My step-father was a corpman, he worked in the clinic on various bases, and while not everyone running around the place was armed, There were always folks armed at the or near the clinics he worked in. I cannot recall once in all the years he was domestically stationed where I visited him at work and did not see at least one MP (usually more) on premises at the clinics, either escorting someone who did stomething stupid and was being stitched up before put in the brig or stopping in on their rounds.
Hell even when he was stationed at the reserve center in Pittsburgh, he and several others were carrying open or concealed whenever I visited his office.
I am not familiar with this base or Army protocol at all, but I know my exposure to military bases, which were nearly all marine, you didn’t have to look far to find armed personel on any of them.
For 40 people to be shot, with 2 handguns you are looking at minimum of 4 clips being emptied assuming nearly every bullet hit. While certainly you can empty semi’s quickly, something about this just doesn’t smell right to me.
That’s the opposite of every single other person’s experience. Weapons are NEVER to be brought on base by off duty, loaded or not. The idea that your step father would carry while on base makes my eyes bug out in surprise that he would take that risk. He would have been in great trouble if he’d been caught. And no one was carrying openly.
Navy wife, Navy mom
FWIW, in all the time I spent as a Brat, I don’t recall seeing anyone except on-duty MPs armed on base. (Unless you count the cannon and missiles on the F-8’s)...
I have been in and around military hospitals and medical facilities all my life. My father was in the Navy. I was born at Bethesda Naval Hospital. I joined the Navy right after college and served 20 years and now “enjoy” the medical facilities as a retiree. I have spent hours and hours sitting in cattle call rooms waiting for whatever I was thee for. No MPs, no civilian guards, no active duty guys packing heat. Just us bored schlubs waiting forever.
No doubt this could have been committed by a lone gunman,