CA Store Owner Was Reportedly Arrested After 9-Year-Old Girl Was Hit By Stray Bullet When He Opened Fire On Shoplifters, In Yet Another Case Of A “Good Guy With A Gun” In The US

Dear God...


672
672 points

According to a recent report from ABC News, a Southern California store owner has been arrested after he shot a 9-year-old girl, according to police, with a stray bullet when he reportedly opened fire while chasing down two individuals who allegedly shoplifted from his store in the mall.

The Victorville Police Department announced that 20-year-old Marqel Cockrell was held on a $1 million bail following his arrest in Nevada and booked on suspicion of attempted murder. Police said the shooting that left a 9-year-old little girl injured took place around 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 12th at the Mall of Victor Valley in Victorville, California.

ABC reports:

The San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department sent deputies to the mall after receiving multiple 911 calls reporting gunfire at the shopping center, authorities said. Multiple law enforcement agencies also responded to the scene as the mall was placed on lockdown and officers began to evacuate people and searched for the shooter, who apparently fled by the time officers arrived.

Deputies found the wounded girl and immediately began rendering medical aid, Victorville police said. She was taken to Loma Linda University Medical Center, where she was in stable condition.

Investigators believe the shooting occurred near a Barnes & Nobles outlet at the mall. Overnight, investigators worked to identify Cockrell as the suspect in the shooting.”

Cockrell co-owners a sneaker shop called Sole Addicts in the mall and allegedly attempted to chase down two shoplifters. According to police, in his attempt to stop the alleged thieves, Cockrell fired multiple shots. Ultimately, the merchant missed his intended shoplifting targets and instead hit the 9-year-old little girl, who suffered from a gunshot wound to the arm, according to her family members who spoke with ABC station KABC in Los Angeles. USA Today reports the little girl was at the mall standing in line to see the Easter Bunny when she was hit.

The merchant fled the scene after he shot and injured the child and was ultimately arrested by the Nevada Highway Patrol in Clark County, Nevada, at around 9 pm. on Tuesday night. Cockrell was booked and is being held at the Clark County Jail on suspicion of attempted murder where he awaits extradition back to California.

To be entirely frank, this serves as yet another example of why the “Good guy with a gun” trope that is so popular among Conservatives, especially during a tragedy, is absolute garbage. The Right constantly tries to scream that gun control is unfair and, in the midst of some sort of gun violence or another in the US, things would have been A-okay if only a “good guy” had a gun to defend themselves and everyone around them. Yet, all this guy accomplished was seriously hurting an innocent 9-year-old child.

Featured image via screen capture 

Can’t get enough Political Tribune? Follow us on Twitter!

Looking for more video content? Subscribe to our channel on YouTube!



Comments