Oregon Shooting: Targeted Christians, Indiscriminate Hatred and Gun Control Rolled Into Day of Tragedy

At 10:38 a.m. Thursday, a shooter entered an Umpqua Community College classroom, opened fire, and within minutes, 10 people were dead, including the shooter. The gunman did not survive a shootout with law officers. Among his last words: asking people about their religion.

• UPDATE: What Oregon College Shooter Said Before Mass Killing

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin refused to name him, but multiple media outlets have reported the shooter’s name as Chris Harper Mercer, a 26-year-old white male.

Here are five things to know a day after the tragedy.

The shooter’s methodology was horrific

At one point during his killing, the shooter told people to stand up and declare whether they were a Christian.

Anyone who answered yes was shot in the head, and those who answered no were shot somewhere else, the sister of a witness told NBC News.

“They would stand up, and he said, ‘Good, because you’re a Christian, you’re going to see God in just about one second,’” Stacy Boylan, the father of a wounded student, told CNN, relaying what his daughter said before she went into surgery.

Little known about the shooter

Mercer’s neighbors described him as “not a friendly type of guy” who “did not want anything to do with anyone,” according to The New York Times.

He referenced Vester Flanagan, who killed two TV reporters in Virginia, in a personal blog, saying, “I have noticed that so many people like [Flanagan] are alone and unknown, yet when they spill a little blood, the whole world knows who they are,” according to CBSNews.

Authorities are also investigating a post made the night before on 4Chan, an anonymous message board, that read, “Don’t go to school tomorrow if you are in the Northwest,” the Times reported.

Thirteen weapons traced to the shooter have been seized during the investigation, Celinez Nunez an agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said during a press conference Friday morning. Six were found at the scene of the shooting and seven at the shooters residence. All of the firearms were purchased legally.

The local sheriff is not a fan of stricter gun laws

After the Sandy Hook massacre of December 2012, Hanlin wrote a letter to Vice President Joe Biden, saying he and his officers would not enforce stronger gun control policies.

He wouldn’t comment on the letter in a Friday morning interview on TODAY, saying, “Right now I’m focused on completing this investigation, and more importantly, focused on the victims and families of the victims.”

President Barack Obama responded strongly

A visibly frustrated Obama did not mince words in an address Thursday evening, calling for stricter gun legislation.

“Our thoughts and prayers are not enough,” Obama said from the White House.

Biden echoed the president’s sentiments, calling America, “basically the only civilized country in the world where we have these massive murders.”

And the president’s critics responded right back

“With few facts, Obama is quick to politicize this tragedy to advance his liberal, anti-gun agenda. #USSshooting,” tweeted GOP hopeful Mike Huckabee Friday morning.

Added former Rep. and Fox News contributor Allen West: “Sadly, President Obama could not restrain himself and went into his normal rant before all the facts were in.”

The National Rifle Association, the strongest pro-gun organization in the country, said following the shooting that its policy is “not to comment until all the facts are known,” according to Reuters.

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