Candlelight vigil for Oregon shooting victims
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E-mail CRI, October 3, 2015
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People take part in candle light vigil following a mass shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg, Oregon October 1, 2015. [Photo/CFP] |
The shooting has left the sleepy community in the rural part of Oregon searching for answers.
The shooter, identified as 26-year old Chris Mercer, opened fire at Umpqua Community College in the small city of Roseburg on Thursday, killing 9 people and leaving 7 others injured before eventually being gunned down by police.
The motivation behind the mass shooting is still unclear.
However, reports are emerging suggesting the shooter asked people to declare their religious affiliations before shooting them.
John Hanlin is the Sheriff in the city of Roseburg, which is a small logging community of around 22,000 located a couple of hours south of Portland.
"It is a peaceful community. I mean we have our share of crime like any small community but certainly this is a huge shock to the entire community to have this level of crime and incident occurs in our college or school system."
Neighbors of the shooter are describing the 26-year old Chris Mercer as a quiet, but seemingly angry young man.
His father Ian, who lives a few hours away in northern California, has issued a brief response to reporters gathered at his home.
"I've just been talking to the police and the FBI, we're not going into detail about that right now. You guys know already. Okay? I can't answer any questions right now. I don't want to answer any questions right now. Obviously it's been a devastating day. Devastating for me and my family. So all I ask is, I know you guys are here to do the job, all I ask is, please just respect our privacy. So far you've done that. So, shocked. Shocked is all I can say."
Meanwhile, people in Roseburg have gathered for a candle-light vigil in the wake of the shooting, with many trying to come to grips with what's happened.
"I don't know what to feel right now, I'm terrified. I'm stressed out about it. I was so excited to start college here and it was going great for the first couple days and then this happens and it's like I don't want to go back there for a long time."
The shooting in southern Oregon is just the latest in a string of mass shootings which continue to haunt the United States.
Between 1996 and 2012, there were 90 mass shootings in the United States, which account for around one-third of the world's total during that period.
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