Maybe Jethro, Tony and Ziva Can Take Him Down...

[Lord Jim]

(This isn't really something to joke about but given the location I just couldn't resist that...)

Police search for active shooter on grounds of Washington Navy Yard in Southeast D.C.

A D.C. police officer is among the people shot at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday morning.

A police spokesman confirmed at 9:20 a.m. that the officer was shot near the room where a lone gunman has barricaded himself after allegedly shooting at least three people on the Navy Yard grounds in Southeast Washington.

The U.S. Navy said that three shots were fired around 8:20 a.m. at the Naval Sea Systems Command Headquarters building, where about 3,000 people work.

Police said that at least three, possibly four, people were shot. All are in critical condition, authorities said.

A “shelter in place” order has been issued for Navy Yard personnel, authorities said.

Police closed the 11th St Bridge as well as M St SE between 2nd and 4th streets SE due to the shooting. Entrances to the Navy Yard Metro station remain open.

U.S. Capitol Police confirmed enhanced security at the Capitol, but no immediate threat.

Tyler Elementary School at 10th and G streets in Southeast is on lockdown.

As helicopters circled overhead and emergency vehicles continued to rush to the scene, crowds of onlookers gathered on sidewalks and at a construction site near the Navy Yard, but police pushed them back, yelling at them to keep a distance from the grounds.

One employee who declined to give his name said he heard “blam, blam” inside one of the buildings, then someone pulled the fire alarm.

“We aren’t going back on base today,” he said. “[But] there are still people inside.”

Reports began circulating around 9:30 a.m. that the suspect was “down,” but D.C. police said the suspect is still on the loose and “hiding between floors.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/pol ... story.html

[Reality Bytes]

Tony, McGee & Ziva quit last season, Gibbs is off on an undercover mission somewhere last seen aiming a sniper rifle at Fornell so they aren't available.

On a more serious note it sounds like its still ongoing - apparently you need photo ID to get into the base or the building concerned its a very secure area so it suggests that its someone gone rogue.

[Lord Jim]

MSNBC is reporting that their are now seven confirmed dead, 15 wounded...

As there frequently is in situations like this, there's a lot of confusion about how many shooters are involved...

One is known to be dead; the DC police chief gave descriptions of two possible others...

However one of the descriptions closely matches the dead perp, and the other one could very easily be just someone who happened to be armed on the facility for a legitimate reason and pulled out their weapon when they heard shots fired...

About 90% of the time in these kinds of shooting events, initial reports identify more than one shooter, and in the overwhelming majority of the cases these reports turn out to be wrong...

It's easy to see how and why this happens...

You're getting eyewitness accounts from traumatized people emerging from a terrifying situation, who are not trained to make accurate observations in live fire situations...

Sometimes these people will think shots are coming from more than one direction when they aren't, they will think that another person was with the gunman when that person was just an innocent bystander; people will report anyone who they didn't recognize, and imagine people acting suspiciously who weren't involved...

Also because the shooter moves from location to location they can be misidentified as multiple people, and in this particular case you have the added factor (since this is a military installation that also houses the headquarters of NCIS) there are numerous people walking around who have legitimate reasons to be armed...

However all of that having been said, it's obviously much better for the authorities to chase down all these reports even if they're likely to be inaccurate and determine definitely there is only one shooter, then it would be for them to say, "well, these reports are probably wrong, we'll just assume we've got the guy" and let somebody who was involved escape....


waiting for rube's obligatory "see how more guns make us safer" post...

[Lord Jim]

Geez, now there are 12 confirmed dead...

The DC Police Chief just held another briefing reiterating the fact that they are still looking for two other suspects, and that she has reason to "believe they were involved"...

That sounds like maybe they have something a little more solid than just somebody being spotted walking around with a drawn gun, so maybe in this case there really are multiple perps...

[liberty]

(This isn't really something to joke about but given the location I just couldn't resist that...)

Police search for active shooter on grounds of Washington Navy Yard in Southeast D.C.

A D.C. police officer is among the people shot at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday morning.

A police spokesman confirmed at 9:20 a.m. that the officer was shot near the room where a lone gunman has barricaded himself after allegedly shooting at least three people on the Navy Yard grounds in Southeast Washington.

The U.S. Navy said that three shots were fired around 8:20 a.m. at the Naval Sea Systems Command Headquarters building, where about 3,000 people work.

Police said that at least three, possibly four, people were shot. All are in critical condition, authorities said.

A “shelter in place” order has been issued for Navy Yard personnel, authorities said.

Police closed the 11th St Bridge as well as M St SE between 2nd and 4th streets SE due to the shooting. Entrances to the Navy Yard Metro station remain open.

U.S. Capitol Police confirmed enhanced security at the Capitol, but no immediate threat.

Tyler Elementary School at 10th and G streets in Southeast is on lockdown.

As helicopters circled overhead and emergency vehicles continued to rush to the scene, crowds of onlookers gathered on sidewalks and at a construction site near the Navy Yard, but police pushed them back, yelling at them to keep a distance from the grounds.

One employee who declined to give his name said he heard “blam, blam” inside one of the buildings, then someone pulled the fire alarm.

“We aren’t going back on base today,” he said. “[But] there are still people inside.”

Reports began circulating around 9:30 a.m. that the suspect was “down,” but D.C. police said the suspect is still on the loose and “hiding between floors.”

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/pol ... story.html

Why the difference in the stories?

http://news.yahoo.com/shots-fired-at-wa ... 07614.html

WASHINGTON — There were multiple fatalities Monday morning following a shooting at the Washington Navy Yard, officials said. One gunman died in the shooting, and police are seeking two other possible shooters.

The Navy Yard was placed on lockdown after shots were fired inside a building on the base, the U.S. Navy said. At least 10 people were injured in the shooting, including eight civilians, one Washington Metro police officer and one base officer, D.C. Metro Police said.

According to the Associated Press, six people were killed. It's unclear if that figure includes the gunman, who was shot during an exchange with the Metro Police officer.

"As far as we know, it's an isolated incident," D.C. Mayor Vincent Gray said.

[Full coverage: Washington Navy Yard shooting]

D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said authorities are seeking two possible suspects who may still be at large: a white male wearing a khaki military-style uniform and a beret, carrying a handgun; and a black male, approximately 50 years old, wearing an olive military-style uniform, carrying "a long gun."

Before a scheduled economic speech at the White House, President Barack Obama deplored "yet another mass shooting" — this one targeting military and civilian personnel.

[liberty]

Well if this is the best that Al Qaeda can do they might as well give up they are never going to win anything. Other than terrorisms I can see no other reason for a group to make such an attack. It is all most enough to make one feel sorry for Al Qaeda.

[Big RR]

I guess it could just be a crazy person as well, someone who snapped or had a distorted view of reality. There's probably as many of them as terrorists on any given day.

[Lord Jim]

Live updates: Navy Yard shooter identified as 34-year-old man

WASHINGTON — Federal officials have identified a 34-year-old man from Fort Worth, Texas, as the shooter responsible for killing 11 people at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday.

The shooter, who was killed by police during a gun battle some two hours after the initial shootings, was a government civilian contractor new to the Washington, D.C., area, said a law enforcement official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the investigation.

At least 12 people, including a shooter, have been confirmed dead in a rampage at the Washington Navy Yard, District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray said Monday. Officials continue to search for two “potential” additional suspects in the case, D.C. Police Chief Cathy Lanier said, although other officials say the evidence indicates only one gunman was involved.

Officials said they still do not know a motive for the shooting but that they do “not have any evidence to think” that it was related to terrorism.
"We potentially have two other shooters that we have not located,” Lanier said in a brief news conference outside the gates to the sprawling base.

Lanier confirmed that one shooter had been killed, but said that police were still searching for a white male last seen about 8:35 Monday morning wearing khaki military-style clothes and a beret and carrying a handgun, and a black male about 50 years old, wearing a military-style olive, drab uniform who may have been carrying a rifle.

Lanier said though the men were wearing military-style clothes, they may not actually be members of the military. The investigation is still “very active,” she added, asking residents to stay out of the area and in their homes while police search the area.

Gray called the shooting a “horrific tragedy.”

“As far as we know, this is an isolated incident,” Gray added, saying that no other military installations appeared to have been involved.

http://www.latimes.com/nation/nationnow ... 7381.story

I've seen other reports that say the guy is a contractor, and that he got on the base using stolen identification...

If this is just one guy, the information that's coming out all makes it seem to fall into place...

If he was a small business person, then maybe it will come out that he had a contract with the navy that he thought they were screwing him over on, maybe because of this his business was collapsing, so he snapped and went seeking revenge...

That's a very typical scenario...

However, the authorities have really been sending out mixed messages about how certain they are about other people being involved...

On the one hand you have reports from the situation on the ground that indicate that the tension level has been going down, that some police units have been leaving ,and that some employees on the base are now also being permitted to leave...and there are no SWAT teams rushing around on the streets looking for anyone off the base...

You also have the fact that the one known killer more and more seems to fit the profile of a lone rampage rage killer..

On the other hand, you have the DC Police Chief, who gave the distinct impression at her last briefing that they were more definite about the potential for accomplices then she had been at the previous briefing...

Maybe she just spoke inartfully and didn't really intend to give that impression, but that's certainly the impression she gave...

There's supposed to be another briefing in about 20 minutes, so maybe this will get cleared up...

[Lord Jim]

Well according to the mayor, they have now ruled out one of the potential other shooters (the white guy in the khaki uniform with the pistol...they were able to contact him and determine he wasn't involved) but haven't ruled out the second. (An African American man fiftyish in olive drab fatigues with what has been described as a "long gun"....)

It appears they have this guy on a security tape, and I don't understand why they don't release this tape to the public. If there is a second person involved in this, he already knows that they have him on tape and that they're looking for him, so releasing the tape wouldn't aid him in any way. If this is an innocent person, they might recognize themselves on the tape and contact the authorities, and they could wrap this part of the investigation up (and reassure the public) more quickly.

I don't see any down side to doing this...

[Gob]

[Lord Jim]

A picture of the shooter is beginning to emerge...

A guy with a history of mental problems and anger management issues with a paranoid streak who was nursing a lot of grudges:

Navy Yard Shooter Aaron Alexis Angry, Frustrated, Vengeful

Aaron Alexis, the gunman who killed 12 people at the DC Navy Yard, had been stewing over a perceived slight for about a year, would stay up all night playing military-style video games, and kept asking friends for financial help, acquaintances of the shooter told ABC News.

One woman said she believes Alexis ruined her new car in a fit of anger when she couldn't give him rides.

The FBI is now scrambling to learn anything and everything they can about the shooter's past, which include previous brushes with the law and frustration about his pay as a consultant during a contracting trip to Japan and difficulties finding full time work.

Alexis, 34, began running into trouble as a Naval reservist in 2010. ABC News has found that the Navy sought to give him a general discharge, a status that is less than an honorable discharge. But the Navy was not successful and Alexis instead sought an honorable discharge through what is called the early enlisted transition program. He was honorably discharged in January 2011.

Alexis worked for Hewlett-Packard as an IT subcontractor for the Navy, the company said. He was an employee of a company called "The Experts" that refreshed equipment used on the Navy Marine Corps Intranet network. It was unclear if he was working at the Navy Yard itself where the shooting occurred Monday.

PHOTOS: Washington Navy Yard Shooting

Alexis also volunteered as a waiter at the Happy Bowl Thai restaurant in White Settlement, Texas, until May 2013. Kristi Suthamtewakul, whose husband owns the restaurant, said Alexis lived with her family for a time. Suthamtewakul said Alexis became frustrated with his employment when he returned from Japan last year.

"For instance, he started talking about he was getting slighted with his benefits, they weren't paying him on time," Suthamtewakul told ABC News today.

Suthamtewakul said Alexis displayed more frustration when she wasn't physically able to give him rides to interviews or buy groceries.

"At the time my health was poor and I couldn't give him rides to do that and he just started getting frustrated with me like I owed it to him to give him rides," she said. "Then he started taking my food here and there, food that I had paid for. He continued to do little things like that."

Suthamtewakul said Alexis' behavior reached a tipping point when she suspected him of damaging her new car.

"We had parked our brand new Honda Accord in our garage and he's the only one that has access to it. And we have a fenced-in backyard and that's even got a lock on it. And he was at the house all day and apparently the next day it wasn't working. And Honda said someone had put sugar in the gas tank and there was only one person by deduction," she said.

Sources tell ABC News that Alexis, 34, recently bought a shotgun used in the attack at a Lorton, Va., gun store and that he may have gotten other weapons, including an assault rifle at the scene. As of now, there is no evidence of terrorism and the FBI believes he acted alone when he opened fired Monday.

Michael Ritrovato was a friend of the suspect and said he met him at an event at a Buddhist temple four years ago. Alexis, according to Ritrovato, was an avid fan of military-style video games and would stay up all night to play.

"He played all the time. That was his passion," Ritrovato told ABC News. "It got so bad – was in his room all the time… he'd be late for work. He just didn't want to get up early. The reason was because he was staying up all night playing video games."

DC Navy Yard Shooter Aaron Alexis Had Previous Brushes With The Law

Ritrovato also noted Alexis' frustration after returning from Japan.

"When he got that contract job, he said they did him wrong at first. They didn't pay him," Ritrovato added. "He called me and asked for a loan to help get his car fixed. I had my daughter's car in the shop, so I couldn't help him."

Alexis joined the Navy as a reservist from 2007 to 2011 and got his rank in 2009. He was an aviation electrician and he was detached from service for a series of misconduct issues, a Navy official said. The suspect had a security clearance that allowed him onto the Navy Yard as part of his civilian subcontracting work, officials said.

Alexis was arrested Sept. 4, 2010, by Fort Worth police after he was accused of recklessly discharging a firearm inside the limits of a municipality, according to the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office.

Alexis was previously arrested on May 6, 2004, in Seattle for shooting out the tires of another man's vehicle in what he later described as "an anger-fueled 'blackout,'" according to the Seattle Police Department.

He told cops he could not remember firing his gun at the man's car until an hour after the incident.

A Seattle detective spoke to Alexis' father, who was "curious" about the incident.

"Mr. Alexis then told me that his son had experienced anger management problems that the family believed was associated with PTSD," the detective wrote in a police report. "He confirmed that his son was an active participant in rescue attempts of Sept. 11, 2001."

Suthamtewakul said 9/11 had a profound impact on Alexis' life because he was living in New York City at the time of the attacks on the World Trade Center.

"He was living in New York, being from New York and he talked about how angry he was with the terrorists who would take innocent lives," she said.

Melinda Downs said she has known Alexis for about a year and despite always having a smile on his face he spoke about depression.

"You never saw him without a smile on his face or saying something to make a person laugh and when you would see him looking down I would just ask, 'Aaron, are you okay?' and he would be like, 'I'm okay. I'm okay.' And I would just keep talking to him until he would lighten up," Downs told Good Morning America today.

Downs spoke to Alexis as recently as last week and said he was in Washington D.C.

"He called checking in as usual," she said. "He was just his old chipper self."

http://abcnews.go.com/US/navy-yard-shoo ... d=20276128

This guy really flew under the radar screen...

He was apparently never convicted in either of the shooting incidents, and despite the problems he was having was given an honorable discharge from the Navy. So when the company that hired him did a basic background check, all they saw was a guy with a clean criminal record with four years of apparently successful naval service.

Exactly the kind of guy you might want to hire to do IT work on a naval base...

[Lord Jim]

And of course, the whacko birds are already chirping:

Conspiracy Theorists Already Suspect Navy Yard Shooting Is a 'False Flag'

Alex Jones says the shooting may be an attempt to distract from Benghazi.

Before we knew the names of the victims, the motive behind the attack, or even how many shooters there were, some conspiracy theorists thought they figured out what had happened at the Washington Navy Yard on Monday morning.

Alex Jones, the antigovernment broadcaster who reaches millions every day through his syndicated radio show and Infowars Web empire, speculated the shooting may be a "false flag" operation intended to distract Americans from Syria, as well as the anniversary of the Benghazi attack and the simmering IRS scandal.

"You've got all the other scandals, so this is a great way to change the subject," Jones said on his radio show Monday morning, which is broadcast on more than 80 stations across the country. "It's a way to divert everyone."

For Jones, the shooting may be the latest in a long line of "false flag" operations, in which the government allegedly stages phony terror attacks to gin up popular support for disarming Americans or taking away their civil liberties. He confidently labeled the Boston Marathon bombing a hoax within hours of the explosion, but was more circumspect Monday.

"It may be real crazies, but look at the timing. Obama rolling out a national campaign against guns yesterday, and then this happens," he said.

For conspiracy theorists, the "why" for such tragedies is always the same. "We've all got to give up our rights because it's so scary. It's all about mind control," Jones explained.

And he's not alone. On conspiracy message boards and forums, users who see themselves as citizen journalists have cut together YouTube videos that they claim show possible "actors" at the scene. One video shows a near-victim laughing with a local TV reporter when the two didn't realize they were on air. "One would think at a moment such as this, a reporter and a 'near victim' wouldn't be laughing, especially when they didn't realize they'd be caught on camera," the conspiracy website Before It's News explained.

On the subReddit dedicated to conspiracy theories, one user wrote, "Thought the Navy Yard shooting was just a shooting until I saw this CNN tweet: "CNN: THE ATF HAS SENT SAME SPECIAL RESPONSE TEAM THAT HELPED TAKE DOWN BOSTON BOMBING SUSPECT IN BOAT." Others murmured in agreement.

After Sandy Hook, Boston, Aurora, and 9/11, it's hardly surprising that conspiracy theories emerge around such tragic incidents, but the speed is always startling.

http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics ... mostViewed

[MajGenl.Meade]

A guy with a history of mental problems and anger management issues with a paranoid streak who was nursing a lot of grudges

Unrelated, but rubato hasn't posted in a while, has he?

[Big RR]

Jim--I read he had a security clearance for his job--wouldn't you think even a cursory review of his arrest record (two firearm related offenses in two different jurisdictions) begs for follow up (and rather easy follow up as we see how quick the circumstances of the arrests came to light hours after the attacks)? And while he qualified for an honorable discharge (and even a general discharge is given under honorable conditions), his service record and infractions (including the firearm incident in Texas) are there for all to see. I don't see this as being under the radar screen, I see it as someone dropping the ball.

[Econoline]

Desperate Nation Tries Getting On Board With Mass Shootings
NEWS • Violence • News • ISSUE 49•38 • Sep 17, 2013

WASHINGTON—In the wake of numerous public shooting sprees that have left nearly 90 dead and countless injured, desperate Americans across the country are, in a clear last-ditch effort, attempting to get on board with mass shootings, sources confirmed.

Though admitting that it “took a while to come around,” members of the U.S. populace—clearly straining to throw their support behind mass murder—told reporters they are totally into and have indeed fully embraced deadly public shootings as part of the rich tapestry of American life, akin to baseball or apple pie.

“I used to think shootings were bad, but, um, they’re not—I like them now,” said 41-year-old Tacoma, WA resident Abby Denilson, rapidly nodding her head with a visibly weary, saddened expression on her face. “Yup. I’ve reconsidered things, and I definitely get it now. I’m on the bandwagon. It’s good when shootings happen. Comforting even.”

“So...hooray! All right!” Denilson continued. “Count me in! Mass shootings! Yeah!”

According to reports, residents of all 50 states have, within the last 24 hours, been trying their very hardest to begin liking and appreciating the idea of men, women, and children being murdered in shopping malls, schools, and college campuses, saying they might as well just develop a taste for such scenarios as they are undeniably an American tradition at this point.

In what could only be described as a clear act of desperation, Americans told reporters that not only are they “all for” mass killing, but also the resulting aftermath, including rushed and often inaccurate reports of the number of dead and injured, interviews with badly shaken witnesses, candlelight vigils, and fiery, often pointless debates over gun control.

A majority of Americans were said to have continued reiterating their newfound acceptance of mass shootings to themselves over and over again, either while sitting alone at home and shaking or while hugging a loved one.

“You know what, mass shootings make this country a nice place to live in, and I’m a little embarrassed it took me so long to realize that,” said Phoenix resident Ben Dority, 34, adding that upon reassessing the issue, he now welcomes any and all mass shootings, regardless of circumstance. “What’s not to like about them? Because when you think about it, there’s nothing better than a guy just firing a gun indiscriminately at a bunch of unarmed people, right?”

“Right,” added Dority.

According to a recent survey, 68 percent of Americans said they would “absolutely be fine, happy even,” if another shooting were to happen at this very moment; 82 percent claimed that last year’s massacre at an elementary school in Newtown, CT was, in retrospect, “a really, really, really good thing”; and 77 percent loudly insisted that they have “totally been on board with shootings this whole time.”

Ninety-eight percent of respondents said that from this point forward they are going to smile and cheer when the words “Breaking: Armed Gunman…” appear on their television or computer screens.

“Seeing news of a shooting used to fill me with the worst sense of dread and crushing sadness, as if overwhelming hopelessness were pervading every single inch of my body—but not anymore!” 53-year-old Richmond, VA resident Patrick Martens said before briefly pausing to close his eyes and take several deep breaths. “I can handle this now. In fact, I’m really glad when shootings happen. Glad and happy and fulfilled and thankful and totally at peace with the world.”

“Honestly, I can’t even imagine life without shootings,” added Martens, forcibly grinning and then turning away to rub something from his eye. “Can’t even imagine it.”

[Sue U]

ARE YOU FRICKIN' READY YET????

[Sue U]

Oh, you know who agrees with me?

The editorial board of the National Catholic Review.

Also that woolly-headed leftie, George Will.

And the commie free-love advocate, Benjamin Wittes.

What is wrong with the rest of this country??????

[Gob]

Would be laughable if it wasn't so sad....

What a way to live.

The coffee chain Starbucks has asked its customers in the US to stop bringing guns into its outlets.

Starbucks has not imposed a ban, but says guns "should not be part of the Starbucks experience".

The firm has recently become a focus for the pro- and anti-gun lobby, with supporters of the right to carry arms holding a Starbucks Appreciation Day.

But it said it wanted to give customers "a safe and comfortable respite from the concerns of daily life".

Starbucks has a policy of defaulting to local laws when it comes to whether people can take guns into its 7,000 US outlets.

The company's stance has won support from the pro-gun lobby, and in August campaigners staged an appreciation day at several outlets.

One location was to have been a Starbucks at Newtown, Connecticut, where 20 children and six staff were killed in a mass shooting at a school in December. The outlet was closed before the event began.

[Lord Jim]

[Gob]

Whoopsy!

One of the first teams of heavily armed police to respond to Monday's shooting in Washington DC was ordered to stand down by superiors, the BBC can reveal.

A tactical response team of the Capitol Police, a force that guards the US Capitol complex, was told to leave the scene by a supervisor instead of aiding municipal officers.

The Capitol Police department has launched a review into the matter.

"I don't think it's a far stretch to say that some lives may have been saved if we were allowed to intervene," a Capitol Police source familiar with the incident told the BBC.