Jacksonville Shooter Had History of Mental Illness

Jacksonville Shooter Had History of Mental Illness

Samantha Crowson, Reporter

On August 25th, an active shooting occurred in Jacksonville, Florida at a Madden video game tournament. A 24-year-old from Baltimore Maryland, David Katz, opened fire on a group of competitive gamers,  killing himself after.

The shooting ended with 2 dead and ten injured who are believed to be making a full recovery.  Sheriff Mike Williams from a CNN interview stated, “The suspect who opened fire during a Madden video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida, on Sunday actively targeted other gamers in his shooting spree.” But the real root of this violence came from psychological issues starting as early as age 12.

Katz at age 24, was taking more than just one prescribed medication, one being anti-psychotic medicine used to treat schizophrenia. His parents filed for a divorce in 2006 due to the hardships they faced treating David, and due to disagreements on how David should have been treated.

With the information of Katz psychological issues, there were questions of how David was even able to get his hands on a weapon. The weapon used was actually purchased in his home state, which according to USA Today is, “…a state that is among a dozen with comparatively high hurdles to firearm ownership.