Garlic Festival Shooting, Gilroy, CA

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Date: July 28, 2019

Location: Gilroy Garlic Festival, Gilroy, CA

Attacker: Santino William Legan, 19

Victims: 3 deaths, over 12 wounded
Weapon(s): AK-47 type assault rifle

Type of attacker: Likely mental health issues with white supremacist focus

 

Description:
 

The Gilroy Garlic Festival is a large event that has taken place every year for the past 41 years. There is the presence of security and all have to pass through metal detection. However, near 6:00 pm on Sunday, July 28, 2019 19 year-old Santino William Legan shooting at random victims from inside the festival. It would later be discovered that he had entered through a hole he had cut in a fence at the rear of the festivities. He used an AK-47 type assault rifle to kill 3 people and wound over 12. The three killed included a 6 year-old boy, a 13 year-old girl, and a 25 year-old young man. The shooter was able to complete such damage in less than 30 seconds at which time police responded and killed him, preventing further slaughter.

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Investigators reported that the shooter had posted white supremacist messages on Instagram and had even made one post from within the festival prior to the shooting. It appears that he did not know the victims. One report stated that the shooter may have yelled that he was really angry when someone shouted why he was doing this.

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Links:

Alex Stone, Morgan Winsor, Julia Jacobo, Josh Margolin, and Justin Doom, Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting: Suspect Santino William Legan, 19, identified as gunman who allegedly killed 3 people, ABC News, July 29, 2019  https://abcnews.go.com/US/active-shooter-incident-garlic-festival-california/story?id=64624542

 

Vandana Ravikumar and Grace Hauck,  3 dead, including 2 children, and at least 12 hurt: What we know about Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting, USA Today, July 29, 2019, Https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/07/29/gilroy-garlic-festival-shooting-what-we-know/1854727001/

 

Vandana Ravikumar and Grace Hauck,  Two children killed in shooting that left gunman dead at Gilroy Garlic Festival in San Francisco Bay Area, CBS News, July 29, 2019. https://www.cbsnews.com/live-news/garlic-festival-mass-shooting-gilroy-california-victims-suspect-santino-william-legan-live-updates/