Instead, pre-Christmas revelers on Friday were treated to a disagreement resulting in one person pulling a gun and shooting a 19-year-old several times. The victim died.
Signs clearly warned that even legal firearms are not permitted in the Bloomington, Minnesota facility. That did not, however, deter the gathering of young men or the individual who opened fire.
Police say around 7:50 p.m. an argument in Nordstrom began with two groups of young males. Breitbart News reported the mall went on lockdown after the shooting, and CNN said a video within the department store captured one of the young men firing shots at the victim.
Unfortunately for the deceased, there were no armed law-abiding citizens in the vicinity to come to his rescue. This was doubtlessly due to the Mall of America’s short-sighted policy against legal defense.
And for those who argue that the police should be enough to defend citizens from criminals, Bloomington Police Chief Booker Hodges revealed he had 16 officers on duty that night at the mall.
Despite those and the many others who descended on the area when the shots were fired, the killers were able to not only escape, but grab a bag of White Castles on the way out.
Authorities were able to nab five of the suspects, two 18-year-olds and three 17-year olds, the following day. The Associated Press reported all five face murder charges.
Police believe that more than one suspect may have fired a weapon, and a sixth is still being sought.
All the gun control laws of Minnesota did not protect the 19-year-old victim, and even with 16 police officers at the mall, they could not be everywhere at once. One legally armed citizen could have stopped the madness, but now someone is dead and defenseless shoppers were forced to scramble to safety.
