Glock: Difference between revisions

The Glock is a series of polymer-framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H.

• Libyan dictator Moammar Khadafy is in the process of buying more than 100 plastic handguns that would be difficult for airport security forces to detect. Incredibly, the pistols are made in Austria - where Khadafy-supported terrorists shot up the Vienna airport during Christmas week.
  "This is crazy," one top official told us. "To let a madman like Khadafy have access to such a pistol! Once it is in his hands, he'll give it to terrorists throughout the Middle East."
  The handgun in question is the Glock 17, a 9-mm. pistol invented and manufactured by Gaston Glock in the village of Deutsch-Wagram, just outside Vienna.
  It is accurate, reliable - and made almost entirely of hardened plastic. Only the barrel, slide and one spring are metal. Dismantled, the weapon is frighteningly easy to smuggle past airport security.
  • Anderson, Jack; Van Atta, Dale (January 15, 1986). "Khadafy is Buying Plastic Pistols to Slip by Security". The Washington Post. ; quoted in Barrett, Paul M. (2012). Glock: The Rise of America's Gun. Broadway Books. ISBN 9780307719935. 

• Jack Anderson recently reported that a Pentagon security official managed on two occasions to sneak a dismantled Glock gun past metal detectors at Washington's National Airport. And an American manufacturer predicts domestic gun makers will soon produce an all-plastic model - light-weight, low-cost and resistant to corrosion. Gun-control supporters say such a gun could be loaded with plastic shell casings fitted with nonmetallic projectiles. It could be a "hijacker's special."
  • "Hijacker's Special?". The New York Times. February 9, 1986. 

• In a terrifying example of progress outpacing common sense, the handgun industry is poised on the brink of the first major change in concealable firearms in this century--plastic handguns.
  Incorporating resilient, lightweight, corrosion-proof polymers into their design, plastic handguns will render metal detectors ineffective. When broken down into their component pieces, they will easily deceive X-ray machines.
  This new generation of handgun will appeal to numerous gun aficionados for a variety of reasons, but will be best suited for one in particular: terrorists. Unfortunately, we already have a glimpse of the future. Austrian plastics manufacturer Gaston-Glock has developed the Glock 17, the first handgun in the world to employ plastic in its structural design. This "handgun of the future" is almost half plastic. Only three of its major components are metal: the barrel, slide and spring. Including its clip, the 33-piece gun weighs only 23 ounces and can be field-stripped and reassembled without tools.
  • Sugarmann, Josh (March 24, 1986). "Progress Gives Us Great New Handgun--Hijacker Special". Los Angeles Times. 

• Innocent people lost their lives to a gunman whose import Glock 17 was a death machine which fed bullet after murderous bullet in the firing chamber.
  • John Conyers, U.S. Representative from Michigan, October 17, 1991 (Barrett, Paul M. (2012). Glock: The Rise of America's Gun. Broadway Books. ISBN 9780307719935. )

• The Glock 17, the pistol used in the slaying of 22 people in Killeen, Tex., yesterday, is a partly plastic semi-automatic weapon that is popular with drug dealers and at one time was banned by the New York City Police Department, which feared that terrorists could sneak it through airport metal detectors.
  • Ravo, Nick (October 17, 1991). "Gun Used in Slayings Has Lethal Reputation". The New York Times. 

• A man smashed a pickup truck into a busy restaurant at lunchtime here today, stepped out of the cab, shot 22 people dead and wounded at least 20 others.
  As blood-drenched patrons and employees tried to scramble to safety, dozens of police officers arrived and exchanged gunfire with the man, apparently wounding him. He then shot and killed himself with a bullet through the left eye, witnesses said.
  The 23 deaths make the attack the worst mass shooting ever to occur in the United States. The police said the killer, a 35-year-old man, reloaded and emptied his Glock-17, a semiautomatic .9 millimeter pistol, several times.
  ...a spokesman for the Texas Department of Public Safety...identified the gun that Mr. Hennard used as a Glock-17. The gun, which is made in Austria, normally carries a 17-round magazine.
  • Hayes, Thomas C. (October 17, 1991). "Gunman Kills 22 and Himself in Texas Cafeteria". The New York Times. 

• In the deadliest shooting spree in U.S. history, a man crashed his pickup truck into a cafeteria crowded with lunchtime patrons here Wednesday afternoon and began firing rapidly and indiscriminately with a semiautomatic pistol, killing 22 people.
  The gunman later was found dead of a gunshot wound in a restaurant restroom, police said.
  The massacre resulted in injuries to 20 others, many of them listed in "very critical condition."...
  Officials said Hennard was armed with a 9-millimeter Glock 17, described as a lightweight, Austrian-made handgun now in use by many federal, state and local law enforcement agencies.
  • Hart, Lianne; Wood, Tracy (October 17, 1991). "23 Shot Dead at Texas Cafeteria". Los Angeles Times. 

• ...Hennard rammed his truck through the front window and completely into the crowded cafeteria, stopping about 12 feet from the table.
  Police said Hennard was armed with two 9mm semiautomatic pistols -- a Glock 17, a model favored by many law-enforcement officers, and a Ruger P89. The Glock holds 17 bullets and the Ruger 15.
  Police said they were bought in February and March, while Hennard was living in Henderson, and legally registered....
  Police said yesterday that George Hennard used two 9mm semiautomatic pistols -- a Glock 17 and a Ruger P89 -- in his shooting spree at Luby's Cafeteria in Killeen Texas Wednesday.
  Type: Glock model 17 auto pistol
  Caliber: 9mm, 17-shot magazine
  Length: 7.40 inches
  Weight: 21.8 oz.
  Price: $511.60
  Type: Ruger P85
  Caliber: 9mm, 15-shot magazine
  Length: 7.84 inches
  Weight: 32 oz.
  Price: $325
  • Booth, William (October 18, 1991). "Texas Killer Said to Have 'Problem With Women'". The Washington Post. 

• In addition to the 22 shot to death, 23 people were wounded in the rampage. At least 11 remained hospitalized Thursday, two in critical condition.
  Wounded himself by police, Hennard put a 9-millimeter Glock 17 semiautomatic pistol to his head and killed himself.
  • Kennedy, J. Michael; Serrano, Richard A. (October 18, 1991). "Police May Never Learn What Motivated Gunman: Massacre: Hennard was seen as reclusive, belligerent. Officials are looking into possibility he hated women". Los Angeles Times: p. 1. 

• On Feb. 21, Mike's Gun House in Henderson, Nev., sold a Glock 17 pistol to a member of the Hennard family, said a spokesman for Glock Inc. in Marietta, Ga.
  The shop, owned by Michael O'Donoghue, on March 29 also sold the Ruger semiautomatic that Mr. Hennard used along with the Glock in the shooting, The Associated Press reported. The news service reported that a Las Vegas undersheriff, Eric Cooper, said that Mr. Hennard signed for both guns and listed himself as unemployed on both registrations.
  • Terry, Don (October 18, 1991). "Portrait of Texas Killer: Impatient and Troubled". The New York Times. 

• Date: October 16, 1991
  Location: Luby's Cafeteria, Killeen, Texas
  Alleged Shooter: George Hennard
  People Killed: 24 (shooter committed suicide)
  People Injured: 20
  Firearm(s): Ruger P-89 9mm pistol and a Glock 9mm pistol
  Circumstances
  Hennard, who had a history of mental instability and was described by friends and family as paranoid and troubled, drove his pickup truck through the window of a Luby's Cafeteria restaurant and opened fire, killing 23 people and wounding 20 others, then killed himself.
  How Firearm(s) Acquired
  Both guns were purchased legally from Mike's Gun Shop in February and March of 1991 in Henderson, Nevada. Although he had a history of mental illness, Hennard was never committed by court order to a mental health institution. Federal law prohibits firearms purchases only by people who have been committed to a mental health facility under court order.
  • "Where'd They Get Their Guns? An Analysis of the Firearms Used in High-Profile Shootings, 1963 to 2001". Violence Policy Center. 2001. 

• Seung-Hui Cho fired more than 170 rounds in nine minutes before he shot himself in the head in a classroom as police closed in, authorities said.
  Police officials released new details Wednesday of what happened the day of the Virginia Tech massacre, but they offered no insight into what triggered the shooting spree and they made no connection between Cho and any of his 32 victims.
  Two of the victims were fatally shot at West Ambler Johnston Hall, a dormitory, the morning of April 16. Another 30 students and faculty were killed a couple of hours later across campus in Norris Hall, a classroom building where Cho killed himself in a classroom among his victims....
  Authorities collected more than 500 pieces of evidence inside Norris Hall alone, including Cho's two pistols. His Glock 9 mm weapon was used in both shootings. The other handgun, a Walther .22-caliber, was used only at Norris.
  • Williams, Reed; Morrison, Shawna (April 26, 2007). "Police: No motive found". The Roanoke Times. 

• I have a Glock 9 millimeter, and I’m a pretty good shot.
  • Representative Gabby Giffords, in a 2010 interview with The New York Times (Becker, Jo; Lou, Michael (January 10, 2011). "In Tucson, Guns Have a Broad Constituency". The New York Times. ; Lowrey, Annie (January 11, 2011). "The Glock Spiel; How the company that made Jared Lee Loughner’s gun became so successful". Slate. ; Lowrey, Annie (January 13, 2011). "America's 25-year love affair with Glocks; How company that made Jared Lee Loughner's gun became so successful". Slate. NBC News. ; Allen, Nick (January 9, 2011). "Gabrielle Giffords: profile of the Congresswoman fighting for her life". The Daily Telegraph. ; Mak, Tim (September 1, 2011). "Ariz. GOP raffling off Glock gun". Politico. )

• When Jared Lee Loughner went to the Sportsman's Warehouse outlet on Nov. 30, he faced few obstacles to walking away with a Glock 19 semiautomatic handgun. Loughner was making the purchase in Arizona, a state with an Old West culture where gun laws are among the most lenient in the United States.
  The 22-year-old passed an instant background check required under federal law for all gun buyers, said Reese Widmer, manager of the Tucson store. A law enacted last year allowed Loughner to conceal and carry the pistol without a permit.
  On Sunday, Loughner was charged with using the Glock in the Tucson rampage that gravely wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-Ariz.) and killed six others, including a federal judge and a 9-year-old girl. In all, 20 people were shot in the attack.
  • Grimaldi, James V.; Kunkle, Fredrick (January 9, 2011). "Gun used in Tucson was purchased legally; Arizona laws among most lax in nation". The Washington Post. 

• A store selling firearms is required to check with NICS before making a sale. In Mr. Loughner’s case, when the 22-year-old went to the Sportsman’s Warehouse outlet in Tucson, Ariz., on Nov. 30 to purchase a Glock 19 semiautomatic handgun, a background check was performed and he came up clear, according to the store manager. That Glock was used in Saturday’s rampage in Tucson that killed six people and injured 13 others, including the critically wounded Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D) of Arizona.
  Arizona, well known for its low barriers to gun possession, also prohibits the possession of firearms by anyone found to “constitute a danger to himself or others” and whose right to possess a firearm has not been restored under the requirements laid out by state law.
  • Feldmann, Linda (January 10, 2011). "Why Jared Loughner was allowed to buy a gun". The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved on July 26, 2018. 

• The Glock 19 Jared Lee Loughner allegedly used to try to assassinate Rep. Gabrielle Giffords is a popular firearm around the world....
  Kristen Rand, legislative director of the Violence Policy Center, ...said the Glock 19 has been used in other mass killings, including the Virginia Tech shooting in April 2007. In that incident, Seung-Hui Cho used a Glock 19 and a Walther P22 rifle to kill 32 students and take his own life....
  Loughner was allegedly able to fire at least 20 rounds from his 33-round clip, according to [Paul] Helmke [president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence].
  • Kim, Susanna (January 11, 2011). "Glock 19: How did Unemployed Jared Loughner Buy Popular, Expensive Pistol?". ABC News. 

• Glock was really the driving force behind police departments switching from revolvers to semi-automatic.They have been very successful at marketing to police departments. They blazed the trail of popularity among law enforcement agencies to sell to the general public. They would say 'You want the same gun used by law enforcement.' It was one of the first high tech-looking guns to utilize polymers and plastics, as opposed to all metal.
  • Kristen Rand, legislative director of the Violence Policy Center (Kim, Susanna (January 11, 2011). "Glock 19: How did Unemployed Jared Loughner Buy Popular, Expensive Pistol?". ABC News. )

• There were two main selling points, according to Patrick Sweeney's The Gun Digest Book of the Glock. First, Glock manufactured — and still manufactures — unusually light guns, made out of plastic and other synthetic materials as well as metal. That makes them easy to carry, manipulate, and shoot.
  Second, and more important, Glocks held more ammunition than the standard-issue guns usually did at the time. With gang-driven gun violence rising, police departments decided to give the guns with the extra rounds a try. They caught on and then gained popularity in the consumer markets. (They also developed a particular cachet among criminals, then broader cultural recognition, including numerous citations in rap lyrics.) By 1996, Sweeney writes, Glock had sold more than 1 million guns in America....
  Glock remains a main player in U.S. gun sales, and the Glock 19 popular. The company boasts that it is "safe and ingeniously simple: Contrary to conventional, the trigger is the only operating element. All three pistol safeties are deactivated when the trigger is pulled and automatically activated when it is released." Thus, it is quick to shoot — and can shoot a lot. Loughner, for one, reportedly used an extended magazine carrying 31 rounds.
  • Lowrey, Annie (January 11, 2011). "The Glock Spiel; How the company that made Jared Lee Loughner’s gun became so successful". Slate. ; Lowrey, Annie (January 13, 2011). "America's 25-year love affair with Glocks; How company that made Jared Lee Loughner's gun became so successful". Slate. NBC News. 

• Arizona gun dealers say that among the biggest sellers over the past two days is the Glock 19 made by privately held Glock GmbH, based in Deutsch-Wagram, Austria, the model used in the shooting.
  One-day sales of handguns in Arizona jumped 60 percent on Jan. 10 compared with the corresponding Monday a year ago, the second-biggest increase of any state in the country, according to FBI data. From a year earlier, handgun sales ticked up 65 percent in Ohio, 16 percent in California, 38 percent in Illinois, and 33 percent in New York, the FBI data show, and increased nationally about 5 percent.
  Federally tracked gun sales, which are drawn from sales in gun stores that require a federal background check, also jumped following the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech, in which 32 people were killed.
  • Riley, Michael (January 12, 2011). "Sales of Glocks surge amid fears of limits". Boston Globe. Bloomberg News. ; Riley, Michael (January 12, 2011). "Arizona Shootings Trigger Surge in Glock Sales Amid Fear of Ban". Bloomberg News. 

• The sickening shooting spree in Tucson holds many lessons for our country, but the most important is this: It's much too easy for dangerous people to get their hands on deadly weapons.
  We must change this.
  A good start is by banning high-capacity gun magazines -- which allow scores of bullets to be loaded at one time -- such as the one used in the Tucson massacre that left six people dead and 14 others wounded, including my colleague, Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
  According to news reports, Jared Lee Loughner, the alleged shooter in Tucson, used a 33-round magazine in a murderous rampage. The sheriff says 31 spent rounds were found on the scene.
  As we now know, a group of heroic bystanders stopped the shooter by wrestling him to the ground. But they didn't have an opportunity to intervene until he emptied the magazine and paused to reload.
  If the shooter didn't have access to the high-capacity magazine that he used, he would have stopped to reload sooner and lives might have been saved.
  Loughner's magazine was attached to a 9 mm Glock 19 semi-automatic handgun, which is the preferred weapon of deranged madmen. In 2007, Seung-Hui Cho used the same model in the Virginia Tech shooting spree, which claimed 32 lives.
  • Senator Frank Lautenberg (Lautenberg, Frank (January 12, 2011). "Ban high-capacity gun magazines like one used in Tucson". CNN. )

• High-capacity ammunition magazines are the common thread that runs through most mass shootings: giving attackers the ability to fire numerous bullets without reloading....
  Here are just 10 of the U.S. mass shootings that involved high-capacity ammunition magazines.
  1. Hartford Distributors
  On August 3, 2010, concealed handgun permit holder Omar Thornton, armed with a Sturm, Ruger SR9 semi-automatic pistol and high-capacity ammunition magazine, opened fire on his co-workers at beer distributor Hartford Distributors in Manchester, CT, killing eight and wounding two before taking his own life.
  2. Fort Hood
  On November 5, 2009, Nidal Hasan, armed with an FN 5.7 semi-automatic pistol and 30- and 20-round high-capacity ammunition magazines, killed 13 and wounded more than 30 at the Fort Hood military base in Fort Hood, TX.
  3. Virginia Tech
  On April 16, 2007, Seung-Hui Cho, armed with a Glock 19 semi-automatic pistol, Walther P22 semi-automatic pistol, and 15-round high-capacity ammunition magazines, killed 32 and wounded 17 on the campus of Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, VA, before taking his own life.
  4. Xerox Office Building
  On November 2, 1999, Byran Uyesugi, armed with a Glock 17 semi-automatic pistol and three 15-round high-capacity magazines, opened fire at the Xerox Office Building in Honolulu, HA, killing seven.
  5. Wedgewood Baptist Church
  On September 15, 1999, Larry Gene Ashbrook, armed with a Sturm, Ruger P85 9mm semi-automatic pistol and three 15-round high-capacity magazines, opened fire at Wedgewood Baptist Church, killing seven and wounding seven before taking his own life.
  6. Columbine
  On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, armed with an Intratec TEC-DC9 semi-automatic assault pistol, Hi-Point 9mm semi-automatic Carbine, two Savage shotguns, and high-capacity ammunition magazines, killed 13 and wounded 23 at Columbine High School in Littleton, CO, before taking their own lives.
  7. Long Island Railroad
  On December 7, 1993, Colin Ferguson, armed with a Sturm, Ruger P89 9mm semi-automatic pistol and four 15-round high-capacity ammunition magazines, opened fire on Long Island Railroad commuters, killing six and wounding 19.
  8. Pettit & Martin, 101 California
  On July 1, 1993, Gian Luigi Ferri, armed with two Intratec TEC-DC9 semi-automatic assault pistols, a 45 caliber semi-automatic pistol, and 40- to 50-round high-capacity ammunition magazines, opened fire at the San Francisco, CA, law firm of Pettit & Martin, killing eight and and wounding six before taking his own life.
  9. Luby's Cafeteria
  On October 16, 1991, George Hennard, armed with a Sturm, Ruger P89 semi-automatic pistol, Glock 9mm semi-automatic pistol, and 17- and 15-round magazines, killed 23 and wounded 20 at Luby's Cafeteria in Killeen, TX, before taking his own life.
  10. Stockton
  On January 17, 1989, Patrick Purdy, armed with an AK-47 semi-automatic assault rifle, Taurus 9mm semi-automatic pistol, an unidentified semi-automatic pistol, and a 75-round high-capacity drum magazine, opened fire on grade school children at Cleveland Elementary School in Stockton, CA, killing five and wounding 30 before taking his own life.
  • Sugarmann, Josh (January 13, 2011). "10 U.S. Mass Shootings Involving High-Capacity Ammunition Magazines". HuffPost. 

• With its large ammunition capacity, quick reloading, light trigger pull, and utter reliability, the Glock was hugely innovative — and an instant hit with police and civilians alike. Headquartered in Deutsch-Wagram, Austria, the company says it now commands 65 per cent of the American law enforcement market. The Toronto and Durham police forces are also all-Glock, with Toronto’s emergency task force equipped with the same gun Loughner is alleged to have used.
  With all those customers and that visibility, it’s no surprise that the Glock has also been the gun of choice for some prolific psychopaths. Byran Uyesugi used a Glock 17 to kill seven people at a Xerox office in Honolulu in 1999. Seung-Hui Cho, who murdered 32 at Virginia Tech in 2007 before killing himself, used the same Glock 19 model that Loughner is accused of firing in Tucson. Steven Kazmierczak packed a Glock 17 when he shot 21 people, killing five, at Northern Illinois University in 2008.
  The smooth-firing Glock did not cause these massacres any more than it holds up convenience stores. But when outfitted with an extra-large magazine, it can raise the body count. The shooters in Arizona, Illinois, Virginia, Hawaii, and Texas could not have inflicted so many casualties so quickly had they been armed with old-fashioned revolvers. In its 2010 catalog, the manufacturer boasts that while the Glock 19 is “comparable in size and weight to the small .38 revolvers it has replaced,” the pistol “is significantly more powerful with greater firepower and is much easier to shoot fast and true.”
  The Tucson gunman demonstrated those qualities all too vividly. Loughner is said to have emptied his 33-round clip in a minute or two, a feat requiring no special skill.
  • Barrett, Paul M. (January 13, 2011). "Glock star of American handguns". Toronto Star. Bloomberg News. 

• Investigators say that on Nov. 30, Jared L. Loughner went to a Sportsman’s Warehouse in Tucson, Ariz., and bought a Glock 19, which sells for roughly $500. He is accused of using it during a rampage on Jan. 8 that left 6 people dead and 13 wounded, including Representative Gabrielle Giffords, Democrat of Arizona, who also owns a Glock....
  The guns are popular with law enforcement, consumers and, apparently, some young men intent on massacre. Seung-Hui Cho, who killed 32 at Virginia Tech University in 2007, and Steven Kazmierczak, who killed five at Northern Illinois University in 2008, were armed with Glocks.
  • Martin, Andrew (January 14, 2011). "Tucson Shootings Add to Glock's Notoriety". The New York Times. 

• Enhanced lethality, that's what we are talking about. Lethality increases when you have larger bullets, more ammunition and the guns are easier to operate. That's the contribution Glock and others have brought to America.
  • Tom Diaz (Martin, Andrew (January 15, 2011). "Tucson Shootings Add to Glock's Notoriety". The New York Times. )

• The high-capacity Glock pistol owned by Norway mass murderer Anders Behring Breivik stands as a stark example of the gun industry’s marketing of increased lethality. Since the mid-1980s, increased firepower and capacity have defined the products of the gun industry—of both U.S. and foreign manufacture.
  Glock pistols have been part of the arsenals of the some of the most infamous mass shooters in the United States, including the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting which left 33 dead and 17 wounded and, more recently, the attack in January 2011 in Tucson, AZ, by Jared Loughner which left six dead and 13 wounded—including U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ). Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh was illegally carrying a 45 caliber Glock pistol when he was stopped by law enforcement after the 1995 bombing for driving a car without a license plate.
  • "The Glock Pistol: A Favorite of Mass Shooters". Violence Policy Center. July 2011. 

• Talk about a killer gimmick.
  An Arizona Republican fundraiser is offering as a prize the same type of gun used in the attempted assassination of Arizona Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords.
  On August 26 the Pima County Republican Party sent out its regular online newsletter. It contained your standard newsletterisms - an intro from the chairman, a description of local candidates, a calendar of upcoming events, and so on. But this particular issue also featured an eye-catching giveaway to raise money for GOTV (Get Out the Vote) efforts.
  For just $10, readers can purchase a raffle ticket (out of 125 offered) for a chance to win a brand new handgun. Not just any handgun, but a Glock 23.
  Arizona Republicans surely know just how effective this particular brand of gun can be. After all, it was only eight months ago that w:Jared Lee Loughner used a Glock 19 in Tucson - the seat of Pima County - to shoot Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in the head. Giffords survived, but six other people, including a nine year old girl and a federal judge, were killed in the same shooting.
  • Brant-Zawadzki, Alex (August 31, 2011). "Pima County Repubs Raffle Glock As Fundraiser; Same Gun Type Used In Tucson Shooting". HuffPost. 

• Arizona Republicans are fundraising by raffling off a Glock pistol, the same brand of gun used to shoot Rep. Gabrielle Giffords just eight months ago.
  • Mak, Tim (September 1, 2011). "Ariz. GOP raffling off Glock gun". Politico. 

• Sales of Glocks rose in the immediate aftermath of Giffords’s shooting.
  • Mak, Tim (September 1, 2011). "Ariz. GOP raffling off Glock gun". Politico. 

• Of the many makes on the US market, one stands apart: the Glock. Gun-control activists have denounced the Austrian pistol and tried to have it banned—attacks that only enhanced the Glock’s glamour in the eyes of its fans. Today the Glock is on the hip of more American police officers than any other handgun. It is all over the television news and the Internet. When American soldiers hauled Saddam Hussein from his underground hideout in 2003, the deposed Iraqi ruler came to the surface with a Glock. New York Giants star wide receiver Plaxico Burress shot himself in the leg in 2009 with a Glock he had stuck in his waistband before heading to a Manhattan nightclub. Some of our most prolific psychopaths have favored the Glock, presumably because of its large ammunition capacity and lightning speed. Seung-Hui Cho, who murdered thirty-two people at Virginia Tech in 2007, used a Glock. So did Steven Kazmierczak when he shot twenty-one, killing five, at Northern Illinois University in 2008. Jared Loughner fired a Glock with a thirty-three-round magazine in his January 2011 attempt to assassinate Representative Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, Arizona, an attack that resulted in six dead and thirteen injured, including Giffords, who survived after a nine-millimeter round passed entirely through her brain.
  • Barrett, Paul M. (2012). Glock: The Rise of America's Gun. Broadway Books. ISBN 9780307719935. 

• Shot for shot, either a .45-caliber Colt 1911 or a .44 Smith & Wesson revolver will do more damage than a Glock nine-millimeter.
  Still, a Glock, or another large-capacity semiautomatic, can make a very bad situation even worse. During a mass shooting, such as the Luby’s massacre in 1991, a deft gunman can fire more rounds and reload more quickly with a modern pistol equipped with hefty magazines. When Seung-Hui Cho slaughtered thirty-two classmates and professors at Virginia Tech in April 2007, he used two pistols: a nine-millimeter Glock 19 and a smaller .22-caliber Walther. Considerable media attention focused on the fifteen-round compact Glock and the fact that it enabled Cho to unleash a greater volume of rounds in less time. Whether his choice of the Austrian brand raised the horrific body count remains a matter of speculation. It probably did.
  There is no question that Jared Lee Loughner created more carnage in January 2011 because he brought a newly purchased Glock19 to a political gathering in a shopping mall in suburban Tucson, Arizona. On a sunny Saturday morning, Loughner, a deranged twenty-two-year-old, opened fire at a constituent meet-and-greet hosted in front of a Safeway supermarket by his congresswoman, Gabrielle Giffords. In just minutes, the gunman sprayed thirty-three rounds, killing six people and wounding thirteen others, including Giffords, who suffered severe brain damage from a point-blank shot that passed through her head. Among the dead were a federal judge and a nine-year-old girl who served on her elementary school student council and wanted to shake hands with the vivacious politician. Loughner used a special oversized magazine, making it possible for him to do much more damage in a matter of minutes than he otherwise might have. He did not stop firing until he had to pause to reload and attendees at the event tackled him.
  Since the expiration in 2004 of the ten-round ammunition cap, Glock has led the charge back into the large-capacity magazine business. Sportsman’s Warehouse, the Tucson store where Loughner bought his Glock, advertises on its website that “compact and subcompact Glock pistol model magazines can be loaded with a convincing number of rounds—i.e.… up to 33 rounds.”
  The scale of the bloodshed in Tucson, like that at Virginia Tech and Luby’s, presents the strongest possible evidence that a restriction on magazine size makes sense. Such a limit would not stop a Loughner or Cho from attacking, but it could reduce the number of victims. Only six states—California, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York—have their own limits on large magazines. A national ten-round cap seems like a logical compromise that lawful gun owners could easily tolerate. The NRA has concluded otherwise—and pushed the issue off the legislative table.
  • Barrett, Paul M. (2012). Glock: The Rise of America's Gun. Broadway Books. ISBN 9780307719935. 

• Light, thin, easy to shoot and maintain, Glock 17 beat back media assaults against easily concealable “plastic pistols” and, instead, earned the attention of U.S. law-enforcement agencies looking for greater “stopping power” against increasingly better armed criminals. Offering huge discounts and shrewdly marketing to police from its facility in Smyrna, Ga., the company employed Gold Club strippers and Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders to attract crowds, entertain clients and lend the pistol a sexy cachet that grew exponentially when it popped up all over TV and movies as the gun of choice for cops and killers alike.
  • "GLOCK: The Rise of America's Gun". Kirkus Reviews. January 10, 2012. 

• In 1982, an obscure Austrian engineer named Gaston Glock, who worked in a radiator plant and had a side business with his wife making curtain rods, knives and belt buckles, invented a type of pistol that changed the worlds of law enforcement and firearms and powerfully influenced politics and popular culture.
  • Keefe IV, Mark A. (January 20, 2012). "Book review: ‘Glock: The Rise of America’s Gun,’ by Paul Barrett". The Washington Post. 

• Glock is the Google of modern civilian handguns: the pioneer brand that defines its product category. Its boxy shape, black finish, and almost defiant lack of grace became the standard. The no-firearms symbol posted by the federal government at US airports incorporates the profile of—what else?—a Glock.
  • Barrett, Paul M. (2012). Glock: The Rise of America's Gun. Broadway Books. ISBN 9780307719935. ; Washburn, Michael (January 27, 2012). "Our Favorite Weapon". The New York Times Book Review. 

• Virginia Tech. Gabby Giffords. Now Aurora, Colo.
  The names and places are linked by tragedy, death and the Glock semiautomatic handgun.
  The young men who carried out these mass shootings — and analysis says such killers are almost always male and most often young — all counted at least one of these versatile, easy-to-fire pistols in their arsenals....
  Like other mass shootings, Friday’s attack sparked calls for more gun control.
  • Horwitz, Sari (July 20, 2012). "Glock semiautomatic pistol links recent mass shootings". The Washington Post. 

• Certain guns have a reputation of being especially deadly. They would be the weapons of choice. Contrary to popular belief that these are guys who go berserk, they tend to be well-planned executions. They plan what they are going to wear and what weapons to bring.
  • James Alan Fox, criminology professor at Northeastern University and an expert in mass shootings, in reference to the Glock semiautomatic handgun (Horwitz, Sari (July 20, 2012). "Glock semiautomatic pistol links recent mass shootings". The Washington Post. )

• The bullets it fires are larger. They put bigger holes in things.
  • Daniel Webster, professor of health policy at Johns Hopkins University and director of the Center for Gun Policy and Research, in reference to the .40 caliber Glock semiautomatic handgun (Horwitz, Sari (July 20, 2012). "Glock semiautomatic pistol links recent mass shootings". The Washington Post. )

• In America today—where virtually anyone with a credit card and a grudge can outfit their own personal army—mass shootings are as predictable as they are tragic. Just as predictably, those who celebrate this lethal shift—the NRA and its gun industry partners remain mute when families and communities suffer the consequences. And when attention fades, they'll once again resume their lethal trade, unless we stand together as Americans to stop them.
  • Violence Policy Center and others, July 20 2012 (Over 30 National, State, and Local Gun Violence Prevention Groups Issue Statement on Colorado Mass Shooting. Violence Policy Center (July 20, 2012).; Horwitz, Sari (July 20, 2012). "Glock semiautomatic pistol links recent mass shootings". The Washington Post. )

• James Holmes purchased a Smith and Wesson .223 semi-automatic rifle at Gander Mountain gun store in Thornton, Colo., according to the law enforcement source. He also bought a .40 caliber Glock pistol at Gander Mountain gun store in Aurora, Colo. Another .40 caliber Glock handgun and a Remington 870 shotgun were purchased at Bass Pro Shops in Denver, Colo.
  • Castillo, Michelle (July 20, 2012). "Colo. shooter purchased guns legally from 3 different stores". CBS News. 

• The four weapons that authorities say were used in the massacre at a Colorado theater showing of the latest Batman movie included a popular semiautomatic rifle, a .223-caliber assault-style rifle with a 100-round drum magazine. The suspect also had two .40-caliber Glock handguns and a 12-gauge Remington Model 870 pump shotgun. In the past 60 days, police said, Holmes bought more than 6,000 rounds of ammunition, at gun shops and over the Internet, including:
  * 3,000 rounds of .223-caliber ammunition for the rifle. It was described as an AR-15-type weapon built by Smith and Wesson.
  * 3,000 rounds of .40-caliber ammunition for the Glock handguns.
  * 300 rounds for the shotgun....
  Officials told NBC News that all four were purchased legally, beginning in May, from two national chain stores: Gander Mountain Guns and Bass Pro Shops.
  • NBC News staff (July 20, 2012). "Colorado shooter used shotgun, assault-style rifle with 100-round drum magazine". NBC News. 

• Police said the alleged gunman had three weapons: a Remington shotgun, a Smith & Wesson M&P assault rifle and a Glock .40-caliber handgun. The assault rifle, which is akin to an AR-15 and is a civilian version of the military’s M-16, could fire 50 to 60 rounds per minute and is designed to hold large ammunition magazines. The source said that Holmes allegedly had obtained a 100-round drum magazine that attached to the weapon but that such large magazines are notorious for jamming. The law enforcement official said authorities think the gunman first used the shotgun — some victims have buckshot wounds — and then began using the assault rifle, which jammed. Then he resorted to the handgun.
  • Fahrenthold, David A.; Heath, Thomas; Achenbach, Joel (July 22, 2012). "Aurora, Colo., shooting spree: A day of tears for victims and twists in case". The Washington Post. 

• Holmes and his motives remained largely a mystery, with past associates saying he displayed no hints of a mental illness or violent tendencies.
  He was armed with a Smith & Wesson M&P .223 semi-automatic rifle, similar to an AR-15 assault rifle, a 12-gauge shotgun and a Glock .40-caliber handgun. Police found an additional Glock .40-caliber handgun in his car. All the weapons had been bought legally.
  • Slosson, Mary; Francescani, Chris (July 23, 2012). "Colorado massacre suspect silent in first court hearing". Chicago Tribune. Reuters. 

• Millions of theater goers packed movie houses all over the country on July 20 for the opening night screenings of The Dark Knight Rises. But in Aurora, Col., before the opening credits even rolled, deadly and uncinematic terror was visited on the audience when James Eagan Holmes, a 24-year-old University of Colorado dropout, allegedly walked into the Century 16 multiplex from an emergency exit. He reportedly threw a noxious gas bomb into the auditorium, then brandishing a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 rifle, a Remington 870 Express Tactical shotgun and two Glock 22 handguns, opened fire, killed 12 people and wounded 58.
  • Gray, Madison (December 4, 2012). "Top 10 Crime Stories 2. The Dark Knight Rises Massacre". Time. 

• In May 2012, Holmes purchased a Glock 22, then bought the shotgun days later. After failing his oral exam, he bought a Smith & Wesson M&P15 semiautomatic rifle and a second Glock in July. He also purchased 3,000 rounds of ammunition for the pistols, 3,000 rounds for the M&P15, and 350 shells for the shotgun over the Internet, police have said.
  • Muskal, Michael (December 19, 2014). "James Holmes' parents plead for their son: 'He is not a monster'". Los Angeles Times. 

• Hennard began his assault on Luby's at the height of the lunch hour by crashing his pickup truck through the glass front of the cafeteria at 12:39 p.m. As the pickup truck came smashing through the glass, the stunned diners were showered with glass fragments. Initially thinking the truck had crashed accidentally, some of the diners went to help the driver only to be shot down where they stood. Hennard instantly stepped out of his truck, one gun in each hand and, bellowing “This is what Bell County did to me! This is payback day!” and opened fire.
  Carrying Glock 17 and Ruger P89 pistols with plenty of spare clips, Hennard methodically circled the cafeteria where about 140 people were now scrambling to avoid the onslaught. As he roamed around the dining room it seemed to be most intent on killing women, frequently passing over men who were equally at his mercy. He seemed to pick his targets with more care than the typical lone gunman, many of whom simply kill anybody who appears in front of them. He also went largely for shots most likely to be fatal -- 10 of the 23 people killed were murdered with gunshots to their heads rather than Hennard aiming randomly. With seemingly total focus on killing as many people as possible, he stalked round and round the cafeteria like a predator, picking his targets, killing with an almost automatic precision and absolute ruthlessness.
  • Walsh, Robert (April 30, 2015). "The Luby's Cafeteria Massacre of 1991". Crime Magazine. 

• For 25 minutes Thursday morning during the murder trial of James Holmes in Centennial, Colorado, jurors passed the mountain of evidence gathered from the theater from person to person. Among the items they handled were two Glock handguns, a Smith and Wesson M&P15 rifle, magazines and ammunition, tactical body armor, two knives, a trio of gas masks, a Taser, and even the pink flip flops of one of the victims.
  • Collins, Vicky (May 7, 2015). "Aurora Theater Trial: Emotional Day as Jurors Put Hands on Arsenal". NBC News. 

• The Glock pistol reportedly used by alleged South Carolina mass killer Dylann Roof stands as a stark example of the gun industry’s marketing of increased lethality. Since the mid-1980s, increased firepower and capacity have defined the products of the gun industry — of both U.S. and foreign manufacture.
  Glock pistols have been part of the arsenals of some of the most infamous mass shooters in the United States, including the 2007 Virginia Tech shooting, which left 33 dead and 17 wounded, as well as the January 2011 attack at a Tucson, Arizona Safeway parking lot by Jared Loughner which left six dead and 13 wounded — including then-U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords. Examples of additional mass shootings involving Glock pistols include:
  * The 2012 attack at a Sikh Temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin that left seven dead (including the shooter).
  * The 2012 mass shooting at the Century Aurora 16 movie theater that left 12 dead.
  * A 1999 shooting at a Xerox Office Building in Honolulu, Hawaii, that left seven dead.
  * A 1999 shooting in Springfield, Oregon, where the 15-year-old shooter killed his parents, and then went to school where he killed two of his classmates.
  * A 1998 workplace shooting at the Connecticut State Lottery Headquarters where the shooter killed four before taking his own life.
  * The 1991 shooting at Luby’s Cafeteria in Killeen, Texas that left 24 dead (including the shooter).
  • Sugarmann, Josh (June 19, 2015). "Glock Pistol Used in Church Massacre a Favorite of Mass Shooters". HuffPost. 

• On Thursday, investigators did a trace of the handgun used in Wednesday's shooting and determined that it was a .45-caliber handgun Roof purchased from a Charleston gun store in April, two law enforcement officials told CNN's Perez and Bruer.
  Roof purchased a Glock .45-caliber model 41, which holds 13 rounds, a federal law enforcement source with knowledge of the investigation said. Witnesses have reported that Roof reloaded a number of times.
  • Sanchez, Ray; Payne, Ed (June 23, 2015). "Charleston church shooting: Who is Dylann Roof?". CNN. 

• Authorities say Roof shot to death nine people during a Bible study class at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston. Roof walked into the church carrying a Glock .45-caliber pistol with eight magazines loaded with hollow-point bullets, which are designed to do maximum damage.
  • Phelps, Timothy M. (July 22, 2015). "Dylann Roof indicted on federal hate-crime charges in Charleston church shooting". Los Angeles Times. 

• Shooting: Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina
  Date: June 18, 2015
  Suspect: Dylann Roof
  Gun: .45-caliber Glock. Roof killed nine people and injured one.
  How he got it: A flaw in the FBI’s background check system allowed Roof to buy the handgun at a South Carolina store eight days after his 21st birthday. When the gun dealer asked the FBI for approval to sell the gun to Roof, the bureau noted that he’d recently been arrested and exercised its three-day investigation period to get more information. Two days later, an FBI agent found that Roof had not been convicted of the felony drug possession charge, so an immediate denial was not merited. She tried to contact the appropriate police department for more information, but because of a jurisdictional issue the agent couldn’t get the police report in time to make the three-day deadline. Had she gotten the report, she would have seen that Roof had admitted to drug possession, which would have kept him from obtaining the weapon.
  • Cauterucci, Christina; Weber, Greta (October 2, 2015). "How Mass Shooters Get Their Guns". Slate. 

• The gunman who killed nine people at an Oregon community college had body armor and was armed with six guns and five additional magazines, officials said.
  ATF Assistant Special Agent in Charge Celine Nunez said six weapons were recovered at Umpqua Community College and an additional seven were found at the shooter's home.
  All 13 firearms were purchased legally by the shooter or a family member in the last three years, Nunez said....
  The gunman, identified as 26-year-old Chris Harper Mercer, had a 9mm Glock pistol and .40-caliber Smith & Wesson, according to a Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives incident report obtained by The Associated Press.
  • Abreu, Danielle (October 2, 2015). "ATF: Guns Recovered From Oregon Shooter Were Purchased Legally". NBC News. 

• Among Mercer’s weapons were a 9mm Glock pistol and a .40-caliber Smith & Wesson, according to the report by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
  • Iyengar, Rishi; Luckerson, Victor (October 2, 2015). "What We Know So Far About the Oregon Shooter". Time. 

• When Omar Mateen burst into Pulse nightclub in Orlando on June 12 and opened fire on the crowd, killing 49 people and wounding 53 others, he was armed with two guns. But in the aftermath of the attack, only one of the weapons became the subject of intense scrutiny.
  Most of the attention has focused on Mateen's semi-automatic .223-caliber Sig Sauer MCX, which is modeled after the AR-15 assault rifle. The fact that similar weapons were used during several recent mass shootings — including the 2012 massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, the movie theater rampage in Aurora, Colorado that same year, and the 2015 attack in San Bernardino, California — led to a renewed push for an assault weapons ban, and prompted many reports about how easily AR-15s can be purchased in Florida.
  But Mateen was also carrying a Glock, a brand of firearm that has been used nearly as often as assault rifles to commit mass murder.
  A list of mass shootings between April 1999 and January 2013 prepared for lawmakers in Connecticut showed that rifles were used in 10 incidents and shotguns in 10 others, while handguns were used in 42. Glock brand pistols turned up in nine of those cases. Another compendium of mass shootings since 2009 by the New York Times showed that handguns were used in 13 incidents, compared to five in which a rifle was the primary weapon. Glocks were recovered from six of the perpetrators....
  The earliest known case of a Glock being used in a mass shooting came in 1991, when unemployed merchant mariner George Jo Hennard drove his pick-up truck through the plate-glass window of Luby's Cafeteria in Killeen, Texas. Hennard exited his vehicle and methodically fired two pistols, including a Glock 17, at restaurant patrons, killing 24 and injuring 27.
  In the last nine years, Glocks have figured prominently in at least five mass shootings. In 2007, Seung-Hui Cho, a senior at Virginia Tech University, used a Glock 19 and Walther P22 to kill 32 people and wound 17 others in two separate attacks on campus. The Glock 19 is a smaller pistol that is easier to conceal. Three years later, Jared Lee Loughner used a Glock 19 to shoot 20 people in Arizona, gravely wounding US Representative Gabrielle Giffords and killing six others, including a nine-year-old girl.
  In 2013, Pedro Vargas went on a shooting rampage inside his apartment complex in Hialeah, Florida. With his Glock 17, Vargas murdered six people and held two neighbors hostage during an eight-hour stand-off until a SWAT team stormed the building and killed him.
  • Alvarado, Francisco (June 21, 2016). "Glock pistols are the overlooked weapon in American mass shootings". Vice News. 

• We flood communities with so many guns that it is easier for a teenager to buy a Glock than get his hands on a computer or even a book.
  • President Barack Obama (July 12, 2016) Remarks by President at Memorial Service for Fallen Dallas Police Officers

• Then Felicia Sanders heard the first startling boom, she said, as Dylann S. Roof removed a Glock .45-caliber handgun from his fanny pack and methodically shot one African-American worshiper after the next, nine in all, starting with the pastor of Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Rev. Clementa C. Pinckney.
  • Sack, Kevin; Blinder, Alan (December 7, 2016). "Heart-Rending Testimony as Dylann Roof Trial Opens". The New York Times. 

• Mr. Roof, 21 at the time, told the agents he was astonished to find the church parking lot not swarming with police when he exited a side door at 9:06 p.m. on June 17, 2015. He said he had saved one of eight magazines for his Glock semiautomatic handgun, loaded with hollow-point bullets bought at Walmart, so he could kill himself if confronted by the police....
  A final scene from the security camera showed Mr. Roof exiting the church’s side door, holding the Glock at his right side and driving off in his black Hyundai Elantra.
  • Sack, Kevin; Blinder, Alan (December 9, 2016). "Jurors Hear Dylann Roof Explain Shooting in Video: ‘I Had to Do It’". The New York Times. 

• Armed with a .45 Glock semi-automatic handgun, he loaded 88 bullets into eight magazines for the attack.
  Eighty-eight is a symbolic number for neo-Nazis, standing for Heil Hitler because H is the eighth letter of the alphabet.
  Most of the bullets were fired into an 87-year-old parishioner, Susie Jackson, who received 11 shots to her body.
  • "Dylann Roof trial: 'I did it,' church gunman says". BBC. December 9, 2016. 

• “He executed them because he believes they are nothing but animals,” prosecutor Nathan Williams said in his closing argument, addressing a somber jury that had seen crime-scene photos of all the dead, including Susie Jackson, 87, the oldest victim, into whom Roof had emptied an entire 11-round magazine from his Glock .45-caliber pistol....
  During the trial, prosecutors documented Roof’s meticulous planning in the seven months leading up to the killings. Data collected from his GPS showed that he had made at least six trips to Charleston, visiting historic plantations and studying the church. He videotaped himself on several occasions taking target practice with his Glock in the back yard of his home.
  • Waters, Dustin; Sullivan, Kevin (December 15, 2016). "Dylann Roof guilty on 33 counts of federal hate crimes for Charleston church shooting". The Washington Post. 

• July 20, 2012 James E. Holmes, 24, killed 12 people and wounded 70 at a theater in Aurora, Colo., using a Smith & Wesson semiautomatic rifle, a Remington shotgun and a Glock .40-caliber semiautomatic pistol....
  May 2012: In the 60 days before the shooting, he bought four guns legally at local gun shops.
  • Buchanan, Larry; Keller, Josh; Oppel Jr., Richard A.; Victor, Daniel (February 16, 2018). "How They Got Their Guns". The New York Times. 

• JUNE 17, 2015 Dylann Roof, 21, killed nine people with a .45-caliber Glock pistol at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C.
  FEBRUARY 2015 Mr. Roof was charged with a misdemeanor for possessing Suboxone, a prescription drug frequently sold in illegal street transactions.
  APRIL 2015 He purchased a gun from a store in West Columbia, S.C. Mr. Roof should have been barred from buying a gun because he had admitted to possessing drugs, but the F.B.I. examiner conducting the required background check failed to obtain the police report from the February incident.
  JUNE 17, 2015 Mr. Roof joined a Bible study group at Emanuel A.M.E. Church and opened fire with the gun he bought in April.
  • Buchanan, Larry; Keller, Josh; Oppel Jr., Richard A.; Victor, Daniel (February 16, 2018). "How They Got Their Guns". The New York Times. 

• OCT. 1, 2015 Christopher Harper-Mercer, 26, killed nine people at Umpqua Community College in Oregon, where he was a student. He was armed with six guns, including a Glock pistol, a Smith & Wesson pistol, a Taurus pistol and a Del-Ton assault rifle, according to The Associated Press.
  2008 Mr. Harper-Mercer was in the Army for one month, but was discharged before completing basic training.
  2009 He graduated from the Switzer Learning Center in Torrance, Calif., which teaches students with learning disabilities and emotional issues.
  BEFORE SHOOTING In all, Mr. Harper-Mercer owned 14 firearms, all of which were bought legally through a federally licensed firearms dealer, a federal official said. Some were bought by Mr. Harper-Mercer, and some by members of his family.
  OCT. 1, 2015 He killed nine people in Roseburg, Ore.
  • Buchanan, Larry; Keller, Josh; Oppel Jr., Richard A.; Victor, Daniel (February 16, 2018). "How They Got Their Guns". The New York Times. 

• Evidence recovered and/or identified by the FBI and/or Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) at the scene includes the following firearms:
  a. A Glock .357 handgun bearing serial number BCUM029;
  b. A Glock .357 handgun bearing serial number YEY449;
  c. A Glock .357 handgun bearing serial number RHY244; and,
  d. A Colt AR-15 model SPI bearing serial number SP99907.
  • United States of America v. Robert Bowers, Case No. 18-1396, Criminal Complaint (October 27, 2018).

• What was the gunman armed with? Bowers was armed with a Colt AR-15 SP1 assault rifle and three Glock .357 SIG-caliber semi-automatic handguns, authorities said at a press conference Sunday. Authorities said all four weapons were fired during the shooting. He was injured in confrontation with officers and transported to a local hospital, where an official at the press conference said he was in fair condition.
  • Vesoulis, Abby (October 27, 2018). "What to Know About Pittsburgh Synagogue Shooting Suspect Robert Bowers". Time. 

• Bowers, 46, allegedly burst into the Tree of Life Congregation Synagogue in the affluent Squirrel Hill neighborhood, shouting anti-Semitic epithets as he opened fire on the congregants. His extensive armaments included a Colt AR-15 semiautomatic rifle and three Glock .357 handguns. At least three of the weapons were purchased legally, the Associated Press reported, citing an unnamed law enforcement official.
  • Bacon, John; Johnson, Kevin (October 28, 2018). "Pittsburgh shooting suspect Robert Bowers wanted 'to kill Jews'". USA Today. 

• "They're committing genocide to my people," Bowers told police during the shootout, according to an FBI affidavit. "I just want to kill Jews."...
  Police said they received 911 calls about an active shooter around 10 a.m., five minutes after Bowers made his last social media post. When officers entered the building, they found the victims' bodies and survivors hiding. They rescued at least two people from the basement and scrambled to evacuate people as they looked for the gunman.
  Two officers encountered the gunman as he was attempting to leave the building, according to a criminal complaint. The gunman fired at them, shooting one officer in the hand before fleeing back inside the synagogue. The other officer suffered several cuts to his face from shrapnel and broken glass.
  SWAT officers found Bowers on the third floor of the building and exchanged gunfire with him until he surrendered, authorities said. Two SWAT officers were injured in the gunfight, along with Bowers.
  Bowers used a Colt AR-15 rifle and three Glock .357 handguns during the attack, police said. Bowers legally purchased the three Glock .357s, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN. It's not clear whether the AR-15 was purchased legally.
  • Chavez, Nicole; Grinberg, Emanuella; McLaughlin, Eliott C. (October 28, 2018). "Pittsburgh synagogue gunman said he wanted all Jews to die, criminal complaint says". CNN. 

• The shooting began around 9:50 a.m. Bowers was armed with several guns including an AR-15, records show.
  Bowers killed 11 people then went to the third floor of the building. Law enforcement responded and exchanged gunfire with Bowers.
  "They're committing genocide to my people," Bowers allegedly told one law enforcement officer. "I just want to kill Jews."
  Authorities say he continued to make comments about genocide. Bowers eventually surrendered to police.
  Investigators located three .357 caliber Glock handguns and a Colt AR-15, records show.
  • Croteau, Scott J. (October 28, 2018). "Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect Robert Bowers was armed with AR-15 and said 'he wanted all Jews to die'". MassLive Media. 

• “They’re committing genocide to my people,” the suspect told a SWAT officer after being shot and captured, according to a federal criminal complaint released Sunday. “I just want to kill Jews.”
  Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto called the attack the “darkest day of Pittsburgh’s history” after the victims’ names were read out Sunday morning. The mayor also disputed President Donald Trump’s suggestion that the synagogue should have had armed guards.
  “The approach we need to be looking at is how we take the guns — the common denominator of every mass shooting in America — out of the hands of those looking to express hatred through murder,” Peduto told reporters....
  In what appeared to be his final social media post hours before the attack, the man wrote: “I can’t sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I’m going in.”...
  He allegedly walked through an unlocked door at about 9:45 a.m., armed with a Colt AR-15 rifle and three Glock .357 pistols — all four of which fired, police said, as he moved around the large building, screaming about Jews.
  • Selk, Avi; Berman, Mark; Achenbach, Joel (October 28, 2018). "Police detail the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre and name the 11 dead, including 97-year-old woman". National Post. The Washington Post. ; Selk, Avi; Berman, Mark; Achenbach, Joel (October 28, 2018). "Documents detail the Pittsburgh synagogue massacre and name the dead". The Philadelphia Inquirer. The Washington Post. 

• Bowers was armed with a Colt AR-15, as well as three Glock .357 handguns when he entered the synagogue.
  These details and others were released Sunday morning in a federal criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in the Western District of Pennsylvania by FBI Special Agent Brian Collins.
  "During the course of his deadly assault on people at the synagogue, and simultaneously with his gunfight with responding officers, Bowers made statements evincing an animus towards people of the Jewish faith," the complaint said. "For example, Bowers commented to one law enforcement officer, in substance, 'they're committing genocide to my people. I just want to kill Jews.' Bowers repeated comments regarding genocide, his desire to kill Jewish people, and that Jewish people needed to die."...
  Mr. Bowers used all four weapons during the attack, authorities said.
  • Reed Ward, Paula (October 28, 2018). "Authorities: Mass shooting suspect said he wanted 'all Jews to die'". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 

• The complaint said Bowers made statements “evincing an animus towards people of Jewish faith.” Bowers told one law enforcement officer, “they’re committed genocide to my people. I just want to kill Jews.” Bowers repeated comments regarding genocide, his desire to kill Jewish people and that Jewish people needed to die, the federal complaint said.
  Bowers eventually surrendered.
  According to the complaint, Bowers had four weapons on him including three Glock .357 handguns as well as a Colt AR-15 model SP1.
  • "What we know about Robert Bowers, suspect in mass shooting at Pittsburgh synagogue". WPXI. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. October 29, 2018. 

• Bowers used a Colt AR-15 rifle and three Glock .357 handguns during the attack, police said. Bowers legally purchased the three Glock .357s, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN. It's not clear whether the AR-15 was purchased legally.
  • Cullinane, Susannah (October 29, 2018). "Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect due in court". CNN. MSN. 

• The man accused of the Pittsburgh synagogue shooting, Robert Bowers, legally purchased the guns he used to kill 11 people in what is believed to be the deadliest attack against the Jewish community in the United States, according to the federal authorities.
  Officials have said Mr. Bowers used four guns — an AR-15 assault rifle and three Glock .357 handguns — in his shooting spree at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh on Saturday morning.
  An investigation has concluded that the guns were “acquired and possessed legally by Bowers,” the Philadelphia office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said on Tuesday.
  Mr. Bowers did not fall into any category barred from gun ownership under federal law, including felons, convicted domestic abusers, dishonorably discharged veterans, or people adjudicated to be mentally ill or subject to certain restraining orders.
  • Oppel Jr., Richard A. (October 30, 2018). "Synagogue Suspect’s Guns Were All Purchased Legally, Inquiry Finds". The New York Times. 

• Police said Bowers used a Colt AR-15 rifle and three Glock .357 handguns during the attack. He legally purchased the three Glock .357s, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN. It's not clear whether the AR-15 was purchased legally.
  Hours before the shooting, Bowers posted about Trump. Minutes before allegedly storming inside the building, he logged onto Gab again and wrote to his followers.
  "I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered," he wrote. "Screw your optics, I'm going in."
  • Vera, Amir (October 30, 2018). "Funerals underway after 11 slain at Pittsburgh synagogue". CNN. 

• All the guns used in Saturday's massacre at a Pittsburgh synagogue had been purchased legally, a federal official said Wednesday.
  Authorities allege Robert Bowers opened fire at the Tree of Life synagogue as three congregations gathered to celebrate Shabbat services Saturday morning, killing 11 people and injuring six others in what's believed to the deadliest anti-Semitic attack in US history.
  Bowers used a Colt AR-15 rifle and three Glock .357 handguns during the attack, police have said.
  • Mallonee, Mary Kay; Simko-Bednarski, Evan; Hanna, Jason (October 31, 2018). "Guns used in Pittsburgh synagogue killings were legally bought, official says". CNN. 

• Prosecutors say Bowers entered the Tree of Life Synagogue with multiple firearms, including Glock .357-caliber handguns and a Colt AR-15 rifle, and made statements expressing his desire to “kill Jews.”
  “Today begins the process of seeking justice for the victims of these hateful acts, and healing for the victims’ families, the Jewish community, and our city,” U.S. Attorney Scott W. Brady said in a statement. “Our office will spare no resource, and will work with professionalism, integrity and diligence, in a way that honors the memories of the victims.”
  • Madani, Doha (October 31, 2018). "Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect indicted on federal hate crime charges, faces 535 years". NBC News. 

• The suspect in a grisly shooting that left 11 people dead at a Pittsburgh synagogue was charged Wednesday in a 44-count indictment accusing him of federal hate crimes.
  Officials say Robert Bowers, 46, of Baldwin, Pa., drove to Tree of Life synagogue armed with Glock .357 handguns and a Colt AR-15 rifle. The indictment charges that while inside the synagogue, Bowers made statements indicating his desire to “kill Jews.”
  • Zapotosky, Matt; Barrett, Devlin; Berman, Mark (October 31, 2018). "Suspect in Pittsburgh synagogue shooting is charged in 44-count hate-crime indictment". The Washington Post. 

• Examples of Mass Shootings in the United States Involving Glock Pistols
  
  Mass Shooting Incident
  Luby’s Cafeteria
  Killeen, Texas
  October 16, 1991
  Shooter: George Hennard
  Casualties
  24 dead (including shooter), 20 wounded
  Firearm(s)
  Glock 9mm pistol
  Sturm Ruger P‐89 9mm pistol
  
  Mass Shooting Incident
  Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church
  Charleston, South Carolina
  June 17, 2015
  Shooter: Dylann Roof
  Casualties
  9 dead
  Firearm(s)
  Glock .45 Model 41 pistol
  
  Mass Shooting Incident
  Safeway parking lot
  Tucson, Arizona
  January 8, 2011
  Shooter: Jared Loughner
  Casualties
  6 dead, 13 wounded
  Firearm(s)
  Glock 19 pistol
  
  Mass Shooting Incident
  Virginia Tech
  Blacksburg, Virginia
  April 16, 2007
  Shooter: Seung‐Hui Cho
  Casualties
  33 dead (including shooter), 17 wounded
  Firearm(s)
  Glock 19 pistol
  Walther P22 pistol
  • "The Glock Pistol: A Favorite of Mass Shooters". Violence Policy Center. November 2018. 

• Prosecutors say Bowers entered the Tree of Life Synagogue during services on Saturday morning with multiple firearms, including Glock .357-caliber handguns and a Colt AR-15 rifle, and made statements expressing his desire to “kill Jews” as he stalked his victims.
  • Fieldstadt, Elisha; Kaplan, Ezra (November 1, 2018). "Pittsburgh synagogue shooting suspect Robert Bowers pleads not guilty to federal hate crime charges". NBC News. 

• What is the Charleston loophole?
  The hole in the federal law was exposed in the wake of the deadly mass shooting in Charleston.
  When self-avowed white supremacist Dylann Roof went to buy a gun in 2015, legally, the sale should not have gone through. He would have been prohibited from buying a gun if his background check had found an arrest report indicating his drug use.
  However, federal law currently allows a gun sale to go forward if a background check isn’t completed within three days. With Roof’s background check unfinished after three-day waiting period, Roof picked up a .45-caliber Glock. He then used the pistol two months later to kill nine people in the 2015 hate-motivated mass shooting at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston.
  • Byrd, Caitlin (February 14, 2019). "A year after the Parkland shooting, a new push to close the ‘Charleston loophole’". The Post and Courier. 

• 2011 Tucson shooting
• 2012 Aurora shooting
• Charleston church shooting
• Luby's shooting
• Orlando nightclub shooting
• Pittsburgh synagogue shooting
• Umpqua Community College shooting
• Virginia Tech shooting

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