Tag: Florida shooting

Gun lobby chief slams ‘politicization’ of Florida school shooting

by Andrew Beatty  with Michael Mathes in National Harbor, Maryland Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — America’s powerful gun lobby on Thursday accused its critics of exploiting a deadly Florida school shooting for political gain, as President Donald Trump responded to demands for tougher regulation with a deeply controversial call to arm teachers. National Rifle Association chief Wayne LaPierre hit back at what he called “the shameful politicization of tragedy,” fighting a rearguard […]

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Trump meets shooting survivors, suggests arming teachers

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — President Donald Trump floated the idea of arming teachers and promised more stringent background checks on gun owners as he hosted an emotional meeting Wednesday with students who survived last week’s mass shooting at a Florida school. “I just want to say before we begin, because I want to hear you, but we’ll be very strong on background checks, very strong emphasis on the mental health of somebody,” Trump told […]

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Accused Florida shooter appears in court

MIAMI, United States (AFP) — The former student accused of killing 17 people at a Florida high school appeared in court Monday for a procedural hearing, his first public appearance since he was held without bond on charges of premeditated murder. Nikolas Cruz, dressed in orange prison garb, sat with his head bowed during the brief hearing before Judge Elizabeth Scherer in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The hearing dealt with whether to unseal a defense motion […]

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Trump slams FBI over school shooting, blames preoccupation with Russia probe

WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — US President Donald Trump slammed the FBI Saturday for failing to heed signs that could have prevented the Florida school shooting, charging the agency was too preoccupied with probing his campaign team over Russian election meddling. Allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential race and collusion with the Trump campaign are being investigated by several congressional committees and by special prosecutor Robert Mueller, who took charge of the federal […]

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FBI warned about Florida school shooter but failed to act

by Leila Macor with Chris Lefkow in Washington Agence France-Presse PARKLAND, United States – The FBI admitted Friday that it had received a detailed warning from a tipster over a month ago that Florida school shooter Nikolas Cruz might be planning such a massacre — and that it failed to take any action. The stunning admission by the top US law enforcement agency came two days after Cruz, a 19-year-old with a long history of troubling behavior, killed […]

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DFA: No Filipino casualty in Florida school shooting

(Eagle News) — There are no reported Filipino casualties in Wednesday’s school shooting in Florida that left 17 dead and several injured. The Department of Foreign Affairs said the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C. has not received any report of any Filipino being killed or injured in the incident at the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. In a statement, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano condoled with the kin of the victims. “We are deeply saddened […]

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The Florida shooter, a troubled teenager and gun lover

PARKLAND, United States (AFP) — Nikolas Cruz, the shooter who opened fire on a Florida school Wednesday killing 17 people, was a teenage gun lover previously expelled from the school for disciplinary reasons. The gunman, 19, showed up at the end of the school day at his former school — Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland — with a semi-automatic AR-15 assault rifle and a large amount of ammunition. Local police later arrested him […]

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