Mass Shooting: Role And Background Of Mass Shooting

The purpose of this research paper is to analyze the relation between gun violence and mental disorders and/or diseases. Within we will find if the violence in society is truly an issue, or if the real issue is the mental health and sanity of our society.

These are most of the mass shootings that has happened in the U.S. There are only seven that are mentioned in this essay. There are many more mass shooting that has happened in the U.S. It is sad that many people have killed others either because they had mental health issues or they hated a community of people or in one case they has post traumatic stress

Although mass shootings have been covered extensively in the media, mass shootings account for a small fraction of gun-related deaths and the frequency of these events had steadily declined between 1994 and 2007. Between 2007 and 2013, however, the rate of active shooter incidents per year in the US increased.Handguns figured in the Virginia Tech massacre, Binghamton shootings, 2009 Fort Hood shooting, Oikos University shooting, and 2011 Tucson shooting. The Aurora theater shooting and the Columbine Highschool massacre were committed by assailants armed with multiple

Suicide was by far the greatest number of deaths from firearms. According to the CDC of the total 33,594 deaths from firearms in 2014 over 64% of the deaths from firearms were a result of suicide (Kochanek, Murphy, Xu, Tejada-Vera 2014). While it is tragic to know that means the other 36% were killed by having a firearm turned on them it still shows that the dangers of firearms lies mainly in the hands of someone who has a mental illness. Even if we assume all other deaths were from people who had no form of mental illness that is over 20,000 people who if mental illness did not exist or even just better treated, would still be alive today. In order to treat mental illness however, we must be able to distinguish what is and is not a mental illness. For the purpose of this article a mental illness is; any disease or disorder that is clinically recognized and causes some sort of distress. Approximately 1 in 5 adults in the U.S.—43.8 million, or 18.5%—experiences mental illness in a given year (Martinelli., Binney, & Kaye 2014). Considering that most gun deaths are caused by suicide, it is understandable to assume that these people were

There is no question that mass shootings are happening more frequently. The question is are they happening to often? They have become more common, but have always been a problem in the world. Shootings have been happening since the invention of guns, but as we come closer to our era mass shootings have been happening more regularly. These shootings need to be stopped and put an end to. But how can we as a whole all come together and put an end to it? The statistics and facts that are going to be used give valid reasons to where the shootings take place, how it happens and the number of casualties and lives taken from these shootings.

Metzl and Kenneth T. MacLeish, we can see how these misconceptions are formed. In one passage of this article, it states that “mass shootings represent anecdotal distortions of, rather than representations of, the actions of ‘mentally ill’ people as aggregate group” (Metzl and Macleish pg. 877). Basically, these anecdotal accounts reported by the media do not represent the big picture of the gun violence going on in the country, and it is because of this great exaggeration based on specific events that skews the public’s perception of the mentally ill. Also, the media often makes a distinction between mild and severe mental illnesses, connecting the latter to unpredictability and lack of self-control (Metzl and Macleish pg. 878). But this connection is also called into question by mental health research when serious mental illnesses such as schizophrenia may actually reduce the risk of violence due to traits often associated with schizophrenia such as social isolation and withdrawal (Metzl and Macleish pg.

There are many stories of people who shoot schools and public places that have mental health problems. James Holmes, the Colorado theater shooter, shot and killed 12 people and injured 70 others during a Batman film. He tried to plead insanity to get less of a sentence. The Sandy Hook shooter shot and killed 20 children, 6 staff members, his mother and himself. Before he went to the school, he killed his mother at her home. He went on to the school and killed the 20 children and 6 staff members. After he was done first responders arrived and he shot himself in the head.

With the recent mass shootings such as Aurora and Sandy Hook elementary school gun control talks have ramped up, but why are the mass shootings happening? Can they be stopped? The Gallup poll shows that 61% of Americans think that the easy access to guns is a reason for the spike in shootings (270 million guns in the U.S.) while 80% of mass shootings are because of undetected mental illness (Guns). Both are viable reasons for shootings, but with intense gun laws and an increase in mental health funding to better detect problems

October 1, 2017: the date of the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history; 58 murdered, hundreds more injured. Unfortunately, this is just one example of an awful mass shooting; breaking families apart, and scarring others for life. Although it is beyond tragic that there have been so many tragedies like this, with the help of forensics and investigators they have been able to find similarities in mass murderers, and with more public awareness comes the hope that in the future, these disasters can be prevented.

The question is are mass shootings becoming more common? I feel that it is true. Over the past years I have heard a lot about killings that are very scary. In The United States whether in big cities or small cities shootings have happened and shootings are scary for everyone. We never know what will happen next or who the next shooter will be.

All these articles argues a common point of argument concerning the motifs of these mass shootings. Mental illness has been attributed to gun violence as well as poor gun licensing and control of fire arms.

Mental illness is an issue blamed for gun violence. In most cases, mass shooters have mental illness, which may have been managed before being shot. Mental health treatment, normally is accessible to individuals with wealth (Henderson 4). Therefore, many factors are leading people or individuals too powerless in a money-driven society.

2). During 1975 in Hamilton, Ohio 11 people from same family were killed by James Ruppert. The reason was mental illness due to no love and affection from his family.

Though a large percentage of gun violence in America is homicide the majority of gun related deaths is suicide. This is another topic all on its own but it still needs to be brought up when discussing gun related deaths. This problem isn't new even in 1980 the suicide rate was higher than the homicide rate. Unfortunately many of the law put in place to regulate gun related murders do nothing to limit the effects on suicides . ‘Efforts to ban so-called assault weapons or to reduce the number of bullets that could be loaded into a gun at once would probably not make suicide any less likely. But other measures meant to prevent gun homicides might have an effect on gun suicides, particularly those designed to identify and help people with mental health needs. Mental illness, which may contribute to mass shootings, is a clear risk factor for suicide.’ (new york times).

In research conducted since the 1970s, sixty percent of mass shooters show signs of mental illness.Adam Lanza, the Sandy Hook Elementary shooter, was described as an individual who seems to “wallow in it and ride out the low periods by hiding in his room and sleeping for 12 hours or more at a time...Lanza seemed to have no friends or people he could turn to for support or assistance and did not appear to have any enjoyment of life”(Johnson 2017). Seung Hui Cho, the mass shooter of Virginia Tech 2007, was sent to a psychiatric hospital the December before the shooting after he made suicidal remarks to his college roommate. Stephen Paddock, the mass shooter in Las Vegas this year, had a family history of mental illness and was “prescribed an anti-anxiety drug in June (cited year)”. Omar Mateen,