Free Republic

On July 24, the day after John Russell Houser allegedly used a handgun to kill two people in Lafayette, Louisiana, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley called on Congress to ban “the sale of assault weapons” and “[establish] a national gun registry.” He also said it is time to “[increase] inspections” on gun shops and mandate that gun owners lock up their guns in their homes.

John Russell "Rusty" Houser methodically shot 11 people in a Lafayette, Louisiana, movie theater on Thursday night using a handgun he legally purchased from an Alabama pawn shop, authorities said Friday. Houser stood up in the theater where the comedy "Trainwreck" was showing and fired off one 10-round clip, Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craig said at a press conference. "This was slow and methodical," Gov. Bobby Jindal said. "This was not a single burst." Houser left the theater through a side door and headed toward his car, a 1995 Lincoln, but saw a police cruiser arrive in the parking lot,...

The gunman who opened fire inside a packed movie theater in Lafayette, Louisiana, Thursday night, was 59-year-old John Russell Houser, police said at a news conference today. ((snip)) Houser also supported Barack Obama. He wrote this in his Manifesto (why do mass murderers always seem to have a rambling manifesto?) I accepted this it came to me that the president is doing exactly what Tim McVeigh did,only the president is much more effective.The way I see it,the faster he wrecks this nation, which in no way resembles what it’s founders envisioned,the faster working people with morals may re-assume command.ie I...

In the immediate aftermath of the Louisiana movie theater shooting last night, Governor Bobby Jindal and numerous other figures took to the media and urged America to pray for the victims and those affected. In the midst of all this, BuzzFeed News editor Rachel Zarrell tweeted out her frustration with gun violence, but then, she tweeted a message that struck a negative chord with viewers:(TWEET-AT-LINK)After a responder suggested that it might not be the right time to politicize the tragedy, Zarrell doubled down:(TWEETS-AT-LINK)[continued]

The man identified as killing two people and wounding nine more in last night's shooting is John Russell Houser, 59, of Alabama. He spent time in an East Alabama Mental Health Facility from 2008 to 2009, Russell County, Ga., Sheriff Heath Taylor tells KATC. They're unsure what he was treated for, but will hold a press conference this afternoon to release information about him. Houser was previously arrested for arson in Columbus, Georgia, but Taylor was unsure when that arrest happened. It may have been decades ago. Houser was evicted from his Phenix City, Ala., home in March 2014, Taylor...

Victims, gunman identified in Grand 16 shooting The victims who died in last night's shooting at The Grand 16 have been identified as 21-year-old Mayci Breaux of Franklin and 33-year-old Jillian Johnson of Lafayette. The shooter, who shot himself in the theater, has been identified as 58-year-old John Houser of Alabama. Police say he was a "drifter" who had been in the Lafayette area since early July. He fired 13 rounds into the theater during the 7 p.m. showing of "Trainwreck." One of the victims and the gunman died at the scene. A second victim died at an area hospital....

The gunman who opened fire inside a packed movie theater in Lafayette, Louisiana, Thursday night, was John Russel Houser, police said at a news conference this morning. Houser, 59, is among three people who died, police said. Nine others were injured.

DEVELOPING: A gunman killed two people and injured seven others late Thursday when he opened fire in a Lafayette, La. movie theater before turning the gun on himself, the city's police chief said. Police Chief Jim Craft told a news conference that authorities had identified the gunman as a 58-year-old white man, but did not release his name, citing an ongoing background check. The chief added that the conditions of the injured victims ranged from critical to non-life-threatening. City Marshal Brian Pope told The Daily Advertiser that the gunman opened fire at the Grand 16 Theatre in Lafayette, approximately 40...

Two people were killed and at least six others were injured in a shooting Thursday night at a movie theater in Lafayette, Louisiana, authorities told NBC News.

Theater shooting here in Lafayette, LA tonight. Three confirmed dead so far.

It is doubtful the American Republic would have been born were it not for the courage and generosity of our greatest French friend, Marquis de Lafayette, who joined the Continental Army at the age of 19 with the rank of lieutenant general. He helped provision George Washington's army, led troops in several battles ,and played a key role at Yorktown. He persuaded France to join the war on our side. He was Washington's surrogate son and a beloved American. When he died in 1830 he was eulogized by former President John Quincy Adams for three hours, and Congress and the...

"Freedom's Frigate" is the nickname of a sailing ship now on its way to America. It's a replica of the French vessel that helped our country win the war of independence. Before its departure, Mark Phillips went aboard: As memorials to American wars go, this one goes right back to the first one -- the Revolutionary War. And it is certainly among the most handsome and most intricate history lessons ever built. A newly-launched replica of the French frigate, Hermione, is now in mid-Atlantic, ploughing her way westward toward the U.S. East Coast. She's retracing the voyage of the original...

A replica of the French navy frigate Hermione that brought General Lafayette to America to rally rebels fighting Britain in the US war of independence, will set sail for the United States again on Saturday, 235 years after the original crossing.

Students at one northern California high school are learning more than just the birds and the bees. Along with local area groups, some parents are irate that their children’s sex ed class at Acalanes High School in Lafayette is being taught by employees of Planned Parenthood without their prior knowledge. They are also fuming over the methods and materials being used, including a checklist that asks students if they are “ready for sex” and another worksheet that describes how to give and obtain consent, as well as a diagram that uses a "genderbread" person for lessons in gender identity. “[Parents]...

A state judge in Lafayette on Monday declared Louisiana’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional, a ruling that conflicts with a federal judge’s decision earlier this month upholding the state ban.Fifteenth Judicial District Judge Edward Rubin’s decision, made in an adoption case involving two women in Lafayette, will have no immediate impact on the status of same-sex marriages in Louisiana. Rubin’s strike at the ban is another salvo in a legal battle that soon could be settled by the U.S. Supreme Court. “This is a major win for Louisiana families, but it’s the first step in a long road,” said Chris...

PARIS — A reconstruction of the 213-foot (65-meter) frigate used by France's Marquis de Lafayette to bring reinforcements to American revolutionaries in 1780 has tested the waters for the first time.

Today in 1777, the Marquis de La Fayette, at the age of 19, arrived in South Carolina in an effort to join the American Revolution. After informing Congress he would serve without pay, Congress commissioned him as a major general and Washington accepted him as his aide-de-camp in August 1777. La Fayette would eventually lead troops throughout the Revolution, and helped defeat Cornwallis in Yorktown in 1781. An American flag continues to fly on his grave in France to this day.

LAFAYETTE, Ind. - A Lafayette man who pleaded guilty to repeatedly sexually assaulting a teenage girl has been sentenced to a full 42 years in prison under his plea agreement in the case. (snip) Stansberry's child molesting sentence won't be eligible for one day of credit for each day served. Harrington says that means he'll serve a total time on that charge of 42 years.

The family of 29 year old Bethany Arceneaux decided to take matters into their own hands after Lafayette Police in Louisiana failed to rescue her. They stormed the kidnapper's home as he was stabbing Bethany. They exchanged gunfire resulting in the death of the kidnapper and the rescue of Bethany. Bethany Arceneaux had been abducted earlier in the week in front of her child's daycare by 29 year old Scott Thomas, the father of her 2 year old son. The child was left in the car following the abduction. "We found her. We went and got her in that house....

La Fayette frigates' missile upgrade set for 2017 Taipei, Nov. 4 (CNA) The surface-to-air missiles on the Navy's fleet of La Fayette Class frigates will be replaced with a more advanced system starting in 2017, a senior Naval officer said Monday. The U.S.-made RIM-72C Sea Chaparral missiles will be replaced with Taiwan's own Sky Sword IIs, Navy Chief of Staff Kao Tien-chung said when answering questions at the Legislative Yuan's Foreign and National Defense Committee. The ship-based Sky Sword II, or Tien Chien II, is a variant of the radar guided air-to-air missile developed by the Chungshan Institute of Science...