Jonathan Byrne: If you’re going to back up a fellow troll you must use proper English, or at least try to make some sense.
I’ll give that a D- and that’s being generous.
@Kem Trayle: how about actually actually replying to my argument instead of sinking to ad hominem?
@Kem Trayle: thank you , general Grammer, without you I’d be lost understanding the meaning of something if I didn’t spell it right
@Joe Caulfield: why are you responding to a person that has a fake profile ? Is it because you are in agreement with him ? Ahhh,So that is how it works with you…bless
@Francis Mc Carthy: Didn’t see his account was closed. Don’t worry won’t be responding to him again. Just goes to show what a problem anonymity is on this site.
@Daniel Doran: yes , most of us reasonably intelligent adults can agree that the illegal immigration issue needs to be managed – many are not asking for them to be admitted to the US , just asking that they don’t split up the kids from the families as this newly introduced zero tolerance is doing – it is damaging and traumatising young kids thats all- they need to manage the problem differently…..which they will after this clusterfukk of a policy roll out , but seriously just saying that they could turn around at any point is completely missing the point. Seriously are u 12 or something ?
@Daniel Doran: when there’s a gun at the back of your head it’s probably best not to turn around. For some of these people even this separation is better than the alternative. Better doesn’t mean right though. Asylum seekers are being denied legal entry making illegal entry the only option.
@Daniel Doran: You didn’t make an argument, you just spouted the usual troll list of trigger words. Ad hominem is sometimes a valid response.
@Joe Caulfield: “the democrats want to incarcerate the kids in large holding cells with adult males” yeah, adult males aka dad
Liberals you say United States is horrible place, horrible health care, “Nazi” leader, concentration camps… a oppressive horrible regime… if this is the case why do immigrants risk life and freedom, AND their children’s lives and freedom to get in?
If it is so horrible, why do they go there?
@Daniel Doran: because compared to the dangers and conditions they are fleeing it is infinitely better. Idiot.
@Daniel Doran: many are fleeing the very things Trump claims they are bringing. Did you know that death threats from cartels are no longer grounds for asylum in America? Even if you’re a cop in the area the cartel are operating.
@Daniel Doran: yeah an a lot of same agree with his and American stance on Palestinian border issues. Hypocrites
Just like with DPRK, trump saves us from a disaster of his own making, and were supposed to be grateful. Plato’s democratic paradox – idiots can vote. What ruinous games are next up? US/UK have lost international credibility with outright lies to their people, serving only the wealthiest, turning the gullible majority against the minority. NATO’s next..whilst Putin builds his Rusasia. We need a JFK to unite the centrists, and yes he wasn’t perfect but leagues above these fools.
@General Info: the only person I know with that type of psudeo intellect with politics, would be karl Marx.
Making besties with a murderous dictator.
Insults the PM of his closest neighbor.
Puts innocent children into cages away from their families and says its for their own good.
Now he’s after pulling out of the UN Human Rights Council.
Whats next?
@Stephen Deegan: next is more support for Israel
@Stephen Deegan: i hate to think how far this mentally unstable maniac could go if left unchecked.
Yeh ! Sure why not. I could name a worse one and a better one, depending on your perception of what makes the best President.
@Jonathan Byrne: One that doesnt lie, alienate all his countries allies, and make a complete fool of himself constantly would be a start
@Dave Harris: we should all know by now that the American people don’t vote for those types.
@Dave Harris: james Buchanan, Richard Nixon, Gerald ford, the list goes on.
United States of America:
Land of internment camps.
http://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2018/06/20/pers-j20.html
Ah yeah tis terrible at Mexican border but a ok at Palestinian borders.
The Democrats won’t support either bill…
@Dumb as a Rock Mika: you know republicans have control, right? They don’t need the democrats support.
Good to hear he’s taking steps to end this unethical policy. It’s up to the legislature now.
@Daniel Carson: no it’s not,it never was. It was a policy change. They closed the legal entry points making asylum impossible.
have your say