In a chilling scene after the above Bronx stabbings, 27-year-old Shane Tamura—like the Bronx attack, a former high school football star—killed three people in an office building lobby in Midtown Manhattan. He would then claim his fourth victim on the 33rd floor. It was a brutal, violent attack that left the community—both the Arab and Jewish people—mournful. According to police reports, Tamura then turned the gun on himself.
On a day that started out like any other, Tamura walked into the commercial office building. In that moment, he fired into the crowd without warning. Desperate, witnesses described a scene of pandemonium as the gunfire rang out across the crowded lobby. Officers responded quickly to the scene but were too late to stop additional loss of life.
Tamura’s student background helps complete the picture of this complicated young man, who was only four months removed from a life-altering personal tragedy. A longtime resident of the Bronx, he most recently helped keep players honest as a manager in the surveillance department at the Horseshoe Las Vegas casino. Though he was beloved, his struggles with mental health were profound and evident. Tamura had been prescribed psychiatric medication, a drug used to control epilepsy, and an anti-inflammatory. Moreover, he had been detained on a misdemeanor trespassing charge only a month before the shooting.
He alleged that he has chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). This progressive neurodegenerative brain condition has become widely associated with cumulative traumatic brain injury, in particular among athletes. Tamura wrote in his despair on a message card discovered alongside his body. Like many, he was deeply frustrated at the way the NFL responded to concerns about CTE. This shocking announcement brings into focus the responsibilities of major sports organizations towards the health and wellbeing of their players.
With the federal indictment, Tamura’s relationship with firearms is very much in question. He bought the rifle used in the attack from his boss at the Las Vegas casino for $1,400. The deputy was legally entitled to purchase the AR-15-style rifle. He then sold it to Tamura, and the accompanying automobiles used in the scene. This transaction underscores regulation surrounding private firearm sales that favors neglectful loopholes over life-saving measures and regulation.
Federal authorities are reviewing the circumstances of how Tamura was able to access weapons and whether any laws were broken. Lindsay Nichols, an advocate for gun safety, stated, “These laws only work if someone makes use of them.” This is indicative of broader conversations around the implementation of gun control legislation and their enforcement, especially following such horrifying episodes.
What proved especially difficult for Tamura was managing the disappointment of his parents. In a note found in his apartment, he apologized to his mother revealing the toxic relationship but more importantly, his emotional pain. The note has led investigators to further investigate his private life. They are perhaps ever more intensely scrutinizing his mental state in the run-up to the incident in question.
As the community grapples with this tragedy, many are left questioning how such violence could occur and what preventive measures could be implemented. Providing mental health support for people in Tamura’s position will lead to all kinds of necessary conversations. Privileged discussions around firearm access will surely spark new progressive conversations locally and at the national level.
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