Posted on 03/10/2009 7:02:56 PM PDT by NormsRevenge
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Reuters) – Nine people including the suspected gunman were killed in a shooting spree and car chase in southern Alabama on Tuesday, the FBI said.
The shooting began in Samson, a small town in the southeastern part of the state and ended in Geneva, Alabama, the county seat about 12 miles away, according to the FBI and local police.
"There were nine dead," said Angela Tobon, spokeswoman for the FBI in Mobile, Alabama, the nearest large city. "He (the shooter) encountered law enforcement ... and he exchanged shots as he was shooting the entire way."
Two of the dead were the wife and child of a deputy sheriff from Geneva, according to a police officer who said eight people died.
"Five were killed in a trailer in Samson. Two more died in the Big and Little Store in Geneva. The suspect died in the Reliable store in Geneva. It is uncertain whether he killed himself or was killed by one of the sheriffs," said the officer, who declined to give her name.
"He shot at several vehicles on the highway and then he shot at Wal-Mart and Piggly Wiggly (grocery store) in Geneva," she said.
There was no indication of a motive for the shooting.
Local media reported that several people were injured during the spree.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
ap has this
Ala. gunmen kills 9, himself in shooting spree
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090311/ap_on_re_us/south_alabama_shootings;_ylt=AhqlO9ZYzBNcds9HBjlqoFxvzwcF
SAMSON, Ala. – A gunman went on a shooting spree in two neighboring south Alabama towns Tuesday, killing nine people before he shot himself at a metals plant, authorities said. Police are investigating at least four separate shootings, all believed to be done by one gunman, whose name was not released, the Alabama Department of Safety said in a statement.
The shootings began late in the afternoon in Samson. The shooter killed five people in one home and one each in two other homes.
Guns are widely available for purchase in the United States, a country that prides itself on the right to own weapons for self defense and hunting.
Maybe I’m just paranoid, but it seems to me that the news is suddenly filled with stories about gun deaths. Makes me think that Obama is preparing to do something to save us from the terrible dangers inherent in gun ownership.
Amazing how all these shootings “pop up” when a Demoncrat wants to institute gun control.
Guns are widely available for purchase in the United States, a country that prides itself on the right to own weapons for self defense and hunting.
I'll bet the dead people in the store wished they had a gun today.
Obama should pull out of Alabama, it is lost!
Local news is just reporting 12 dead including the shooter.
The shooter also used a car to perpetrate his murderous rampage. So, why not, "Cars are widely available for purchase in the United States, a country that prides itself on the freedom to own cars for driving and cruising."
That strategy worked before. Yep. Registration and bans are in the works.
Why is that so hard to figure????????
Good thing this reporter wasn't around in Tombstone a50 years ago, he would have made sure that the good guys lost and America would be ruled by crazies and thugs!
This is a case of NOT ENOUGH GUNS!
Gunman was wearing a bullet proof vest.
Here comes the Brady Bunch to dance in the blood.
Interestingly, the Gunfight at the OK Corral started because the Earps attempted to enforce the gun control ordinance of Tombstone City on the Clantons.
Most Wild West towns prohibited carrying guns within city limits.
Self defense was a very necessary skill. And now we are the bad guys for continuing that tradition. This is a horrible tragdy that could have been prevented by anyone who could shoot straight, timely and true.
Too bad no one was around with the old skills and perception.
I have a loaded weapon within a few steps of both doors to my home, which are locked day and night. That is how I was brought up. So should these dead folks have had, I reckon. They would still be alive.
We share the same concern. Just as Wayne LaPierre correctly identified years ago, there is a segment of the gungrabbing crowd that is secretly joyful when these types of tragedies occur...as revolting as that might be.
Often though, not for people who actually lived there. They also did not generally confiscate the guns of "visitors", they merely held them until the visitors were readly to leave town, and then the guns were returned.
I have no problem with prohibiting young men from taking guns into bars.
Gotta ban matches and maybe liquid fuels (Of course Obama's Greenie buds would like that!)
good idea....
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