(Image via msn.com)
Staff Writer: Gwen Pichette
Email: gpichette@umassd.edu
A day that began rife with celebrations after Superbowl Sunday for Kansas City Chief fans ended in deadly tragedy when two gunmen opened fire on the parade.
In addition to being charged with second-degree murder and numerous weapons offenses, the gunmen are facing charges of second-degree murder and two dozen other offenses.
The first gunman is 18-year-old Dominic Miller of Kansas City, Missouri. The second accused is Lyndell Mays of Raytown, Missouri, who is 23 years old.
While both gunmen were native to Missouri, they are believed to have been complete strangers up until the shooting. Shots were fired mere moments after a dispute took place. The argument spurred when the group of people Miller was with became hostile when the group Mays was with was allegedly staring at them. This was taken to be a provocation.
Mays was the first to open fire. He claims that one of the others in the group threatened to kill him and that he acted in self-defense. In response, Miller began firing shots upon the crowd — a crowd that was half-composed of children.
While twenty-two were injured by gunshot wounds and survived, the lone fatality was Lisa-Lopez Galvan, a mother of two who was entirely uninvolved in the argument and watching the celebrations nearby.
As Missouri police investigate the perpetrators, more details have come to light. Most notably, it has been revealed that this has not been Mays’s first encounter with the law — or even with weapon charges, for that matter.
Mays was charged back in April 2021 when he allegedly brandished a handgun during a dispute while playing basketball at a community center, evoking mass panic and “caus[ing] people to fear for their safety and run out of the gym.”
His probation for the offense had just ended only a week before the Kansas City shooting. This has raised concerns about stricter prosecution when it comes to gun handling.
Tensions are heightened further as police say two other juveniles have been arrested in connection with the shooting on gun-related charges and for resisting arrest. It is not entirely clear what role they played in the shooting.
As some facts are still unclear, police are scrambling to piece together the puzzle of this tragedy.
However, one thing is certain: prosecutors like Jean Peters Baker vow to do everything they can to bring the shooters to justice.
“I do want you to understand: We seek to hold every shooter accountable for their actions on that day. Every single one. So while we’re not there yet on every single individual, we’re going to get there.”
Police Chief Stacy Graves further solidified this with an official statement at a news conference and hinted at the fact that there weren’t just two shooters involved:
“We are working to determine the involvement of others. And it should be noted we have recovered several firearms. This incident is still a very active investigation.”
The shooting occurred on February 14th — exactly six years after the Parkland Florida Massacre, when a gunman opened fire on Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, murdering seventeen and injuring seventeen others.
Such a coincidence did not go unnoticed by the parents of the Parkland victims.
While already in an interview with CNN on gun reform in honor of the anniversary, the parents of Parkland shooting victim Joaquin Oliver took the time to speak specifically about the Kansas City Shooting.
Jaded to the frequent shootings in the United States, Manuel Oliver said he was “not at all surprised” that another shooting happened and demanded there be a swift solution.
“So far I can tell you two things: There’s a gun and there’s people that were shot,” he said. “That should be enough for us to be offended and to start working on a solution.”
Oliver’s hopes may be answered. A call for action happened less than a week after the tragedy.
On Monday, February 26th, the Missouri House, which is Republican-led, passed a ban on celebratory gunfire. Deliberations are currently in the works in the Missouri Senate, but many remain tentatively hopeful at this first step.