Devin Kelley walked into a Texas Baptist church on November 5, 2017 and took 26 lives. It was a horrible tragedy for the Texas community. Those victims included eight children, a pregnant woman and her unborn child. This brought a lot of attention to the gun control situation. Kelley showed many warning signs of an unstable person, but they could still buy four guns.

Some of the signs Kelley manifested:

• Escaped from a mental institution
• Snuck guns onto an Air Force base and threatened commanders
• Abused his former wife and stepson
• Posted about his rifle and his affinity for mass shootings
• Recently disturbed his neighbor for several mornings in a row with rapid-fire gunshots from his property
• On morning of shooting posted “I’m a wreck”

Kelley visited that same church five days prior to the shooting and attended a fall festival with the community. Little did everyone know the massacre he would commit in just a couple days. Kelley is believed to have targeted the church because of his ex-mother-in-law. He was convicted of abusing is ex-wife, and had been fighting with her mother via text before the shooting. Attempts to talk to his mother in law have been unsuccessful.

Kelley was a miserable, violent man. He hurt his ex-wife and put a toddler in the hospital. He had spent time in jail as well as a mental institution.  In 2013 he was involved in a traffic accident, in which he injured his head and neck. For four years he has been suffering excruciating pain as a result, and days before the shooting he posted about how much pain he was experiencing. He also expressed his affinity for mass shootings on social media for anyone to see.

How does a man like this purchase guns legally? Guns obviously need to be sold with more background checks and the person’s life should be looked in with depth. Hopefully this will be a reality check for the government and put more restrictions on guns. It’s a tragedy things like this have to happen for he issue to get attention from lawmakers.

Visit this website to pay tribute to the memory of all the victims