News

Gunman In Monterey Park, California Mass Shooting Dead By Suicide

Ten people have died in Monterey Park, California, following two shootings during Lunar New Year celebrations. Police believe they found the alleged gunman’s body in a nearby panel van, killed by a self-inflicted wound.

Five men and five women were slain during Saturday’s celebrations in two dance halls. Police believe that the victims were all in their 50s and 60s and added they were all “probably” of Asian descent.

Ten more were injured and taken to the local hospital.

Police Chief Scott Wiese called the devastation of the first dancehall a “scene of carnage.”

Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!

A week of political news in your in-box.
We find the news you need to know, so you don't have to.

“They came across a scene none of them have prepared for,” Wiese said of his officers. “There were injured people inside and dead people inside. My young officers did their job.”

The gunman entered a second dancehall seemingly intent on more carnage when bystanders disarmed him. He was believed to be seen carrying a semi-automatic weapon with bump stocks, both illegal in the state of California.

Asian-American immigrants heavily populate Monterey Park. Many residents were celebrating the Lunar New Year during the shooting; 2023 is the year of the rabbit.

The violence in Monterey Park is another deeply unsettling example of violence perpetuated against the Asian-American community. It also illustrates the brutality of the U.S.’s gun violence epidemic.

According to the Gun Violence Archives, a non-profit organization that compiles violent crime figures from 7,500 police station records across the U.S., the shooting is the 33rd mass shooting in the U.S. in 2023. The archives define a “mass shooting” as a gun-violence event where at least four victims are hurt or killed by a gun.

Monterey Park’s violence is the deadliest in the U.S. since the Uvalde, Texas, shooting in May 2022 that killed 22.

Ben Shimkus

Recent Posts

After Biden Commutes Sentences Of 1,500 People, GOP Critics Call It A Ploy To Deflect From Pardon Of Son Hunter

Last week, President Joe Biden announced that he would pardon 39 people and commute the prison sentences…

19 hours ago

GOP Rep. Chip Roy Rants Against His Own Party For Backing Debt-Raising Bill, Trump Calls For A Primary Opponent Against Him

Rep. Chip Roy (R-Texas) condemned his fellow Republican lawmakers during a rant on the House floor after…

1 day ago

VIDEO: Rep Mike Waltz Does 44 Pushups After Army’s 31-13 Loss Against Navy in Annual Football Match

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_kYWlyzuiMk Rep. Mike Waltz did 44 pushups to honor a bet after the Army football…

2 days ago

‘President’ Elon Musk Slammed By Democrats After He Tanks Bipartisan Spending Bill To Avert Shutdown

In a series of X posts on Wednesday, the platform's CEO Elon Musk criticized a bipartisan spending…

2 days ago

Biden Doubts His Legacy As He Hands Over Power To The Man He Called ‘A Threat To Democracy’

"You can't love your country only when you win." President Joe Biden has repeated this phrase to…

3 days ago

Top Democrat On House Ethics Committee, Rep. Susan Wild, Misses Meeting After Report On Matt Gaetz Leaks

Rep. Susan Wild (D-Pennsylvania), the top Democrat on the House Ethics Committee, missed a committee meeting after…

4 days ago