For Release: Friday, February 26, 2016
Washington, DC — On Thursday, Cedric Larry Ford killed three people and injured 14 others in several locations including his workplace, Excel Industries, in Hesston, Kansas. The shooter was armed with an assault rifle and a semiautomatic handgun, according to police.
This is already the ninth mass shooting in the United States in 2016, according to a Violence Policy Center (VPC) analysis which applies the federal definition of a “mass killing,” defined as a killing with three or more victims killed in the same incident. Mass shootings in 2016 have left a total of 33 dead and 20 wounded, the analysis finds.
VPC Executive Director Josh Sugarmann issued the following statement:
“Once again, a gunman has destroyed innocent lives and torn the fabric of a community apart. Meanwhile, the firearms industry continues to aggressively promote military-style assault rifles that are the ideal tools for mass shootings. As long as we allow easy access to these military-bred anti-personnel weapons, further tragedies are inevitable.”
Guns are the only consumer product the federal government does not regulate for health and safety. The VPC calls for firearms to be regulated for health and safety just as we regulate all other consumer products. For further information, please visit regulatefirearms.org.
The Violence Policy Center is a national educational organization working to stop gun death and injury. Follow the VPC on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
