Washington state has a lot of gun control on the books. In recent years, they’ve gone on something of a push to swing away from the state’s previous pro-gun stance.

Much of that is because of the growth of the Seattle area.

As we know, one reason people push for gun control is to supposedly put an end to mass shootings. I’ve long maintained that it doesn’t work that way, that gun control isn’t really the answer. After all, we’ve seen mass shootings all over the world, including in some pretty gun-controlled nations.

And now we have one in South Seattle:

According to Seattle Police, three people have been killed and six others have been injured after an early morning mass shooting in South Seattle.

…

Upon arriving Officers immediately found a 22-year-old man and a 32-year-old man who were dead on the scene. A 30-year-old woman with gunshot wounds was then found and taken to Harborview before dying in the ICU. One more 22-year-old victim was driven to Harborview Medical Center by an ambulance after he was also shot.

Once police were at the hookah lounge, they began getting reports of more victims arriving at various hospitals. A 38-year-old man, a 21-year-old man, and a 25-year-old man had all driven themselves to Harborview after being injured during the shooting. A 23-year-old man drove himself to Virginia Mason after being shot and was then transferred to Harborview in critical condition.

Five guns were recovered at the scene. Police say that this incident is part of a recent pattern where more guns are turning up in shootings.

Now, with five guns recovered but the shooters apparently not being arrested or shot at the scene suggests that this isn’t your typical mass shooting where someone is just trying to randomly kill as many people as humanly possible.

Instead, this looks like a more typical criminal case where at least some of the people shot were targeted. Especially as officials note there was a shooting near this establishment the night before.

Whether those shootings are related remains to be seen. However, it does suggest a pattern where this particular neighborhood is less than peaceful.

Police are sure there’s no general threat to the community, which suggests that they think this wasn’t what most would think of as a mass shooting. Yes, the body count is high enough to qualify by some definitions, but the motivation is clearly something other than quenching one’s rage or a desire for infamy.

This feels more like some kind of gang or other criminal organization attacking its rivals.

That’s not to say that all of those injured or killed were criminals–these groups generally aren’t worried about collateral damage, after all.

Still, a lot of questions remain, including what kind of firearms were used, where the killers got them–one not to be answered until they’re caught, to be sure–and why they chose to hit this particular lounge.

The city of Seattle isn’t going to feel safe for a lot of people, much less the South Seattle area.