A Mass Maine Shooting

18 Dead and 13 Injured After a Mass Shooting Occurred in Maine

Photo by Max Kleinen on Unsplash

There have been over 580 mass shootings so far in 2023, according to Gun Violence Archive, and this number is only increasing as 2023 comes to an end in two short months. Another mass shooting was added to this list last week and has since left the East Coast in utter shock.

On Wednesday, Oct. 25, a mass shooting broke out in Lewiston, Maine at the Just In Time Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar & Grille, leaving at least 18 dead and 13 injured. Maine State Police officers received reports of an active shooter at the bowling alley around 6:30 p.m Eastern time, where seven people were killed. Soon after, at 7:08 p.m, there were several 911 calls revolving around the incident, stating that the suspect had moved locations to the bar and grille, roughly four miles away from the bowling alley. The second shooting left seven dead at the scene, and three more were later pronounced dead at the hospital.

Senior Zachary Lowe will be continuing his athletic and academic career at Bates College, located in Auburn, Maine, in the fall of 2024. Despite the College being a close 1.7 miles away from Lewiston, where the shooting took place, Lowe remains confident in his decision to attend Bates College.

“I know that Maine is a safe place,” Lowe said. “They dealt with it [the mass shooting] pretty quickly. I feel like that it’s not scary at all [being at Bates College]. It definitely doesn’t change my mind about going up there.”

40-year-old Suspect Robert Card is a trained firearms instructor and a sergeant first class in the Army Reserve. However, other military members were informed that Card was acting strange, claiming he was hearing voices and was making absurd threats. Because of his history with mental illness, Card was sent to the Keller Army Community Hospital for medical evaluation over the summer and was released after two weeks.

On Thursday, Oct. 26, a massive search began for Card, involving hundreds of police and FBI agents in addition to federal marshals and other agencies. Residents of local communities were urged to stay inside with their doors locked. As of Friday, Oct. 27, Card was found dead following the manhunt from a self-inflicted gunshot.

“I think the idea that there are individuals who would enter a school with the intent to harm anyone is terrible. I cannot even imagine the mental illness that must be involved for someone to commit one of these crimes,” upper school science teacher Kristin Kline said. “I am extraordinarily grateful for the enhanced security that Maclay has put in place over the last few years. Not just the additional officers but the guard house and the mag locks on the outside doors in many buildings make me feel safer and puts me more at ease to send my children here.”

President Joe Biden recently spoke out about the shooting and is in disbelief as to what this country has come to, according to CBS News.

“For countless Americans who have survived gun violence and been traumatized by it, a shooting such as this reopens deep and painful wounds,” Biden said. “Far too many Americans have now had a family member killed or injured as a result of gun violence. That is not normal, and we cannot accept it.”