On Thursday October 1, in the peaceful Douglas County in Roseburg, Oregon – a city in the south with a population of 107,000 people – chaos erupted when a shooter opened fire on an English class (in which he was enrolled) at Umpqua Community College. According to USA Today, ten individuals (including the shooter himself) were killed and another seven were injured. Federal authorities identified the shooter behind the deadly rampage as 26-year-old Chris Harper Mercer. A timeline reveals that the first 911 call came at 10:38 a.m. Six minutes later, two Roseburg police officers and a state trooper arrived on the scene. Two minutes later, there was a report of “suspect down.” According to Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin, the state medical examiner concluded that Mercer committed suicide after exchanging gunfire with the officers. Investigators found fourteen firearms connected to the shooter, all of which had been purchased legally.

The nine victims who died in the massacre ranged from ages eighteen to sixty-seven. The shooter terrorized the classroom, demanding some of his victims to crawl across the floor as he shot them and killing another after telling her to beg for her life. He asked them their religion but shot them no matter the answer. He even shot a woman in a wheelchair. The victims were taken to the hospital with gunshot wounds to the head, throat, and torso. One of them died in surgery and three women were transferred to trauma facilities. They were expected to survive, but the hospital said one would likely have lasting neurological damage. According to Bonnie Schaan, her daughter fortunately survived by playing dead. The shooter showed no sign of mercy.

CNN captures the thoughts of Ian Mercer, the father of Chris Mercer, who said that he was devastated by the news that his son was the killer and that his heart went out to all afflicted families who had lost their loved ones. He said his son lived in Oregon with his mother; therefore, he had not seen his son since they moved two years ago. The father was completely unaware of the fact that his son had firearms. He said, “I know words cannot bring families back. I know there’s nothing that I can say that can change what happened, but please believe me, my thoughts are with all of those families and I hope they can get through this.” This tragic incident raises the debate of the right to bear arms. After all, to what extent does someone have this freedom if it can cost the lives of innocent people? Religion could also have been a potential cause of this miserable incident. Prayers to the victims of the community college shooting in Oregon and blessings for all the families are conveyed by people nationwide. This will reside as a strong symbol on humankind.