MaverickNH
NES Member
Technically, this event was either a Mass Shooting averted by an armed citizen or a Mass Shooting, depending on the definition used. Number killed is almost irrelevant, as good/poor planning, good/poor security and chance drive the numbers from the 2-5 range to the 10-20+ ranges.So maybe it should have been: Miscreant: 3 Bystander:1 Media: -1
I propose a different system of levels based on targets and intent:
Level 1: Adults targeting unrelated children at school or other gatherings for the shock factor (School shootings)
Level 2: Adults targeting unrelated people based on race, religion, ethnicity, politics, etc. (Statement/Manifesto shootings)
Level 3: Adults targeting known individuals at public/private gatherings (festivals, parties) shooting bystanders indiscriminately (often drug/gang-related drive-bys)
Level 4: Adults targeting related children at school or other gatherings for vengeance/retribution for perceived wrongs (typically ages 18-25)
Level 5: Adults targeting related former/current coworkers (Workplace shootings)
Level 6: Adults targeting related former/current SO and their current GF/BF, parents, friends (Crime of Passion shootings)
Level 7-12: Same as 1-3 but shooter is <18
Level 13: Inter-/Intra-gang/drug-related with no collateral victims (viewed as Urban Renewal or vestiges of White Supremacy, based on perspective; not newsworthy unless whites shoot blacks)
I’m still working it out, so certainly missed some considerations. [EDIT - Level 4 should be higher, but since this isn’t going anywhere…] Age cut-off is tricky - intentional wrongdoing by sick-f*cks is ageless, but society considers mitigating factors for youths. Level 13 has a frequent GF loophole where the GFs present get capped too, but more often survive.
Mass Shootings in the United States
There is no standard definition of what constitutes a mass shooting. Media outlets, academic researchers, and law enforcement agencies frequently use different definitions when discussing mass shootings, leading to different assessments of the frequency with which mass shootings occur and about...
www.rand.org