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On May 21, local elected officials and religious leaders gathered at the church where the shooting occurred to memorialize and honor the victims of the shooting. A moment of silence was held for the deceased victim, John Cheng. [[United States House of Representatives|Representative]] [[Young Kim]] stated that there was no place in the community and society for any type of hate and that the community needed to stand together.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2022-05-22 |title=Laguna Woods church targeted by gunman holds healing ceremony honoring victims, hero doctor |url=https://abc7.com/laguna-woods-church-shooting-victims-honored-ceremony/11879916/ |access-date=2022-05-22 |website=ABC7 Los Angeles |language=en |archive-date=May 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523130029/https://abc7.com/laguna-woods-church-shooting-victims-honored-ceremony/11879916/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
On May 21, local elected officials and religious leaders gathered at the church where the shooting occurred to memorialize and honor the victims of the shooting. A moment of silence was held for the deceased victim, John Cheng. [[United States House of Representatives|Representative]] [[Young Kim]] stated that there was no place in the community and society for any type of hate and that the community needed to stand together.<ref>{{Cite web |last= |date=2022-05-22 |title=Laguna Woods church targeted by gunman holds healing ceremony honoring victims, hero doctor |url=https://abc7.com/laguna-woods-church-shooting-victims-honored-ceremony/11879916/ |access-date=2022-05-22 |website=ABC7 Los Angeles |language=en |archive-date=May 23, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220523130029/https://abc7.com/laguna-woods-church-shooting-victims-honored-ceremony/11879916/ |url-status=live }}</ref>


=See also=
==See also==
* [[Hate crime]]
* [[Hate crime]]
* [[List of mass shootings in the United States in 2022]]
* [[List of mass shootings in the United States in 2022]]

Revision as of 22:09, 20 June 2022

2022 Laguna Woods shooting
Part of mass shootings in the United States
Map
Location24301 El Toro Road, Laguna Woods, Orange County, California, United States
Coordinates33°36′35″N 117°44′00″W / 33.60964°N 117.73338°W / 33.60964; -117.73338
DateMay 15, 2022 (2022-05-15)
c. 1:26 p.m. (PDT)
Attack type
Mass shooting
WeaponsTwo handguns
Deaths1
Injured5
MotiveAnti-Taiwanese sentiment (suspected)
AccusedDavid Chou
Charges

The Laguna Woods shooting was a mass shooting that occurred on May 15, 2022, at the Geneva Presbyterian Church in Laguna Woods, California, United States. The church in Orange County was hosting a congregation of the Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church for Sunday services. The shooter killed one person and wounded five others.[1][2] A suspect, 68-year-old David Chou of Las Vegas, was arrested at the scene. Authorities allege that the crime was committed out of political hatred of Taiwan and the Taiwanese people.[3][4] He has been charged with one count of murder, five counts of attempted murder, and four counts of possession of an explosive device.[5]

Shooting

The shooter attacked during a luncheon after the church service.[6] There were between 30 and 40 people inside the church at the time.[7]

At around 10:10 a.m. local time, a man entered the sanctuary. The receptionist, who did not recognize him, welcomed him and asked him to fill out a form with his personal details. He refused, claiming to have completed the form in the past.[8] Witnesses said he mingled with other attendees[9] and spoke to them in Taiwanese Hokkien.[10] Pastor Billy Chang said the man sat in the back of the sanctuary and was reading a newspaper throughout the entire sermon.[6]

After the service, the church goers gathered in a separate hall for a luncheon in Chang's honor, and some guests who left early saw the shooter attempting to lock the doors with chains. While some asked what he was doing, others assumed he was a security officer.[6][11] The shooter shot first into the ceiling, with many assuming it was a balloon popping instead of gunfire. Some attendees dropped to the floor and crawled under tables before, an attendee, John Cheng, charged the shooter and tried to disarm him but was in turn shot and killed.[12][6] As the shooter attempted to reload his weapon, Chang hit the shooter on the head with a chair.[11][13] Following which, several attendees tackled him and then hogtied him with an extension cord and confiscated two handguns, which were recovered by police.[13][14][15] After he complained, those holding the shooter down eased up on the force of restraint to allow him to breathe.[16]

Police were alerted at about 1:26 p.m.[14] The doors were chained shut and their locks glued. Four items similar to Molotov cocktails were stored inside.[3]

Victims

The dead victim, 52-year-old John Cheng (Chinese: 鄭達志; pinyin: Zhèng Dázhì),[17] was a sports medicine physician based in Laguna Niguel.[12] He was married with a son and a daughter.[18] Five other victims, all of Taiwanese descent and aged between 66 and 92, were also shot but survived their injuries.[4] Four of them are male and one is an 86-year-old female.[19]

Investigation

Local authorities including Orange County Sheriff Don Barnes and Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer have described the shooting as a hate crime that was motivated by hatred against Taiwan.[7][20][21][12] The Federal Bureau of Investigation, which has been assisting the Orange County Sheriff's Department with their investigation[10][22] and has also been conducting its own investigation into the incident,[23][24] also said that Chou was motivated by "some kind of hate."[12]

Barnes said that handwritten notes recovered from a vehicle Chou allegedly used for the attack documented his motives for perpetrating the mass shooting; these included his belief that Taiwan should not be independent from China and his "hatred for the Taiwanese people", which, Barnes surmised, stemmed from his alienation from Taiwanese society when he lived in Taiwan.[25][26][27] Spitzer said that Chou may face the death penalty if convicted for the murder of Cheng and additional hate crime charges pending the outcome of the FBI's own investigation.[28]

After the shooting, the World Journal reports that Chou had mailed them a manifesto titled Diary of the Independence-Slaying Angel (滅獨天使日記), in the form of seven booklets and one flash drive. The package arrived on May 16. The journal decided against publishing the writing after the shooting and turned it over to the police.[29][30]

Accused

David Wenwei Chou was born in 1953[31] in Taiwan as a second-generation waishengren and raised in a military dependents' village[32][33] near Taichung alongside four siblings.[34] He graduated from the Taichung First Senior High School in 1971[25] and completed a master's degree in the U.S. during the 1990s.[33] In 1994, he was a lecturer at the National Pingtung Institute of Commerce for one year.[35] According to reports, Chou moved to Las Vegas in 2009 where he worked as a landlord and a security guard.[36]

Chou supported the pro-unification movement and expressed views against Taiwan and the United States. In an interview with the Associated Press, a roommate of Chou recalled a conversation they had two weeks prior to the shooting in which Chou described the Taiwanese government as corrupt, and disliked Taiwanese who supported it.[37][38] Other acquaintances who knew Chou through a Taiwanese association in Las Vegas recalled his pro-unification views and activism, and dissatisfaction with the Taiwanese and U.S. governments, the latter of which stemmed from his encounter with law enforcement a decade earlier in which he felt misunderstood by the police after being attacked and sustaining serious injuries by tenants.[39]

In 2019 Chou attended the founding ceremony of the Las Vegas chapter of the National Association for China's Peaceful Unification where he held up a banner which called for the “eradication of pro independence demons.”[18][40][41][42][36] After the shooting, conflicting reports emerged over the extent of Chou’s involvement with the organization. A report by CNA said that Chou was one of its directors while the association's founding chair said that although Chou did appear at the chapter’s founding, he had not been involved with the organization thereafter.[19][18]

Legal proceedings

Chou first appeared in court on May 17, while being held on $1 million bond. In relation to Cheng's death, Chou is facing the most serious charge of one count of murder by firearm, which carries either the death penalty or life imprisonment. Chou also faces five charges of attempted murder for injuring the five elderly survivors, as well as four counts of unlawful possession of explosives, and a special circumstances allegation of lying in wait.[9][8]

Reactions

Sheriff Barnes commended Cheng as a heroic figure who prevented the shooter from hurting more people.[4] U.S. Representative Katie Porter, whose district includes Laguna Woods, referred to an earlier shooting in Buffalo, New York and said, "This should not be our new normal. I will work hard to support the victims and their families."[43]

Taiwanese president Tsai Ing-wen condemned the shooting, and offered condolences to the victims.[44] She asked for the political representatives in the US to fly to California to provide assistance. Hsiao Bi-khim, Taiwan's de facto ambassador, posted on Twitter that she was "shocked and saddened by the fatal shooting at the Irvine Taiwanese Presbyterian Church in California", and she expressed she would mourn together with the Taiwanese-American community and families of the victims.[45] The Taiwanese Kuomintang issued a statement condemning the shooting without commenting on Chou's political positions.[25]

Some have attributed the shooting to Beijing’s increasingly belligerent rhetoric on the issue of cross strait unification.[25][46][47] In the wake of the shooting, 60 civic groups called for countries around the world to designate the China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification as a terrorist organization.[48]

Wang Wenbin, a spokesperson for China's ministry of foreign affairs, said "[w]e hope the US government can take action against its increasingly severe gun violence problem".[25] Chinese Embassy in Washington spokesperson Liu Pengyu said: "We express our condolences to the victims and sincere sympathy to the bereaved families and the injured."[11]

On May 21, local elected officials and religious leaders gathered at the church where the shooting occurred to memorialize and honor the victims of the shooting. A moment of silence was held for the deceased victim, John Cheng. Representative Young Kim stated that there was no place in the community and society for any type of hate and that the community needed to stand together.[49]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Churchgoers hogtie gunman after 1 killed, 5 wounded at Laguna Woods church". Orange County Register. May 15, 2022. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  2. ^ "Five Injured, One Dead in Shooting at Laguna Woods Church; Suspected Shooter in Custody". KNBC. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  3. ^ a b Bernstein, Sharon; Hay, Andrew (May 16, 2022). "California church shooter was motivated by hate, politics". Reuters. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  4. ^ a b c "California church shooter was motivated by hatred for Taiwan, China-Taiwan tensions". The Straits Times. Singapore. May 17, 2022. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  5. ^ Von Quednow, Cindy (May 17, 2022). "Accused O.C. church shooter charged with 10 counts, including murder". KTLA. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  6. ^ a b c d Branson-Potts, Hailey; Fry, Hannah; Ormseth, Matthew (May 19, 2022). "Inside the Laguna Woods church shooting: A stranger lurking, 'evil' and heroes rising". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  7. ^ a b Tebor, Celina; Hayes, Christal (May 15, 2022). "'Exceptional heroism': California churchgoers stopped rampage, hogtied suspect after deadly shooting". USA Today. Archived from the original on May 15, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  8. ^ a b Cabrera, Tony (May 17, 2022). "Las Vegas man accused in deadly shooting at Orange County church set to appear in court". ABC7 Los Angeles. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  9. ^ a b Von Quednow, Cindy (May 16, 2022). "'Heinous crime': O.C. shooting suspect secured church doors with chains, placed explosives at scene: Sheriff". KTLA. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  10. ^ a b Fry, Hannah; Winton, Richard; Park, Jeong; Money, Luke (May 16, 2022). "Laguna Woods shooting was a hate crime targeting Taiwanese people, sheriff says". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022. Some said that Chou spoke to them in Taiwanese before opening fire Cite error: The named reference ":1" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  11. ^ a b c "Authorities: Hate against Taiwanese led to church attack". The Washington Post. Associated Press. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
  12. ^ a b c d "Deadly shooting at California church a 'hate incident' against Taiwanese community, authorities say". USA Today. May 16, 2022. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
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  14. ^ a b "Laguna Woods shooting - live: Churchgoers 'hogtied' shooter with power cord after one killed and five injured". The Independent. May 2022. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  15. ^ Blankstein, Andrew; Dienst, Jonathan; Romero, Dennis (May 15, 2022). "1 dead, 5 injured, man detained in shooting at California Asian church reception". NBC News. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
  16. ^ Chang, Hetty (May 17, 2022). "Pastor Throws Chair at Laguna Woods Mass Shooting Suspect, Then Wife Ties His Legs". NBC Los Angeles. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  17. ^ "美教堂枪击案嫌凶因仇恨台湾人而干案" [Californian church sooting suspect commits the crime due to hatred against Taiwanese people]. Lianhe Zaobao (in Chinese). May 18, 2022. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  18. ^ a b c "南加州教會槍殺案 駐處查證凶嫌周文偉為台灣移民" [Southern California church shooting: Taipei Mission confirms that Chou Wen-Wei is Taiwanese immigrant] (in Chinese). Central News Agency. May 17, 2022. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022.
  19. ^ a b Wen, Weizhong (May 18, 2022). "加州教堂枪击案嫌凶是台湾移民 警方调查：政治动机仇恨犯罪" [Californian church sooting suspect is a Taiwanese immigrant. Police investigation results: Motive was hate crime and politically-related]. Lianhe Zaobao (in Chinese). Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  20. ^ "Laguna Woods church shooter is Vegas man 'upset about political tensions between China and Taiwan': Sheriff". KTLA. May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
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  22. ^ Medina, Eduardo (May 15, 2022). "1 Dead and 4 Are Critically Injured in California Church Shooting". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on May 16, 2022. Retrieved May 16, 2022.
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  28. ^ "Prosecutor: Church gunman had 'diabolical plan' to massacre". Associated Press.
  29. ^ Zhang, Ting-yu (May 18, 2022). "周文偉作案前寄七冊日記 本報交警方處理" [Chou mailed (us) a seven-volume diary before committing the crime; Our paper handed it to the police]. 世界新聞網 (in Chinese (Taiwan)). Archived from the original on May 19, 2022. Retrieved May 19, 2022.
  30. ^ "Alleged Laguna Woods church shooter apparently sent documents to newspaper". Orange County Register. May 19, 2022. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
  31. ^ "Who's In Jail - Inmate Info". Orange County Sheriff's Department. Archived from the original on May 14, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
  32. ^ Chou, Shih-hui; Yeh, Joseph (May 17, 2022). "U.S. church shooting gunman a Taiwanese-American: envoy". Central News Agency. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  33. ^ a b "槍擊台人教會… 好友曝周文偉「不滿民進黨執政」" [Shot up a Taiwanese Church… Close friend says Chou Wen-Wei is "dissatisfied with DPP government"]. World Journal. May 16, 2022. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022 – via Yahoo.
  34. ^ Qin, Amy; Cowan, Jill; Hubler, Shawn; Chang Chien, Amy (June 12, 2022). "They Inhabited Separate Worlds in Taiwan. Decades Later, They Collided in a California Church". The New York Times. Retrieved June 13, 2022. Alternate URL
  35. ^ Yeh, Joseph (May 17, 2022). "California church gunman used to teach at Pingtung school". Central News Agency. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 18, 2022.
  36. ^ a b "Beijing's rhetoric in spotlight as Taiwan condemns California shooting". The Guardian. May 17, 2022.
  37. ^ Taxin, Amy; Dazio, Stefanie (May 18, 2022). "Roommate: Church shooting suspect voiced criticism of Taiwan". Boston Globe. Associated Press. Archived from the original on May 23, 2022. Retrieved May 21, 2022.
  38. ^ "'I was in shock,' suspected mass shooter's roommate speaks out". KLAS. May 18, 2022. Archived from the original on May 18, 2022. Retrieved May 20, 2022.
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  40. ^ "拉斯維加斯中國和平統一促進會正式成立" [Las Vegas NACPU chapter formally established]. Las Vegas Chinese News Network (in Chinese). April 3, 2019. Archived from the original on May 17, 2022. Retrieved May 17, 2022.
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  43. ^ Press, The Associated (May 16, 2022). "California churchgoers hog-tied gunman in deadly attack". NPR. Retrieved May 25, 2022.
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  46. ^ "EXPLAINER: What's behind difficult Taiwan-China relations?". Associated Press.
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source: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=2022_Laguna_Woods_shooting&type=revision&diff=1094124533&oldid=1093674494