Just as we’re all trying to keep ourselves from completely falling apart after what feels like a constant and unrelenting flurry of mass shootings across the nation, the Richmond, Virginia, Police Department announced Wednesday a foiled attempt of yet another attack.
During a press conference Wednesday, Richmond Police Chief Gerald M. Smith explained that the primary target for the thwarted shooting was the Dogwood Dell Fourth of July event.
“A hero citizen picked up the phone and called our brave men and women at the second precinct,” Scott said.
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After the tip came in on July 1, the police went to the subject’s house and seized two assault rifles, one handgun, and 223 rounds of ammunition.
Two suspects were ultimately arrested, and both were charged with “possession of firearms while being in the U.S. illegally.”
“They were planning to shoot up our Fourth of July celebration,” Smith said. “We know the intent. We do not know their motive,” Smith added.
Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney said it could have been “a terrible day” for Richmond, adding that “no community is immune [from mass shootings].”
WRIC-8 in Richmond reports that there was another shooting on July 4 in Richmond that left six people injured near a nightclub in the city. Four men and two women were shot, leaving two of the victims with life-threatening injuries.
According to The Marshall Project, about 124 people die in the U.S. every day as a result of gun violence.
The Violence Project defines mass shootings as events where four or more people who are unknown to the shooter are slaughtered. Under this definition, there’ve been four so far in 2022, all in recent weeks: Buffalo, New York; Uvalde, Texas; Tulsa, Oklahoma; and Highland Park, Illinois.
The Gun Violence Archive (GVA) defines mass shootings as ones that “have a minimum of four victims shot, either injured or killed, not including any shooter who may also have been killed or injured in the incident.” Under this definition, the U.S. has seen more than 300 mass shootings in 2022.
