TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — As investigations into the fatal shooting at Florida State University continue, questions are being raised about the 20-year-old gunman being able to access the weapons used in the shooting.
Officials say one of the weapons belongs to his mother, who is a sheriff’s deputy.
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Authorities confirmed that one of the weapons used on the Florida campus is suspected of the shooter’s mother, a veteran sheriff’s aide.
What’s not clear is that the suspect, Phoenix Echner, now has access to his mother’s former service pistol.
Authorities said the suspect also had a shotgun, but so far they have not said where the weapon came from.
Criminologist Alex Del Carmen said law enforcement children are raised on house guns and are usually taught to take responsibility for firearms.
“You grow up with respect for your guns and knowing they can kill someone,” Del Carmen said. “So this is a very unusual case. I know that violence shows the public that it doesn’t discriminate.”
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The suspected involvement of gunman in law enforcement is beyond his mother. The Leon County Sheriff said the 20-year-old suspect was a longtime member of the Youth Advisory Committee and participated in the training exercise.
Del Carmen said he believes that the only person facing the accusation is the one who pulls the trigger.
The suspect’s mother has been with the Leon County Sheriff’s Office for 18 years. The sheriff called her service “exceptional.”
