By: Regina Wright ~Staff Writer~
Another mass shooting occurred on Dec. 2 in San Bernardino, Calif., days after a mass shooting at a Planned Parenthood facility in Colorado.
The San Bernardino County Health Department was hosting a conference and holiday luncheon when the shootings began.
Two assailants walked into the party at 11 a.m. at the Inland Regional Center, and opened fire. The incident left 21 people injured and 14 dead.
The two assailants were identified as Syed Rizwan Farook and Tashfeen Malik.
Farook and Malik were married for two years. The couple was later killed by police during a standoff.
During the initial attack in the Inland Regional Center the couple fired between 65 and 75 rounds, but had more than 1,600 rounds of ammunition with them.
The couple was armed with two assault rifles and two handguns, wearing tactical-style gear. These were purchased legally according to law enforcement sources.
After the shootings, the couple fled the scene through a back door and drove off in a rented SUV.
Upon receiving several tips, authorities tracked the couple down to their apartment in the city of Redlands. The police then pursued the couple.
The couple fired at least 76 rounds, while police responded with 380 rounds, ending the standoff.
The motive for the shooting is still unknown. No particular individual was made a target, leaving investigators to believe it was and treat it as a terrorist attack.
Authorities said Farook, who worked for the county for five years as a health inspector, appeared angry when he left the party.
Farook may have been in touch with and radicalized by people who were being investigated, according to FBI investigations into international terrorism.
He visited Pakistan in 2013 and Saudi Arabia in 2014.
During the shooting, Malik made a video of herself pledging loyalty to the Islamic State’s (ISIS) leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and posted it on Facebook.
A manifesto was not discovered in the couple’s apartment or car. However there were thousands of rounds of ammunition and explosives.
The San Bernardino shootings have sparked national political outrage, including Daily News’ controversial front page that read “God Isn’t Fixing This” in bold font surrounded by social media posts from several pro-NRA politicians, who sent prayers but offered no talk on gun policy.
The New York Times editorial board also wrote an opinion piece titled “End the Gun Epidemic in America” which ran on the front page.
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