Harpootlian discusses mass shooting

A December 11, 2015 article by Tim Smith of the Greenville News quotes Dick Harpootlian and other criminal justice and law enforcement sources in response to the paper’s report that South Carolina has seen 11 mass shootings in 2015. The Greenville News‘ finding, based on data compiled by the national database Gun Violence Archive, defines a mass shooting as one in which at least four people are shot, excluding the perpetrator.

Harpootlian, who worked as a deputy in the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s Office and was later elected as the Solicitor, attributes the rise in mass shootings in part to the prevalence of magazine loaded handguns that are more easily reloaded and carry more rounds.

He also discussed the obligation citizens have to speak up if they see something troubling. Harpootlian opines that, ” Every citizen that wants to decry that government wants to limit their freedom to own a gun,” he said, “ought to also embrace the concept that they have a duty to pick up the phone and call some governmental entity or authority if they have any reason to believe someone is going to commit mass murder or a heinous act.”

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