Mass shootings are no doubt terrifying for everyone present, there are more terrifying things in the world. At least you can hide or run from a shooter.
What about a bomber, though? If someone packs a vehicle with explosives, where can you hide? It's possible, theoretically, but practically? And would you be thrilled the bomber who killed you wasn't armed?
Those are the questions I can't help but ask after reading this story out of Oregon.
Oregon’s extreme risk protection order law, also known as the “red flag” gun law, is one of the least-used protective orders in the state, according to a 2023 state report.
But it may have been a key safeguard in the case of the man suspected of driving a car packed with explosives into the Multnomah Athletic Club early Saturday — and a reason no one other than the suspect died in his alleged attack. ...
In June 2022, Portland police Officer Michael Hansen told the court Whitman had been fired from the MAC and that he “has consistently had the belief people associated with the MAC have been conspiring against him and are involved in a campaign of harassment and wanting to cause physical harm.”
The court granted the order, records show.
Earlier this year, in February, Hansen was listed as a petitioner on another red flag order after Whitman shot himself in the head, court records show.
Two days after the suicide attempt, according to court records, Whitman surrendered two guns, a 9mm Taurus Millennium G2 and a .38 revolver.
The ‘red flag’ law didn’t stop all violence
Despite police intervention, Whitman’s violent delusions continued.
Investigators believe that the former employee rented a black Nissan Rogue on Friday, which he used to drive into the building, careening around the first floor before setting off the explosive devices, believed to be a mix of propane tanks and pipe bombs, according to a law enforcement source.
Some of the devices detonated and some did not, Sgt. Jim DeFrain, who heads the Metro Explosive Disposal Unit for the police bureau, said at a Saturday afternoon press conference.
The ground floor of the building was “completely destroyed” and suffered “millions of dollars in damages,” said one of the law enforcement sources, who requested anonymity because the investigation is still ongoing.
So the red flag order took the guy's guns, but didn't stop him from trying to blow up the place. The only reason he was unsuccessful is apparently pure, dumb, luck.
One of the issues many have with ERPOs is that they disarm a potentially dangerous individual, but then lets them walk free, as if they're no longer a threat because they don't have guns. While The Oregonian is clearly a publication that favors red flag laws, they just kind of made the case for those people with this. No, he didn't have guns, but bombs are much more destructive.
And contrary to what a lot of people want you to believe, the presence of a firearm wouldn't have automatically made things more deadly. We've seen a lot of shootings where no one is killed.
We also saw the bombing of a school in Bath Township, Michigan, nearly a century ago. That incident in 1927 killed 44 innocent people, but it didn't involve a gun, so I guess that's cool, right?
Whitman was clearly deranged. Taking his guns from him didn't make people safer. God's good grace kept them safe, and nothing else. While that should be more than enough, I'm a firm believer in the good Lord helping those who help themselves, and that means not counting on Him to handle everything. Someone like Whitman, who has enough of a danger to warrant an ERPO, should have been put in a mental health facility on a 72-hour hold, then evaluated. Maybe then, he could have gotten treatment and none of this would have happened.
But instead, we get to hear about how great ERPOs are, all while touting a story that shows their shortcomings.