Another mass shooting shocks the nation

RALEIGH, N.C. (NBC) – The country woke up Friday to horrific headlines about another mass shooting.

The latest was in Raleigh, North Carolina, where five people were killed after being mowed down by a 15-year-old who is now in custody.

The North Carolina Governor called the incident “a moment of unspeakable agony.” A sentiment echoed across the country as Americans grapple with the seemingly out-of-control gun violence epidemic.

Raleigh Mayor Mary-Ann Baldwin said, “There are several families in our community waking up this morning without their loved ones.”

The victims killed range in age from 16 to 52. One was an off-duty police officer.

The gunman was taken into custody after a long standoff.

Raleigh Police Department Chief Estella Patterson said, “We don’t have answers as to why this tragedy occurred.”

The tragedy is part of an alarming American story playing out every day.

Over the past two weeks, five people were shot to death in a home in South Carolina. In Arkansas, two people were killed, and another injured by a man on a shooting spree. A child was killed in a drive-by shooting in Oklahoma City.

Those responding to the violence are becoming victims themselves. Just this week, two officers were killed in the line of duty in Connecticut, one in Mississippi, another in Nevada, two more injured in Illinois, and three in Pennsylvania.

Philadelphia Deputy Police Commissioner John Stanford said, “At some point it becomes enough and I think we’ve already passed that point where it’s enough.”

And in the courtroom, a haunting mass shooting in Florida is back in the spotlight after the gunman who killed 17 people at Parkland High School was sentenced to life in prison.

As one chapter closed while families in North Carolina and across the country begin their own journeys for justice, Congress passed historic gun safety legislation this summer and President Biden has signed more than 20 executive actions aimed at reducing gun violence.

But advocates are pressing for more, including a renewed push to ban assault rifles that’s been met with strong resistance.

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