Bailey Says 'Move On' After Highland Park Shooting, Then Apologizes

HIGHLAND PARK, IL — While local, state and federal officials gave condolences and shared calls to action in the wake of Highland Park’s Fourth of July massacre, one Illinois politician offered a different sentiment — “move on” — before later apologizing.

“The shooter is still at large, so let’s pray for justice to prevail, and then let’s move on and let’s celebrate,” Republican gubernatorial candidate and state Sen. Darren Bailey told a crowd of supporters Monday in Skokie after the village’s Independence Day parade was canceled. His comments were also streamed on Facebook Live.

Bailey in a statement later apologized if his comments “diminished the pain” felt in the aftermath of the shooting, according to The Hill. In a series of tweets, he offered prayers for the victims and called for the state to invest more in mental health care, for a special session to address crime and for more police on the street.

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A vocal supporter of the Second Amendment, Bailey last year appeared in a TikTok video shooting the state’s $42.2 billion budget with a semiautomatic sporting rifle.

Monday’s mass shooting occurred about 15 minutes into the Highland Park Fourth of July parade, when a shooter used a “high-powered rifle” to fire about 30 shots over Central Avenue from the roof of a business, killing seven people and injuring dozens, according to authorities and recordings of the event. Robert Crimo III, 21, of Highwood, was taken into custody in Lake Forest after an hours-long manhunt.

Crimo’s uncle told WGN’s Jenna Barnes that Crimo lived in a back apartment on the same property where he lives, and that he was “sorry from the bottom of my heart” and “very heartbroken” by the violence.

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State Sen. Julie Morrison was at the parade during the shooting.

“I will never do a parade again,” she told WGN. “I will never ask my family and friends to put themselves in harm’s way.”

The White Sox offered its sympathies to the victims and held its game against Minnesota as planned Monday, with one notable change to programming: the post-game fireworks were replaced with a pre-game moment of silence. The Cubs, Blackhawks and Bears all shared messages of mourning and sympathy.

U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a veteran who lost both legs in combat overseas, compared Monday’s shooting to her time in the military.

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“After listening to the videos captured at Highland Park, I thought to myself: the last time I heard a weapon with that capacity firing that rapidly on a Fourth of July was in Iraq,” she said in a tweet. “It was not on American soil.”

Cardinal Blase Cupich noted the U.S. is seeing more than one mass shooting per day thus far in 2022 and that gun violence is the leading cause of death for children in America.

“Weapons designed to rapidly destroy human bodies have no place in civil society,” he said in a prepared statement. “Whatever one makes of the right to bear arms, there is plenty of room for prudential judgment in interpreting the Second Amendment so as to enact serious, broadly popular gun-safety measures.

“… The right to bear arms does not eclipse the right to life, or the right of all Americans to go about their lives free of the fear that they might be shredded by bullets at any moment. Gun violence is a life issue.”

President Joe Biden reacted to the shooting Monday afternoon, issuing a statement that he has "surged federal law enforcement" to find the shooter, and touting recently passed bipartisan gun reform legislation but saying more must be done "fighting the epidemic of gun violence."

"It is devastating that a celebration of America was ripped apart by our uniquely American plague,” Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday at a news conference. “A day dedicated to freedom has put into stark relief the one freedom we as a nation refuse to uphold – the freedom of our fellow citizens to live without the daily fear of gun violence."

The following public officials are among those who also issued statements or made comments in response to the shooting:

• House Speaker U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi: “It is particularly heart-wrenching that this unspeakable horror was unleashed on a day of celebration for our nation. As we mark Independence Day today, let us renew our vow to never relent until all our children can live free from the fear of gun violence.”
• U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin: “To face senseless gun violence while out celebrating Independence Day is nothing short of horrific. The nation’s prayers are with Highland Park today. … I’ll ensure the fed government continues to provide support & assistance in the days to come.”
• Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul: “I will continue to collaborate with federal law enforcement, such as the U.S. Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center to ensure that community and faith leaders have access to training that can help prevent these horrific mass casualty events. I would like to thank the members of law enforcement and the first responders who ran selflessly toward the danger today. Investigators from my office continue to be on the scene assisting local, state and federal law enforcement.”
• U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky: "We must resolve to take action to end the obscene proliferation of military style weapons, as well as the easy access to all deadly firearms. The avalanche of guns is defiling the very freedom and security that the 4th of July is meant to celebrate. We must renew our battle to assure that everyone is free to realize life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”
• U.S. Rep. Brad Schneider: “We have suffered more than 300 mass shootings already this year alone (just 185 days). The nation needs to act, and act now, to save other communities from experiencing the pain Highland Park is suffering today. Most Americans agree on common-sense actions such as universal background checks and an assault weapons ban to keep our communities safe. Our community has my total commitment to do everything I can to make our children, town, and nation safer.”
• District 11 Lake County Board member Paul Frank: “Today our community is mourning and in shock. I pray for the victims; their families, and that our country will find the strength to protect our safety.”
• District 12 Lake County Board member Paras Parekh: “Our parade is about family, community, and country. Our community is in shock and our hearts are heavy for those that lost their lives or were severely injured due to another incident in this epidemic of senseless gun violence.”