Free Republic

The suspect in last year's Florida high school massacre told officers moments after his capture he was hearing demons, a statement that could be used if his attorneys mount an insanity defense... In the body camera video released Friday, the unidentified Coral Springs officer wearing it asks the then 19-year-old suspect casually, "What's going on today, bro?" Cruz replies, "Demons, man." "Demons?" the officer asks, playing with a piece of string in his hands. "Voices," Cruz replies.

One year after the school shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., the urgency for new gun restrictions has declined, but roughly half the country is concerned a mass shooting could happen at a school in their community, a new NPR/PBS NewsHour/Marist poll finds. In the immediate aftermath of the mass shooting that killed 17 people on Valentine's Day, 71 percent of Americans said laws covering the sale of firearms should be stricter. Now, it's 51 percent. When it comes to whether stricter gun legislation should be an immediate priority for Congress, 42 percent say it should...

Police bodycam video shows the moments right before an Oregon officer fatally shoots the parent of a student outside of a middle school following a confrontation. The fatal shooting happened Jan. 11 at Cascade Middle School in Eugene, following a custodial dispute involving 30-year-old Charles Landeros. The video was released Thursday after the Lane County district attorney ruled that the officer’s use of deadly force was justified.

MIDDLEBURY — Two 14-year-old Middlebury Union Middle School students have been indefinitely pulled from classes and face juvenile court citations after allegedly cooperating on a plan to shoot a fellow student and possibly others on campus today, Tuesday, Dec. 18. • “There may be some other charges down the road, but right now it’s the treatment issues we’re dealing with.” • “It was between a couple of kids. It may have been some bullying or that kind of stuff. We’re still trying to pull (the investigation) together. There have been a lot of interviews and statements given.” • “We’ve talked...

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A judge has rejected a deputy’s claim that he had no duty to confront the gunman during the school shooting in Parkland, Florida. Refusing to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the parent of a victim, Broward Circuit Judge Patti Englander Henning found after a hearing Wednesday that ex-deputy Scot Peterson did have a duty to protect those inside the school where 17 people died and 17 were wounded on Feb. 14. Video and other evidence shows Peterson, the only armed officer at the school, remained outside while shots rang out. The negligence lawsuit was filed by...

Matthews police responded to a shooting at Butler High School this morning where one student was shot. Police say the victim, who has not been identified, was transported to the hospital with unknown injuries. Another student was taken into custody and a firearm was recovered. The police department says it believes this is an isolated incident. Butler High School was on lockdown because of the shooting. In a statement, Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools said law enforcement had secured the campus and that no person would be allowed on the campus until the lockdown has been lifted.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has claimed that the attack on Kerch Technical College, and the deaths by now of 21 people, most of them teenagers, was the result of ‘globalization.' It is not a view shared by many people who have watched with concern the mounting militarization of Crimean society in general, and children in particular, under Russian occupation. While we do not know, and perhaps never will, what went on in the head of 18-year-old Vladislav Roslyakov before he went on his killing rampage, the atmosphere in Crimea and the attitude to war and weapons have certainly changed alarmingly...

"It all started with the tragic events in the United States, in the schools of the United States," Vladimir Putin told the Valdai discussion forum in Sochi in southern Russia. As Russians struggle to come to terms with a horrific US-style school shooting in Crimea, which has left at least 20 people dead and dozens injured, Kremlin-controlled media are blaming the "corrupting influence" of the West for inspiring the attack. This person was under the strong influence of Western subculture," said Sergey Mikheyev, a political analyst speaking on a nightly current-affairs show on Russian state television. "Western subculture builds its...

At least 19 people were killed and dozens injured at a college in the Black Sea region of Crimea on Wednesday when a student went through the building shooting at fellow pupils before killing himself, Russian law enforcement officials said. Eighteen-year-old Vladislav Roslyakov turned up at the college in the city of Kerch on Wednesday afternoon carrying a firearm and then began shooting, investigators said. His body was later found in the college with what they said were self-inflicted gunshot wounds. There were no immediate clues as to his motive in mounting such an attack, which recalled similar shooting sprees...

At least 17 people, mostly teenagers, were killed and 50 more wounded when a student went on a shooting spree in his high school in Russia-annexed Crimea on Wednesday, Russian authorities said. Russian investigators identified 18-year-old Vladislav Roslyakov as the attacker, saying he fatally shot himself after the rampage in Kerch, a city in the east of Crimea, which Russia seized from Ukraine four years ago. Reports had initially described the attack as involving explosives with possibly terrorist motives. Russian investigators had initially opened a terrorism probe into the attack, but later changed it to murder. “A preliminary examination of...

North Las Vegas police are investigating a fatal shooting at Canyon Springs High School. An 18-year-old male died in the shooting, which happened near the athletic fields, acting North Las Vegas Police Chief Justin Roberts said during a news briefing just before 4:30 p.m. Roberts did not confirm whether the male was a student at the school.

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – State prosecutors' motion to detain five adults arrested after a raid in northern New Mexico earlier this month was denied by a judge on Monday. Judge Sarah Backus made the determination the suspects weren't a danger to the community following several hours of testimony and evidence being presented by prosecutors. Siraj Wahhaj, Hujrah Wahhaj, Lucas Morton, Jany Leveille and Subhannah Wahhaj each face 11 counts of child abuse, after 11 children were found living in deplorable conditions at the site. Each suspect will have a $20,000 bond and will have to wear ankle monitors. In addition, they...

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — A newly released transcript shows Florida school shooting suspect Nikolas Cruz spat out “kill me” and then cursed as he sat alone in a sheriff’s interrogation room just hours after the massacre that left 17 dead. Broward sheriff’s Detective John Curcio had just left Cruz alone to get him some water when the 19-year-old suspect made that exclamation.

The mental health industry isn’t what it used to be, although there are plenty of brilliant and compassionate analysts and counselors who help lots of people. Effective treatment depends a great deal on what is considered healthy and normal. And that keeps changing with the times, sometimes based on demands from identity groups. Not long ago, when a guy gazed in the mirror and saw a girl’s reflection, most analysts would have concluded that he needed help working through his delusion. Now we’re told that anyone who thinks the “girl” in the mirror is still actually a guy is the...

Full title: Broward sheriff's captain who gave initial order to 'stage,' not enter Stoneman Douglas, to be replacedJan Jordan, the Broward County sheriff's captain who allegedly directed emergency responders to "stage" outside Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on Feb. 14, rather than rushing immediately into the building, will be replaced. Jordan, who was in her role since March 2017, will be replaced with a higher-ranking officer — a major — as part of a re-evaluation of the contract the city has with the sheriff's office, officials confirmed to Fox News on Thursday. Multiple law enforcement sources told Fox News in...

Almost three years ago, Steven Jones, an 18-Year-Old freshman at the Northern Arizona University at Flagstaff, and his two friends, were attacked by a drunken mob of fraternity members. One fraternity member ran up to Jones and sucker punched him. Jones friends were down on the ground defending themselves. The fraternity members chased him. Jones ran to his car and retrieved a legally owned and transported Glock pistol. One drunk fraternity member came at him and he fired, killing that member and wounding two others. According to evidence presented at the first trial, there is little dispute about those...

Having enjoyed my 82nd birthday, I am part of a group of about 50 million Americans who are 65 years of age or older. Those who are 90 or older were in school during the 1930s. My age cohort was in school during the 1940s. Baby boomers approaching their 70s were in school during the 1950s and early '60s. Try this question to any one of those 50 million Americans who are 65 or older: Do you recall any discussions about the need to hire armed guards to protect students and teachers against school shootings? Do you remember school policemen...

A man has shot dead two police officers and civilian in the eastern Belgian city of Liege. The gunman took a female cleaner hostage at a school before being killed by police. Two other police officers were also injured. The man's motive is not yet clear but the incident is being treated as terrorism. Police sources quoted in local media said the man was heard shouting "Allahu Akhbar"........

NOBLESVILLE, Ind. (WISH) -- Two people are in critical condition and a shooter is in custody after a shooting inside of Noblesville West Middle School. Police are reporting that the situation has been contained. Police are on scene and a SWAT team is sweeping the building. The school is on lockdown. Officials are requesting more medical help on the scene. One victim is a 13-year-old girl. One victim is an adult. Both victims are heading to IU Health Methodist hospital. Families have been notified. One student told News 8 that he heard several shots fired but did not know if...

As the horrific events at Santa Fe High school unfolded, all the usual experts popped up on TV panels and interviews once again recycling their “never again” and “we’ve-gotta-do-something” solutions. These are respected authorities like former DOJ special agents, sheriffs, former NYPD detectives, and parents of children killed in previous school shootings.   And not one single thing they recommended to stop school massacres will work. More gun laws. Every state has literally volumes of gun laws. Killers, usually not old enough to legally buy a gun, have proved themselves very resourceful in obtaining one despite all the laws. At...