Everytown, California Moms Demand Action, Students Demand Action Respond to Mass Shooting at Church in Sacramento

The California chapters of Moms Demand Action and Students Demand Action, both part of Everytown for Gun Safety, released the following statement after four people were shot and killed at The Church in Sacramento yesterday evening. According to officials, the man shot and killed his three children, all under the age of 15, at the church during a supervised visit with the children. The man had a restraining order against him. The fourth victim was their chaperone. The man also shot and killed himself. Additional details of the shooting are still unfolding. 

“The shooting last night was absolutely devastating and our hearts mourn for the families impacted by this senseless act of gun violence,” said Lisa Henry, a volunteer leader with California Moms Demand Action. “Once again, a horrific mass shooting had a deadly relationship with domestic violence and served as a tragic reminder of the importance of disarming domestic abusers. We will continue to fight to ensure no other family or community is shattered like this again.”

Research by Everytown for Gun Safety shows that this is at least the 271st mass shooting since January 2009 in which four or more people were killed, not including the shooter. An Everytown analysis of mass shootings in the United States from 2009 to 2020 revealed that in at least 53 percent of mass shootings, the perpetrator also shot a current or former intimate partner or family member. Nearly three in four children killed in mass shootings died in incidents tied to domestic violence. Every day in the U.S. on average, more than 110 people are killed with guns, and more than 200 are wounded —most in shootings that are not mass shootings.

California has the strongest gun laws in the country, scoring 84.5 out of a possible 100 with Everytown’s interactive tool, while experiencing one of the lowest rates of gun deaths. In an average year, nearly 3,160 people die by gun violence in California and over 6,80 more are wounded. More information about gun violence in California is available here.