White Florida gunman who killed 3 black people in racist shooting bought guns legally

Ryan Christopher Palmeter, 21, had written ‘several manifestos’ detailing his hatred for black people, police said, adding he had no criminal record

Palmeter on Saturday allegedly killed a 52-year-old woman and two men in their 20s at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville

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A photograph of shooter Ryan Christopher Palmeter. Photo: AP

Published: 2:56am, 28 Aug 2023Updated: 1:12pm, 28 Aug 2023

The white gunman who shot and killed three black people at a Dollar General store in Jacksonville, Florida, was a 21-year-old who bought his guns legally and had no criminal history, local law enforcement said on Sunday.

The shooter, Ryan Christopher Palmeter, lived with his parents in a suburb of Jacksonville, Sheriff T.K. Waters told a press conference. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Authorities have described the shooting as racially motivated, saying the man had authored “several manifestos” for media, his parents and law enforcement detailing his hatred for black people.

“There was no criminal record, nothing,” he said, adding that the only thing on file was a domestic violence call with his brother. “There were no red flags.”

A makeshift memorial near the scene of the shooting. Photo: EPA-EFE

However, the sheriff said Palmeter in 2017 was briefly held under a state law called the Baker Act, which states a person can be “taken to a receiving facility for involuntary examination” during a mental health crisis.

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