Another shooting occurred in dramatic fashion this weekend, as a naked gunman attacked a Waffle House in Nashville early sunday morning. The gunman, wearing only a green jacket, used an AR-15 to kill four victims before fleeing the scene.
A spokesperson from the local police department stated that the gunman pulled up to the waffle house at 3:19 a.m. After deliberating in his car for several minutes, the gunman then opened fire on two victims outside of the restaurant, fatally wounding the pair. The gunmen then entered the building and opened fire, killing two more victims.
His spree, however, was stopped by a hero at the restaurant.
James Shaw Jr. hid when he first heard gunfire in the Waffle House. Ducking out from his hiding place, he then saw the gunmen fiddling with his rifle. In a split second decision, Shaw rushed the gunmen and stripped him of the rifle. Shaw commented on his impressive display of bravery, stating; “I kind of made up my mind, because there was no way to lock that door, that if it was going to come down to it, he was going to have to work to kill me.”
The suspect, Travis Reinking, escaped and fled the scene. Police have yet to apprehend him. Reinking had previous run ins with the law this year, as he attempted to gain entrance to the White House to speak with the President.
Following this incident, he subsequently had his gun license revoked. The four guns he owned were given to his father for safekeeping, but the father instead returned the weapons to his son. Reinking could still be in possession of several of those guns, but police hope to be able to apprehend him with no further bloodshed.
The police at the time know of no such motive for the killings, but suspect mental health played a role, as police chief Steve Anderson stated. “We suspect some mental issues, but at this time there’s no notes, no verbal explanations.”
The shooting comes as many across the nation call for gun reform, and Mayor David Briley of Nashville continued in that vein. “Clearly, the victims of this shooting deserve our prayers and our thoughts. But, they also deserve leaders who will step up and take action and do something to get these weapons off our streets.”
