Once More Unto The Breach

 Hello dear readers. It seems like weeks since we gathered together here to discuss gun violence. 

Well, let me toss another log on that fire: shootout with police.

And if that doesn't pique your interest, let's just go ahead and say four dead on the heap. Five if you count the shooter. 

How's that for conflagration? 

While attempting to serve warrants on a suspect, officers were fired upon by the now deceased suspect. Four of them were killed. Another four were injured. I don't know how this fits into the "good guys with guns" narrative, but it seems to me that the score at the end of the volley was four to one. 

Let's try this angle: The "suspect" had a rap sheet that went back more than twenty years, having spent time in prison as well as being in and out of jail during that time. His time in prison came after he was sentenced as as a felon in possession of a firearm. 

In what might feel like irony this was the same charge for which the warrant was being served when the felon with the firearm shot and killed four law enforcement officers. 

We'll just call him guilty on that last one to save on paperwork. 

Since the convicted felon is dead, it may be difficult to figure out how he came to possess a high powered rifle, a handgun, and more than five hundred rounds of ammunition. The next dance that will be interesting to watch is how gun-rights advocates choose to spin this story. For those keen on the "god-given" right to keep and bear arms may be left making excuses for the way this played out. Do those "stand your ground" laws apply to convicted felons? 

There are four families left wondering how things could have been different. Five if there were any questions from the family of the guy doing the shooting. 

And why wouldn't there be?