LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — Church bells rang Sunday as Maine residents gathered at somber and typically joyful providers to wish and assist each other following a traumatic week by which a fellow Mainer gunned down 18 people within the worst mass killing in state historical past.
The Rev. Daniel Greenleaf started providers on the Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul in Lewiston with a second of silence. Then, he informed the congregation that it was good to have the ability to lastly pray collectively after days of lockdown imposed whereas police looked for the 40-year-old gunman Robert Card.
The physique of Card was found Friday in a trailer at a recycling middle in Lisbon Falls. Card died of an obvious self-inflicted gunshot wound, however it was unclear when, authorities mentioned. Card is suspected of additionally injuring 13 folks during the shooting rampage on Wednesday night time in Lewiston.
A number of ladies wore black veils within the cavernous sanctuary, the place a church official mentioned they’re elevating funds to assist taking pictures victims and others harm by “the horrible occasions in our small city.”
“We will see the rays of sunshine in darkness,“ Greenleaf mentioned throughout his sermon. He informed the worshippers that it’s occasions like this that they’ve “practiced” their religion for.
“We can’t repair this, however then once more human beings should not machines to be fastened,” Greenleaf mentioned.
At Lisbon Falls Baptist Church, the temper was upbeat as church members arrived and greeted one another. However the ambiance turned somber when the Rev. Brian Ganong referenced the tragedy. He prayed for the victims combating for his or her lives, those that misplaced household and buddies, first responders and medical staff, and others — together with the Card household, who he mentioned had ties to some members of the church.
“It did occur. We might by no means know the explanation why,” he mentioned, encouraging the congregation to hunt solace by means of a better being.
Standing outdoors the basilica after attending early Mass, Marcel Roy mentioned the previous few days have been painful however that he’s hopeful the neighborhood can being the lengthy strategy of therapeutic.
“This feels good,” Roy mentioned because the church bells rang.
The 70-year-old Lewiston resident mentioned that he knew 4 of the taking pictures victims and is praying for them in addition to the shooter.
“I can’t hate the man,” he mentioned of the gunman. “He wasn’t introduced up as a killer.”
Authorities recovered a mess of weapons throughout their seek for Card and imagine he had legally bought his weapons, together with these recovered in his automotive and close to his physique, mentioned Jim Ferguson, the particular agent answerable for the Boston workplace of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. He declined to supply particular particulars concerning the weapons, together with their make and mannequin, and wouldn’t say precisely what number of had been discovered.
Investigators are nonetheless trying to find a motive for the bloodbath, however have more and more been centered on Card’s psychological well being historical past. State Division of Public Security Commissioner Michael Sauschuck mentioned Card had been listening to voices and had paranoia.
Card believed “folks had been speaking about him and there might even have been some voices at play,” Sauschuck mentioned.
Relations of Card informed federal investigators that he had just lately mentioned listening to voices and have become extra centered on the bowling alley and bar, in accordance with legislation enforcement officers who spoke to The Related Press on situation of anonymity so as to focus on particulars of the investigation.
On Saturday, road life started returning to Lewiston within the metropolis of 37,000. Police missed two clear alternatives to finish the lockdown sooner, after failing to seek out Card’s physique in searches of the recycling middle Thursday night time and early Friday.
For a lot of residents it was a day to mirror, mourn and, for some, take the primary tentative steps towards normalcy. Some went searching on the opening day of firearm season for deer, and one household handed out buckets of flowers in downtown. Others gathered at a makeshift memorial to the victims down the road from the bar focused by Card.
Joe Raedle through Getty Pictures
William Brackett, whose namesake son was amongst these killed, visited the memorial Saturday and mentioned he may really feel pent up pressure depart his physique when he discovered Card was lifeless.
“I’m telling you, if I had a bottle of champagne, I might’ve popped it and celebrated,” he mentioned.
Billy Brackett was shot a number of occasions and died on the way in which to the hospital, his father mentioned. He mentioned his son didn’t let his deafness cease him from doing something in life, together with taking part in a number of sports activities.
“He was only a light individual. He was huge and rugged, and I suppose possibly that’s why all of the little youngsters cherished him. They swarmed to a much bigger individual,” Brackett mentioned. “Possibly they thought, ‘He’ll be our protector.’”
The deadliest shootings in Maine historical past surprised a state of 1.3 million those who has comparatively little violent crime and had solely 29 killings in all of 2022.
Three sufferers remained in important situation at Central Maine Medical Heart, and a fourth was steady, hospital officers mentioned. One other affected person was transported to Massachusetts Normal Hospital, and the remainder had been discharged.
A stay-at-home order in place through the huge search was lifted Friday afternoon, hours earlier than authorities introduced that they had discovered Card’s physique on the Maine Recycling Corp.
The Lewiston shootings had been the thirty sixth mass killing in the USA this yr, in accordance with a database maintained by AP and USA Immediately in partnership with Northeastern College. The database contains each mass killing since 2006 from all weapons by which 4 or extra folks, excluding the offender, had been killed inside a 24-hour time-frame.
Related Press journalists David R. Martin and Matt Rourke in Lewiston, Maine and Michael Casey in Boston contributed.
