2023 Jacksonville shooting

2023 Jacksonville shooting
Part of mass shootings in the United States
Location	2161 Kings Road, Jacksonville, Florida, U.S.
Coordinates
Date	August 26, 2023 (2023-08-26)
Attack type	Mass shooting, mass murder
Weapons	Palmetto State Armory AR-15 rifle Glock 20 10mm pistol
Deaths	4 (including the perpetrator)
Injured	0
Perpetrator	Ryan Christopher Palmeter
Motive	Anti-black racism

On August 26, 2023, three people were fatally shot by a gunman in a mass shooting that took place at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville, Florida. Authorities identified Ryan Christopher Palmeter as the gunman, described as a white adult male in his early 20s. Palmeter shot himself after he barricaded himself in an office. The incident is believed to have been racially motivated, and is currently under investigation as a hate crime.

Shooting

According to police, by 11:39 a.m. local time, the alleged gunman had left his parents' home in Clay County, Florida. The suspect was spotted at Edward Waters University shortly before the shooting, where he failed to identify himself to a campus security officer and left. University campus security independently observed the suspect putting on a tactical vest, mask, and driving off campus; they attempted and failed to capture the suspect, notified police, and the university was put on lockdown. At 1:18 p.m. the gunman texted his parents, telling them to check his personal computer. The gunman's parents contacted police at 1:53 p.m., after the shooting had already begun. According to a witness, the shooter fired at cars outside the Dollar General store. A source described the suspect as wearing a tactical vest, a mask, and gloves during the shooting. Officials state that the shooter killed three people and after attempting to leave the store, he went back in and barricaded himself after noticing police. The shooter allegedly shot himself while still barricaded inside an office as SWAT handled the standoff. At least three manifestos were found on his body, including ones addressed to his parents, the news media, and federal agents. All three victims were black, consistent with the intent to kill people of that race as alleged to be in the shooter's manifestos. Jacksonville police showed images of the alleged gunman's AR-15 style weapon bearing swastika and racial slurs drawn in white sharpie, and a Glock pistol without any such markings. Ownership of the weapons used by the suspect has not been determined, but they were apparently not owned by the parents.

Victims

Three people, two males aged 19 and 29 and one female aged 52, all of whom were black, were fatally shot.

Perpetrator

The shooter is alleged to be Ryan Christopher Palmeter (November 28, 2001 – August 26, 2023), and was described as a 21-year-old white adult male from Orange Park, Florida, who lived in the Oakleaf Plantation area of Jacksonville before he killed himself during the shooting. In 2016, he was allegedly the subject of an unspecified domestic police call. In 2017, he was allegedly the subject of a Baker Act call, used to place persons under involuntary detainment for mental health examination for up to 72 hours. Prior to the attack, he allegedly created a manifesto in which he used a slur to describe black people, expressing a desire to kill them.

Reactions

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis issued a statement, in which he referred to the shooter as a "scumbag" and a "coward" for killing himself instead of facing responsibility for his actions.

See also

• List of mass shootings in the United States in 2023
• List of mass shootings in Florida
• Jacksonville Landing shooting, which occurred exactly five years prior
• 2015 Charleston church shooting, a similar attack that targeted African Americans
• 2018 Jeffersontown shooting, a similar attack that targeted African Americans
• 2022 Buffalo shooting, a similar attack which targeted African Americans