A Lewiston Fee to research the deadliest capturing in Maine’s historical past practically a yr in the past launched their last findings Tuesday, stating there have been a number of alternatives by the Military Reserve, legislation enforcement and others to alter the tragic occasions that day.
On Oct. 25, 2023, a gunman killed 18 individuals and injured 13 others in an area Lewiston bowling alley and bar and grill. The shooter, recognized as 40-year-old Military reservist Robert Card, was discovered useless in a tractor-trailer in Lisbon two days later. An post-mortem concluded he died by suicide.
“Within minutes, the safety and security that we all feel as Mainers was shattered,” Daniel Wathen, fee chair and former chief justice of the Maine Supreme Judicial Court docket, mentioned at a press occasion Tuesday. “Robert Card is totally responsible for his own conduct, solely responsible. He caused deaths and injuries inflicted that night.
“We will never know if he might still have committed a mass shooting even if someone had managed to remove his firearms before Oct. 25,” Wathen added. “But the Commission unanimously found that there were several opportunities that, if taken, might have changed the course of these tragic events.”
Following the capturing, data emerged about how a lot the Military Reserve and native officers knew about Card’s ongoing psychological well being points, hallucinations and threats to himself and the general public — elevating questions on what motion may or ought to have been taken.
The Fee, appointed by Gov. Janet Mills, aimed to “find the facts so the law enforcement, military leaders, the public elected and appointed officials can make informed decisions to reduce the risk of such tragedies in the future,” to not make coverage or operational suggestions, Wathen mentioned. The Chair targeted on three broad findings Tuesday.
First, the Fee affirmed a discovering from March detailing the native Sheriff’s Workplace had trigger to “take Card into protected custody under Maine’s Yellow Flag Law and initiate a petition to confiscate any firearms he possessed or over which he had control.” The workplace didn’t accomplish that.
“Second, the Commission finds that the leaders of his Army Reserve unit failed to exercise their authority over him and to undertake necessary steps to reduce the threat he posed to the public,” Wathen mentioned, detailing that commanding officers knew of “auditory hallucinations, increasingly aggressive behavior, collection of guns, almost comments about his intentions.”
Second, Wathen mentioned, the leaders of Card’s Military Reserve unit knew of his auditory hallucinations, aggressive conduct, weapons, and feedback about his intentions; “ignored recommendations of Card’s mental health providers to stay engaged in his care and take steps to remove weapons from his home”; and uncared for to share data with the Sheriff’s Workplace.
And lastly, the report finds “unprecedented” challenges and “at times utter chaos” for legislation enforcement following the capturing and recommends the Maine State Police fee a full impartial after-action assessment.
“We hope this truth will help the healing process, while simultaneously enabling the public and policymakers to learn from mistakes,” mentioned Wathen.
Households of the victims plan to carry a press convention Tuesday afternoon to answer the findings.
Initially Printed:
