It was Texass fer chrissakes. Anyone who wants to tote guns around can probably do so. I think it wouldn't even occur to most church goers to take a gun to church services though.
According to reports, at least eight members of the family were among 26 people killed by a lone gunman who sprayed a small church in Texas with bullets Sunday -- including a woman who was eight months pregnant. Crystal Holcombe, 36, was attending a church service with her family inside the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs on Sunday afternoon when shooter Devin Kelley opened fire with an assault rifle on the congregation.
Her cousin, Nick Uhlig, told the Houston Chronicle that Holcombe died along with her in-laws and three of her five children who were also at the service. "She doesn’t even drink, smoke or nothing," he told the newspaper. "She just takes care of kids; she raises goats and makes homemade cheese. That kind of thing, you know? They don’t go out dancing or anything like that. They’re real old-fashioned, down-to-earth."
Uhlig said his cousin's father-in-law, Bryan Holcombe, had worked as a prison minister. "He would go up to the prison with ukulele to sing." And that Sunday, Bryan Holcombe was even filling in for the church's lead pastor, who was out of town. Police say the churchgoers killed ranged in age from five to 72 in what is being identified as the largest mass shooting in Texas state history. At least 20 others have been confirmed wounded.
Texas shooting: Pregnant woman, children among 8 family members killed in Texas shooting
Langendorff said he never saw the suspect, who authorities identified to several news outlets as Devin Patrick Kelley, but happened to witness a gunfight as he pulled up to an intersection. “His vehicle was open and engine running, and the neighbor across the street [came] out at the same time, exchanging fire,” Langendorff said.
When Kelley took off in his car, the neighbor approached Langendorff. “He briefed me quickly on what had just happened,” said Langendorff, “and said that we had to get him and that’s what I did.”
When Johnnie Langendorff witnessed a shootout between the suspected gunman wanted in the massacre at a Texas church and a neighbor, he decided to help.
Langendorff remained on the phone with authorities during the car chase, and told the police which roads they were taking. Eventually, when the suspect hit about 95 mph, he “lost control on his own and went off in the ditch.” “The gentleman that was with me got out, rested his rifle on my hood and kept it aimed at [the suspect], telling him to get out, get out, there was no movement. The guy didn’t put up a fight or anything. I just knew his brake lights were going on and off.”
Authorities credited the neighbor’s interference with minimizing the damage, even though it’s still unclear whether any of his shots actually hit Kelley. Wilson County sheriff Joe Tackitt told CBS News on Monday that he believes Kelley died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Man Who Chased After Texas Suspect: 'Why Wouldn't You Want To Take Him Down?'
"It’s a senseless crime, but we can tell you that there was a domestic situation going on within this family," Texas Public Safety official Freeman Martin said as investigators searched for the reasons why Devin Kelley, a 26-year-old dishonorably discharged U.S. airman, opened fired on worshipers at a Baptist church during a Sunday morning service in Sutherland Springs, Texas. Martin said Kelley's in-laws attended the First Baptist Church from time to time, although investigators said they were not at the church on Sunday. U.S. news accounts, however, said that one of the shooting victims was a grandmother of Kelley's wife. "This was not racially motivated ... wasn’t over religious beliefs. There was a domestic situation going on within the family and in-laws,” Martin said.
Pastor Frank Pomeroy, with his wife Sherri, listens at a news conference outside the site of the shooting at his church, the First Baptist Church of Sutherland, Texas
Texas authorities rejected Kelley's bid to get a license to carry a gun in the state, but Martin said Kelley carried out the attack with a Ruger 556 assault rifle and that two handguns were found in his car. Investigators say they believe Kelley died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his car after fleeing the scene of the carnage at the small, white frame church. Authorities said Kelley called his father as he sped from the church to say that he had been shot, apparently by a neighbor who heard the mayhem as it unfolded and exchanged gunfire with Kelley, and that he did not think he would survive. Wilson County Sheriff Joe Tackitt said Kelley, dressed in a skull mask and black tactical gear, fired his assault weapon as he walked down the center aisle at the church and, after turning around, continued firing as he left the building. "It's unbelievable to see children, men and women, laying there. Defenseless people," Tackitt said.
Authorities said the 26 people killed ranged in age from 18 months to 77 years old, while the 20 wounded in the attack ranged in age from 5 to 73. Martin said that 10 of the wounded worshipers remain in critical condition, four are in serious condition and another six have stabilized or been released from a hospital. Texas Governor Greg Abbott told CBS News, "It's clear this is a person who had violent tendencies, who had challenges. Someone who was a powder keg waiting to go off." According to Pentagon records, Kelley served in the U.S. Air Force from 2010 to 2014, but was court-martialed in 2012 for assaulting his wife and child, sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment and then dishonorably discharged from the military. Witnesses say he first fired on people outside the church, then inside, where all but two of the victims were killed or wounded.
Law enforcement officials move flowers left at the scene of a shooting at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland Springs, Nov. 6, 2017, in Sutherland Springs, Texas.
A neighboring resident heard the mayhem unfold during the sunny morning and then, armed with a rifle, exchanged shots with Kelley. Another man, Johnnie Langendorff, who was driving by the church, also heard the gunfire and then, along with the neighbor with the rifle, pursued Kelley as he fled the scene. "The gentleman with the rifle came to my truck as the shooter took off, and he briefed me quickly on what had just happened and said that we have to get him," Langendorff told CBS. "We just take pursuit. And like I said, we hit about 95 (miles an hour) trying to catch this guy until he eventually lost control on his own and went off in the ditch. "He just hurt so many people," Langendorff said. "And he just affected so many people's lives. Why wouldn't you want to take him down?"
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Motivations for attack
The shooter, 26-year-old Devin Kelley, was allegedly motivated by a domestic dispute. Police say Kelley had sent "threatening texts" to his mother-in-law before launching the attack at the First Baptist Church. Police said the mother-in-law had attended the church, but was not there Sunday. "This was not racially motivated ... wasn't over religious beliefs. There was a domestic situation going on within the family and in-laws," Texas Public Safety official Freeman Martin said.
Victims
The dead ranged in age from 18 months to 77 years of age, including three generations of one family. Investigators say they believe Kelley died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound in his car after fleeing the church.
Brandy Jones prays in front of 26 crosses erected near the site of the shooting at the First Baptist Church of Sutherland, Texas
Domestic violence
Kelley served in the U.S. Air Force from 2010 to 2014, but was court-martialed in 2012 for assaulting his wife and child, sentenced to 12 months' imprisonment, and then dishonorably discharged from the military. Texas Governor Greg Abbott told CBS News, "It's clear this is a person who had violent tendencies, who had challenges. Someone who was a powder keg waiting to go off."
Good Samaritans
Police say two bystanders responded to the shooting, including a resident who lives near the church and heard what was happening. They say the neighbor took his own rifle and began firing at the attacker, hitting him at least once. Martin praised the efforts of "two Good Samaritans," which also included Johnnie Langendorff who was driving by the church and heard the gunfire. Langendorff, along with the neighbor with the rifle, pursued Kelley in his car until he crashed into ditch.
Assault rifle, handguns
