Racially Motivated Shooting Leaves Four Dead in Jacksonville, Florida

A Dollar General store in Jacksonville, Florida, became the site of a tragic incident as a racially motivated shooting claimed the lives of four individuals, including the shooter. Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters confirmed that the victims, two men and one woman, were all black individuals, while the suspect, a white male in his early 20s, was armed with a high-powered rifle and a handgun.

Wearing a tactical vest, the shooter’s act was driven by racial animosity as he expressed his hatred for black people in manifestos he had authored before the attack, according to Waters. The assailant, who acted alone, turned the weapon on himself after the rampage.

The shooting unfolded near Edward Waters University, a historically black college, prompting cautionary measures for students on campus. Jacksonville Mayor Donna Deegan denounced the incident as a hate crime.