Lafayette Theater Killer Denied Concealed Carry Permit Over Mental Health Issues

Surprising practically no one, the man* who murdered two and wounded nine in a Lafayette, Louisiana movie theater was not legally permitted to carry a handgun due to mental health concerns:

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Authorities have uncovered that Lafayette theater shooting J___ H_____ apparently had mental issues and was evicted from his Alabama home in 2013 or 2014.

Russell County Sheriff Heath Taylor told The Advocate that his office also denied H_____ a pistol permit in 2006.

“It appears he had some mental health issues,” Taylor said.

Senior law enforcement officials are also trying to locate H______’s family members.

“He was known to us,” Phenix City Police Chief Ray Smith told The Advocate, citing number of civil disputes and “strange behavior.”

H_____, the gunman authorities say fatally shot two people and wounded nine others before killing himself Thursday in a Lafayette movie theater, was a 59-year-old drifter living in a motel, where investigators have found wigs and disguises.

Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft said Friday morning in announcing H_____’s identity that authorities still have no motive in the killings. His car, found in the parking lot near a theater exit after the shootings, had a switched license plate.

Craft said H_____ clearly intended to escape after opening fire by blending in with the fleeing crowd, but turned back when police arrived and shot himself.

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To clarify the statement above, Louisiana requires a permit to carry a concealed weapon, but does not require a pistol purchase permit.

Due to these documented mental health concerns and an a criminal record, the murderer could not have legally purchase a handgun like the one used in the attack. It is not known at this time where or when he obtained the firearm.

 

* Bearing Arms does not publish the names of mass murderers and spree killers.

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