On Tuesday morning, 15-year-old Jared Padgett walked into his Oregon high school, and allegedly shot and killed 14-year-old Emilio Hoffman in the boys locker room. Also injured inured in the attack was P.E. teacher Todd Rispler. When police searched Padgett’s home, they found writings that indicated the teen Mormon wanted to kill “sinners.”
Almost a week later, the community and students of Reynolds High School, are still struggling to make sense of this seemingly unexpected tragedy. Especially considering that the alleged shooter was an active member in his Mormon church in Gresham, Ore.
So what would make a religious teen, describe by his father in a statement issued to Oregon’s Fox 12 as being taught the values of “love in Jesus Christ, compassion, forgiveness, and patience,” commit such a heinous act?
Though we may never know, or completely stop incidents of senseless violence, with responsible gun laws and immediate attention to the issue of mental health, we just may be able to prevent the massive rise in incidents we are seeing now; and in turn lower the loss of life.
So far, by all accounts, the weapons used in the assault were taken from Padgett’s house; where some family members say the guns were “locked up safely.”
While I am no mental health expert, it seems we have fallen behind in not only the treatment of persons with mental health issues, but we have also fallen behind on follow up care. Not to mention the overall education of families, friends, and people in general, regarding the signs of mental distress, and steps to take when we suspect someone’s mental health is deteriorating.
While the oversight of gun sales, and keeping firearms out of the hands of persons with either documentation or signs of mental distress is just as important, the issue of mental health treatment and education needs to be addressed immediately.
With that said, it is against federal law to sell guns to anyone with a mental illness. Unfortunately, background checks are only required by federally licensed arms dealers under the Brady law.
This leaves a large window for private gun sales(such as the ones at Gun Shows)to go unchecked. Implementing existing laws and closing loopholes for unchecked private gun sales, as well as stiffening the penalties for such practices, would seem to be a logical step.
Also, if we are to be held highly accountable for the proper registration of such potentially dangerous property such as vehicles, proper registration of firearms does not seem like a violation when it comes to saving innocent lives.
Watch the news report here:
