Jacksonville Shooting: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Faces Boos At Vigil For Victims of Racist Attack
Jacksonville Shooting: Florida Governor Ron DeSantis Faces Boos at Vigil for Victims of Racist Attack.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis found himself in a contentious situation as he attended a vigil honoring the victims of a racially motivated shooting in Jacksonville.
Hundreds gathered on Sunday to pay their respects to the three victims of this tragic incident.
DeSantis, a Republican candidate for president known for his stance on loosening gun laws in the state and his criticism of what he terms “woke ideology,” encountered vocal opposition from the crowd in Jacksonville.
He was forced to step back from the microphone, and the situation became so tense that a member of the city council had to intervene, urging the crowd to listen.
“It ain’t about parties today,” emphasized Ju’Coby Pittman, adding, “A bullet doesn’t know a party.”
Eventually, DeSantis, who is 44 years old, was able to address the crowd. He condemned the gunman as a “scumbag,” a statement that garnered applause from some in attendance.
Approximately 200 people gathered at the vigil, which was held in a predominantly black neighborhood just a few yards away from the Dollar General shop where the shooting took place the day before.
The shooting unfolded when 21-year-old Ryan Christopher Palmeter fired eleven rounds at 52-year-old Angela Carr, who was seated in her vehicle, before entering the store and fatally shooting two more individuals.
Nineteen-year-old Anolt Laguerre Jr., who worked at the Dollar General, was tragically killed while attempting to escape the scene.
Jerrald De’Shaun Gallion, 29, was shot and killed upon entering the premises. Another woman was pursued but managed to evade harm.
Police arrived swiftly, and the attacker turned his gun on himself, dying at the scene. Both an AR-15 semi-automatic rifle and a Glock handgun, obtained legally, were used in the shooting.
Authorities have stated that the gunman was driven by racist hatred.
Sheriff TK Waters admitted, “He knew what he was doing.”. He was 100% lucid.” He went on to unequivocally declare, “Finely put: this shooting was racially motivated, and he hated black people.”
In the wake of the tragedy, it was revealed that the shooter had left behind a series of racist messages, described by police as resembling “the diary of a madman.”
Furthermore, it has come to light that in 2017, the gunman was detained for 72 hours under mental health legislation that permits involuntary detainment for treatment.
He was subsequently released following the examination, which explains why this information did not appear on his background checks when he purchased the firearms.
