There was a spree killing by an assailant armed with an AR-15 rifle, but the media attention will evaporate by Monday for an obvious reason: it doesn’t fit the narrative. Meanwhile, it doesn’t make this story any less disturbing or tragic.
On Saturday, Andre Gordon, 26, shot and killed three people in two separate locations in Pennsylvania before absconding to Trenton, New Jersey, leading to a police siege at a residence. Yet, it was soon determined that Gordon wasn’t home. He was arrested at a nearby hospital after being spotted.
His first target was his stepmother’s house in Levittown, Pennsylvania, getting there after a carjacking in Trenton. He then shot and killed his stepmother and 13-year-old sister. He later went to another residence in the area, where he shot and killed the mother of his two children. Following the murders, Gordon carjacked another vehicle to slip across the border into New Jersey again (via NBC News):
The suspected shooter, Andre Gordon, 26, allegedly carjacked a driver in Trenton to get to Levittown, Pennsylvania, where he's suspected of killing the victims at two locations Saturday morning, Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora said in an interview.
Police said he then carjacked another driver at gunpoint and fled to New Jersey, where he lives. Gusciora said SWAT team members and other officers surrounded the home and evacuated neighbors because people inside told authorities they believed Gordon was inside on the first floor.
Police were in stand-off mode, surrounding the residence and blocking off streets, but the suspect wasn't home.
"It’s apparent that he left before the police arrived," the mayor said. "The people that were still in the house on the second floor believed, and they relayed to them through 911 calls, that he was still downstairs."
Gordon was spotted on New York Avenue at the back entrance of a hospital less than a quarter-mile away at 5:15 p.m. and taken into custody without incident, Trenton Police Department officials said.
[…]
The incident began around 8:52 a.m. when officers were dispatched to a residence on Viewpoint Lane in Levittown following a report of a shooting, Falls Township, Pennsylvania, police said in a news release.
Jennifer Schorn, the district attorney in Bucks County, Pennsylvania, said Gordon, driving a stolen vehicle from Trenton, forced his way into the home and killed his 52-year-old stepmother, Karen Gordon, and 13-year-old sister Kera Gordon.
[…]
Following that incident, Gordon went to a residence on Edgewood Lane in Levittown, where he shot and killed 25-year-old Taylor Daniel, with whom he shares two children, Schorn said.
Four other people were inside the home, including one person who was injured after Gordon “bludgeoned” her with an "assault rifle," Schorn said. The woman was taken to the hospital for her injuries and is expected to recover.
Falls Township Police Chief Nelson Whitney said Gordon was armed with an AR-15-style rifle.
The siege at Gordon’s home was due to a tip that arrived around 12:30 PM yesterday, claiming he was at home with hostages inside. That was determined to be inaccurate. If Gordon was a white man, you bet this would get at least a week’s worth of coverage, along with questions about his political beliefs and whether he supported Trump. After that, another foray into the rise of white nationalism with gun control bits peppered in there. But since Gordon is black—this story, heinous as it is, will be forgotten by next week.
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