Everything we know about the Texas school shooting, Ray Liotta's death, the Depp/Heard trial, and more top stories from the last week
Updated
From the gruesome details of the Uvalde, Texas school shooting, to all the drama from the Johnny Depp/Amber Heard trial, here's some of our top stories from the past week.
She smeared friend's blood on herself and played dead: 11-year-old reveals chilling details of the massacre
An 11-year-old survivor of the Robb Elementary School massacre in Uvalde, Texas, feared the gunman would come back for her so she smeared herself in her friend's blood and played dead.
Remembering the victims of the Uvalde school shooting
Alexandria “Lexi” Rubio, 10
Felix and Kimberly Rubio had just celebrated their daughter Lexi's achievements at school before she was killed.
Lexi, who was 10 years old and in the fourth grade, had made the All-A honor roll and received a good citizen award, her parents told CNN.
"We told her we loved her and would pick her up after school. We had no idea this was goodbye," Kimberly Rubio wrote in a post on Facebook.
The parents told CNN they were proud of their daughter.
"She was kind, sweet, and appreciated life. She was going to be an all-star in softball and had a bright future, whether it's sports or academic. Please let the world know we miss our baby."
Felix and Kimberly Rubio via CNN
Amerie Jo Garza, 10
Hours before the shooting Tuesday morning, Amerie Jo Garza, 10, had posed at school for a photo, smiling as she held a bright certificate celebrating her “A-B” honor roll.
“Thank you everyone for the prayers and help trying to find my baby,” her father, Angel Garza, wrote on Facebook shortly after midnight. “She’s been found. My little love is now flying high with the angels above. Please don’t take a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them. I love you Amerie Jo. Watch over your baby brother for me.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10
The family of Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez was among many who waited for answers after the shooting. Around 7 p.m. Tuesday, her sister, Lidia Anthony Luna, wrote on Facebook that Annabell was among those killed.
“My little sister didn’t make it she’s not longer with us my poor sweet little girl,” Luna wrote. “Why god why these sweet babies who didn’t deserve this who were all happy for summer vacation.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Eliahana Cruz Torres, 10
Adolfo Cruz told ABC News late Tuesday night that his granddaughter, Eliahana Cruz Torres, was among those killed in the shooting.
A woman who said she is Eliahana’s aunt told a reporter KENS-TV News that the girl was a fourth grader and a softball player, excited to play her final game that was scheduled the day of the shooting.
The woman, who didn’t give her name, said her sister Sandra Torres, the girl’s mother, had been looking for her child throughout the day with no luck.
“It’s not like my niece not to reach out because when she feels threatened or scared, she’s always calling on her phone. She’ll blow up somebody until somebody answers her.”
The woman said she spoke to her niece the day before the shooting about her upcoming softball game and showed a picture of Eliahana in her softball gear.
“She was very excited about her softball game today. She was kind of nervous,” her aunt said. “She was excited because they were ... going to announce the ones that made it to All-Stars. And she was also saying, like, ‘What if I make it? I’m going to be so nervous.’ And I was like, ‘Girl, you got this. You’re going to be good at it. You got this.’ So she was excited.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Eliana “Ellie” Garcia, 9
Fourth grader Eliana “Ellie” Garcia, 9, was the second eldest of five girls in her family, a helper around the house who loved “Encanto,” cheerleading and basketball, her grandparents said. She dreamed of wearing a purple dress to her quinceanera, they said, and becoming a teacher.
Grandfather Rogelio Lugo, 63, spent Tuesday driving between hospitals, then waiting at the civic center for the grim news. He watched as officials swabbed his daughter’s and son-in-law’s mouths for DNA to identify his granddaughter.
At about 9:30 p.m., he said, officials started calling parents’ names, summoning them to a back room to inform them that their children were dead.
“When you go in, you know your baby is deceased,” he recalled as he sat in his living room Wednesday, surrounded by family and friends.
When Lugo heard officials call his daughter and son-in-law’s names, he knew his granddaughter was gone. He had last seen Ellie on Sunday. She spent weekends with her grandparents, reminding them to take their pills, helping to mow the lawn, make tostadas and chalupas and babysit her younger sisters. She would even ask to help her grandfather with his excavating work.
“When you’re older,” he would say.
Her older sister Janel Garcia, 11, was her constant companion, flaquita to her gordita. By Wednesday, Janel knew Ellie was dead, but couldn’t really understand, Lugo said.
“She wants her back. They’re always together,” he said.
Lugo raised his children in Uvalde and never felt unsafe. “I’ve seen all the stuff happen in other states, hoping it doesn’t happen here. Now it has,” he said.
His wife, Nelda Lugo, 63, worked as a cook at another Uvalde elementary school that was also placed on lockdown after the shooting. She knew both of the teachers who were killed. Sitting in her kitchen Wednesday surrounded by loved ones, she said the deaths still didn’t seem real.
“This morning I got up and thought, ‘What a dream I had,’” she said.
She had been stockpiling gifts for Ellie’s birthday June 4: leggings and Legos. Ellie’s father, a car salesman and DJ, planned to handle the music — lots of cumbias, which Ellie liked to dance to at her grandparents’ house, filming TikTok videos, she said.
Lugo said she struggled to explain the shooting to Ellie’s 5-year-old sister, who saw her parents on television late Tuesday.
“Why are they at the civic center?” she asked.
“They’re looking for Ellie,” Lugo said.
“Why?” the girl asked.
“They lost her at the school,” Lugo said.
“Why?”
“Because she died,” Lugo said.
Then she put the girl to bed. By morning, Lugo said her granddaughter had stopped asking questions. But her daughter awoke crying.
“It’s very, very sad,” she said.
Siria Arizmendi via AP
Eva Mireles, 44
One of the two adult victims in Uvalde was Eva Mireles, a fourth grade teacher who had worked for the district for about 17 years. Her husband, Ruben Ruiz, is a police officer in the school district. He was one of several officers who responded to the shooting and were apparently shot at by the shooter, but he was not injured.
Mireles’ aunt, Lydia Martinez Delgado, said in a message to the Los Angeles Times that she was furious to lose her niece in such a “tragic” and “senseless” way. The U.S., she said, needed to act on gun laws and expand background checks.
“It’s so easy for young, mental kids to get guns and randomly shoot innocent victims,” she said. “My niece, Eva, lost her life protecting her students. It shouldn’t have to be like this: teachers, parents and students afraid to go to school or send their kids to school.”
In a post on Twitter, Mireles’ daughter described her mother as “the half that makes me whole.”
“You are so known by many now and I’m so happy that people know your name and that beautiful face of yours and they know what a hero looks like,” she wrote, adding: “My heart will forever be broken.”
Family handout via CNN
Irma Garcia
“My tia did not make it,” John Martinez wrote on Twitter about his aunt, Irma Garcia, a fourth grade teacher at Robb Elementary. “She sacrificed herself by protecting the kids in her classroom ... She died a HERO. She was loved by many and will be truly missed.”
According to a GoFundMe page organized for Garcia’s family by Steven Martinez, she was a wife and mother of four children.
“Sweet, kind, loving,” Martinez wrote. “Fun with the greatest personality.”
Her age could not immediately be confirmed.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Jacklyn Cazares, 9
Javier Cazares said his daughter was someone who would give the “shirt off her back” to help someone. “She had a voice,” he said. “She didn’t like bullies, she didn’t like kids being picked on. All in all, full of love. She had a big heart.” Annabelle Rodriguez, also a victim, was Jacklyn's second cousin.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jailah Nicole Silguero, 10
Ten-year-old Jailah Nicole Silguero was killed in the shooting, her mother, Veronica Luevanos, told Univision through tears.
Luevanos said Jailah loved to dance and film videos on TikTok.
“I took her to school, but she didn’t want to go. She told her father, ‘Can I stay home?’” Luevanos said, adding that Jailah didn’t often ask to stay home. “I think she knew something would happen.”
Jailah’s cousin, 10-year-old Jayce Luevanos, was also killed in the shooting, according to Luevanos. She said her brother, Jacye’s father, was taking his death hard.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10
Carmelo Quiroz’s grandson had begged to be allowed to join his grandmother on Tuesday as she accompanied her great-granddaughter’s kindergarten class to the San Antonio Zoo. But, he said, the family told Jayce it didn’t make sense to skip school so close to the end of the year. Besides, Jayce liked school. “That’s why my wife is hurting so much, because he wanted to go to San Antonio,” Quiroz told USA Today. “He was so sad he couldn’t go. Maybe if he would have gone, he’d be here.” He died with his cousin, Jailah Nicole Silguero.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jose Manuel Flores Jr., 10
Jose's parents told CNN that the 10-year-old was helpful around the house and loved his younger siblings. “He was just very good with babies,” his mother said. His father told CNN that Jose loved baseball and video games and “was always full of energy.” A photo taken at school Tuesday shows him smiling and proudly holding a certificate to show he made the honor roll.
Jose Flores Sr. via CNN
Layla Salazar
Vincent Salazar said his 10-year-old daughter, Layla, loved to swim and dance to Tik Tok videos. She was fast — she won six races at the school’s field day, and Salazar proudly posted a photo of Layla showing off two of her ribbons on Facebook.
Each morning as he drove her to school in his pickup, Salazar would play “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” by Guns ‘n’ Roses and they’d sing along, he said.
“She was just a whole lot of fun,” he said.
Vincent Salazar via AP
Makenna Lee Elrod, 10
On Tuesday, Brandon Elrod told ABC News that he was still searching for his 10-year-old daughter, Makenna.
“Pretty sad,” he said, choking back tears. “Really sad. I don’t know what this world is coming to.”
Later, a family friend said on Facebook that Makenna had been killed.
“My heart is shattered as my daughter Chloe loved her so much!!” Pilar Newberry wrote, adding: “Just a few weeks ago she got a friendship bracelet from her at the ballpark and she wears it everyday!”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Maite Rodriguez, 10
After a rough time with Zoom classes during the pandemic, Maite Rodriguez made the honor roll for straight As and Bs this year and was recognized at an assembly on Tuesday, said her mother, Ana Rodriguez.
Maite especially liked physical education, and after she died, her teacher texted Ana Rodriguez to say she was highly competitive at kickball and ran faster than all the boys. Her mother described Maite as “focused, competitive, smart, bright, beautiful, happy.” Maite wanted to be a marine biologist and after researching a program at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi she told her mother she wanted to study there.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Nevaeh Alyssa Bravo, 10
Nevaeh Bravo’s cousin posted on social media after the shooting to ask for the public’s help locating the girl. Around 9 p.m., she wrote on Twitter: “Unfortunately my beautiful Nevaeh was one of the many victims from todays tragedy.”
“Thank you for the support and help,” she wrote. “Rest in peace my sweet girl, you didn’t deserve this.”
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Rojelio Torres, 10
“Our entire family waited almost 12 hours since the shooting to find out Rojelio Torres my 10 year old nephew, was killed in this tragedy,” Torres’ aunt, Precious Perez, told KSAT. “We are devastated and heartbroken. Rojer was a very intelligent, hard-working and helpful person. He will be missed and never forgotten.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Tess Marie Mata, 10
Tess Marie Mata was among the students killed, according to a Facebook post by her sister, Faith Mata.
“I honestly have no words just sadness, confusion, and anger,” she wrote. “I’m sad because we will never get to tag team on mom and dad again and tell each other how much we mean to each other, I’m confused because how can something like this happen to my sweet, caring, and beautiful sister, and I’m angry because a coward took you from us.”
A series of pictures accompanying the post showed Tess smiling in a baby photo, snoozing in bed, snuggling with a cat, doing the splits, flashing a peace sign and posing in front of a large heart mural.
“Sissy I miss you so much, I just want to hold you and tell you how pretty you are, I want to take you outside and practice softball, I want to go on one last family vacation, I want to hear your contagious laugh, and I want you to hear me tell you how much I love you,” her sister wrote.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Uziyah Garcia, 8
Eight-year-old Uziyah Garcia was among the Robb Elementary students killed Tuesday, his grandfather, Manny Renfro, told The Associated Press.
“The sweetest little boy that I’ve ever known,” Renfro said. “I’m not just saying that because he was my grandkid.”
Xavier Lopez, 10
Felicha Martinez told The Washington Post that her 10-year-old son, Xavier Lopez, was killed.
“He was funny, never serious and his smile,” she said. “That smile I will never forget. It would always cheer anyone up.”
She watched him receive an honor roll certificate just hours before he was killed.
Manny Renfro via AP
Xavier Lopez, 10
Felicha Martinez told The Washington Post that her 10-year-old son, Xavier Lopez, was killed.
“He was funny, never serious and his smile,” she said. “That smile I will never forget. It would always cheer anyone up.”
She watched him receive an honor roll certificate just hours before he was killed.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Alithia Ramirez, 10
Alithia Ramirez loved soccer and she really loved to draw. Her father Ryan Ramirez’s Facebook page includes a photo, now shown around the world, of the little girl wearing the multi-colored T-shirt that announced she was out of “single digits” after turning 10 years old. The same photo was posted again Wednesday with no words, but with Alithia wearing angel wings.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Miranda Mathis, 11
Eleven-year-old Miranda Mathis’ family was searching for her after the shooting, according to her cousin, Deanna Miller.
“Please lord hear our prayers and please let these babies just be misplaced and harm free,” Miller wrote in a post on Facebook on Tuesday afternoon.
On Wednesday morning, Miller shared a photo of Miranda with angel wings and a halo.
“My sweet baby cousin we loved u dearly,” she wrote.
A look at some of America's deadliest school shootings
Intro
Until the massacre at Colorado’s Columbine High School in 1999, the number of dead in U.S. school shootings tended to be in the single digits. Since then, the number of shootings that included schools and killed 10 or more people has mounted. The most recent two were both in Texas. In May 2022, an 18-year-old attacker killed 19 children and two adults at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. In May 2018, a 17-year-old killed 10 people at Santa Fe High School near Houston. Most of the victims were students.
Columbine High School, April 1999
COLUMBINE HIGH SCHOOL, April 1999: Two students killed 12 of their peers and one teacher at the school in Littleton, Colorado, and injured many others before killing themselves.
AP file
Red Lake High School, March 2005
RED LAKE HIGH SCHOOL, March 2005: A 16-year-old student killed his grandfather and the man's companion at their Minnesota home, then went to nearby Red Lake High School, where he killed five students, a teacher and a security guard before shooting himself.
AP file
Virginia Tech, April 2007
VIRGINIA TECH, April 2007: A 23-year-old student killed 32 people on the campus in Blacksburg, Virginia, in April 2007; more than two dozen others were wounded. The gunman then killed himself.
The News & Advance, Chet White, file
Sandy Hook Elementary School, December 2012
SANDY HOOK ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, December 2012: A 19-year-old man killed his mother at their home in Newtown, Connecticut, then went to the nearby Sandy Hook Elementary School and killed 20 first graders and six educators. He took his own life.
AP file
Umpqua Community College, October 2015
UMPQUA COMMUNITY COLLEGE, October 2015: A man killed nine people at the school in Roseburg, Oregon, and wounded nine others, then killed himself.
AP file
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, February 2018
MARJORY STONEMAN DOUGLAS HIGH SCHOOL, February 2018: An attack left 14 students and three staff members dead at the school in Parkland, Florida, and injured many others. The 20-year-old suspect was charged with murder.
AP file
Santa Fe High School, May 2018
SANTA FE HIGH SCHOOL, May 2018: A 17-year-old opened fire at a Houston-area high school, killing 10 people, most of them students, authorities said. The suspect has been charged with murder.
AP file
Robb Elementary School, May 2022
ROBB ELEMENTARY SCHOOL, May 2022: An 18-year-old gunman opened fire Tuesday at an elementary school in Uvalde, Texas, killing 19 children and two adults, officials said. The 18-year-old attacker was killed by law enforcement.
AP file
Woman draws pistol, kills man who was firing AR-15-style rifle into crowd, police say
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A woman in West Virginia fatally shot a man who began firing an AR-15-style rifle into a crowd of people that had gathered for a party, authorities said.
Dennis Butler, 37, was killed Wednesday night after he pulled out the rifle and began shooting at dozens of people attending the birthday-graduation party outside an apartment complex in the city of Charleston, police said in a statement.
Over the past few years, the U.S. has seen sharply increasing levels of violent crime. After two decades of decreases beginning in the mid-1990s, incidents have begun to rise again. Within the last two years, the trend has become especially pronounced. FBI data recently showed a 5.6% increase in violent crime from 2019 to 2020, even as rates of property crime continued to decline. In the same year, the murder rate rose by around 30%, one of the largest year-over-year increases on record.
Guns are closely tied to this trend in the U.S. The U.S. has the highest rate of civilian gun ownership of any country, and researchers have found the prevalence of guns to be associated with greater amounts of violent crime and gun deaths generally. Given these dynamics, it is unsurprising to see that gun-related deaths have spiked in recent years during the broader increase in violent crime.
Recent data from the CDC reveals how this trend has played out. In 2014, there were only 3.5 gun-related homicides per 100,000 population. By 2016, that figure increased to 4.6, and in 2020, it jumped to 6.2. Separately, gun-related suicides have also increased in recent years—from a low of 5.5 per 100,000 population in 2006 to 7.0 in 2020—but this increase has been more gradual.
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The rates of gun related homicides _ suicides are rising 1
In total, 45,221 deaths in 2020 were gun-related, which is a 14% increase over the prior year and a 43% increase over a decade before. These gun-related deaths constitute a majority of both homicides and suicides. Over the past three years, more than three in four U.S. homicides (76.4%) involved a gun, while more than half of suicides (51.2%) were gun-related.
More than 75_ of homicides _ 50_ of suicides involve a gun 1
While the overall growth of gun-related deaths is a nationwide issue, some locations are more affected than others. Many of the states with the highest rates of gun-related deaths are states that also have the highest rates of gun ownership. These states include locations in the South and Mountain West, along with Alaska. Mississippi leads the nation in gun-related fatalities per 100,000 residents at 28.6, followed by neighboring Louisiana at 26.3 and Wyoming at 25.9. At the other end of the spectrum, Hawaii has the lowest rate of gun-related fatalities at 3.4 per 100,000 residents, followed by a group of Northeastern states including Massachusetts (3.7) and New Jersey (5.0). However, gun ownership is not a perfect predictor of gun deaths: for example, states like New Hampshire and Maine have relatively high levels of gun prevalence, but are also in the bottom 10 states for gun deaths per capita.
Mississippi _ Louisiana have the highest rates of gun related deaths 1
Gun-related deaths are also unevenly distributed at the local level. While some of the Southern and Western states with higher levels of gun fatalities do have counties with similarly high levels of gun deaths, many of the top counties are found in Rust Belt locations like Philadelphia, Indianapolis, and Detroit. These more economically distressed locations may have greater levels of gun violence due to the relationship between factors like social mobility and income inequality and gun deaths.
The data used in this analysis is from the CDC’s WONDER Database. To identify the locations with the most gun deaths, researchers at BackgroundChecks.org calculated the rates of gun-related deaths per 100,000 residents in 2020. In the event of a tie, the location with the greater total number of gun-related deaths in 2020 was ranked higher. To provide additional context, researchers also calculated the proportion of all homicides and suicides that involve a gun, using data from 2018–2020.
Here are the counties with the most gun deaths.
Small _ midsize counties with the highest rates of gun deaths 1
15. DeKalb County, GA
Photo Credit: Christopher May / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 19.0
Total gun-related deaths: 145
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: -15.2%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 87.1%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 57.3%
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14. Hamilton County, OH
Photo Credit: Rudy Balasko / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 19.4
Total gun-related deaths: 159
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +23.3%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 85.9%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.6%
Shutterstock
13. Pima County, AZ
Photo Credit: RCole3 / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 19.5
Total gun-related deaths: 207
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +1.5%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 69.4%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 60.7%
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12. Cook County, IL
Photo Credit: Jonathan Siegel / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 20.4
Total gun-related deaths: 1,040
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +45.7%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 87.2%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 33.5%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 83.1%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.1%
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10. Oklahoma County, OK
Photo Credit: Nick Fox / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 23.1
Total gun-related deaths: 186
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +0.5%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 79.0%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 58.2%
Shutterstock
9. Cuyahoga County, OH
Photo Credit: The American Wanderer / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 24.3
Total gun-related deaths: 298
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +29.6%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 82.1%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 48.6%
Shutterstock
8. Milwaukee County, WI
Photo Credit: Paul Brady Photography / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 25.6
Total gun-related deaths: 242
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +69.2%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 82.3%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 42.3%
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7. Duval County, FL
Photo Credit: CHARLES MORRA / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 25.6
Total gun-related deaths: 247
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +14.4%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 83.1%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 56.6%
Shutterstock
6. Wayne County, MI
Photo Credit: Sergey Novikov / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 26.3
Total gun-related deaths: 458
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +30.9%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 86.2%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.8%
Shutterstock
5. St. Louis County, MO
Photo Credit: Rudy Balasko / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 26.4
Total gun-related deaths: 262
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +15.9%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 90.8%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.9%
Shutterstock
4. Jefferson County, KY
Photo Credit: Jonny Trego / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 31.0
Total gun-related deaths: 238
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +65.3%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 89.2%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 53.0%
Shutterstock
3. Marion County, IN
Photo Credit: Rudy Balasko / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 32.8
Total gun-related deaths: 317
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +46.1%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 85.2%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 58.0%
Shutterstock
2. Philadelphia County, PA
Photo Credit: Sean Pavone / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 34.1
Total gun-related deaths: 538
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +46.6%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 86.8%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 38.1%
Shutterstock
1. Shelby County, TN
Photo Credit: The Speedy Butterfly / Shutterstock
Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 40.6
Total gun-related deaths: 380
Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +36.7%
Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 91.5%
Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 64.0%
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Ray Liotta, 'Goodfellas' and 'Field of Dreams' star, dies
Ray Liotta arrives at the Newport Beach Film Festival 2021 Festival Honors, Sunday, Oct. 24, 2021, at Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach, Calif.
Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
Ray Liotta, the actor best known for playing mobster Henry Hill in "Goodfellas" and baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson in "Field of Dreams," has died. He was 67.
An official at the Dominican Republic's National Forensic Science Institute who was not authorized to speak to the media confirmed the death of Ray Liotta and said his body was taken to the Cristo Redentor morgue. The Hollywood Reporter and NBC News cited representatives for Liotta who said he died in his sleep Wednesday night. He was in the Dominican Republic to film a new movie.
Naomi Judd, whose family harmonies with daughter Wynonna turned them into the Grammy-winning country stars The Judds, died April 30, 2022 at age 76. The mother-daughter performers scored 14 No. 1 songs in a career that spanned nearly three decades. The red-headed duo combined the traditional Appalachian sounds of bluegrass with polished pop stylings, scoring hit after hit in the 1980s. Wynonna led the duo with her powerful vocals, while Naomi provided harmonies and stylish looks on stage.
AP file, 2012
Sidney Poitier
Sidney Poitier, the groundbreaking actor and enduring inspiration who transformed how Black people were portrayed on screen and became the first Black actor to win an Academy Award for best lead performance and the first to be a top box-office draw, died Jan. 6, 2022. He was 94. Poitier won the best actor Oscar in 1964 for “Lilies of the Field.”
AP file, 2008
Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Albright, the first female U.S. secretary of state, has died of cancer. She was 84. President Bill Clinton chose Albright as America’s top diplomat in 1996, and she served in that capacity for the last four years of the Clinton administration. She had previously been Clinton's ambassador to the United Nations.
AP file, 2016
Orrin Hatch
Orrin G. Hatch, the longest-serving Republican senator in history who was a fixture in Utah politics for more than four decades, died April 23, 2022, at age 88. A staunch conservative on most economic and social issues, he also teamed with Democrats several times during his long career on issues ranging from stem cell research to rights for people with disabilities to expanding children’s health insurance.
AP file
Gilbert Gottfried
Gilbert Gottfried, the actor and legendary standup comic known for his raw, scorched voice and crude jokes, died April 12, 2022, at age 67. Gottfried was a fiercely independent and intentionally bizarre comedian’s comedian, as likely to clear a room with anti-comedy as he was to kill with his jokes. Gottfried also did voice work for children’s television and movies, most famously playing the parrot Iago in Disney’s “Aladdin.”
AP file, 2012
Bob Saget
Bob Saget, the actor-comedian known for his role as beloved single dad Danny Tanner on the sitcom “Full House” and as the wisecracking host of “America’s Funniest Home Videos,” died Jan. 9, 2022. He was 65.
AP file, 2019
Estelle Harris
Estelle Harris, who hollered her way into TV history as George Costanza’s short-fused mother on “Seinfeld” and voiced Mrs. Potato Head in the “Toy Story” franchise, died April 2, 2022. She was 93. As middle-class matron Estelle Costanza, Harris put a memorable stamp on her recurring role in the smash 1990s sitcom. With her high-pitched voice and humorously overbearing attitude, she was an archetype of maternal indignation.
AP file, 2010
2022: Meat Loaf
One year ago: Meat Loaf, the rock superstar known for his “Bat Out of Hell” album and for such theatrical, dark-hearted anthems as “Paradise By the Dashboard Light” and “Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad,” died at age 74.
AP file, 1994
Taylor Hawkins
Taylor Hawkins, for 25 years the drummer for Foo Fighters and best friend of frontman Dave Grohl, died during a South American tour with the rock band. He was 50. Hawkins was Alanis Morissette's touring drummer when he joined Foo Fighters in 1997. He played on the band's biggest albums including “One by One” and “In Your Honor,” and on hit singles like “Best of You.”
AP file, 2012
Howard Hesseman
Howard Hesseman, best known as the hard-rocking disc jockey Dr. Johnny Fever on the sitcom "WKRP in Cincinnati," died Jan. 28, 2022. In addition to earning two Emmy nominations for his role on "WKRP," Hesseman also appeared on "Head of the Class" and "One Day at a Time," along with guest appearances on "That 70's Show," among others. The Oregon native also hosted "Saturday Night Live" several times. — CNN
Photo by Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images, 1978
Emilio Delgado
Emilio Delgado, who spent more than 40 years entertaining generations of children playing the Fix-It Shop owner Luis on "Sesame Street," died March 10, 2022. He was 81. Delgado had cited the PBS show's importance as a cultural touchstone in the way people of color were depicted on TV. — CNN
Louie Anderson, whose four-decade career as a comedian and actor included his unlikely, Emmy-winning performance as mom to twin adult sons in the TV series “Baskets,” died Jan. 21, 2022. He was 68. In 2016, Anderson won a best supporting actor Emmy for his portrayal of Christine Baskets, mother to twins, in the FX series “Baskets.” He was a familiar face elsewhere on TV, including as host of a revival of the game show “Family Feud” from 1999 to 2002.
AP file, 2017
Liz Sheridan
Liz Sheridan, a veteran stage and screen actress who played Jerry Seinfeld's mother, Helen, on "Seinfeld," died April April 15, 2022, at age 93. Though she had dozens of film credits, she was best known as Seinfeld's doting mother on his titular sitcom, which ran for nine seasons. She also appeared as the snoopy neighbor Mrs. Ochmonek on the alien-led sitcom "ALF."
Bobby Rydell, a pompadoured heartthrob of early rock ‘n roll who was a star of radio, television and the movie musical “Bye Bye Birdie,” died April 5, 2022, at age 79. Between 1959 and 1964, Rydell had nearly three dozen Top 40 singles including “Wild One,” “Volare,” “Wildwood Days,” “The Cha-Cha-Cha” and “Forget Him." He had recurring roles on “The Red Skelton Show” and other television programs, and 1963's “Bye Bye Birdie” was rewritten to give Rydell a major part as the boyfriend of Ann-Margret.
AP file, 1962
Ronnie Spector
Ronnie Spector, the cat-eyed, bee-hived rock ‘n’ roll siren who sang such 1960s hits as “Be My Baby,” “Baby I Love You” and “Walking in the Rain” as the leader of the girl group The Ronettes, died Jan. 12, 2022. She was 78.
AP file, 2010
William Hurt
William Hurt, whose laconic charisma and self-assured subtlety as an actor made him one of the 1980s foremost leading men in movies such as “Broadcast News," “Body Heat” and “The Big Chill,” died March 13, 2022. He was 71. In a long-running career, Hurt was four times nominated for an Academy Award, winning for 1985's “Kiss of the Spider Woman.” After his breakthrough in 1980’s Paddy Chayefsky-scripted “Altered States” as a psychopathologist studying schizophrenia and experimenting with sensory deprivation, Hurt quickly emerged as a mainstay of the '80s.
AP file, 1986
Mike Bossy
Mike Bossy, one of hockey’s most prolific goal-scorers and a star for the New York Islanders during their 1980s Stanley Cup dynasty, died April 14, 2022, after a battle with lung cancer. He was 65. Bossy helped the Islanders win the Stanley Cup four straight years from 1980-83, earning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP in 1982. He scored the Cup-winning goal in 1982 and ’83.
AP file, 1982
Guy Lafleur
Hockey Hall of Famer Guy Lafleur, who helped the Montreal Canadiens win five Stanley Cup titles in the 1970s, died at age 70. One of the greatest players of his generation, Lafleur, nicknamed "The Flower," registered 518 goals and 728 assists in 14 seasons with Montreal.
AP file, 1983
Scott Hall
Scott Hall, professional wrestling’s “Bad Guy” who revolutionized the industry as a founding member of the New World Order faction, died March 14, 2022. He was 63. Hall, who also wrestled for WWE as Razor Ramon, was a two-time inductee into the company’s Hall of Fame.
AP Images for WWE, File
André Leon Talley
André Leon Talley, a towering figure who made fashion history as a rare Black editor in an overwhelmingly white industry, died Jan. 18, 2022. He was 73. Talley was the former creative director and editor at large of Vogue magazine. Often dressed in sweeping capes, he was a highly visible regular in the front row of fashion shows in New York and Europe for decades.
AP file, 2016
Peter Bogdanovich
Peter Bogdanovich, the ascot-wearing cinephile and director of 1970s black-and-white classics like “The Last Picture Show” and “Paper Moon,” died Jan. 6, 2022. He was 82. Bogdanovich was heralded as an auteur from the start, with the chilling lone shooter film “Targets” and soon after “The Last Picture Show,” from 1971, his evocative portrait of a small, dying town that earned eight Oscar nominations and catapulted him to stardom.
AP file, 2005
Ivan Reitman
Ivan Reitman, the influential filmmaker and producer behind many of the most beloved comedies of the late 20th century, from “Animal House” to “Ghostbusters,” died Feb. 12, 2022. He was 75. Known for bawdy comedies that caught the spirit of their time, Reitman’s big break came with the raucous, college fraternity sendup “National Lampoon’s Animal House,” which he produced. He directed Bill Murray in his first starring role in the summer camp flick “Meatballs," and then again in 1981's “Stripes,” but his most significant success came with 1984’s “Ghostbusters.”
AP file, 2009
John Clayton
Longtime NFL journalist John Clayton, nicknamed "The Professor," died March 25, 2022, following a short illness. He was 67. Clayton spent more than two decades covering the Pittsburgh Steelers for the The Pittsburgh Press and the Seattle Seahawks for The News Tribune in Tacoma. Clayton moved to ESPN in 1995, becoming one of the lead NFL writers for the company. Clayton appeared on TV and radio for ESPN and worked at the company for more than 20 years.
AP file, 2016
Bobbie Nelson
Bobbie Nelson, the older sister of country music legend Willie Nelson and longtime pianist in his band, died March 10, 2022. She was 91. An original member of the Willie Nelson and Family Band, Bobbie Nelson played piano for more than 50 years with her brother.
AP file, 2015
Sally Kellerman
Sally Kellerman, the Oscar and Emmy nominated actor who played Margaret “Hot Lips” Houlihan in director Robert Altman's 1970 film “MASH," died Feb. 24, 2022, at age 84. Kellerman had a career of more than 60 years in film and television. She played a college professor who was returning student Rodney Dangerfield's love interest in the 1986 comedy “Back to School.” But she would always be best known for playing Major Houlihan, a straitlaced, by-the-book Army nurse who is tormented by rowdy doctors during the Korean War in the army comedy “MASH."
AP file, 2015
Marilyn Bergman
Marilyn Bergman, the Oscar-winning lyricist who teamed with husband Alan Bergman on “The Way We Were,” “How Do You Keep the Music Playing?” and hundreds of other songs, died Jan. 8, 2022. She was 93.
AP file, 1980
Manfred Thierry Mugler
French fashion designer Manfred Thierry Mugler, whose dramatic designs were worn by celebrities like Madonna, Lady Gaga and Cardi B, died Jan. 23, 2022. He was 73. Mugler, who launched his brand in 1973, became known for his architectural style, defined by broad shoulders and a tiny waist. The use of plastic-like futuristic fabric in his sculpted clothing became a trademark.
AP file, 2001
Gaspard Ulliel
French actor Gaspard Ulliel, known for appearing in Chanel perfume ads as well as film and television roles, died Jan. 19, 2022, after a skiing accident in the Alps. He was 37. Ulliel portrayed the young Hannibal Lecter in 2007's “Hannibal Rising” and fashion mogul Yves Saint Laurent in the 2014 biopic “Saint Laurent.” He is also in the Marvel series “Moon Knight."
AP file, 2015
Dan Reeves
Dan Reeves, who won a Super Bowl as a player with the Dallas Cowboys but was best known for a long coaching career highlighted by four more appearances in the title game with the Denver Broncos and the Atlanta Falcons, all losses, died Jan. 1, 2022. He was 77.
AP file, 2014
Don Maynard
Don Maynard, a Hall of Fame receiver who made his biggest impact catching passes from Joe Namath in the wide-open AFL, died Jan. 10, 2022. He was 86. When Maynard retired in 1973, he was pro football’s career receiving leader with 633 catches for 11,834 yards and 88 touchdowns. The Jets retired his No. 13 jersey.
AP file, 1968
Don Young
Alaska Rep. Don Young, who was the longest-serving Republican in the history of the U.S. House, died March 25, 2033. He was 88. Young, who was first elected to the U.S. House in 1973, was known for his brusque style. In his later years in office, his off-color comments and gaffes sometimes overshadowed his work.
AP file, 2019
Michael Lang
Michael Lang, a co-creator and promoter of the 1969 Woodstock music festival that served as a touchstone for generations of music fans, died Jan. 8, 2022. He was 77.
AP file, 2009
Lawrence N. Brooks
Lawrence N. Brooks, the oldest World War II veteran in the U.S. — and believed to be the oldest man in the country — died Jan. 5, 2022, at the age of 112.
AP file, 2019
Charles McGee
Charles McGee, a Tuskegee Airman who flew 409 fighter combat missions over three wars and later helped to bring attention to the Black pilots who had battled racism at home to fight for freedom abroad, died Jan. 16, 2022. He was 102.
AP file, 2019
Tom Parker
Tom Parker, a member of British-Irish boy band The Wanted, died March 30, 2022, after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. He was 33. Formed in 2009, The Wanted had a string of hit singles including U.K. No. 1s “All Time Low” and "Glad You Came.”
AP file, 2012
Shirley Spork
Shirley Spork, one of the 13 founders of the LPGA Tour who learned two weeks ago she would be inducted into the LPGA Hall of Fame, died April 12, 2022. at age 94. While she never won on the LPGA Tour — her best finish was runner-up in the 1962 LPGA Championship at Stardust Country Club in Las Vegas — Spork's impact stretched across seven decades of starting the tour and teaching the game.
AP file, 1946
Rayfield Wright
Rayfield Wright, the Pro Football Hall of Fame offensive tackle nicknamed “Big Cat” who went to five Super Bowls in his 13 NFL seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, died April 7, 2022. He was 76.
AP file, 1975
Charley Taylor
Charley Taylor, the Hall of Fame receiver who ended his 13-season career with Washington as the NFL's career receptions leader, died Feb. 19, 2022. He was 80. Taylor was the 1964 NFL rookie of the year and was selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame's All-1960s Team. The eight-time Pro Bowl selection was a first-team all-NFL pick in 1967.
AP file
Tommy Davis
Tommy Davis, a two-time National League batting champion who won three World Series titles with the Los Angeles Dodgers, died April 3, 2022. He was 83. Recruited to play for the Dodgers by Jackie Robinson, Davis batted .357 with 17 home runs, 104 RBI and 68 stolen bases in 127 games in that first season with the team. He won consecutive titles in 1962, when he hit .346 and led the NL in hits and RBI, and 1963, when he hit .326.
AP file, 1964
Bill Fitch
Bill Fitch, who guided the Boston Celtics to one of their championships during a Hall of Fame coaching career spanning three decades, died Feb. 2, 2022. He was 89. A two-time NBA coach of the year, Fitch coached for 25 seasons in the NBA, starting with the expansion Cleveland Cavaliers in 1970. He was Larry Bird's first pro coach with Boston in 1979, won a title with the Celtics in 1981 and spent time with Houston, New Jersey and the Los Angeles Clippers.
AP file, 1981
Robert Morse
Robert Morse, who won a Tony Award as a hilariously brash corporate climber in “How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying” and a second one a generation later as the brilliant, troubled Truman Capote in “Tru,” died April 20, 2022. He was 90.
AP file, 2010
Dede Robertson
Dede Robertson, the wife of religious broadcaster Pat Robertson and a founding board member of the Christian Broadcasting Network, died April 19, 2022. She was 94.
AP file, 1988
Robert Krueger
Robert C. Krueger, who followed two U.S. House terms with a brief interim appointment to the Senate before launching a sometimes-hazardous diplomatic career, died April 30, 2022, at age 86.
AP file, 2004
Johnnie A. Jones Sr.
Johnnie A. Jones Sr., a Louisiana civil rights attorney and World War II veteran who was wounded during the D-Day invasion of Normandy, died April 23, 2022. He was 102 years old.
AP file, 2019
Gary Brooker
Gary Brooker, the Procol Harum frontman who sang one of the 1960s' most enduring hits, “A Whiter Shade of Pale,” died Feb. 19, 2022. He was 76. Brooker was singer and keyboard player with the band, which had a huge hit with its first single, “A Whiter Shade of Pale.” With its Baroque-flavored organ solo and mysterious opening line - “We skipped the light fandango, turned cartwheels cross the floor" — the song became one of the signature tunes of the 1967 “Summer of Love.”
AP file, 2006
Brent Renaud
Brent Renaud, an acclaimed filmmaker who traveled to some of the darkest and most dangerous corners of the world for documentaries that transported audiences to little-known places of suffering, died March 13, 2022, after Russian forces opened fire on his vehicle in Ukraine.
AP file, 2015
Dwayne Hickman
Dwayne Hickman, the actor and network TV executive who despite numerous achievements throughout his life would always be remembered fondly by a generation of baby boomers for his role as Dobie Gillis, died Jan. 9, 2022. He was 87.
AP file
Mickey Gilley
Country star Mickey Gilley, whose namesake Texas honky-tonk inspired the 1980 film “Urban Cowboy” and a nationwide wave of Western-themed nightspots, died May 7, 2022. He was 86. Overall, Gilley had 39 Top 10 country hits and 17 No. 1 songs. He received six Academy of Country Music Awards, and also worked on occasion as an actor, with appearances on “Murder She Wrote,” “The Fall Guy,” “Fantasy Island” and “The Dukes of Hazzard.”
AP file, 1999
Bob Lanier
Bob Lanier, the left-handed big man who muscled up beside the likes of Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as one of the NBA’s top players of the 1970s, died May 10, 2022. He was 73. Lanier played 14 seasons with the Detroit Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks and averaged 20.1 points and 10.1 rebounds for his career. He is third on the Pistons’ career list in both points and rebounds. Detroit drafted Lanier with the No. 1 overall pick in 1970 after he led St. Bonaventure to the Final Four.
AP file, 1977
Fred Ward
Fred Ward, a veteran actor who brought a gruff tenderness to tough-guy roles in such films as “The Right Stuff,” “The Player” and “Tremors,” died May 15, 2022. He was 79. A former boxer, lumberjack in Alaska and short-order cook who served in the U.S. Air Force, Ward was a San Diego native who was part Cherokee. One early big role was alongside Clint Eastwood in 1979’s “Escape From Alcatraz.”
AP file, 2011
Vangelis
Vangelis, the Greek electronic composer who wrote the unforgettable Academy Award-winning score for the film “Chariots of Fire” and music for dozens of other movies, documentaries and TV series, died May 17, 2022, at age 79.
AP file, 2001
Ray Liotta
Ray Liotta, the actor best known for playing mobster Henry Hill in “Goodfellas” and baseball player Shoeless Joe Jackson in “Field of Dreams,” died May 25, 2022. He was 67. Liotta’s first big film role was in Jonathan Demme’s “Something Wild” as Melanie Griffith’s character’s hotheaded ex-convict husband Ray. A few years later, he would get the memorable role of the ghost of Shoeless Joe Jackson in “Field of Dreams.” His most iconic role, as real life mobster Henry Hill in Martin Scorsese’s “Goodfellas” came shortly after.
Actor Ray Liotta poses in New York, March 9, 2001. Liotta has gone into a slew of new directions in 2001, including goofing it up with Sigourney Weaver and Jennifer Love Hewitt in Mirkin's "Heartbreakers" and doing heavy drama in the drug bio "Blow." (AP Photo/Jim Cooper)
JIM COOPER
Jennifer Love Hewitt, right, Ray Liotta, center, and Sigourney Weaver, left, cast members from the movie "Heartbreakers," pose for photos at the world premiere of movie in Los Angeles, Monday, March 29, 2001. (AP Photo/Rene Macura)
RENE MACURA
Actors John Cusack, left, Amanda Peet, and Ray Liotta arrive for a screening of "Identity" at Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles on Wednesday, April, 23, 2003. (AP Photo/Chris Polk)
CHRIS POLK
Actor Ray Liotta sits with his daughter Karsen as they watch the Los Angeles Lakers play the Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday night, Nov. 30, 2006, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
MARK J. TERRILL
Actor Ray Liotta sits with his daughter Karsen as they watch the Los Angeles Lakers play the Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game Thursday night, Nov. 30, 2006, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
MARK J. TERRILL
US actors John Travolta, centre, Tim Allen, right, and Ray Liotta pose as they arrive at a cinema in London for the UK premiere of their film 'Wild Hogs', Wednesday, March 28, 2007. (AP Photo/Sang Tan)
SANG TAN
Actor Ray Liotta and daughter Karsen Liotta and her friends pose on the press line at the Los Angeles premiere of "Shrek The Third" in the Westwood area of Los Angeles, Calif. on Sunday, May 6, 2007. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)
Dan Steinberg
Cast member Ray Liotta poses for photographers while arriving at the Los Angeles premiere of "Bee Movie," Sunday, Oct. 28, 2007, in the Westwood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Weeks)
CHRIS WEEKS
Ray Liotta and his daughter Karsen pose at the world premiere of the film "Hannah Montana & Miley Cyrus: Best of Both Worlds Concert" in Los Angeles, Thursday, Jan. 17, 2008. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Chris Pizzello
Actor Ray Liotta, above, and his daughter Karsen Liotta pose on the press line at the "Target Presents Variety's Power of Youth" event to benefit St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Los Angeles on Saturday, Oct. 4, 2008. (AP Photo/Dan Steinberg)
Dan Steinberg
Cast member Ray Liotta arrives at the premiere of "Observe and Report" in Los Angeles on Monday, April 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Matt Sayles
Cast members Celia Weston, left, Ray Liotta, center, and Michael Pena pose together at the premiere of "Observe and Report" in Los Angeles on Monday, April 6, 2009. (AP Photo/Matt Sayles)
Matt Sayles
Actors Ray Liotta, left, and Robert De Niro speak onstage at Spike TV "Guy's Choice" awards in Culver City, Calif., on Saturday, June 5, 2010. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)
Chris Pizzello
Ray Liotta from the film "The Details" poses for a portrait in the Fender Music Lodge during the 2011 Sundance Film Festival on Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2011 in Park City, Utah. (AP Photo/Victoria Will)
Victoria Will
Left to right, Ray Liotta, Kerry Washington, and Dennis Haysbert from the film "The Details" pose for a portrait in the Fender Music Lodge during the 2011 Sundance Film Festival on Tuesday, Jan. 25, 2011 in Park City, Utah. (AP Photo/Victoria Will)
Victoria Will
Actor Ray Liotta, a cast member in the film "The Son of No One," poses for a portrait during the 2011 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)
Danny Moloshok
Actor Ray Liotta, a cast member in "The Son of No One," poses for a portrait during the 2011 Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, on Friday, Jan. 28, 2011. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)
Danny Moloshok
Actor Ray Liotta poses during the photo call of the movie 'The Iceman' at the 69th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Andrew Medichini
Actor Ray Liotta, left, interacts with actress Kerry Washington at the premiere of "The Details" at the Arclight in Los Angeles on Monday Oct. 29, 2012. (Photo by John Shearer/Invision/AP)
John Shearer
From left, actors Michael Shannon, Winona Ryder, and Ray Liotta participate in a photo call and press conference for the film "The Iceman" at TIFF Bell Lightbox during the Toronto International Film Festival on Monday Sept. 10, 2012 in Toronto. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Evan Agostini
Actor Ray Liotta arrives for the premiere of the film 'The Iceman' 69th edition of the Venice Film Festival in Venice, Italy, Thursday, Aug. 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini)
Andrew Medichini
Actor Ray Liotta poses during a photo call for Killing Them Softly at the 65th international film festival, in Cannes, southern France, Tuesday, May 22, 2012. (AP Photo/Joel Ryan)
Joel Ryan
Actor Ray Liotta listens during a press conference for Killing Them Softly at the 65th international film festival, in Cannes, southern France, Tuesday, May 22, 2012. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)
Francois Mori
Ray Liotta arrives at the World Premiere of "Muppets Most Wanted," on Tuesday, March 11, 2014, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Richard Shotwell
Ray Liotta, left, and Karsen Liotta arrive at the World Premiere of "Muppets Most Wanted" on Tuesday, March 11, 2014, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Richard Shotwell
Actors Seth Green, left, and Ray Liotta, right, attend the premiere of "The Identical" on Wednesday, Sept. 3, 2014 in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)
Andy Kropa
Roland Joffe, from left, Jeffrey Dean Morgan, and Ray Liotta speak on stage A+E Networks 2015 Winter TCA on Friday, Jan. 9, 2015, in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Richard Shotwell
Ray Liotta, right, and Karsen Liotta arrive at the 22nd annual Screen Actors Guild Awards at the Shrine Auditorium & Expo Hall on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)
Jordan Strauss
Jennifer Lopez, left, and Ray Liotta participate in the "Shades of Blue" panel at the NBCUniversal Winter TCA on Wednesday, Jan. 13, 2016, Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Richard Shotwell
Ray Liotta arrives at the "Shades of Blue" FYC Event at Saban Media Center on Thursday, June 9, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Rich Fury/Invision/AP)
Rich Fury
Actor Ray Liotta participates in AOL's BUILD Speaker Series to discuss his new NBC drama series, "Shades of Blue", at AOL Studios on Tuesday, Jan. 12, 2016, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Charles Sykes
Ray Liotta arrives at the 27th annual Producers Guild Awards at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza on Saturday, Jan. 23, 2016, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Richard Shotwell
Ray Liotta, left, and Jennifer Lopez attend the NBCUniversal portion of the 2017 Winter Television Critics Association press tour on Wednesday, Jan. 18, 2017, in Pasadena, Calif. (Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP)
Richard Shotwell
Actors Ray Liotta, left, and Jennifer Lopez participate in the BUILD Speaker Series to discuss the television series "Shades of Blue" at AOL Studios on Thursday, March 2, 2017, in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP)
Evan Agostini
Ray Liotta, a cast member in the NBC series "Shades of Blue," poses during the 2018 NBCUniversal Summer Press Day, Wednesday, May 2, 2018, in Universal City, Calif. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP)
Chris Pizzello
Actor Ray Liotta poses for photographers upon arrival at the The Academy of Motion Pictures and Sciences new members reception in central London, Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. (Photo by Joel C Ryan/Invision/AP)
Joel C Ryan
Johnny Depp wins libel lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard; Heard awarded money in counterclaim
FAIRFAX, Va. (AP) — A jury on Wednesday ruled in favor of Johnny Depp in his libel lawsuit against ex-wife Amber Heard, vindicating his stance that Heard fabricated claims that she was abused by Depp before and during their brief marriage.
The verdict could help the star rehabilitate his image — at least that’s his hope — after a televised trial that turned into a spectacle of a vicious marriage. Throughout the trial, fans — overwhelmingly on Depp’s side — would line up overnight for coveted courtroom seats. And spectators who couldn’t get in would gather on the street to cheer Depp and jeer Heard whenever either appeared outside.
Photos: Scenes from the Johnny Depp, Amber Heard defamation trial
Actor Johnny Depp arrives after a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday April 18, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp, front center left, and actor Amber Heard, front right, and attorneys, stand as the jury comes into the courtroom after a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday April 18, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp has sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp sits in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 14, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” (Shawn Thew/Pool Photo via AP)
Shawn Thew
Actress Amber Heard winks at her attorney Elaine Bredehoft, left, as her trial with ex-husband actor Johnny Depp breaks for lunch at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 18, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp arrives in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday April 19, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Watson/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Watson
Actor Johnny Depp demonstrates how he claims his ex-wife Amber Heard punched him, as he testifies during the trial in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Johnny Depp displays the middle finger of his hand, injured while he and his ex-wife Amber Heard were in Australia in 2015, as he testifies during a hearing in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actress Amber Heard listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Johnny Depp demonstrates how he claims to have shielded himself from an alleged attack by his ex-wife Amber Heard, as he testifies during the trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Johnny Depp reacts as he testifies at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Amber Heard speaks with her legal team as actor Johnny Depp stands at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 21, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Amber Heard reacts as she listens to an audio recording of her and actor Johhny Depp arguing at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 21, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Amber Heard talks to her attorneys before the hearing starts in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp testifies that a can of mineral spirits actress Amber Heard through, hit him there, in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actress Amber Heard listens during the trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, April 26, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp, left, and his attorney Camille Vasquez appear in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, April 26, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp arrives in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Actor Johnny Depp draws in a sketch pad in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Actor Johnny Depp stands for the jury to leave the courtroom during a recess at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Actor Amber Heard appears in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Spectators listen in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 28, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife actor Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Michael Reynolds/Pool Photo via AP)
Michael Reynolds
Actor Johnny Depp's notebook and glasses are seen in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 2, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp speaks to his attorney Ben Chew in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday May 3, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Watson/Pool photo via AP)
Jim Watson
Actor Johnny Depp looks on in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday May 3, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Watson/Pool photo via AP)
Jim Watson
A pile of gummy bears sit on actor Johnny Depp's table in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday May 4, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP)
Elizabeth Frantz
Actor Johnny Depp talks to his attorney in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday May 4, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP)
Elizabeth Frantz
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actor Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Johhny Depp is reflected in a screen as his ex-wife Amber Heard testifies at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2022. Depp sued Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actress Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actor Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 16, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 16, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actors Amber Heard and Johnny Depp watch as the jury leaves the courtroom at the end of the day at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 16, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Judge Penney Azcarate talks to attorneys in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp gestures as he walks out of the courtroom during a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Judge Penney Azcarate listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard hugs attorney Elaine Bredehoft in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp hugs attorney Camille Vasquez in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard appears in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard and attorney Elaine Bredehoft appear in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp appears in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp gestures while departing the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Attorney Ben Chew departs the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Watch live from inside the courtroom: Depp/Heard trial verdict
The jury says it has reached a verdict in Johnny Depp’s $50 million libel lawsuit against his ex-wife Amber Heard, who testified that Depp physically and sexually assaulted her on multiple occasions. The jury also has reached a verdict regarding a $100 million counterclaim Heard filed against Depp.
The verdict will be read around 2 p.m. CT/3 p.m. EST.
Photos: Scenes from the Johnny Depp, Amber Heard defamation trial
Actor Johnny Depp arrives after a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday April 18, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp, front center left, and actor Amber Heard, front right, and attorneys, stand as the jury comes into the courtroom after a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday April 18, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp has sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp sits in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 14, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a “public figure representing domestic abuse.” (Shawn Thew/Pool Photo via AP)
Shawn Thew
Actress Amber Heard winks at her attorney Elaine Bredehoft, left, as her trial with ex-husband actor Johnny Depp breaks for lunch at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 18, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp arrives in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday April 19, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Watson/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Watson
Actor Johnny Depp demonstrates how he claims his ex-wife Amber Heard punched him, as he testifies during the trial in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Johnny Depp displays the middle finger of his hand, injured while he and his ex-wife Amber Heard were in Australia in 2015, as he testifies during a hearing in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actress Amber Heard listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Johnny Depp demonstrates how he claims to have shielded himself from an alleged attack by his ex-wife Amber Heard, as he testifies during the trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Johnny Depp reacts as he testifies at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 20, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Evelyn Hockstein/Pool via AP)
Evelyn Hockstein
Actor Amber Heard speaks with her legal team as actor Johnny Depp stands at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 21, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Amber Heard reacts as she listens to an audio recording of her and actor Johhny Depp arguing at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 21, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Amber Heard talks to her attorneys before the hearing starts in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp testifies that a can of mineral spirits actress Amber Heard through, hit him there, in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, April 25, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actress Amber Heard listens during the trial at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, April 26, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp, left, and his attorney Camille Vasquez appear in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, April 26, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp arrives in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Actor Johnny Depp draws in a sketch pad in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Actor Johnny Depp stands for the jury to leave the courtroom during a recess at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Actor Amber Heard appears in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday, April 27, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actress Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP)
Jonathan Ernst
Spectators listen in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, April 28, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife actor Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Michael Reynolds/Pool Photo via AP)
Michael Reynolds
Actor Johnny Depp's notebook and glasses are seen in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 2, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Johnny Depp speaks to his attorney Ben Chew in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday May 3, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Watson/Pool photo via AP)
Jim Watson
Actor Johnny Depp looks on in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday May 3, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Watson/Pool photo via AP)
Jim Watson
A pile of gummy bears sit on actor Johnny Depp's table in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday May 4, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP)
Elizabeth Frantz
Actor Johnny Depp talks to his attorney in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Wednesday May 4, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Elizabeth Frantz/Pool Photo via AP)
Elizabeth Frantz
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actor Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Johhny Depp is reflected in a screen as his ex-wife Amber Heard testifies at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2022. Depp sued Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actress Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Court in Fairfax, Va., Thursday, May 5, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife actor Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Jim Lo Scalzo/Pool Photo via AP)
Jim Lo Scalzo
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 16, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 16, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actors Amber Heard and Johnny Depp watch as the jury leaves the courtroom at the end of the day at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Monday, May 16, 2022. Depp sued his ex-wife Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (AP Photo/Steve Helber, Pool)
Steve Helber
Actor Amber Heard testifies in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Judge Penney Azcarate talks to attorneys in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp gestures as he walks out of the courtroom during a break at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Judge Penney Azcarate listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard listens in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard hugs attorney Elaine Bredehoft in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp hugs attorney Camille Vasquez in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard appears in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Amber Heard and attorney Elaine Bredehoft appear in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp appears in the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Actor Johnny Depp gestures while departing the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Attorney Ben Chew departs the courtroom at the Fairfax County Circuit Courthouse in Fairfax, Va., Tuesday, May 17, 2022. Actor Johnny Depp sued his ex-wife Amber Heard for libel in Fairfax County Circuit Court after she wrote an op-ed piece in The Washington Post in 2018 referring to herself as a "public figure representing domestic abuse." (Brendan Smialowski/Pool Photo via AP)
Brendan Smialowski
Police: Texas gunman walked through apparently unlocked door
Police 'could have gone in faster,' says Javier Cazares, the father of one of the 19 children killed in Uvalde, Texas, on Tuesday.
UVALDE, Texas (AP) — A Texas law enforcement official says the 18-year-old gunman who slaughtered 21 people at an elementary school entered the building “unobstructed” through a door that was apparently unlocked.
Victor Escalon, a regional director at the Texas Department of Public Safety, said Thursday that Salvador Ramos did not initially encounter any law enforcement officers when he entered Robb Elementary School on Tuesday and opened fire, killing 19 children and two teachers.
Remembering the victims of the Uvalde school shooting
Alexandria “Lexi” Rubio, 10
Felix and Kimberly Rubio had just celebrated their daughter Lexi's achievements at school before she was killed.
Lexi, who was 10 years old and in the fourth grade, had made the All-A honor roll and received a good citizen award, her parents told CNN.
"We told her we loved her and would pick her up after school. We had no idea this was goodbye," Kimberly Rubio wrote in a post on Facebook.
The parents told CNN they were proud of their daughter.
"She was kind, sweet, and appreciated life. She was going to be an all-star in softball and had a bright future, whether it's sports or academic. Please let the world know we miss our baby."
Felix and Kimberly Rubio via CNN
Amerie Jo Garza, 10
Hours before the shooting Tuesday morning, Amerie Jo Garza, 10, had posed at school for a photo, smiling as she held a bright certificate celebrating her “A-B” honor roll.
“Thank you everyone for the prayers and help trying to find my baby,” her father, Angel Garza, wrote on Facebook shortly after midnight. “She’s been found. My little love is now flying high with the angels above. Please don’t take a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them. I love you Amerie Jo. Watch over your baby brother for me.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10
The family of Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez was among many who waited for answers after the shooting. Around 7 p.m. Tuesday, her sister, Lidia Anthony Luna, wrote on Facebook that Annabell was among those killed.
“My little sister didn’t make it she’s not longer with us my poor sweet little girl,” Luna wrote. “Why god why these sweet babies who didn’t deserve this who were all happy for summer vacation.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Eliahana Cruz Torres, 10
Adolfo Cruz told ABC News late Tuesday night that his granddaughter, Eliahana Cruz Torres, was among those killed in the shooting.
A woman who said she is Eliahana’s aunt told a reporter KENS-TV News that the girl was a fourth grader and a softball player, excited to play her final game that was scheduled the day of the shooting.
The woman, who didn’t give her name, said her sister Sandra Torres, the girl’s mother, had been looking for her child throughout the day with no luck.
“It’s not like my niece not to reach out because when she feels threatened or scared, she’s always calling on her phone. She’ll blow up somebody until somebody answers her.”
The woman said she spoke to her niece the day before the shooting about her upcoming softball game and showed a picture of Eliahana in her softball gear.
“She was very excited about her softball game today. She was kind of nervous,” her aunt said. “She was excited because they were ... going to announce the ones that made it to All-Stars. And she was also saying, like, ‘What if I make it? I’m going to be so nervous.’ And I was like, ‘Girl, you got this. You’re going to be good at it. You got this.’ So she was excited.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Eliana “Ellie” Garcia, 9
Fourth grader Eliana “Ellie” Garcia, 9, was the second eldest of five girls in her family, a helper around the house who loved “Encanto,” cheerleading and basketball, her grandparents said. She dreamed of wearing a purple dress to her quinceanera, they said, and becoming a teacher.
Grandfather Rogelio Lugo, 63, spent Tuesday driving between hospitals, then waiting at the civic center for the grim news. He watched as officials swabbed his daughter’s and son-in-law’s mouths for DNA to identify his granddaughter.
At about 9:30 p.m., he said, officials started calling parents’ names, summoning them to a back room to inform them that their children were dead.
“When you go in, you know your baby is deceased,” he recalled as he sat in his living room Wednesday, surrounded by family and friends.
When Lugo heard officials call his daughter and son-in-law’s names, he knew his granddaughter was gone. He had last seen Ellie on Sunday. She spent weekends with her grandparents, reminding them to take their pills, helping to mow the lawn, make tostadas and chalupas and babysit her younger sisters. She would even ask to help her grandfather with his excavating work.
“When you’re older,” he would say.
Her older sister Janel Garcia, 11, was her constant companion, flaquita to her gordita. By Wednesday, Janel knew Ellie was dead, but couldn’t really understand, Lugo said.
“She wants her back. They’re always together,” he said.
Lugo raised his children in Uvalde and never felt unsafe. “I’ve seen all the stuff happen in other states, hoping it doesn’t happen here. Now it has,” he said.
His wife, Nelda Lugo, 63, worked as a cook at another Uvalde elementary school that was also placed on lockdown after the shooting. She knew both of the teachers who were killed. Sitting in her kitchen Wednesday surrounded by loved ones, she said the deaths still didn’t seem real.
“This morning I got up and thought, ‘What a dream I had,’” she said.
She had been stockpiling gifts for Ellie’s birthday June 4: leggings and Legos. Ellie’s father, a car salesman and DJ, planned to handle the music — lots of cumbias, which Ellie liked to dance to at her grandparents’ house, filming TikTok videos, she said.
Lugo said she struggled to explain the shooting to Ellie’s 5-year-old sister, who saw her parents on television late Tuesday.
“Why are they at the civic center?” she asked.
“They’re looking for Ellie,” Lugo said.
“Why?” the girl asked.
“They lost her at the school,” Lugo said.
“Why?”
“Because she died,” Lugo said.
Then she put the girl to bed. By morning, Lugo said her granddaughter had stopped asking questions. But her daughter awoke crying.
“It’s very, very sad,” she said.
Siria Arizmendi via AP
Eva Mireles, 44
One of the two adult victims in Uvalde was Eva Mireles, a fourth grade teacher who had worked for the district for about 17 years. Her husband, Ruben Ruiz, is a police officer in the school district. He was one of several officers who responded to the shooting and were apparently shot at by the shooter, but he was not injured.
Mireles’ aunt, Lydia Martinez Delgado, said in a message to the Los Angeles Times that she was furious to lose her niece in such a “tragic” and “senseless” way. The U.S., she said, needed to act on gun laws and expand background checks.
“It’s so easy for young, mental kids to get guns and randomly shoot innocent victims,” she said. “My niece, Eva, lost her life protecting her students. It shouldn’t have to be like this: teachers, parents and students afraid to go to school or send their kids to school.”
In a post on Twitter, Mireles’ daughter described her mother as “the half that makes me whole.”
“You are so known by many now and I’m so happy that people know your name and that beautiful face of yours and they know what a hero looks like,” she wrote, adding: “My heart will forever be broken.”
Family handout via CNN
Irma Garcia
“My tia did not make it,” John Martinez wrote on Twitter about his aunt, Irma Garcia, a fourth grade teacher at Robb Elementary. “She sacrificed herself by protecting the kids in her classroom ... She died a HERO. She was loved by many and will be truly missed.”
According to a GoFundMe page organized for Garcia’s family by Steven Martinez, she was a wife and mother of four children.
“Sweet, kind, loving,” Martinez wrote. “Fun with the greatest personality.”
Her age could not immediately be confirmed.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Jacklyn Cazares, 9
Javier Cazares said his daughter was someone who would give the “shirt off her back” to help someone. “She had a voice,” he said. “She didn’t like bullies, she didn’t like kids being picked on. All in all, full of love. She had a big heart.” Annabelle Rodriguez, also a victim, was Jacklyn's second cousin.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jailah Nicole Silguero, 10
Ten-year-old Jailah Nicole Silguero was killed in the shooting, her mother, Veronica Luevanos, told Univision through tears.
Luevanos said Jailah loved to dance and film videos on TikTok.
“I took her to school, but she didn’t want to go. She told her father, ‘Can I stay home?’” Luevanos said, adding that Jailah didn’t often ask to stay home. “I think she knew something would happen.”
Jailah’s cousin, 10-year-old Jayce Luevanos, was also killed in the shooting, according to Luevanos. She said her brother, Jacye’s father, was taking his death hard.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10
Carmelo Quiroz’s grandson had begged to be allowed to join his grandmother on Tuesday as she accompanied her great-granddaughter’s kindergarten class to the San Antonio Zoo. But, he said, the family told Jayce it didn’t make sense to skip school so close to the end of the year. Besides, Jayce liked school. “That’s why my wife is hurting so much, because he wanted to go to San Antonio,” Quiroz told USA Today. “He was so sad he couldn’t go. Maybe if he would have gone, he’d be here.” He died with his cousin, Jailah Nicole Silguero.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jose Manuel Flores Jr., 10
Jose's parents told CNN that the 10-year-old was helpful around the house and loved his younger siblings. “He was just very good with babies,” his mother said. His father told CNN that Jose loved baseball and video games and “was always full of energy.” A photo taken at school Tuesday shows him smiling and proudly holding a certificate to show he made the honor roll.
Jose Flores Sr. via CNN
Layla Salazar
Vincent Salazar said his 10-year-old daughter, Layla, loved to swim and dance to Tik Tok videos. She was fast — she won six races at the school’s field day, and Salazar proudly posted a photo of Layla showing off two of her ribbons on Facebook.
Each morning as he drove her to school in his pickup, Salazar would play “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” by Guns ‘n’ Roses and they’d sing along, he said.
“She was just a whole lot of fun,” he said.
Vincent Salazar via AP
Makenna Lee Elrod, 10
On Tuesday, Brandon Elrod told ABC News that he was still searching for his 10-year-old daughter, Makenna.
“Pretty sad,” he said, choking back tears. “Really sad. I don’t know what this world is coming to.”
Later, a family friend said on Facebook that Makenna had been killed.
“My heart is shattered as my daughter Chloe loved her so much!!” Pilar Newberry wrote, adding: “Just a few weeks ago she got a friendship bracelet from her at the ballpark and she wears it everyday!”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Maite Rodriguez, 10
After a rough time with Zoom classes during the pandemic, Maite Rodriguez made the honor roll for straight As and Bs this year and was recognized at an assembly on Tuesday, said her mother, Ana Rodriguez.
Maite especially liked physical education, and after she died, her teacher texted Ana Rodriguez to say she was highly competitive at kickball and ran faster than all the boys. Her mother described Maite as “focused, competitive, smart, bright, beautiful, happy.” Maite wanted to be a marine biologist and after researching a program at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi she told her mother she wanted to study there.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Nevaeh Alyssa Bravo, 10
Nevaeh Bravo’s cousin posted on social media after the shooting to ask for the public’s help locating the girl. Around 9 p.m., she wrote on Twitter: “Unfortunately my beautiful Nevaeh was one of the many victims from todays tragedy.”
“Thank you for the support and help,” she wrote. “Rest in peace my sweet girl, you didn’t deserve this.”
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Rojelio Torres, 10
“Our entire family waited almost 12 hours since the shooting to find out Rojelio Torres my 10 year old nephew, was killed in this tragedy,” Torres’ aunt, Precious Perez, told KSAT. “We are devastated and heartbroken. Rojer was a very intelligent, hard-working and helpful person. He will be missed and never forgotten.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Tess Marie Mata, 10
Tess Marie Mata was among the students killed, according to a Facebook post by her sister, Faith Mata.
“I honestly have no words just sadness, confusion, and anger,” she wrote. “I’m sad because we will never get to tag team on mom and dad again and tell each other how much we mean to each other, I’m confused because how can something like this happen to my sweet, caring, and beautiful sister, and I’m angry because a coward took you from us.”
A series of pictures accompanying the post showed Tess smiling in a baby photo, snoozing in bed, snuggling with a cat, doing the splits, flashing a peace sign and posing in front of a large heart mural.
“Sissy I miss you so much, I just want to hold you and tell you how pretty you are, I want to take you outside and practice softball, I want to go on one last family vacation, I want to hear your contagious laugh, and I want you to hear me tell you how much I love you,” her sister wrote.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Uziyah Garcia, 8
Eight-year-old Uziyah Garcia was among the Robb Elementary students killed Tuesday, his grandfather, Manny Renfro, told The Associated Press.
“The sweetest little boy that I’ve ever known,” Renfro said. “I’m not just saying that because he was my grandkid.”
Xavier Lopez, 10
Felicha Martinez told The Washington Post that her 10-year-old son, Xavier Lopez, was killed.
“He was funny, never serious and his smile,” she said. “That smile I will never forget. It would always cheer anyone up.”
She watched him receive an honor roll certificate just hours before he was killed.
Manny Renfro via AP
Xavier Lopez, 10
Felicha Martinez told The Washington Post that her 10-year-old son, Xavier Lopez, was killed.
“He was funny, never serious and his smile,” she said. “That smile I will never forget. It would always cheer anyone up.”
She watched him receive an honor roll certificate just hours before he was killed.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Alithia Ramirez, 10
Alithia Ramirez loved soccer and she really loved to draw. Her father Ryan Ramirez’s Facebook page includes a photo, now shown around the world, of the little girl wearing the multi-colored T-shirt that announced she was out of “single digits” after turning 10 years old. The same photo was posted again Wednesday with no words, but with Alithia wearing angel wings.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Miranda Mathis, 11
Eleven-year-old Miranda Mathis’ family was searching for her after the shooting, according to her cousin, Deanna Miller.
“Please lord hear our prayers and please let these babies just be misplaced and harm free,” Miller wrote in a post on Facebook on Tuesday afternoon.
On Wednesday morning, Miller shared a photo of Miranda with angel wings and a halo.
“My sweet baby cousin we loved u dearly,” she wrote.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
CEO pay jumped 17% in 2021; workers fall behind
NEW YORK (AP) — Even when regular workers win their biggest raises in decades, they look minuscule compared with what CEOs are getting.
The typical compensation package for chief executives who run S&P 500 companies soared 17.1% last year, to a median $14.5 million, according to data analyzed for The Associated Press by Equilar.
How the richest person in each state made a fortune
How the richest person in every state made a fortune
Whether it's a hedge-fund billionaire, tech giant, industrial titan, or someone simply born into the right family, the wealthiest people in every state each have their own stories. In today's political climate, the super-rich have plenty of influence over our political process, from lobbying members of the government and contributing to presidential bids to running ad campaigns in favor of specific causes.
To figure out who's on top of each state's rich list, Forbes tracks groups of billionaires (or centimillionaires in states with no billionaires) and updates their findings annually. Stacker analyzed this data to compile a list of the uber-wealthy and then broke down how each person earned their fortune. This list accounts for individuals' wealth as of June 26, 2019, but keep in mind the tides of fortune are always shifting. Many of the figures can change based on a dip in the stock market alone.
Sometimes billionaires are made overnight, others over the course of generations. The distribution of billionaires and other super-rich individuals isn't evenly distributed; plenty more live on the coast than the Midwest, with a few key exceptions. Curious who the richest person is in your home state? Keep reading to find out.
Known colloquially as the Yella Fella, Jimmy Rane is a lumber magnate who built his fortune from his family's small plant into billion-dollar behemoth Great Southern Wood Preserving. As the wealthiest person in Alabama, Rane keeps his money close to home. He's revitalized his hometown and supports several universities by offering scholarships (more than 400 to date) through The Jimmy Rane Foundation. The Auburn University alum still sits on the board of his alma mater as chair of the board's governmental affairs.
smspsy // Shutterstock
Alaska: Leonard Hyde, Jonathan Rubini and families
- Net worth: $300 million each (as of June 18, 2019)
- Age: 62, 64
- Source of wealth: real estate
- Residence: Anchorage, AK
Real estate tycoons Leonard Hyde and Jonathan Rubini began amassing their fortunes by buying up Alaskan properties during economic downturns. Today, the partners head JL Properties, which owns the tallest building in Anchorage, massive residential units, and much more.
Raymona Pooler // Shutterstock
Arizona: Ernest Garcia II
- Net worth: $5.7 billion
- Age: 62
- Source of wealth: used cars, self-made
- Residence: Tempe, AZ
The stereotype of the used car salesman—ill-fitting shirt, sweaty skin, dusty parking lot—has never looked so good. Ernest Garcia II, an ex-con, made his fortune through operating the fourth-largest used car retailer in the country, DriveTime Automotive, along with owning plenty of stock of Carvana, a used car e-commerce platform.
Bradley Gordon // Flickr
Arkansas: Jim Walton
- Net worth: $52.1 billion
- Age: 71
- Source of wealth: Walmart
- Residence: Bentonville, AR
According to Forbes, Jim Walton is the 11th wealthiest person in America, and is one of many heirs to the Walmart fortune that was amassed by his father, Sam Walton. Jim Walton lives in Bentonville—home to the Walmart world headquarters—and runs the family's Arvest Bank, which has assets listed at $16 billion.
Rick T. Wilking // Getty Images
California: Mark Zuckerberg
- Net worth: $79.5 billion
- Age: 35
- Source of wealth: Facebook, self-made
- Residence: Palo Alto, CA
As the creator of Facebook, the world's largest social network, Mark Zuckerberg isn't just the wealthiest Californian, but one of the five wealthiest Americans (stock price dependent). Zuckerberg hasn't been shy about giving his money away: He's one of the many ultra-rich to promise to donate half his wealth to The Giving Pledge.
Philip Anschutz is one of the most diversified billionaires on this list, with businesses ranging from sports and movies to oil and real estate. Anschutz's father was an oil tycoon, giving him a leg-up, but Phillip has far surpassed anything his family ever accomplished. Today, Anschutz owns sports teams, an entertainment conglomerate (including Coachella), and is one of the biggest individual landowners in the United States. Anschutz has also given away more than $2 billion to charity.
Michael Kovac // Getty Images for NARAS
Connecticut: Ray Dalio
- Net worth: $18.7 billion
- Age: 70
- Source of wealth: hedge funds, self-made
- Residence: Greenwich, CT
After earning an MBA from Harvard Business School in 1975, Ray Dalio started Bridgewater Associates, which has since become the largest hedge fund in the world with an estimated $160 billion under management. Dalio is also actively philanthropic—his family has given more than $1.3 billion via the Dalio Foundation, and he's promised to give away half his wealth through The Giving Pledge.
Web Summit // Flickr
Delaware: Robert Gore and Elizabeth Snyder
- Net worth: $885 million each (as of June 18, 2019)
- Age: 82, 72
- Source of wealth: Gore-Tex
- Residence: Newark and Wilmington, DE
Together, the heirs to Gore-Tex would be worth over a billion dollars; but since Elizabeth Snyder has five siblings, Delaware has zero billionaires. Gore-Tex is a lightweight, waterproof fabric and is commonly used in high-end raincoats to keep the cold and wet out.
Santeri Viinamaki // Wikimedia Commons
Florida: Thomas Peterffy
- Net worth: $16.9 billion
- Age: 75
- Source of wealth: discount brokerage, self-made
- Residence: Palm Beach, FL
A self-made billionaire, Thomas Peterffy is a Hungarian immigrant who came to America at 21 with no money. He earned his fortune by creating Discount Brokerage, a digital trading platform used by brokers and investors around the world. One of Peterffy's biggest causes is railing against socialism—he's spent millions in political ads.
James Leynse/Corbis // Getty Images
Georgia: Jim Kennedy
- Net worth: $10 billion
- Age: 72
- Source of wealth: media, automotive
- Residence: Atlanta, GA
Jim Kennedy inherited his 25% stake in Cox Enterprises—owners of TV and radio stations, newspapers, and digital services—from his mother, Barbara Cox Anthony. Kennedy had already served as CEO of the mega-media company from 1988 to 2008, raising its revenues from $1.8 billion to $15.4 billion. Kennedy is involved in a variety of philanthropic endeavors, including education, health care, and sustainability causes.
Since founding eBay, Pierre Omidyar has pulled back from the company (though he still sits on its board). He has launched other ventures including First Look Media and the Press Freedom Defense Fund, which supports journalists in legal battles.
ames Leynse/Corbis // Getty Images
Idaho: Frank VanderSloot
- Net worth: $3.8 billion
- Age: 71
- Source of wealth: nutrition, wellness products, self-made
- Residence: Idaho Falls, ID
Frank VanderSloot isn't just rich; he's experienced in the political sector, too. The founder of Melaleuca, which calls itself the “largest online shopping club,” VanderSloot was a national finance co-chair for both of Republican Mitt Romney's presidential bids.
Jeremy112233 // Wikimedia Commons
Illinois: Kenneth Griffin
- Net worth: $13.1 billion
- Age: 51
- Source of wealth: hedge funds, self-made
- Residence: Chicago, IL
Ken Griffin runs Citadel, which manages more than $30 billion. Griffin got his start making trades from his Harvard dormitory, where he even reportedly put a satellite dish on the roof to get real-time quotes. Today, Griffin is considered an active philanthropist and gives to a range of causes in his native Illinois.
Paul Elledge // Wikimedia Commons
Indiana: Carl Cook
- Net worth: $10.6 billion
- Age: 57
- Source of wealth: medical devices
- Residence: Bloomington, IN
Carl Cook is CEO of Cook Group, a medical device manufacturer started by Cook's parents in 1963. Cook inherited the bulk of the family fortune in stock transfers over a 15-year period, avoiding estate taxes. Cook is famously private, owing in part to his mother's 1989 two-day kidnapping.
Sergey Ryzhov // Shutterstock
Iowa: Harry Stine
- Net worth: $5.5 billion
- Age: 78
- Source of wealth: agriculture, self-made
- Residence: Adel, IA
Agriculture billionaire Harry Stine was born and raised on a farm, so it's little surprise that he made his fortune selling seeds. Stine Seed is one of the largest independent producers of genetically modified seeds, sold to multinational corporations like Monsanto and Syngenta. Stine is also active in philanthropy and has promised to give away at least half of his money through The Giving Pledge.
Charles Koch has served as chairman and CEO of Koch Industries since 1967. The company was started by Koch's father, and deals heavily in oil, gas, ranching, and finance, among other industries. Koch is also involved in politics and has funded a number of think tanks, including The Heritage Foundation and The Cato Institute.
Patrick T. Fallon for The Washington Post // Getty Images
Kentucky: Tamara Gustavson
- Net worth: $5.1 billion
- Age: 58
- Source of wealth: self storage
- Residence: Lexington, KY
Have you ever needed a place to put your junk? Gustavson's probably profited from you. The owner of 11% of Public Storage, a company her father cofounded, Gustavson is a generous donor to causes such as the HollyRod Foundation, which researches Alzheimer's and autism.
Ken Wolter // Shutterstock
Louisiana: Gayle Benson
- Net worth: $3.1 billion
- Age: 73
- Source of wealth: pro sports teams
- Residence: New Orleans, LA
Gayle Benson is the wife of the late Tom Benson, who made his money in car dealerships and banking. Gayle Benson inherited the New Orleans Saints and the New Orleans Pelicans when her husband died in 2018. The Bensons are known for their extraordinary charity work, giving to Catholic causes as well as establishing the Gayle and Tom Benson Cancer Center in Jefferson, Louisiana.
Todd Kirkland // Getty Images
Maine: Susan Alfond
- Net worth: $1.8 billion
- Age: 74
- Source of wealth: shoes
- Residence: Scarborough, ME
Shoe heiress Susan Alfond inherited her money from father Harold Alfond, who started the Dexter Shoe Company in 1958. When Alfond sold the company to Warren Buffett in exchange for Berkshire Hathaway stock in 1993, the family fortunes increased exponentially.
SenseiAllen // Flickr
Maryland: Ted Lerner and family
- Net worth: $5.6 billion
- Age: 94
- Source of wealth: real estate, self-made
- Residence: Chevy Chase, MD
Ted Lerner owns more than 20 million square feet comprising hotels, commercial and retail space, and apartments. The Lerner family also owns the Washington Nationals, and shares of the Washington Wizards and the Washington Capitals. Additionally, they're owners of Maryland's White Flint Mall. The family gives to a variety of causes including education, health and human services, arts and culture, and Jewish organizations.
John McDonnell/The Washington Post // Getty Images
Massachusetts: Abigail Johnson
- Net worth: $16.5 billion
- Age: 58
- Source of wealth: money management
- Residence: Milton, MA
Even though Abigail Johnson is the granddaughter of Fidelity founder Edward C. Johnson II, no one can say she didn't pay her dues. Johnson earned her MBA from Harvard Business School and started working at the family company in 1988. As CEO, she manages assets valued in the trillions. Johnson is also a trustee of the Fidelity Foundation, which has given hundreds of millions of dollars to nonprofits around the country.
Drew Angerer // Getty Images
Michigan: Daniel Gilbert
- Net worth: $6.8 billion (as of June 18, 2019)
- Age: 57
- Source of wealth: Quicken Loans
- Residence: Franklin, MI
Ohioans might be surprised to see Daniel Gilbert representing Michigan, considering that he owns the Cleveland Cavaliers. Gilbert made his money from Quicken Loans, now America's largest mortgage lender, with headquarters in Detroit. Gilbert is also known for helping revitalize downtown Detroit by investing billions of dollars.
Nicholas Hunt // Getty Images
Minnesota: Glen Taylor
- Net worth: $2.8 billion
- Age: 78
- Source of wealth: printing, self-made
- Residence: Mankato, MN
Glen Taylor is a self-made billionaire who turned a small wedding business into a printing empire with billions of dollars in sales. Born and raised in Minnesota, Taylor is also the owner of the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves and The Minneapolis Star Tribune, the state's largest newspaper. Taylor is also active in charity and has donated generously to Minnesota State University.
Elsa // Getty Images
Mississippi: James and Thomas Duff
- Net worth: $1.4 billion
- Age: 58
- Source of wealth: tires, diversified
- Residence: Hattiesburg, MS
Some people get rich from inventing groundbreaking technology. Some people, like the Duff brothers, just figured out how to sell tires better. Though they live private lives, the richest two men in Mississippi made it happen through good business practices and solid service.
Morio // Wikimedia Commons
Missouri: Pauline Macmillan Keinath
- Net worth: $7 billion
- Age: 86
- Source of wealth: Cargill
- Residence: St. Louis, MO
Cargill is the largest private company in the United States, and Pauline MacMillan Keinath is its largest shareholder. The company was started by her great-grandfather in 1865, and is now a multi-billion-dollar conglomerate focused on food, agriculture, nutrition, and risk management.
- Source of wealth: construction, mining, self-made
- Residence: Missoula, MT
The wealthiest man in Montana is also the state's most charitable. Dennis Washington is the head of Washington Companies, which owns mines, railroads, and shipping containers. The Dennis and Phyllis Washington Foundation has given away hundreds of millions of dollars, including hundreds of scholarships to students in Montana.
Stapanov Alexander // Wikimedia Commons
Nebraska: Warren Buffett
- Net worth: $87.6 billion
- Age: 89
- Source of wealth: Berkshire Hathaway, self-made
- Residence: Omaha, NE
Warren Buffett is affectionately known as the Oracle of Omaha, and for good reason. He's one of the wealthiest individuals in the world. Buffet is head of Berkshire Hathaway, the investment company he founded, which owns dozens of other companies. Buffet, along with Bill and Melinda Gates, started The Giving Pledge, which challenges billionaires to give away half their assets to improve the world. Buffet, however, has vowed to give away 99% of his fortune.
Fortune Live Media // Flickr
Nevada: Sheldon Adelson
- Net worth: $37.6 billion
- Age: 86
- Source of wealth: casinos, self-made
- Residence: Las Vegas, NV
Though Sheldon Adelson is known as a casino magnate, he didn't actually break into that business until later in life. Adelson is a serial entrepreneur who made his first mega-fortune with COMDEX, the computer trade show, selling it for hundreds of millions of dollars. Adelson's casino empire is worth billions, and he's used much of his wealth to support Jewish cultural endeavors and conservative political causes.
Bectrigger // Wikimedia Commons
New Hampshire: Andrea Reimann-Ciardelli
- Net worth: $720 million (as of June 18, 2019)
- Age: 62
- Source of wealth: consumer goods
- Residence: Hanover, NH
Andrea Reimann-Ciardelli inherited her money from Luxembourg-based company JAB. Though she sold her stake in 2003, it's easy to understand why JAB is such a juggernaut. The company currently owns everything from Peet's Coffee and Tea and Krispy Kreme to Panera Bread and Dr. Pepper. Reimann-Ciardelli directs much of her money through the Emily Landecker Foundation she helped establish, which donates to a variety of scientific institutions.
Miosotis Jade // Wikimedia Commons
New Jersey: John Overdeck
- Net worth: $6.1 billion
- Age: 50
- Source of wealth: hedge funds, self-made
- Residence: Millburn, NJ
Making the bulk of his money in the hedge-fund space, John Overdeck is a technical wizard who combined his math skills with machine learning to help predict market forces. It obviously worked (to the tune of $5.5 billion), but Overdeck and wife Laura spend much of their money and time on charitable causes. Through the Overdeck Family Foundation, the couple has donated more than $145 million to children's educational causes.
Thos Robinson // Getty Images for Code-to-Learn Foundation
New Mexico: Mack C. Chase
- Net worth: $700 million (as of June 18, 2019)
- Age: 88
- Source of wealth: oil
- Residence: Artesia, NM
Mack C. Chase is a self-made oil tycoon who got his start tapping wells in Texas and New Mexico. Chase is now the head of Mack Energy Corp., which drills for and produces oil and gas. Chase also started the Chase Foundation, a nonprofit that helps communities in New Mexico by providing grants to charitable organizations.
Sopotnicki // Shutterstock
New York: Michael Bloomberg
- Net worth: $59.9 billion
- Age: 77
- Source of wealth: Bloomberg LP, self-made
- Residence: New York, NY
Best known as New York's Republican-turned-Independent mayor, Michael Bloomberg owns 88% of the company which bears his name and brings news to millions of consumers worldwide. He made an unsuccessful bid in 2020 for the Democratic nomination for president.
Ralph Alswang/Center for American Progress // Flickr
North Carolina: James Goodnight
- Net worth: $8.2 billion
- Age: 77
- Source of wealth: software, self-made
- Residence: Cary, NC
James Goodnight became the wealthiest man in North Carolina by co-founding software company SAS in 1976. Today, the company has more than 14,000 employees, and its software is used in 145 countries and 83,0000 businesses, generating more than $3 billion a year in revenue. Goodnight and SAS co-founder John Sall also started Cary Academy, a college preparatory school in North Carolina.
World Economic Forum // Wikimedia Commons
North Dakota: Gary Tharaldson
- Net worth: $1 billion
- Age: 74
- Source of wealth: hotels, self-made
- Residence: Fargo, ND
Gary Tharaldson is as self-made as they come. Growing up on a farm in rural North Dakota, Tharaldson made his money by buying and operating hundreds of motels and hotels. The wealth part came from selling a huge chunk of his portfolio to Goldman Sachs for more than a billion dollars.
Jimmy Emerson // Flickr
Ohio: Les Wexner and family
- Net worth: $4.5 billion
- Age: 82
- Source of wealth: retail, self-made
- Residence: New Albany, OH
Until his connection to disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein came to light, Les Wexner wasn't a household name outside of Ohio, but every facet of his empire is. Wexner founded L Brands, which owns Victoria's Secret and Bath & Body Works. Wexner got his start in retail in 1963, when he opened The Limited. He bought Victoria's Secret in 1982 for a million dollars. Notoriously charitable, Wexner and wife Abigail started The Wexner Foundation, which has given away hundreds of millions of dollars to a variety of Jewish organizations, as well as state institutions like Ohio State University's Wexner Medical Center and Columbus, Ohio's Wexner Center.
Harold Hamm had been in the oil business for years when he struck black gold by transforming the industry with the use of hydraulic fracturing (fracking) in North Dakota's Bakken formation. Hamm and his family have donated millions of dollars to the University of Oklahoma, which built the Harold Hamm Diabetes Center.
Alex Wong // Getty Images
Oregon: Phil Knight and family
- Net worth: $39.6 billion
- Age: 81
- Source of wealth: Nike, self-made
- Residence: Hillsboro, OR
Phil Knight created Nike with his college track coach and started selling shoes out of the trunk of his car at track meets. Today, Nike has revenues of $34 billion, easily making Knight the wealthiest man in Oregon. Beyond shoes, Knight and wife Penny are known for their charity work and have given hundreds of millions of dollars to the University of Oregon and Stanford.
Steve Dykes // Getty Images
Pennsylvania: Victoria Mars
- Net worth: $7.7 billion
- Age: 63
- Source of wealth: candy, pet food
- Residence: Philadelphia, PA
An heiress to the Mars Inc. fortune (Pedigree, Whiskas, M&M's, Twix, Skittles, Orbit gum, Uncle Ben's, Bounty, Snickers, and others), Victoria Mars became a multibillionaire when her father Forrest Mars Jr. left her 8% of the sixth-largest private company in America. As chairman of the board of directors at Salzburg Global Seminar, Mars runs an organization that helps with sustainable global development.
Kirill Kukhmar/TASS // Getty Images
Rhode Island: Jonathan Nelson
- Net worth: $1.8 billion
- Age: 63
- Source of wealth: private equity, self-made
- Residence: Providence, RI
A Harvard Business School graduate, Jonathan Nelson is the CEO of Providence Equity Partners, a private equity firm with $42 billion under management. Nelson started the firm in 1989 and has invested in hundreds of companies around the world. Part of The Giving Pledge, Nelson has promised to give away at least half of his money to charity and has already donated millions of dollars to a variety of causes and institutions.
Scott Olson // Getty Images
South Carolina: Anita Zucker
- Net worth: $1.9 billion
- Age: 68
- Source of wealth: chemicals
- Residence: Charleston, SC
Anita Zucker is CEO of InterTech Group, a private chemicals manufacturer that was started by her late husband Jerry Zucker in 1982. Zucker's company also deals in aerospace, real estate, financial services, and other industries. Through the Jerry and Anita Zucker Family Foundation, the Zuckers have given away millions to organizations in South Carolina.
- Source of wealth: banking, credit cards, self-made
- Residence: Sioux Falls, SD
This banking billionaire has vowed to die broke by giving away all his money to charitable causes. T. Denny Sanford made his fortune from First Premier Bank, notorious for offering credit cards to high-risk borrowers. Sanford is also a member of The Giving Pledge, promising to give away at least half of his money, of which he's already donated more than $1 billion.
BRUCE BISPING/Star Tribune // Getty Images
Tennessee: Thomas Frist Jr. and family
- Net worth: $12.6 billion
- Age: 81
- Source of wealth: hospitals, self-made
- Residence: Nashville, TN
A former Air Force surgeon, Thomas Frist founded Hospital Corp. of America in 1968, took it public three times, and amassed an enormous amount of personal wealth. Now, Hospital Corp. operates 179 hospitals in the U.S. and London.
Drew Angerer // Getty Images
Texas: Alice Walton
- Net worth: $51.8 billion
- Age: 70
- Source of wealth: Walmart
- Residence: Fort Worth, TX
The second Walton on the list, Alice Walton, like her brother Jim, is an heir to the vast Walmart fortune created by their father. As the only daughter of Sam Walton, Alice has focused her wealth on the arts, with a personal collection valued in the hundreds of millions. She opened the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville, Arkansas.
Rick T. Wilking // Getty Images
Utah: Gail Miller
- Net worth: $1.6 billion
- Age: 76
- Source of wealth: car dealerships, self-made
- Residence: Salt Lake City, UT
Gail Miller and late husband Larry are Utah staples who amassed their wealth by turning a single car dealership into an empire. Miller is also the owner of the Utah Jazz, purchased in 1986. The Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation was established in 2007 and gives to nonprofit organizations like the Huntsman Cancer Institute, the American Red Cross, and the American Cancer Society.
Alex Goodlett // Getty Images
Vermont: John Abele
- Net worth: $640 million (as of June 18, 2019)
- Age: 82
- Source of wealth: Health care
- Residence: Shelburne, VT
After co-founding Boston Scientific in 1979, John Abele made his first billion when he took the company public in 1992. Since then, Abele has dedicated his life to giving his fortune away, largely through the Argosy Foundation, which donates to the arts, educational causes, environment sustainability, and more.
Jacqueline Mars's grandfather created Mars, Inc. in 1911. Mars owns a third of the privately held company and is well known for her charitable work. The Mars Foundation gives to environmental, animal rights, and other conservation groups, while Mars has personally donated millions to the arts and other causes.
Ron Sachs/Pool // Getty Images
Washington: Jeff Bezos
- Net worth: $113.5 billion
- Age: 56
- Source of wealth: Amazon, self-made
- Residence: Seattle, WA
If you don't know his name, perhaps you'll know his company: Amazon. Amazon dominates internet sales, but wants to be known as more than a retail marketplace; from its purchase of Whole Foods to its numerous award-winning Amazon Prime Original TV shows and movies, Bezos is amassing both a cultural and physical empire, making him the richest man in the world by far.
MARK RALSTON/AFP // Getty Images
West Virginia: Jim Justice II
- Net worth: $1.5 billion
- Age: 68
- Source of wealth: coal
- Residence: Lewisburg, WV
Jim Justice II is governor of West Virginia, but he didn't make his fortune in politics. Justice inherited a coal business from his father and is a major owner of coal mines across the country. Justice is also a charitable man and has given millions to the Boy Scouts of America, the Cleveland Clinic, and Marshall University.
Hunter Martin // Getty Images
Wisconsin: John Menard Jr.
- Net worth: $12 billion
- Age: 80
- Source of wealth: home improvement stores, self-made
- Residence: Eau Claire, WI
Menard's, a competitor of Home Depot and Lowe's, is a successful home-improvement chain with over 300 stores. This past May, he received an honorary doctorate for lifetime achievement from the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.
Eric Glenn // Shutterstock
Wyoming: John Mars
- Net worth: $30.9 billion
- Age: 84
- Source of wealth: candy, pet food
- Residence: Jackson, WY
Owner of one-third of the Mars candy and pet food empire, John Mars (like his siblings) inherited his fortune from his father when he died in 1999. As part of The Mars Foundation, John Mars helps direct money to animal welfare and environmental groups. He and his wife are also big supporters of the Smithsonian.
Husband of teacher killed in Texas school shooting dies 'due to grief,' family reports
Crosses with the names of Tuesday's shooting victims are placed outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Thursday, May 26, 2022.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
The husband of one of the fourth-grade teachers killed in the Uvalde school shooting Tuesday has died, according to multiple news reports.
Irma Garcia, who was a 23-year veteran teacher at Robb Elementary School, was killed after an 18-year-old gunman entered the campus, barricaded himself in a fourth-grade classroom and fired dozens of shots — killing 19 students, Garcia and another teacher.
My tia did not make it, she sacrificed herself protecting the kids in her classroom, i beg of you to keep my family including all of her family in y’all’s prayers , IRMA GARCIA IS HER NAME and she died a HERO. she was loved by many and will truly be missed. pic.twitter.com/2XpdJA0q8x
EXTREMELY heartbreaking and come with deep sorrow to say that my Tia Irma’s husband Joe Garcia has passed away due to grief, i truly am at a loss for words for how we are all feeling, PLEASE PRAY FOR OUR FAMILY, God have mercy on us, this isn’t easy pic.twitter.com/GlUSOutRVV
Remembering the victims of the Uvalde school shooting
Alexandria “Lexi” Rubio, 10
Felix and Kimberly Rubio had just celebrated their daughter Lexi's achievements at school before she was killed.
Lexi, who was 10 years old and in the fourth grade, had made the All-A honor roll and received a good citizen award, her parents told CNN.
"We told her we loved her and would pick her up after school. We had no idea this was goodbye," Kimberly Rubio wrote in a post on Facebook.
The parents told CNN they were proud of their daughter.
"She was kind, sweet, and appreciated life. She was going to be an all-star in softball and had a bright future, whether it's sports or academic. Please let the world know we miss our baby."
Felix and Kimberly Rubio via CNN
Amerie Jo Garza, 10
Hours before the shooting Tuesday morning, Amerie Jo Garza, 10, had posed at school for a photo, smiling as she held a bright certificate celebrating her “A-B” honor roll.
“Thank you everyone for the prayers and help trying to find my baby,” her father, Angel Garza, wrote on Facebook shortly after midnight. “She’s been found. My little love is now flying high with the angels above. Please don’t take a second for granted. Hug your family. Tell them you love them. I love you Amerie Jo. Watch over your baby brother for me.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez, 10
The family of Annabell Guadalupe Rodriguez was among many who waited for answers after the shooting. Around 7 p.m. Tuesday, her sister, Lidia Anthony Luna, wrote on Facebook that Annabell was among those killed.
“My little sister didn’t make it she’s not longer with us my poor sweet little girl,” Luna wrote. “Why god why these sweet babies who didn’t deserve this who were all happy for summer vacation.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Eliahana Cruz Torres, 10
Adolfo Cruz told ABC News late Tuesday night that his granddaughter, Eliahana Cruz Torres, was among those killed in the shooting.
A woman who said she is Eliahana’s aunt told a reporter KENS-TV News that the girl was a fourth grader and a softball player, excited to play her final game that was scheduled the day of the shooting.
The woman, who didn’t give her name, said her sister Sandra Torres, the girl’s mother, had been looking for her child throughout the day with no luck.
“It’s not like my niece not to reach out because when she feels threatened or scared, she’s always calling on her phone. She’ll blow up somebody until somebody answers her.”
The woman said she spoke to her niece the day before the shooting about her upcoming softball game and showed a picture of Eliahana in her softball gear.
“She was very excited about her softball game today. She was kind of nervous,” her aunt said. “She was excited because they were ... going to announce the ones that made it to All-Stars. And she was also saying, like, ‘What if I make it? I’m going to be so nervous.’ And I was like, ‘Girl, you got this. You’re going to be good at it. You got this.’ So she was excited.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Eliana “Ellie” Garcia, 9
Fourth grader Eliana “Ellie” Garcia, 9, was the second eldest of five girls in her family, a helper around the house who loved “Encanto,” cheerleading and basketball, her grandparents said. She dreamed of wearing a purple dress to her quinceanera, they said, and becoming a teacher.
Grandfather Rogelio Lugo, 63, spent Tuesday driving between hospitals, then waiting at the civic center for the grim news. He watched as officials swabbed his daughter’s and son-in-law’s mouths for DNA to identify his granddaughter.
At about 9:30 p.m., he said, officials started calling parents’ names, summoning them to a back room to inform them that their children were dead.
“When you go in, you know your baby is deceased,” he recalled as he sat in his living room Wednesday, surrounded by family and friends.
When Lugo heard officials call his daughter and son-in-law’s names, he knew his granddaughter was gone. He had last seen Ellie on Sunday. She spent weekends with her grandparents, reminding them to take their pills, helping to mow the lawn, make tostadas and chalupas and babysit her younger sisters. She would even ask to help her grandfather with his excavating work.
“When you’re older,” he would say.
Her older sister Janel Garcia, 11, was her constant companion, flaquita to her gordita. By Wednesday, Janel knew Ellie was dead, but couldn’t really understand, Lugo said.
“She wants her back. They’re always together,” he said.
Lugo raised his children in Uvalde and never felt unsafe. “I’ve seen all the stuff happen in other states, hoping it doesn’t happen here. Now it has,” he said.
His wife, Nelda Lugo, 63, worked as a cook at another Uvalde elementary school that was also placed on lockdown after the shooting. She knew both of the teachers who were killed. Sitting in her kitchen Wednesday surrounded by loved ones, she said the deaths still didn’t seem real.
“This morning I got up and thought, ‘What a dream I had,’” she said.
She had been stockpiling gifts for Ellie’s birthday June 4: leggings and Legos. Ellie’s father, a car salesman and DJ, planned to handle the music — lots of cumbias, which Ellie liked to dance to at her grandparents’ house, filming TikTok videos, she said.
Lugo said she struggled to explain the shooting to Ellie’s 5-year-old sister, who saw her parents on television late Tuesday.
“Why are they at the civic center?” she asked.
“They’re looking for Ellie,” Lugo said.
“Why?” the girl asked.
“They lost her at the school,” Lugo said.
“Why?”
“Because she died,” Lugo said.
Then she put the girl to bed. By morning, Lugo said her granddaughter had stopped asking questions. But her daughter awoke crying.
“It’s very, very sad,” she said.
Siria Arizmendi via AP
Eva Mireles, 44
One of the two adult victims in Uvalde was Eva Mireles, a fourth grade teacher who had worked for the district for about 17 years. Her husband, Ruben Ruiz, is a police officer in the school district. He was one of several officers who responded to the shooting and were apparently shot at by the shooter, but he was not injured.
Mireles’ aunt, Lydia Martinez Delgado, said in a message to the Los Angeles Times that she was furious to lose her niece in such a “tragic” and “senseless” way. The U.S., she said, needed to act on gun laws and expand background checks.
“It’s so easy for young, mental kids to get guns and randomly shoot innocent victims,” she said. “My niece, Eva, lost her life protecting her students. It shouldn’t have to be like this: teachers, parents and students afraid to go to school or send their kids to school.”
In a post on Twitter, Mireles’ daughter described her mother as “the half that makes me whole.”
“You are so known by many now and I’m so happy that people know your name and that beautiful face of yours and they know what a hero looks like,” she wrote, adding: “My heart will forever be broken.”
Family handout via CNN
Irma Garcia
“My tia did not make it,” John Martinez wrote on Twitter about his aunt, Irma Garcia, a fourth grade teacher at Robb Elementary. “She sacrificed herself by protecting the kids in her classroom ... She died a HERO. She was loved by many and will be truly missed.”
According to a GoFundMe page organized for Garcia’s family by Steven Martinez, she was a wife and mother of four children.
“Sweet, kind, loving,” Martinez wrote. “Fun with the greatest personality.”
Her age could not immediately be confirmed.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Jacklyn Cazares, 9
Javier Cazares said his daughter was someone who would give the “shirt off her back” to help someone. “She had a voice,” he said. “She didn’t like bullies, she didn’t like kids being picked on. All in all, full of love. She had a big heart.” Annabelle Rodriguez, also a victim, was Jacklyn's second cousin.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jailah Nicole Silguero, 10
Ten-year-old Jailah Nicole Silguero was killed in the shooting, her mother, Veronica Luevanos, told Univision through tears.
Luevanos said Jailah loved to dance and film videos on TikTok.
“I took her to school, but she didn’t want to go. She told her father, ‘Can I stay home?’” Luevanos said, adding that Jailah didn’t often ask to stay home. “I think she knew something would happen.”
Jailah’s cousin, 10-year-old Jayce Luevanos, was also killed in the shooting, according to Luevanos. She said her brother, Jacye’s father, was taking his death hard.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jayce Carmelo Luevanos, 10
Carmelo Quiroz’s grandson had begged to be allowed to join his grandmother on Tuesday as she accompanied her great-granddaughter’s kindergarten class to the San Antonio Zoo. But, he said, the family told Jayce it didn’t make sense to skip school so close to the end of the year. Besides, Jayce liked school. “That’s why my wife is hurting so much, because he wanted to go to San Antonio,” Quiroz told USA Today. “He was so sad he couldn’t go. Maybe if he would have gone, he’d be here.” He died with his cousin, Jailah Nicole Silguero.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Jose Manuel Flores Jr., 10
Jose's parents told CNN that the 10-year-old was helpful around the house and loved his younger siblings. “He was just very good with babies,” his mother said. His father told CNN that Jose loved baseball and video games and “was always full of energy.” A photo taken at school Tuesday shows him smiling and proudly holding a certificate to show he made the honor roll.
Jose Flores Sr. via CNN
Layla Salazar
Vincent Salazar said his 10-year-old daughter, Layla, loved to swim and dance to Tik Tok videos. She was fast — she won six races at the school’s field day, and Salazar proudly posted a photo of Layla showing off two of her ribbons on Facebook.
Each morning as he drove her to school in his pickup, Salazar would play “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” by Guns ‘n’ Roses and they’d sing along, he said.
“She was just a whole lot of fun,” he said.
Vincent Salazar via AP
Makenna Lee Elrod, 10
On Tuesday, Brandon Elrod told ABC News that he was still searching for his 10-year-old daughter, Makenna.
“Pretty sad,” he said, choking back tears. “Really sad. I don’t know what this world is coming to.”
Later, a family friend said on Facebook that Makenna had been killed.
“My heart is shattered as my daughter Chloe loved her so much!!” Pilar Newberry wrote, adding: “Just a few weeks ago she got a friendship bracelet from her at the ballpark and she wears it everyday!”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Maite Rodriguez, 10
After a rough time with Zoom classes during the pandemic, Maite Rodriguez made the honor roll for straight As and Bs this year and was recognized at an assembly on Tuesday, said her mother, Ana Rodriguez.
Maite especially liked physical education, and after she died, her teacher texted Ana Rodriguez to say she was highly competitive at kickball and ran faster than all the boys. Her mother described Maite as “focused, competitive, smart, bright, beautiful, happy.” Maite wanted to be a marine biologist and after researching a program at Texas A&M University in Corpus Christi she told her mother she wanted to study there.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Nevaeh Alyssa Bravo, 10
Nevaeh Bravo’s cousin posted on social media after the shooting to ask for the public’s help locating the girl. Around 9 p.m., she wrote on Twitter: “Unfortunately my beautiful Nevaeh was one of the many victims from todays tragedy.”
“Thank you for the support and help,” she wrote. “Rest in peace my sweet girl, you didn’t deserve this.”
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
Rojelio Torres, 10
“Our entire family waited almost 12 hours since the shooting to find out Rojelio Torres my 10 year old nephew, was killed in this tragedy,” Torres’ aunt, Precious Perez, told KSAT. “We are devastated and heartbroken. Rojer was a very intelligent, hard-working and helpful person. He will be missed and never forgotten.”
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Tess Marie Mata, 10
Tess Marie Mata was among the students killed, according to a Facebook post by her sister, Faith Mata.
“I honestly have no words just sadness, confusion, and anger,” she wrote. “I’m sad because we will never get to tag team on mom and dad again and tell each other how much we mean to each other, I’m confused because how can something like this happen to my sweet, caring, and beautiful sister, and I’m angry because a coward took you from us.”
A series of pictures accompanying the post showed Tess smiling in a baby photo, snoozing in bed, snuggling with a cat, doing the splits, flashing a peace sign and posing in front of a large heart mural.
“Sissy I miss you so much, I just want to hold you and tell you how pretty you are, I want to take you outside and practice softball, I want to go on one last family vacation, I want to hear your contagious laugh, and I want you to hear me tell you how much I love you,” her sister wrote.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Uziyah Garcia, 8
Eight-year-old Uziyah Garcia was among the Robb Elementary students killed Tuesday, his grandfather, Manny Renfro, told The Associated Press.
“The sweetest little boy that I’ve ever known,” Renfro said. “I’m not just saying that because he was my grandkid.”
Xavier Lopez, 10
Felicha Martinez told The Washington Post that her 10-year-old son, Xavier Lopez, was killed.
“He was funny, never serious and his smile,” she said. “That smile I will never forget. It would always cheer anyone up.”
She watched him receive an honor roll certificate just hours before he was killed.
Manny Renfro via AP
Xavier Lopez, 10
Felicha Martinez told The Washington Post that her 10-year-old son, Xavier Lopez, was killed.
“He was funny, never serious and his smile,” she said. “That smile I will never forget. It would always cheer anyone up.”
She watched him receive an honor roll certificate just hours before he was killed.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Alithia Ramirez, 10
Alithia Ramirez loved soccer and she really loved to draw. Her father Ryan Ramirez’s Facebook page includes a photo, now shown around the world, of the little girl wearing the multi-colored T-shirt that announced she was out of “single digits” after turning 10 years old. The same photo was posted again Wednesday with no words, but with Alithia wearing angel wings.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Miranda Mathis, 11
Eleven-year-old Miranda Mathis’ family was searching for her after the shooting, according to her cousin, Deanna Miller.
“Please lord hear our prayers and please let these babies just be misplaced and harm free,” Miller wrote in a post on Facebook on Tuesday afternoon.
On Wednesday morning, Miller shared a photo of Miranda with angel wings and a halo.
“My sweet baby cousin we loved u dearly,” she wrote.
AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills
Texas gunman posted on Facebook before attack on elementary school
An 18-year-old gunman opened fire on May 24 at a Texas elementary school, killing at least 19 children as he went from classroom to classroom, officials said, in the deadliest school shooting in nearly a decade and the latest gruesome moment for a country scarred by a string of massacres. The attacker was killed by law enforcement.
The gunman who massacred 19 children and two teachers at an elementary school in Texas had warned on social media minutes before the attack that he had shot his grandmother and going to shoot up a school, the governor said Wednesday.
Salvador Ramos, 18, used an AR-15-style semi-automatic rifle in the bloodbath Tuesday at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. He had legally bought two such rifles just days before the attack, soon after his 18th birthday, authorities said.
Photos: At least 19 students, 2 adults killed in Texas school shooting
Emergency personnel gather near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel, including the FBI, gather near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement, and other first responders, gather outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel stand outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel stand outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
A Texas State Police officer walks outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel gather gear outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel stand next to an armored vehicle outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel stand outside Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Law enforcement personnel, including the FBI, arrive at Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Police walk near Robb Elementary School following a shooting, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
An American flag flies at half-staff at the White House, Tuesday, May 24, 2022, in Washington, to honor the victims of the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
Manuel Balce Ceneta
A woman cries as she leaves the Uvalde Civic Center, Tuesday May 24, 2022, in Uvalde, Texas An 18-year-old gunman opened fire Tuesday at a Texas elementary school, killing multiple children and a teacher and wounding others, Gov. Greg Abbott said, and the gunman was dead. (William Luther/The San Antonio Express-News via AP)
William Luther/The San Antonio Express-News via AP
A policeman talks to people asking for information outside of the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Tuesday, May 24, 2022. An 18-year-old gunman opened fire at the Texas elementary school, killing multiple people. Gov. Greg Abbott says the gunman entered the school with a handgun and possibly a rifle. AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
People wait outside of the Civic Center in Uvalde, Texas, Tuesday, May 24, 2022. An 18-year-old gunman opened fire at Robb Elementary School, killing multiple people. Gov. Greg Abbott says the gunman entered the school in Uvalde with a handgun and possibly a rifle. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
People react outside the Civic Center in Uvalde, Texas, Tuesday, May 24, 2022. An 18-year-old gunman opened fire at a Texas elementary school, killing multiple people. Gov. Greg Abbott says the gunman entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde with a handgun and possibly a rifle. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
People talk with state police officers outside of the Civic Center in Uvalde, Texas Wednesday, May 25, 2022. The 18-year-old gunman who slaughtered 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school barricaded himself inside a single classroom and “began shooting anyone that was in his way,” authorities said Wednesday in detailing the latest mass killing to rock the U.S. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Police and members of the Brooke Army Medical Center Therapy Dogs unit gather outside of the Civic Center in Uvalde, Texas, Wednesday, May 25, 2022. The 18-year-old gunman who slaughtered 19 children and two teachers at a Texas elementary school barricaded himself inside a single classroom and “began shooting anyone that was in his way,” authorities said Wednesday in detailing the latest mass killing to rock the U.S. (AP Photo/Dario Lopez-Mills)
Dario Lopez-Mills
Investigators walk across a school yard at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Desperation turned to heart-wrenching sorrow for families of grade schoolers killed after an 18-year-old gunman barricaded himself in their Texas classroom and began shooting, killing several fourth-graders and their teachers. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Jae C. Hong
A group of state troopers gather outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Desperation turned to heart-wrenching sorrow for families of grade schoolers killed after an 18-year-old gunman barricaded himself in their Texas classroom and began shooting, killing at least 19 fourth-graders and their two teachers. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Jae C. Hong
A law enforcement personnel lights a candle outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Desperation turned to heart-wrenching sorrow for families of grade schoolers killed after an 18-year-old gunman barricaded himself in their Texas classroom and began shooting, killing several fourth-graders and their teachers. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Jae C. Hong
Members of the media gather outside Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, Wednesday, May 25, 2022. Desperation turned to heart-wrenching sorrow for families of grade schoolers killed after an 18-year-old gunman barricaded himself in their Texas classroom and began shooting, killing at least 19 fourth-graders and their two teachers. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
Jae C. Hong
3 dead in hospital shooting in Tulsa; shooter also died
Initial reports indicate the shooter killed at least one and injured several; the sole known shooter was reported down around 5:30 p.m.
A police captain says three people have been killed in a shooting at a Tulsa medical building on a hospital campus.
Tulsa police Capt. Richard Meulenberg confirmed the number of dead Wednesday. Meulenberg said the shooter also was dead. It was unclear how the shooter died.
21 mass shootings. 365 dead. Here's where the guns came from
UVALDE, TEXAS: MAY 24, 2022. 21 DEAD.
Salvador Ramos legally purchased two guns in the days before the attack that killed 19 students and two teachers at Robb Elementary School — an AR-style rifle from a federally licensed gun dealer in the Uvalde area on May 17 and a second rifle on May 20. Ramos made the purchases just days after turning 18, the minimum age under federal law for buying a rifle. He also purchased several hundred rounds of ammunition. At least one of the rifles was a DDM4, made by Daniel Defense and modeled after the U.S. military's M4 carbine rifle, though without the M4's ability to switch to fully automatic or fire a three-round burst. "The idea that an 18-year-old kid can walk into a gun store and buy two assault weapons is just wrong," Biden said hours after the shooting Tuesday. "What in God's name do you need an assault weapon for except to kill someone?" Ramos was killed at the school by a Border Patrol team.
Copies of the Uvalde Leader-News with a black front page showing the date of the Robb Elementary School shooting are seen at a market in Uvalde, Texas, Thursday, May 26, 2022.
AP Photo/Jae C. Hong
BUFFALO, NEW YORK: MAY 14, 2022. 10 DEAD.
Payton Gendron legally purchased the Bushmaster XM-15 E2S used in the attack on Tops Friendly Market from a federally licensed gun dealer near his home in Conklin, New York, about 200 miles (320 kilometers) southeast of Buffalo. In a personal, online diary that surfaced after the attack, Gendron said he bought the AR-15-style weapon in January, bought a shotgun in December and received a rifle as a Christmas present from his dad when he was 16. Last year, Gendron was taken to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation under a state mental health law after writing "murder-suicide" in response to a teacher's question. New York is one of 19 states with red flag laws that allow courts to take guns from people posing immediate danger, but that didn't happen with Gendron, who was 17 at the time. State police described his threat as "general in nature" and said it didn't "specifically mention shooting or firearms." After the shooting, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed an executive order underscoring the need for red flag interventions and said she would seek to bar people under 21 from buying some semi-automatic weapons in the state. A similar law in California was ruled unconstitutional. Gendron is charged with murder.
A person visits a makeshift memorial near the scene of a mass shooting at a supermarket, in Buffalo, Thursday, May 19, 2022.
AP Photo/Matt Rourke
BOULDER, COLORADO: MARCH 22, 2021. 10 DEAD.
Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa bought a Ruger AR-556 pistol, a semi-automatic weapon with a capacity of up to 30 rounds, six days before the shooting at King Soopers grocery store, police said. Alissa was prone to sudden rage and was convicted of misdemeanor assault and sentenced to probation for attacking a high school classmate. Colorado has a universal background check law covering almost all gun sales, but that misdemeanor would not have prevented him from buying a weapon, experts said. Had it been a felony, federal law would've barred his purchase. Days before the shooting, a judge struck down city ordinances banning assault rifles and high-capacity magazines in Boulder, citing a state law prohibiting local gun bans. The NRA backed the lawsuit challenging the ordinances. A judge ruled last month that Alissa is mentally incompetent to stand trial.
ATLANTA: MARCH 16, 2021. 8 DEAD.
Robert Aaron Long purchased a 9 mm handgun just hours before going on a shooting rampage at three massage businesses in the Atlanta area, police said. A lawyer for the gun shop said it complies with federal background check laws. Georgia, like the majority of states, has no waiting period to obtain a gun. Long claimed to have a "sex addiction," police said, and he spent time at an addiction recovery facility last year. Federal law bans guns for people who are "unlawful users of or addicted to a controlled substance" or who've been court-ordered to a mental health or substance abuse treatment facility, but doesn't mention treatment for other compulsions as a barrier to ownership. Long is serving a sentence life without parole.
MIDLAND, TEXAS, AUG. 31, 2019. 7 DEAD.
Seth Aaron Ator purchased an AR-style rifle through a private sale, allowing him to evade a federal background check, and fired it indiscriminately from his car into passing vehicles and shopping plazas. He also hijacked a mail truck, killing the driver. Ator had been blocked from getting a gun in 2014 after his background check was flagged because a court determined he was mentally ill, according to a law enforcement official familiar with the matter. Private sales, which account for up to 40% of all gun sales according to some estimates, are not subject to a federal background check and private sellers aren't required to determine if a buyer is eligible to own a gun. Ator was killed by police.
DAYTON, OHIO: AUG. 4, 2019. 9 DEAD.
Connor Betts' classmates said he was suspended in high school for compiling a "hit list" and a "rape list," but authorities said nothing in his background prevented him from purchasing the AR-15-style pistol used in the shooting at Ned Peppers Bar. Ohio law requires that sealed records of any juvenile crimes be expunged either after five years or once the offender turns 23. Betts, who was 24 at the time of the shooting, bought the gun online from a Texas dealer. It was then shipped to a Dayton-area firearms dealer, in accordance with federal law. Betts was killed by police.
EL PASO, TEXAS, AUG. 3, 2019. 23 DEAD.
Patrick Crusius bought an AK-47-style rifle and 1,000 rounds of hollow-point ammunition online 45 days before he walked into a Walmart store and opened fire, killing 23 people and injuring two dozen others, before confessing that he had been targeting Mexicans, according to prosecutors. A Crusius family lawyer said his mother raised concerns about the purchase in a call to police on June 27. Police said she asked if Crusius, who was 21 at the time, was old enough to buy a gun. Police said she was assured he was and that he'd qualify if he passed a background check. Police said she expressed concern only about his safety and said she'd seen no recent change in his behavior. Crusius posted a racist screed online just before the attack and appeared to target Mexicans. He's charged with capital murder in Texas and federal hate crimes and firearms offenses.
From left, Melody Stout, Hannah Payan, Aaliyah Alba, Sherie Gramlich and Laura Barrios comfort each other during a vigil for victims of the shooting Saturday, Aug. 3, 2019, in El Paso, Texas.
AP Photo/John Locher
VIRGINIA BEACH, VIRGINIA: MAY 31, 2019. 12 DEAD.
Former Virginia Beach city employee DeWayne Craddock legally purchased six firearms in the three years before he opened fire on a municipal building, including the two .45-caliber pistols used in the attack. An independent review of the shooting, commissioned by the City of Virginia Beach, found that Craddock displayed no warning signs or "prohibited behaviors associated with a pathway to violence," and that he had no known history of mental health treatment. Craddock was killed by police.
THOUSAND OAKS, CALIFORNIA: NOV. 7, 2018. 12 DEAD.
Ian David Long, a former Marine machine gunner who served in Afghanistan, used a legally purchased .45-caliber pistol with an extended magazine in the shooting at the Borderline Bar & Grill. California tried to outlaw high-capacity magazines, but a federal judge reversed that after a pro-gun group sued. Months before the shooting, sheriff's deputies called to Long's home found him acting irrationally, but a mental health specialist didn't feel he needed to be involuntarily committed. California has a red flag law, but there's no indication authorities sought a court order to take away Long's guns. Long killed himself.
PITTSBURGH: OCT. 27, 2018. 11 DEAD.
Robert Gregory Bowers had a carry license and legally owned the Colt AR-15 SP1 and three Glock .357 handguns police said he used to kill worshipers at Tree of Life synagogue. Bowers spent months posting rants against Jews on Gab, a social media site favored by right-wing extremists. He also posted photos of his "glock family." Just before the attack, he posted a screed against a Jewish organization that resettles refugees, saying: "I can't sit by and watch my people get slaughtered. Screw your optics, I'm going in." None of the rhetoric appeared to raise red flags. His case is pending.
SANTA FE, TEXAS: MAY. 18, 2018. 10 DEAD.
Dimitrios Pagourtzis, a 17-year-old student, used a shotgun and a .38-caliber handgun that his father purchased legally and stored in a closet at their home, authorities said. It wasn't clear if his father knew he'd taken the guns. Prior to the attack, Pagourtzis posted a photo on social media of a T-shirt with the phrase "Born to Kill" and had writings indicating he planned to attack his high school. A judge sent him to a mental health facility after ruling he was incompetent to stand trial.
PARKLAND, FLORIDA: FEB. 14, 2018. 17 DEAD.
Nikolas Cruz legally purchased a Smith & Wesson M&P 15 rifle in February 2017 from a licensed dealer a few miles from Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, authorities said. He'd been treated at a mental health clinic but hadn't been there in more than a year. Federal law prohibits gun purchases if a court declares a person a "mental defective" or commits that person to an institution, but not if the person seeks treatment voluntarily. Cruz was 19 at the time of the shooting. He pleaded guilty in October and is scheduled to be sentenced next month.
Parents wait for news after a reports of a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., on Wednesday, Feb. 14, 2018.
AP Photo/Joel Auerbach
SUTHERLAND SPRINGS, TEXAS: NOV. 5, 2017. 25 DEAD.
Devin Patrick Kelley's history of domestic abuse barred him from buying guns. He was able to because information about his crimes was never entered into a federal database used for background checks. The Air Force failed to follow rules requiring that it inform the FBI about his conduct. Kelley purchased four guns, including an AR-15-style rifle found at First Baptist Church, from licensed Texas and Colorado dealers over a four-year span. Kelley killed himself.
LAS VEGAS: OCT. 1, 2017. 58 DEAD.
Stephen Paddock purchased 33 of the 49 weapons found in his hotel room and at his homes in the year before he opened fire on a country music festival. Paddock passed all background checks. His gradual accumulation of guns went undetected because federal law doesn't require licensed gun dealers to alert the government about rifle purchases. Paddock killed himself.
People attend a ceremony to dedicate a memorial garden for victims, Monday, Oct. 1, 2018, on the anniversary of the mass shooting a year earlier, in Las Vegas.
AP Photo/John Locher
ORLANDO, FLORIDA: JUNE 12, 2016. 49 DEAD.
Omar Mateen purchased an AR-15-style rifle, a Sig Sauer MCX, and a handgun from a licensed dealer on separate days about a week before the Pulse nightclub attack. He passed a background check and had a security license that allowed him to be armed while on duty. The FBI investigated Mateen in 2013 and 2014 over co-workers' concerns that he'd spoken about ties to terrorist groups. Neither inquiry led to charges. Even if he'd been placed on a terrorism watch list, Congress in 2015 rejected attempts to prevent people on the list from purchasing guns. Mateen was killed by police.
Jennifer, right, and Mary Ware light candles during a vigil downtown for the victims of a mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub Monday, June 13, 2016, in Orlando, Fla.
AP Photo/David Goldman
SAN BERNARDINO, CALIFORNIA: DEC. 2, 2015. 14 DEAD.
Syed Farook and his wife, Tashfeen Malik, used weapons the FBI said his neighbor, Enrique Marquez, legally purchased from a licensed dealer in 2011 and 2012. Marquez pleaded guilty to charges he conspired to provide support to terrorists and made false statements to acquire a firearm. He told investigators Farook asked him to buy the weapons because he would draw less attention. Farook and Malik were killed by police.
ROSEBURG, OREGON: OCT. 1, 2015. 10 DEAD.
Christopher Harper-Mercer and his family members legally purchased the handguns and rifle used in the Umpqua Community College shooting from a licensed dealer. Investigators found six guns at the college and eight at an apartment. Neighbors said Harper-Mercer and his mother went target shooting together. Harper-Mercer killed himself after he was wounded by police.
CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA: JUNE 17, 2015. 9 DEAD.
A drug arrest should've prevented Dylann Roof from purchasing the pistol he used at Emanuel AME Church, but a record-keeping error and background check delay enabled the transaction to go through. The FBI said a background check examiner never saw the arrest report because the wrong arresting agency was listed in state criminal history records. After three days, the gun dealer was legally permitted to complete the transaction. He was convicted and is on federal death row.
WASHINGTON: SEPT. 16, 2013. 12 DEAD.
Aaron Alexis, a former reservist turned civilian contractor, passed background checks and legally purchased the shotgun used in the Washington Navy Yard shooting despite recent mental health treatment and a history of violent outbursts. He previously fired a gun in anger twice but wasn't prosecuted in either case. Alexis was killed by police.
NEWTOWN, CONNECTICUT: DEC. 14, 2012. 26 DEAD.
Adam Lanza used his mother's weapons, including a .223-caliber semi-automatic rifle, in the massacre at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Lanza's mother, whom he fatally shot before going to the school, also purchased the ammunition. Lanza killed himself.
A bus traveling from Newtown, Conn., to Monroe stops in front of 26 angels along the roadside on the first day of classes for Sandy Hook Elementary School students since the Dec. 14 shooting, in Monroe, Conn., Thursday, Jan. 3, 2013.
AP Photo/Jessica Hill
AURORA, COLORADO: JULY 20, 2012. 12 DEAD.
James Holmes was receiving psychiatric treatment when he passed required federal background checks and legally purchased the weapons he used in his movie theater assault. As in the Parkland and Navy Yard cases, treatment alone did not prevent him from buying guns. He was convicted and sentenced to 12 life terms and thousands of years in prison.
A bill before the House on Wednesday would raise the age limit for purchasing a semi-automatic rifle and prohibit the sale of ammunition magazines of more than 15 rounds.