3 blacks killed in Florida store - racially motivated attack

Post Reply New Topic

A white man armed with a high-powered rifle and a handgun killed three Black people at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville, Florida, on Saturday, before shooting himself, in what local law enforcement described as a racially motivated crime.

"This shooting was racially motivated, and he hated Black people," Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters told a press conference.

The suspect, whom Waters described as a white male wearing a tactical vest, was not identified. Waters said all three victims - two men and a woman - were Black.

Waters said authorities believed the shooter acted alone, and that before the shooting he had authored "several manifestos" for media, his parents and law enforcement detailing his hatred for Black people.

Waters described his weapons as a Glock and an "AR-15 style" rifle, with swastikas on it, referring to a lightweight semi-automatic long gun often used in mass shootings.

He said the shooter was spotted at a local historically Black college, Edward Waters University, where he put on his vest and a mask before going to the local branch of the Dollar General, a discount chain with stores across the United States.

Sherri Onks, special agent in charge of the Jacksonville FBI office, said federal officials had opened a civil rights investigation and would pursue the incident as a hate crime.

"This shooting was racially motivated, and he hated Black people," the sheriff said at a news conference. "He wanted to kill n------."

The shooter, who wore a tactical vest and was armed with an AR-style rifle and Glock handgun, had left messages for his parents, the media, and federal law enforcement officials detailing racial hatred, Waters said. The firearms were marked in white pen with swastikas.

The shooting came two days before the 60th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, and on the same day thousands celebrated the anniversary in a march in the nation's capital.

It also came five years to the date of a mass shooting at a video gaming event in Jacksonville.

Law enforcement officials have not identified the victims — two males and one female — or shooter, who was in his early 20s.

Florida Governor and presidential candidate Ron DeSantis, who was campaigning in Iowa, said, “this shooting, based on the manifesto that they discovered from the scumbag that did this, was racially motivated."

"This guy killed himself rather than face the music and accept responsibility for his actions," he said, adding condolences to the families who lost loved ones. “And so he took the coward’s way out. But we condemn what happened in the strongest possible terms.”

The shooter lived in nearby Clay County with his parents, Waters said, and has had previous interactions with law enforcement.

In 2016 he was involved in a call about a domestic disturbance, which resulted in no arrests. In 2017, he was subject to the Baker Act, which the Florida court system says is when someone is given "emergency services and temporary detention for up to 72 hours for mental health examination" if the person is believed to be mentally unstable and a potential harm to themself or others.

The shooter left Clay County around 11:39 a.m. and headed to Jacksonville. At 1:18 p.m. he texted his father and told him to look on his computer, Waters said.

At 1:53 p.m. the shooter's family called the Clay County Sheriff's Office — but by that time, Waters said, he has already began shooting at the Dollar General store on Kings Road and Canal Street.

Shooter identified as Ryan Palmeter
Authorities identified the shooter as Ryan Christopher Palmeter, 21, from Orange Park, Florida. They also confirmed he died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Three victims identified
The sheriff's office identified the three people killed in Saturday's shooting as: Angela Michelle Carr, 52; Anolt Joseph “AJ” Laguerre Jr., 19; and Jarrald De’Shaun Gallion, 29.

HBCU turned away shooter before he opened fire at Dollar General
Edward Waters University, a historically black college in Jacksonville, said a campus security officer encountered the shooter near a library on campus Saturday before the shooting.

He left without incident, the school said in a statement, after he was turned away for refusing to identify himself.

Sheriff Waters breaks down the timeline of the shooting
12:48 p.m.: The shooter is seen arriving at Edward Waters University. He parked a gray Honda Element behind the library, where he donned a bulletproof vest. A TikTok video was posted, without a time stamp, of the suspect changing.

12:55 p.m.:University security enters the same parking lot as the shooter, who drives away two minutes later.

1:08 p.m.:Security reaches out to a Jacksonville officer to flag a suspicions person report, and authorities start to file a "be on the lookout," or BOLO, report. The suspect was identified as a white male, wearing a gray tank top, black shorts, a bulletproof vest and blue latex gloves.

1:08 p.m.:Video shows the gunman entering the Dollar General parking lot and shooting 11 rounds into a black Kia, killing Angela Carr.

1:09 p.m.:The shooter enters the store and shoots the second victim, Anolt Joseph Laguerre. Multiple people exit through the store's rear door. The suspect also left through the rear door, but re-enters the Dollar General.

1:13 p.m.: Jarrald De’Shaun Gallion is shot and killed.

1:18 p.m.: The shooter texts his father with instructions to enter his bedroom using a screwdriver. His father finds a suicide note, as well as a last will and testament on his laptop.

1:19 p.m.:Law enforcement enters and officers hear a single gunshot. Authorities believe this is when the suspect killed himself.

Police were called in 2016 over fight between shooter and brother
The shooter's parents called police in 2016 to report a domestic disturbance between Ryan Palmeter and his older brother, James Palmeter, according to Waters.

Police records indicate James Palmeter is currently serving a prison sentence for a 2017 armed robbery. Waters did not offer details of the dispute between the brothers but noted that Ryan Palmeter, who was then a teenager, was not arrested.

The sheriff expressed sympathy for the suspect's parents, who did not appear to have any knowledge of their son's plan.

"He made a decision to do something that his parents obviously didn't know about," Waters told NBC News today. "I do know that his parents didn't want guns in the house because he asked to bring it there, and they said no."

Clay County Sheriff Michelle Cook spoke with the parents, Waters said, and read the 20-page document written by the suspect. Waters described the document as a "manifesto" because it detailed the suspect's feelings on the Black race, as well as his plans.

"He knew — this is my my assumption, but I think it's a fairly good one —he knew that once this ended, we'd end up at his house and we'd see that," Waters said. "He never sent it to anyone."

Ryan Palmeter’s immediately available social media accounts appeared sparse. Ryan Palmeter’s Facebook page appears to be deleted. He had a single post on Twitter in 2019 about attending a college. It contained this profile picture:

Florida voter registration records list Palmeter as a Republican. The record says he registered to vote in 2017; it comes up under Ryan Christopher Palmeter, of Orange Park, whose date of birth is the same as the DOB given for the Dollar General gunman by the sheriff. Florida law allows people to pre-register to vote at age 16.

The sheriff did not name the suspect’s mother or father.

Maryann Palmeter, 62, comes up as living at the same Orange Park address as Ryan Palmeter in the Florida voting registration records. Her party is listed as Democrat. Maryann is tied in a family obituary, public records, and through Pinterest to Stephen Palmeter (Stephen Wayne Palmeter) or Steve Palmeter. The obituary lists them as husband and wife. On Pinterest, Maryann Palmeter has a board from last year devoted to ideas for her son Ryan’s 21st birthday and one devoted to her son Ryan’s graduation.

Maryann Palmeter is “Director, Physician Billing Compliance at University of Florida,” where she has worked for more than 31 years, according to her LinkedIn page. When she was honored in 2010 for her work, Maryann C. Palmeter discussed her family life to Coding Edge. It reads,

Palmeter said her supportive husband, Steve Palmeter, whom she met at the Blues, helps her achieve her goals. Palmeter said, ‘He has listened to many presentations many times over, he has held down the fort when I have proctored exams on Saturdays.’ Palmeter’s husband knows when her head is ready to erupt from government regulatory overload and ‘he conveys the message to the children to ‘stand clear’ without frightening them, and he ‘feeds and waters’ the kids” on those nights when she attends local chapter meetings or has to work late. She said, ‘Of course, our kids like this because they get to eat their favorite dish (my not-so-favor- ite), Tater Tot® casserole.

The page says Maryann Palmeter “started in our industry in 1982 with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida, Inc. Her first job was as a Medicare Part B claims examiner” and praises her, noting Palmeter’s volunteer work helping flood victims in Nashville.

On Pinterest, Steve Palmeter uses the handle @jaxparrothead along with his real name. Maryann Palmeter follows that page. A page on X under the name of @jaxparrothead (which listed Orange Park as its hometown) was deleted shortly after the shooter’s name went public.

Heavy has saved screenshots from that page, which expressed anti-Republican views. One post read, “I’ve had this mother/daughter MAGA idiots going crazy for 5 days now. They may be sisters, kinda hard to tell. The violent threats started on the 2nd day, so their a bit slow. I think I can keep them going for a full week.” It’s not clear who @jaxparrothead was talking about. The @jaxparrothead page also retweeted an anti-Trump tweet about the “Big Lie,” criticized Kyle Rittenhouse and Ted Cruz, and reposted a positive post about Jill Biden. He wrote in 2021, “License plate readers are being used to track the Trump traitors from 1-6.”

In addition, a James Palmeter, 27, comes up in court records and other public records as having lived at the same address on Timbermill Lane as the suspect. He has a criminal history in Florida, having been accused of felony armed burglary (where authorities said guns were stolen from a home) and leaving a restaurant without paying.

James Palmeter was accused of resisting an officer in another case in which the court records say he was accused of yelling at police, “f*** you b******. P**** a** cops. That’s why you get shot. I’ll beat your as*!” Ryan Palmeter had no arrest history, the sheriff said.

On Twitter, Ryan Palmeter described himself as: “Oakleaf High School attendee, 3.5 GPA, certified in Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator CS6 and Adobe InDesign, drinks too many Arizona products.” Oakleaf High School is located in Orange Park, Florida.

In 2019, he wrote on Twitter, “Looking forward to a bright career in Business Administration! #FlaglerMakes” and shared a letter from Flagler College.

Amazing how much coverage this is getting, it really does feel like they want people to think there's a race war brewing.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been loudly booed at a vigil for victims of a racially motivated shooting.

The Republican candidate for president was heckled in Jacksonville, where hundreds gathered on Sunday to remember the three victims of the attack.

He was forced to step back from the microphone before a member of the city council asked the crowd to listen.

"It ain't about parties today," Ju'Coby Pittman said, adding: "A bullet don't know a party."
Mr DeSantis, 44, who has loosened gun laws in the state and faced criticism from civil rights leaders for targeting what he calls "woke ideology", eventually spoke and called the gunman a "scumbag" which prompted applause from some of the crowd.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has been loudly booed at a vigil for victims of a racially motivated shooting.

The Republican candidate for president was heckled in Jacksonville, where hundreds gathered on Sunday to remember the three victims of the attack.
He was forced to step back from the microphone before a member of the city council asked the crowd to listen.

"It ain't about parties today," Ju'Coby Pittman said, adding: "A bullet don't know a party."
Mr DeSantis, 44, who has loosened gun laws in the state and faced criticism from civil rights leaders for targeting what he calls "woke ideology", eventually spoke and called the gunman a "scumbag" which prompted applause from some of the crowd.

Race war is the whole reason many on the right are so adamantly pro-guns.

Right wing media: Racism is exaggerated by the liberal media, white supremacists aren't a real problem in America.
White supremacists: AR goes BRRT.

Are you going to make me bring up the actual interracial murder rates for the US? Cause I can assure you that's not going to paint the picture you might think based on the media narrative. Crime generally too, not just murder.