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- Biden said gun violence "stains our character" after the latest mass shooting in Indiana.
- A gunman killed eight people and injured others after opening fire in a FedEx facility.
- The Indianapolis massacre is the latest in a string of mass shootings in 20201.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
President Joe Biden said gun violence "stains our character and pierces the very soul of our nation" in a Friday statement after a gunman opened fire in a FedEx facility in Indianapolis late Thursday night, killing eight people and wounding seven others.
The mass shooting in Indianapolis is the latest episode that has thrust gun violence back into the national spotlight over the past few months. A series of shootings at three spas in Atlanta, Georgia, in mid-March killed eight people, six of whom were women of Asian descent. Less than a week later, a gunman shot and killed 10 people at a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado. And most recently, six people were killed in a mass shooting targeting a private home in Rock Hill, South Carolina.
Biden has ordered flags at the White House and other federal government buildings to be lowered to half-mast in response to the Indianapolis shooting.
The names of the victims and the gunman, who is believed to have killed himself at the scene, have not been released yet to the public as law enforcement tracks down and notifies the families of the victims.
"Last night and into the morning in Indianapolis, yet again families had to wait to hear word about the fate of their loved ones. What a cruel wait and fate that has become too normal and happens every day somewhere in our nation," Biden said.
In his statement, Biden called gun violence "an epidemic in America," adding that "we should not accept it. We must act."
-Adam Wren (@adamwren) April 16, 2021
In early April, Biden signed a series of executive actions that crack down on unregulated "ghost guns," which can be assembled from a kit and have no serial number, and direct the Department of Justice to draft model legislation for state-level "red flag" laws and produce a report on combatting firearms trafficking.
Biden has also nominated David Chipman, a gun violence prevention advocate, to serve as director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
In Congress, the Democratic-controlled House of Representatives passed two bills that would strengthen background checks and close a loophole that allow gun sales to go through if a background check isn't completed within a certain time. The bills face long odds in the Senate, however, due to opposition from Republicans.