Posted on 07/07/2021 10:38:23 AM PDT by devane617
A federal judge has ruled that the U.S. Air Force is mostly responsible for a former serviceman killing more than two dozen people at a Texas church in 2017 because it failed to submit his criminal history into a database, which should have prevented him from purchasing firearms.
U.S. District Judge Xavier Rodriguez in San Antonio wrote in a ruling signed Wednesday that the Air Force was “60% responsible” for the deaths and injuries at First Baptist Church in Sutherland Springs. The attack remains the worst mass shooting in Texas history.
Devin Kelley had served nearly five years in the Air Force before being discharged in 2014 for bad conduct, after he was convicted of assaulting a former wife and stepson, cracking the child’s skull. The Air Force has publicly acknowledged that the felony conviction for domestic violence, had it been put into the FBI database, could have prevented Kelley from buying guns from licensed firearms dealers, and also from possessing body armor.
“Its failure proximately caused the deaths and injuries of Plaintiffs at the Sutherland Springs First Baptist Church,” Rodriguez wrote.
“What? Someone that can comprehend better than I please read and explain.”
The Air Force has publicly acknowledged that the felony conviction for domestic violence, had it been put into the FBI database, could have prevented Kelley from buying guns from licensed firearms dealers, and also from possessing body armor.
Nor the gun,
Nor his parents,
Nor his upbringing,
It was the Air Force.
AIUI, I agree the AF SHOULD Have reported him.
Someone filed suit over the Church. Liability is based on what percentage of the damages were caused by each individual defendant’s fault. (Comparative fault). The court here decided the Air Force’s negligence was 60% the cause of the Plaintiff’s damages.
Translation #2: Those of us with sound minds will see it as no need for new gun laws. If the existing laws had been used he wouldn't have bought guns and done the shooting.
I don’t understand this. I am told a gun purchaser will NOT pass muster if they are ex military and have anything other than an honorable discharge. This guy had a bad conduct discharge and yet passed the back round check?
Something smells here.
Paying out millions in a lawsuit against the federal government. It’s just government money so why not.
Nearly every mass shooter has had a history that should have nullified their firearm rights.
As gun owners, we support restricting the purchase of firearms from convicted felons.
But time and again, local, state and federal authorities do not update the database of felons to prevent such people from buying firearms legally.
Then, after the shootings, we must suffer the ignorant calls for more restrictions, confiscations and bans because those charged with ensuring public safety failed at their jobs.
It was both, as the judge stated.
Was anyone in the military deemed “responsible” for Nidal Hasan’s terrorist attack on Ft. Hood since his outburts and connect to foreign terror groups was known?
The attacks we see are by known wolves.
This church shooting - with more than two dozen dead - has almost been forgotten, just like the murder of the Chicago cops by BLM and the Scalise shooting. All we ever hear about are Charlottesville and January 6th, over and over.
So he would have gotten a firearm and body armor by going around the law.
Yeah, it gets THIS sick. EVIL people in high places.
not sure why whoever works the data base..fbi? Isn’t more to blame?
Or, I guess the AF failed to provide the info?
You are right, but the Air Force failed to send any info to the FBI, including the dishonorable discharge. So the guy passed the background check because the dishonorable discharge didn’t show up.
Not quite - a BCD doesn’t disqualify you from firearms ownership unless the BCD grounds are on a specific list. In this case, the shooter attacked his wife and fractured his child’s skull. Domestic violence is on the list of BCD offenses that get you disqualified from arms and armor ownership under multiple laws. The Air Force gave him a prison sentence and afterwards a BCD - then ‘forgot’ to file the paperwork that should have put him in the federal databases as a prohibited person.
A similar thing happened with the Virgina Tech shooter.
Eh... never credit to malice what can adequately be explained by stupidity and laziness.
The Air Force didn’t provide the info. The FBI never received anything on the matter, so they can’t be blamed this time.
The government imnposes the NICS system.
Another branch of governement fails to report to the system properly.
But the problem is the hunter in northern Wisconsin who uses an AR-15 to nail coyotes on his property. We need to go after that guy!
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