2017 Las Vegas shooting

"Las Vegas shooting" redirects here. For other uses, see Las Vegas shooting (disambiguation).

2017 Las Vegas shooting
Diagram of the shooting scene, where the gunman fired 400 yards (370 m) from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel toward Las Vegas Village
Location	Las Vegas Strip, Paradise, Nevada, U.S.
Coordinates
Date	October 1, 2017 (2017-10-01) c. 09:59 – 10:15 p.m. (PDT; UTC−07:00)
Target	Audience of the Route 91 Harvest music festival
Attack type	Mass shooting, murder–suicide
Deaths	59 (including the perpetrator)
Injured	489
Perpetrator	Stephen Paddock

On the night of October 1, 2017, a gunman opened fire on a large crowd of concertgoers at the Route 91 Harvest music festival on the Las Vegas Strip in Nevada, leaving 58 people dead and 489 injured. Between 10:05 and 10:15 p.m. PDT, 64-year-old Stephen Paddock of Mesquite, Nevada, fired hundreds of rifle rounds from his suite on the 32nd floor of the nearby Mandalay Bay hotel. About an hour after Paddock fired his last shot, he was found dead in his room from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. His motive is unknown.

The incident is the deadliest mass shooting committed by an individual in the United States. The crime reignited the debate about gun laws in the U.S., with attention focused on bump firing, a technique Paddock used to allow his semi-automatic rifles to fire at a rate similar to that of a fully automatic weapon.

Background

Location

Since 2014, the Route 91 Harvest country music festival has been held annually at Las Vegas Village, a 15-acre (6.1-hectare) lot used for outdoor performances. The venue is 450 meters (490 yards) from the Mandalay Bay hotel in Paradise, Nevada, diagonally across the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Mandalay Bay Road.

Preparation

Paddock arrived at the hotel on September 25, 2017. He placed a "Do not disturb" sign on his door, organized the room, and stockpiled an arsenal of weapons. Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo said Paddock carried more than ten suitcases into his hotel suite during his preparation for the shooting.

File:Bump fire animation.gif

A bump fire stock, showing how the trigger (red) is pulled by the trigger finger when the receiver is moved forward. It is reset when the receiver moves back due to recoil.

Twenty-three firearms, a large quantity of ammunition, and numerous high-capacity magazines capable of holding up to 100 rounds apiece were found in the suite. The firearms included AR-15 variants manufactured by Daniel Defense, FN Herstal, and Lewis Machine and Tool Company, as well as Kalashnikov and AR-10 pattern rifles. Two of the rifles were equipped with telescopic sights and mounted on tripods. Audio recordings of the attack indicated Paddock sustained a high rate of fire, using either a fully automatic weapon, or a semi-automatic weapon utilizing devices to simulate fully automatic fire. Bump fire stocks were found on twelve of the guns, which allowed for the recoil to actuate the trigger at a rate of 90 bullets in 10 seconds. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives determined the guns were legal and legally acquired by Paddock.

Investigators found hidden cameras placed inside and outside the hotel room, presumably so Paddock could monitor the arrival of others. The cameras were not in record mode. Officer Dave Newton said police found a handwritten note indicating Paddock had been calculating the distance, wind, and trajectory from his 32nd floor hotel suite to the concertgoers he was targeting on the festival lot.

Shooting

The location of the shooting at Las Vegas Village is on the right, behind the two gray columns. Mandalay Bay hotel is the gold building on the left side of the frame.

Country music singer Jason Aldean was giving the closing performance on the third and final day of the festival, which was attended by about 22,000 people. Paddock had occupied a hotel suite on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel, which was diagonally adjacent to the festival lot.

Shortly before 10 p.m. PDT, hotel security guard Jesus Campos went to the 32nd floor in response to an open-door alert of a hotel guest’s room. Coincidentally, he heard sounds of drilling coming from Paddock's suite on the same floor and went to investigate. Paddock was drilling a hole beside the door. At 9:59 p.m., Paddock then began firing more than 200 rounds through the door. Campos was hit in the right thigh and immediately informed hotel security personnel that he had been shot. A maintenance worker was on the floor checking on a report about a fire door being jammed. While the shots were still being fired, an injured Campos encountered him and told him to take cover. The maintenance worker contacted hotel dispatchers over his radio, informed them of the on-going shooting, and told them to call the police. It is not known whether Campos’ presence affected Paddock’s plans.

Paddock broke two of his suite's windows with a hammer. He began shooting through the broken windows at about 10:05 p.m., ultimately firing hundreds of rifle rounds into the festival audience. Many people in the crowd initially mistook the gunfire for fireworks. During the shooting, a security fence hindered concertgoers from fleeing the 15-acre concrete lot. The gunfire continued, with some momentary pauses, over the span of ten minutes and ended by 10:15 p.m.

Two of the bullets fired by Paddock traveled 2,000 feet (600 m) to hit a large aviation fuel tank at McCarran International Airport. One of the bullets penetrated the tank and the other lodged in the tank's outer shell, but the fuel did not ignite or explode, and was unlikely to have done so.

During the shooting, police officers were initially confused whether the shots were coming from the Mandalay Bay, the nearby Luxor hotel, or the festival grounds. There were also multiple false reports of additional shooters at other hotels on the Strip. Officers eventually spotted multiple flashes of gunfire in the middle of the Mandalay Bay, on the northern side, and responded to the hotel. At 10:12 p.m., two officers on the 31st floor reported the sounds of gunfire on the floor above them. When officers arrived on the 32nd floor at 10:17 p.m. and encountered Campos a minute later, he directed them to Paddock’s room and helped others evacuate until being directed to seek medical attention for himself.

Between 10:26 and 10:30 p.m., an additional eight officers reached the 32nd floor. They could no longer hear gunfire and moved systematically down the hallway, searching and clearing each room, using a master key provided by Campos. At 10:55 p.m., the officers finished evacuating guests. At 11:20 p.m., police breached Paddock's room with explosives. Paddock was found dead, having shot himself in the head before the police entered. At 11:27 p.m., officers announced over the police radio that one suspect was down.

Casualties

Fifty-eight people (excluding Paddock) died as a result of the shooting, most by gunshot wounds. They included 36 women and 22 men. The oldest was 67, the youngest 20. Six were from Nevada, 35 from California, 13 from other states, and four from Canada. An additional 489 people were injured. In the aftermath, many victims were sent to area hospitals, which included University Medical Center of Southern Nevada, Sunrise Hospital & Medical Center, and at least one of the six hospitals of Valley Health System. Sixteen patients died at Sunrise Hospital, and eight in at least one hospital of Valley Health System.

The incident is the deadliest mass shooting committed by an individual in the United States, surpassing the death toll of the 2016 Orlando nightclub shooting, where 50 died, including the gunman.

Perpetrator

Main article: Stephen Paddock

The gunman was identified as Stephen Craig Paddock, a resident of a retirement community in Mesquite, Nevada. Police found 22 rifles and one handgun inside the hotel room he had occupied since September 25. The firearms, along with more guns found in his homes, had been legally purchased in the states of Nevada, California, Texas, and Utah. During subsequent investigations, ammonium nitrate, often used in improvised explosive devices, was found in the trunk of his car, along with 1,600 rounds of ammunition and 50 pounds (23 kg) of Tannerite, a binary explosive used to make explosive targets for gun ranges. Undersheriff Kevin McMahill said that while Paddock had "nefarious intent" with the material, he did not appear to have assembled an explosive device.

Police believe Paddock acted alone and have not yet determined his motive, despite following more than a thousand leads. Police said they had no investigative information or criminal history showing he was dangerous. His only recorded interaction with law enforcement was a minor traffic citation years before the shooting, which he settled in court.

The week before the shooting, Paddock wired US$100,000 to an account in the Philippines, the country where his live-in girlfriend had traveled, and the transaction did not raise any suspicions. Police, relatives, and neighbors described him as a high-stakes gambler. Police said he had made casino transactions in the tens of thousands of dollars prior to the shooting, but did not specify whether these transactions were losses or wins. He gambled at a high enough level to earn valuable comps, free benefits like rooms and meals; the Mandalay Bay suite in which he died had been provided to him as a comp. He was well known in local gambling circles. Anthony Curtis of the Los Angeles Advisor told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that according to his sources, Paddock kept to himself and was a heavy drinker.

Court records show Paddock married and divorced twice. He had no known children. His younger brother and others who were in close contact with him described him as an ordinary man with no apparent religious or political affiliation.

Clark County Sheriff Joe Lombardo issued a statement three days after the shooting. He said there was evidence—which he declined to discuss—that Paddock intended to escape the scene, and that Paddock may have had assistance from an accomplice. He added that Paddock booked an apartment at The Ogden in Downtown Las Vegas, which overlooked another open-air concert, the Life Is Beautiful festival, the previous week. He also appeared to have researched other outdoor concerts, including the Lollapalooza festival in Chicago in August 2017. In the month preceding the shooting, he attempted to purchase a large quantity of tracer ammunition, but the gun dealer he approached did not have any.

Paddock's father, Benjamin Paddock, was a bank robber who was placed on the FBI's most-wanted list in 1969 after he escaped from federal prison; he was taken off the list in 1977 "when it was felt he no longer fit the 'Top Ten' criteria," according to the FBI's fugitive archive. The FBI wanted poster said he was "diagnosed as psychopathic" and had "reportedly suicidal tendencies".

Aftermath and reactions

Much of Las Vegas Boulevard was closed as police SWAT teams combed the venue and neighboring businesses. McCarran International Airport was shut down for several hours. Approximately 300 people had entered the airport property as they fled from the shooting, prompting officials to shut down all four runways. More than 25 flights were rerouted to ensure no aircraft were shot at, while others were canceled before airfield operations resumed at 12:40 a.m. on October 2. At approximately 2:45 p.m. PDT on October 2, a state of emergency was declared in Clark County.

Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval called the shooting "a tragic and heinous act of violence that has shaken the Nevada family". Jason Aldean, who was performing when the shooting started, posted his condolences on Instagram and noted all of those working with him at the show had survived the attack.

At a press conference, President Donald Trump described Paddock as "a very very sick individual", and "a demented man, [with a] lot of problems". He added, "the police department has done such an incredible job, and we'll be talking about gun laws as time goes by". A White House official talking points memo, distributed to Trump allies, opposed tightening gun control since "new laws won't stop a mad man", but "will curtail the freedoms of law abiding citizens". On October 4, Trump visited the shooting victims and first responders.

The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) claimed Paddock was their "soldier" who was inspired by Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi's call to attack coalition countries. The FBI said, "We have determined, to this point, no connection with an international terrorist group." ISIL provided no evidence for its claim, and terrorism experts noted that since losing control of Mosul, the pro-ISIL Amaq News Agency had on at least two previous occasions made false claims of responsibility for attacks with which ISIL had no connection.

Stock prices of firearms manufacturers rose the day after the shooting, as has happened after similar incidents. Investors expect gun sales will increase over concerns that such an event could lead to more stringent gun-control legislation and a rush of customers wishing to defend themselves against future attacks.

The shooting prompted support in the U.S. Congress for a bill that would ban bump fire stocks, either through regulation or legislation. The National Rifle Association (NRA) came out in favor of administrative bump fire stock regulations. Some Congressional Republicans have also expressed their support of a prohibition of bump fire stocks.

On October 2, President Trump made a proclamation to honor the victims and their families.

The name "1 October" was declared the official title of the mass shooting for investigators, according to authorities with the Clark County Commissioner.

Hoaxes and misinformation

In the hours after the shooting, false information about the shooter's identity and motive went viral on social media. The fake news was circulated by political fringe websites and Internet forums such as 4chan. The right-wing website The Gateway Pundit misidentified the shooter, naming a different man and describing him as a registered Democrat. The 4chan thread on which this misinformation was based was briefly featured in the "Top Stories" section of a Google search for the man's name. The fake news website YourNewsWire spread false information about a second gunman shooting from the fourth floor of the hotel. Two of Facebook's top trending pages were items from Sputnik, a Russian government news agency that has been described by Foreign Policy magazine and the Center for European Policy Analysis as being a "Russian propaganda" outlet. These included one story that falsely claimed the FBI had linked the shooter to a terrorist group. The stories were later removed with an apology. Stories linking the shooter to Antifa have also been discredited.

Google and Facebook were criticized for prominently displaying such false news stories in some of their search results. The two companies were said to have failed in their responsibility of keeping false stories from reaching the public. Facebook later said its algorithms were designed to detect and remove false stories, but failed to work adequately in this instance.

In initial statements of the incident, police officials inaccurately reported that Campos arrived on the scene after Paddock began firing into the festival audience. According to police officials, adjustments to a timeline of events are considered to be “minute changes” that are common in complex investigation.

See also

• Gun laws in Nevada
• Gun violence in the United States
• List of disasters in the United States by death toll
• List of rampage killers
• List of rampage killers (Americas)

External links

• Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department: Press Releases, dated: October 2, 2017
• List of victims fatally shot