On the 4th of July, Robert Crimo III killed seven people and injured another 47 in the Chicago suburb of Highland Park. It was yet another mass shooting tragedy that has left the majority of Americans wanting some form of gun control. Background checks have proven to be a controversial method of controlling who can and can’t get weapons. In this particular case, a thorough background check probably would have saved lives.
According to TMZ, Crimo had previously been known to police for a series of incidents. For instance, there was one time when Crimo was suicidal and the police had to come and diffuse the situation. In addition to this, Crimo had weapons confiscated from him after threatening to kill his family.
Lake County Sheriff’s Office via Getty Images
Despite all of this, Crimo’s father decided to sponsor his gun permit which was eventually used to purchase the weapon that caused so much death and destruction. Since no charges had been laid in Crimo’s previous run-ins with the law, he was ultimately able to secure a permit. It’s a colossal institutional failure that has many wondering whether or not the government will actually pass legislation that can remedy this situation.
Crimo will be in court this week as he now faces seven charges for first-degree, as well as a multitude of other offenses.
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