A man who arrived at the scene of the Allen, Texas, mass shooting said he found a girl with 'no face' and a mother who died protecting her son from bullets

[aubiefifty 18,259]

A man who arrived at the scene of the Allen, Texas, mass shooting said he found a girl with 'no face' and a mother who died protecting her son from bullets: 'It's just unfathomable to see the carnage.'

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Lloyd Lee

Sun, May 7, 2023 at 2:05 AM CDT

People raise their hands as they leave Allen Premium Outlets, where a mass shooting killed at least nine people on May 6, 2023.LM Otero/AP

At least 8 people were killed after a mass shooting on Saturday at an Allen, Texas, shopping center.

One man jumped into action after his son, who works at the mall, called about a potential shooting.

The father told a CBS News affiliate about the "carnage" he witnessed when he arrived at the scene.

A man who rushed to the Allen, Texas, shopping center where at least eight people were killed in a mass shooting on Saturday afternoon said he witnessed a horrific scene of "carnage," CBS News affiliate KTVT reported.

Steven Spainhouer told the news outlet that he immediately went to Allen Premium Outlets after his son, who worked at an H&M store at the mall, called about a shooting. He said he arrived at the location before emergency responders and quickly tried to provide aid.

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"I never imagined in a hundred years I would be thrust into the position of being the first responder on the side to take care of people," Spainhouer told KTVT.

As he tried to provide CPR to victims, Spainhouer, holding back tears, told a KTVT news reporter J.D. Miles that he knew there were at least three people he couldn't help, including a girl and a mother.

"The first girl I walked up to was crouched down, covering her head in the bushes. So I felt for a pulse, pulled her head to the side, and she had no face," he told the local outlet.

Spainhouer said he also found a child covered by his mother, who had died in the attack.

"When I rolled the mother over, he came out, and I asked him, 'Are you okay?' And he said, 'My mom is hurt. My mom is hurt,'" Spainehouer recalled. "So rather than traumatize him any more I put him around the corner, sat him down. He was covered from head to toe like somebody had poured blood on him."

Spainhouer's son was not injured in the incident. Spainhouer told KTVT that the scene he witnessed was life-altering.

"No one can see what they saw today and not be affected by it. It's not a situation that I would wish upon anybody. It's just unfathomable to see the carnage," he said.

At least nine people were killed in the mass shooting — the second such incident in the state about a week after five people were shot in San Jacinto County.

Allen Fire Department Chief Jonathan Boyd said in a press conference that seven people, including the suspected shooter, were found dead at the scene, while two others died after they were transported to local hospitals. Seven people were still hospitalized at the time of the conference, with three in "critical surgery," he said.

Read the original article on Insider

[wdefromtx 3,611]

This is about 10 minutes from my house. We go there all the time. 

[aubiefifty 18,259]

yahoo.com

 

Texas congressman says people who think 'prayers aren't cutting it' as a solution to gun violence 'don't believe in an almighty god who is absolutely in control of our lives.' 9 people died in a mass shooting in his district today.

Lloyd Lee

3–4 minutes

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GOP Rep. Keith Self in the House chamber on January 4, 2023.Alex Brandon/AP

 

• At least eight people were killed after a mass shooting at an Allen, Texas, mall on Saturday.

• WFAA-TV reported that some of the victims may include children.

• Rep. Keith Self told CNN that prayer is "powerful" for families devastated by mass shootings.

A Republican congressman representing Allen, Texas — where a mass shooting killed at least eight people on Saturday — said people who don't believe in the power of prayer following a violent incident aren't believers of an "almighty god" after he was asked what his response would be to people who feel prayers are not the solution to mass shootings.

Authorities responded to a shooting at Allen Premium Outlets — a mall near Dallas, Texas — around 3:40 p.m. Allen Fire Department Chief Jonathan Boyd said in a press conference that seven people were found dead at the scene, while two more died after they were transported to area hospitals. Seven others were also injured, according to the fire chief. WFAA-TV reported that some of the victims could include children.

During an interview with CNN, Rep. Keith Self called for prayer in light of the mass shooting, which included injured victims as young as 5 years old.

When a CNN reporter asked what his response was to people who feel "prayers aren't cutting it," the congressman said, "Well, those are people that don't believe in an almighty god who is absolutely in control of our lives."

"I'm a Christian. I believe that he is," Self said.

Self also said he wanted to avoid making the tragic incident political but then pointed to the violence in "big cities" after being asked if he was concerned about the rise of violent incidents across the US.

The congressman said he was "absolutely" concerned with increasing violence in the country and mentioned Chicago — a city with a population of 2.697 million where crime spiked in 2022 — as an example while stating Allen was a "very safe area."

According to Census data, Allen, a suburb about 25 miles north of Dallas, has a population of 106,874 and had one reported homicide in 2020.

"Any time there is violence, whether it be in one of the big cities — riots or trashing of stores in Chicago — or shootings like this. This is a very safe area. This is not usual. I know that we hear about the numbers of deaths in Chicago. This is not usual in this area," Self said. "So I'm certainly concerned about this."

Republicans have repeatedly turned to crime in America as a platform talking point, framing it as an issue specific to large, Democratically-run cities.

While overall homicides increased domestically in 2020, an analysis by Third Way, a public policy think tank, found that murder rates are higher in "Trump-voting red states" than "Biden-voting blue states."

"In 2020, per capita murder rates were 40% higher in states won by Donald Trump than those won by Joe Biden," according to Third Way's report.

A spokesperson for Rep. Self did not return a request for comment.

[aubiefifty 18,259]

7 minutes ago, wdefromtx said:

This is about 10 minutes from my house. We go there all the time. 

let me say that as much as we cuss,fuss, and argue i am truly glad you and yours are ok.

[AUDynasty 631]

199th mass shooting in 124 days. Reading the survivor's words about finding a girl with no face is heartbreaking. There are graphic pictures of mangled bodies with guts spilling over on Twitter if you want to look. This is the reality of America. We're perfectly fine with this kind of russian roulette of carnage that may happen from Los Angeles to neighboring state you live in to a local grocery store you frequent.

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

1 hour ago, aubiefifty said:

Republicans have repeatedly turned to crime in America as a platform talking point, framing it as an issue specific to large, Democratically-run cities.

While overall homicides increased domestically in 2020, an analysis by Third Way, a public policy think tank, found that murder rates are higher in "Trump-voting red states" than "Biden-voting blue states."

This is comparing apples to oranges.  Republicans complain the Democratically run CITIES are the problem and this article is linking homicides increase in, not Republican states, but Trump voting red states.  How utterly bias and triggering reporting.  Where has journalism gone?

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

1 hour ago, AUDynasty said:

199th mass shooting in 124 days. Reading the survivor's words about finding a girl with no face is heartbreaking. There are graphic pictures of mangled bodies with guts spilling over on Twitter if you want to look. This is the reality of America. We're perfectly fine with this kind of russian roulette of carnage that may happen from Los Angeles to neighboring state you live in to a local grocery store you frequent.

Seems to be a discrepancy in the number of mass shootings.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The U.S. is setting a record pace for mass killings in 2023, replaying the horror on a loop roughly once a week so far this year.

The carnage has taken 88 lives in 17 mass killings over 111 days. Each time, the killers wielded firearms. Only 2009 was marked by as many such tragedies in the same period of time.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/mass-shootings-in-u-s-on-a-record-pace-in-2023-so-far

Even 17 mass shootings over 111 days is unacceptable, we should try to be realistic and not sensationalize data.

[Leftfield 3,378]

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott said he's traveling to Allen, Texas, Sunday to meet with the community after a gunman killed eight people and injured seven on Saturday at an outlet mall.  

"I'll be going up to Allen later today to begin the process of providing hope and healing," Abbott told Shannon Bream on "Fox News Sunday."

-------------------

 

 

 

Edited May 7, 2023 by Leftfield

[AUDynasty 631]

1 hour ago, I_M4_AU said:

Seems to be a discrepancy in the number of mass shootings.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The U.S. is setting a record pace for mass killings in 2023, replaying the horror on a loop roughly once a week so far this year.

The carnage has taken 88 lives in 17 mass killings over 111 days. Each time, the killers wielded firearms. Only 2009 was marked by as many such tragedies in the same period of time.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/mass-shootings-in-u-s-on-a-record-pace-in-2023-so-far

Even 17 mass shootings over 111 days is unacceptable, we should try to be realistic and not sensationalize data.

It’s still one too many mass shootings no matter what numbers say. And numbers will increase and increase. That’s the most realistic part about this. Don’t sensationalize what’s going on with our country over our refusal to do something with guns.

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

2 minutes ago, AUDynasty said:

It’s still one too many mass shootings no matter what numbers say. And numbers will increase and increase. That’s the most realistic part about this. Don’t sensationalize what’s going on with our country over our refusal to do something with guns.

It has little to do with guns, that’s just the latest liberal attack on the Constitution.  Evil is the culprit and evil will be with us forever.

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

This is a mass killing, so its not on anybodies radar because a gun wasn’t used.

 

It is still a horrible event.

[Leftfield 3,378]

5 minutes ago, I_M4_AU said:

This is a mass killing, so its not on anybodies radar because a gun wasn’t used.

How is it not on anybody's radar?

 

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

3 minutes ago, Leftfield said:

How is it not on anybody's radar?

 

Because a Gun. Was. Not. Involved. Let’s see how quickly the story disappears and compare this one to the mall shooting shall we?

[Leftfield 3,378]

Just now, I_M4_AU said:

Because a Gun. Was. Not. Involved. Let’s see how quickly the story disappears and compare this one to the mall shooting shall we?

But it is on everyone's radar. It's on the front page of every news site.

Regardless, you're making a false comparison. For one thing, cars plowing into a group of pedestrians doesn't happen nearly as often as mass shootings. For another, cars have an eminently practical use, particularly in public. If cars start to drive into groups of people every day, I am certain we as a society will begin to look for ways to protect them.

What's sad is that the mall shooting likely won't be in the public eye long either, because we'll probably have another mass shooting to focus on.

[aubiefifty 18,259]

5 hours ago, I_M4_AU said:

This is comparing apples to oranges.  Republicans complain the Democratically run CITIES are the problem and this article is linking homicides increase in, not Republican states, but Trump voting red states.  How utterly bias and triggering reporting.  Where has journalism gone?

i have heard enough of that crap. you have spouted this crap off for years. here is a little truth for you:

Republican-controlled states have higher murder rates than Democratic ones: study

Ben Adler

7–9 minutes

---

Republican politicians routinely claim that cities run by Democrats have been experiencing crime waves caused by failed governance, but a new study shows murder rates are actually higher in states and cities controlled by Republicans.

“We’re seeing murders in our cities, all Democrat-run,” former President Donald Trump asserted at a March 26 rally in Georgia. “People are afraid to go out.”

In February, Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., blamed Democrats for a 2018 law that reduced some federal prison sentences — even though it was signed by Trump after passing a GOP-controlled Congress. “It’s your party who voted in lockstep for the First Step Act that let thousands of violent felons on the street who have now committed innumerable violent crimes,” Cotton said during a speech in the Senate.

Last December, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, told Fox News viewers, “America’s most beautiful cities are indeed being ruined by liberal policies: There’s a direct line between death and decay and liberal policies.”

 

Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally at a rally on March 26 in Commerce, Ga. (Megan Varner/Getty Images)

 

But a comparison of violent crime rates in jurisdictions controlled by Democrats and Republicans tells a very different story. In fact, a new study from the center-left think tank Third Way shows that states won by Trump in the 2020 election have higher murder rates than those carried by Joe Biden. The highest murder rates, the study found, are often in conservative, rural states.

The study found that murder rates in the 25 states Trump carried in 2020 are 40% higher overall than in the states Biden won. (The report used 2020 data because 2021 data is not yet fully available.) The five states with the highest per capita murder rate — Mississippi, Louisiana, Kentucky, Alabama and Missouri — all lean Republican and voted for Trump.

There are some examples of states Biden won in 2020 that also have high per capita murder rates, including New Mexico and Georgia, which have the seventh- and eighth-highest murder rates, respectively. And there are Trump-supporting states with low murder rates, such as Idaho and Utah. Broadly speaking, the South, and to a lesser extent the Midwest, has more murders per capita than the Northeast, interior West and West Coast, the study found.

Those findings are consistent with a pattern that has existed for decades, in which the South has had higher rates of violent crime than the nation as a whole.

 

Demonstrators march in Atlanta on April 14, 2021, to protest the shooting death of Daunte Wright three days earlier. (Megan Varner/Getty Images)

 

“We as criminologists have known this for quite some time,” Jennifer Ortiz, a professor of criminology at Indiana University Southeast, told Yahoo News. “States like Mississippi, Louisiana and Alabama have historically had high crime rates.”

Criminologists say research shows higher rates of violent crime are found in areas that have low average education levels, high rates of poverty and relatively modest access to government assistance. Those conditions characterize some portions of the American South.

“They are among the poorest states in our union,” Ortiz said of the Deep South. “They have among the highest rates of child poverty. They are among the least-educated states. They are among the states with the highest levels of substance abuse. All of those factors contribute to people engaging in criminal behavior.”

“I thought that was a very good study,” Richard Rosenfeld, a professor of criminology at the University of Missouri-St. Louis and former president of the American Society of Criminology, told Yahoo News about the Third Way report. “In Republican states, states with Republican governors, crime rates tend to be higher. I’m not certain that’s related to the fact that the governor is a Republican, but it’s a fact nonetheless.”

 

Police and emergency personnel work on a crime scene in Waukesha, Wis., in November 2021. (Jim Vondruska/Getty Images)

 

(While the Third Way study divided states by presidential vote in 2020, using gubernatorial party affiliation leads to similar results because most states have recently chosen the same party for governor and for president. Based on presidential vote, eight of the 10 states with the highest murder rates lean Republican, versus seven of the top 10 if one uses the governor’s party.)

Although murder rates tend to be highest in the South, the biggest increases in 2020 were found in the Great Plains and Midwest, according to Third Way. The largest jumps were in Wyoming (91.7% higher than in 2019), South Dakota (69%), Wisconsin (63.2%), Nebraska (59.1%) and Minnesota (58.1%). Wyoming, South Dakota and Nebraska all voted for Trump and have Republican governors. Wisconsin and Minnesota voted for Biden and are led by Democrats.

Few large cities are governed by Republicans — only 26 of the 100 largest U.S. cities have Republican mayors — making apples-to-apples comparisons difficult. But cities that do have Republican mayors do not have lower murder rates than similarly sized Democratic-led cities, the study found.

Some experts warn against the impulse to use crime data to score quick political points.

“Being a Republican or Democratic state or city is correlated with many other issues,” David Weisburd, a professor of criminology and executive director of the Center for Evidence-Based Crime Policy at George Mason University, wrote in an email to Yahoo News. “That means that the murder rate may be due to the state being Republican, or it may be due to the fact that Republican states have many other risk factors related to crime or murder rates. Even with a very comprehensive modeling of all of these factors, it is very difficult to get a valid causal result for explaining crime rates.”

 

Police tape blocks a street where a person was shot in a drug-related incident in Philadelphia in 2021. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

 

That argument cuts both ways, however. Weisburd also thinks the claims of Trump and other Republicans who say Democrats have caused a crime wave in the cities and states they govern are unfounded. “I don't think this argument can be supported no matter which way you go,” Weisburd said.

Murder rates in the U.S. rose dramatically in 2020 from record lows, and the increases are similar across states — regardless of partisan preference. For homicides in 2020, Third Way found a 32.2% uptick in Trump-backing states versus a 30.8% rise in those that voted for Biden. Some states with large cities, such as New York and Pennsylvania, saw larger-than-average increases: New York went up 47% and Pennsylvania is up 39%. But the largest increases were in rural, Republican-led states, including Montana (+84%) and South Dakota (+81%).

The higher national murder rate is naturally causing public concern, although violent crime does remain far below its early 1990s high point. “Using the FBI data, the violent crime rate fell 49% between 1993 and 2019,” from 757 incidents per 100,000 people to 379 per 100,000, the Pew Research Center noted last November. Between 2019 and 2020, the murder rate jumped from 6 homicides per 100,000 people to 7.8 homicides per 100,000, but that was still 22% below the rate in 1991 of 10 homicides per 100,000.

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

4 minutes ago, Leftfield said:

But it is on everyone's radar. It's on the front page of every news site.

Regardless, you're making a false comparison. For one thing, cars plowing into a group of pedestrians doesn't happen nearly as often as mass shootings. For another, cars have an eminently practical use, particularly in public. If cars start to drive into groups of people every day, I am certain we as a society will begin to look for ways to protect them.

What's sad is that the mall shooting likely won't be in the public eye long either, because we'll probably have another mass shooting to focus on.

It is a mass killing just like the Christmas parade in Waukesha in November 2021.  There have been terrorist attacks in Europe using vehicles.  It doesn’t always have to be guns.  Guns do have a practical use, just like cars.  You may not have a practical use for them, but millions of Americans do.  You are not required to own a gun, but it is your right.

[aubiefifty 18,259]

3 minutes ago, Leftfield said:

But it is on everyone's radar. It's on the front page of every news site.

Regardless, you're making a false comparison. For one thing, cars plowing into a group of pedestrians doesn't happen nearly as often as mass shootings. For another, cars have an eminently practical use, particularly in public. If cars start to drive into groups of people every day, I am certain we as a society will begin to look for ways to protect them.

What's sad is that the mall shooting likely won't be in the public eye long either, because we'll probably have another mass shooting to focus on.

he is one that could care less who dies. he values weapons over deaths all day long. it is a bad look and he and i have had it out. he can claim he cares but to choose between the two he chooses weapons all day long. he has stated so more than once.

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

6 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

i have heard enough of that crap. you have spouted this crap off for years

You still don’t get it.  A lot of large cities in Red states are run by Democratic Mayors.  The Mayors have a lot more control of those cities than the Governor of a Red state, therefore, the crime of large cities are subject to how the Mayor of the cities runs the city.  Those large cities that boast the most crime are run be Democrats.  As an example; Memphis is in a Red state and is run by Democrats and is full of crime.

[aubiefifty 18,259]

1 minute ago, I_M4_AU said:

It is a mass killing just like the Christmas parade in Waukesha in November 2021.  There have been terrorist attacks in Europe using vehicles.  It doesn’t always have to be guns.  Guns do have a practical use, just like cars.  You may not have a practical use for them, but millions of Americans do.  You are not required to own a gun, but it is your right.

but they ARE using guns. good grief. people have a right not to get their face blown off while shopping as well. this is so out of hand and you guys just say screw it let em die. what the hell else are you saying? let em die so i can keep my gun is what you are meaning even tho you try to soften the blow.

[aubiefifty 18,259]

Just now, I_M4_AU said:

You still don’t get it.  A lot of large cities in Red states are run by Democratic Mayors.  The Mayors have a lot more control of those cities than the Governor of a Red state, therefore, the crime of large cities are subject to how the Mayor of the cities runs the city.  Those large cities that boast the most crime are run be Democrats.  As an example; Memphis is in a Red state and is run by Democrats and is full of crime.

no more people are killed in red state areas. i posted you an article. there were many. i suggest you go read a few.

[arein0 1,105]

7 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

no more people are killed in red state areas. i posted you an article. there were many. i suggest you go read a few.

pUrE mAnIpUlAtIoN

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

13 minutes ago, aubiefifty said:

to choose between the two he chooses weapons all day long

Please explain how giving up law abiding citizen’s right to bare arms is going to prevent mass murders.

[arein0 1,105]

1 minute ago, I_M4_AU said:

Please explain how giving up law abiding citizen’s right to bare arms is going to prevent mass murders.

How many times does it have to be explained to you that most people don't want to ban all guns. All we want are restrictions put in place to prevent bad guys from legally buying guns. 

[Leftfield 3,378]

16 minutes ago, I_M4_AU said:

It is a mass killing just like the Christmas parade in Waukesha in November 2021.  There have been terrorist attacks in Europe using vehicles.  It doesn’t always have to be guns.  Guns do have a practical use, just like cars.  You may not have a practical use for them, but millions of Americans do.  You are not required to own a gun, but it is your right.

But far more often it is guns. Sure, guns have a practical use for some people, but not nearly as many as have use of a car, particularly when there are a lot of people around. 

And your last sentence illustrates the entire problem: somehow many in this society believe owning a deadly weapon, whether it has a use or not, should be allowed for just about anyone, despite the fact they would never trust many of those same people to work at a Taco Bell. 

[I_M4_AU 8,943]

2 minutes ago, arein0 said:

How many times does it have to be explained to you that most people don't want to ban all guns. All we want are restrictions put in place to prevent bad guys from legally buying guns. 

How many times does it have to be explained to you those laws are in place.  Making laws that punish gun manufacturers, putting high taxes on ammo and the like are not going to hurt the outlaws, it punishes and *infringes* on law abiding citizens.