Raleigh shooting – latest: Suspect, 15, will face charges as an adult after killing five
Police describe suspect as white, juvenile male
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
Five people were killed by a shooter who opened fire along a walking trail in North Carolina’s capital city on Thursday and eluded police for hours before he was cornered and arrested, police said.
Law enforcement officials identified the victims of the shooting on Friday. An off-duty police officer was among those killed by the suspect, whom police described as a white, 15-year-old male.
The suspect was arrested around 9.37pm after evading capture for hours and hiding inside a home, authorities said.
Gunfire broke out around 5pm, along the Neuse River Greenway in a residential area northeast of downtown, Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said.
Officers from numerous law enforcement agencies swarmed the area, closing roads and warning residents to stay inside while they searched for the shooter.
Two people, including another police officer, were also taken to hospitals.
“Tonight terror has reached our doorstep. The nightmare of every community has come to Raleigh. This is a senseless horrific and infuriating act of violence that has been committed,” Governor Roy Cooper told reporters.
President Biden addresses nation after Raleigh mass shooting
Joe Biden released a statement today in the wake of the mass shooting that left five people dead in Raleigh, North Carolina.
“Jill and I are grieving with the families in Raleigh, North Carolina, whose loved ones were killed and wounded in yet another mass shooting in America. We are thinking of yet another community shaken and shattered as they mourn the loss of friends and neighbors, including an off-duty police officer,” Mr Biden said. “As we mourn with the people of Raleigh, we are grateful for the law enforcement and other first responders, including federal law enforcement who were on the scene last night and into this morning.”
You can read more of Mr Biden’s statement — and his call for an assault weapons ban — in Eric Garcia’s story below:
Biden calls for action to end gun violence after shooting in North Carolina: ‘Enough’
President Joe Biden offered words of condolences after a mass shooting in Raleigh, North Carolina killed five people and called for legislative action to end gun violence.
Husband remembers his wife killed in Raleigh mass shooting as ‘caregiver’ who protected her family
The husband of one of the five victims killed in a mass shooting in Raleigh, North Carolina, remembered his wife in an interview with NBC News.
On Friday, Tracey Howard spoke with the broadcaster about his wife, Nicole, 52, who was killed in the attack.
He called his wife a "go-getter" who cared for and always "looked out" for those around her.
Mr Howard, 57, said his wife was a "caregiver" who made sure he scheduled and attended his doctor's appointments, and said she was the type of person to "take charge of everything" to ensure her loved ones were cared for.
“I always thought it would be me to go before she went,” he said.
Raleigh shooting victim’s husband remembers wife in poem
Thomas Karnatz, 52, remembered his wife Susan, 49, in a poem he posted to social media.
Raleigh mass shooting victim was set to be married later this month
Mary Marshall, 35, was less than a month away from her wedding when she was shot and killed by a 15-year-old on Thursday.
Ms Marshall was to be married on 29 October. Her and her fiance had reportedly rented a pair of cabins in the mountains and were preparing to decorate them with pumpkins for a Halloween-themed wedding.
NBC News reports that friends from all over the country — and one from overseas — were planning to attend the wedding.
“She’s got a friend coming from Japan, somebody coming from Florida, from Texas,” her sister, Meghan McCrickard told the outlet. “As excited as she was to be married, I know she was more excited to have all the people she loved the most at the same place at the same time.”
Ms McCrickard said “it was going to be the most beautiful, fall, spooky wedding.”
Photo of Raleigh mass shooting victim and Raleigh police officer Gabriel Torres with his family emerge
Gabriel Torres, 29, was on his way to work at the Raleigh Police Department when he was killed Thursday by a 15-year-old mass shooting.
The department said during a press conference that Mr Torres was off duty but was headed to work when he was shot.
Raleigh police department thanks the public for support after mass shooting leaves five dead
The Raleigh Police Department expressed its gratitude to the public in a social media post Thursday a day after one of its officers was killed and another was wounded during a mass shooting that left five people dead.
Knightdale High School’s statement to families following the death of 16-year-old James Thompson in Raleigh mass shooting
Knightdale High School Principal Keith Richardson issued a statement Friday to parents announcing that one of the school’s students, 16-year-old James Thompson, was killed in the mass shooting that left five dead.
“This is an incredibly difficult time for our school community as well as the broader Raleigh community. We have learned that junior James Thompson was killed in yesterday’s tragic shooting on the Neuse River Greenway. It is an unexpected loss and we are saddened by it,” Mr Richardson wrote. “Our condolences, thoughts, and prayers go out to James’ family, the other victims, their families and all who have been impacted by yesterday’s events.”
His full statement can be read here.
Investigators in Raleigh seen removing evidence from home
Local reports from Raleigh show police removing evidence from a house on the street where Thursday’s mass shooting began. Five people were killed in the attack and two others were wounded.
It is unclear if the home is that of the 15-year-old suspected shooter.
Terror has reached our doorstep', says governor after shooting
Reacting to the shooting that left five dead and two injured in Raleigh, governor Roy Cooper called for an end to “mindless violence”.
“Tonight terror has reached our doorstep. The nightmare of every community has come to Raleigh. This is a senseless horrific and infuriating act of violence that has been committed,” Mr Cooper told reporters.
“We must stop this mindless violence in America, we must address gun violence,” the mayor said. “We have much to do, and tonight we have much to mourn.”
Raleigh massacre is the deadliest mass shooting in North Carolina this year, report says
As the year begins to draw to a close, the death tally for the numbing gun violence epidemic in America continues to grow.
So far, more than 34,000 people have died in shootings in the US in 2022, with more than half of those deaths being recorded as suicide, according to the Gun Violence Archive website.
That same database recorded the mass shooting in Raleigh on Thursday as the deadliest of 17 shootings in North Carolina so far this year.
“We must stop this mindless violence in America. We must address gun violence. We have much to do, and tonight we have much to mourn,” North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper said at a press conference after the mass slaughter on Thursday.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.