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'Rot in Hell!' 'F*ck You, Nazis!': Mainers React With Fury as Horrors of ICE Operations Multiply
"ICE is just kidnapping people," said US Senate candidate Graham Platner. "We all need to turn out."
Jan 23, 2026
As the Trump administration continues to insist it is targeting violent criminals as it ramps up immigration enforcement operations in Maine—while releasing details about just a small fraction of the more than 100 people federal agents have reportedly arrested so far—residents in the state are expressing growing anger over the operations that have seen their neighbors, friends, and coworkers hauled away in unmarked cars by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
In at least two cases in Portland on Thursday, ICE agents pulled drivers out of their cars and left the vehicles running in the street.
A crowd gathered as agents detained a Lyft driver near the University of Southern Maine, with residents calling the masked officers "Nazis" and demanding, "If you're so proud, show your face!"
"Rot in hell!" one person yelled, while others said, "Fuck you, Nazis!"
PORTLAND, MAINE- Near University of Southern Maine, these are ICE Agents snatching a Lyft driver right out of their car and leaving the car in the middle of the road blocking traffic. pic.twitter.com/4Oo6OofDrc
— Maine (@TheMaineWonk) January 23, 2026
Another man, identified by the Maine Monitor as Juan Sebastian Carvajal-Munoz, was cut off by an unmarked car with tinted windows while driving in downtown Portland Wednesday morning. Carvajal-Munoz, a civil engineer from Colombia, is in the US on a work visa according to his colleagues, and earned a master's degree from University of Maine.
The agents moved rapidly, trying to pry open Carvajal-Munoz's window before smashing it and pulling him out of the car, hauled him into their vehicle, and drove away.
“In less than two minutes, they smashed his window and dragged him out of the car,” an eyewitness, Jesse Smith, told the Monitor. “He was compliant. He wasn’t resisting or anything.”
A background check system from TransUnion found that Carvajal-Munoz has no criminal record, despite the Department of Homeland Security's persistent claims that ICE is targeting the "worst of the worst" violent criminals—a claim the agency's own data does not support.
The agents left Carvajal-Munoz's car running with the window smashed and the engineer's belongings and keys in the passenger seat. A passerby drove the vehicle into a nearby parking lot.
Another incident on Wednesday evening, in which several ICE agents stopped a corrections officer recruit in his vehicle and detained him, provoked outrage from Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce.
The man's record was "squeaky clean," said Joyce at a press conference where he explained the recruit was hired in 2024 after an extensive background check that is standard for his office's staffing procedures, complete with fingerprinting and a polygraph test. He is eligible to work in the US until 2029, as verified through a federally required I-9 form.
In a video of the arrest, he was heard telling the officers he could prove his identity if they allowed him to get his ID as they handcuffed him and ignored his pleas.
The Sheriff in Cumberland County in Maine said that ICE took one of their black Corrections recruits that’s a U.S citizen & you can & him telling them who he is and where his ID his & they piled on him instead! They all need to be arrested! Now everyone is seeing what’s happening pic.twitter.com/y8m1qgcdY0
— Suzie rizzio (@Suzierizzo1) January 22, 2026
“Every indication we found was that this was an individual trying to do all the right things," Joyce said, adding that ICE later inexplicably claimed to him that the recruit was in the US illegally.
The sheriff also criticized the agents' methods during the arrest.
"There were five to seven ICE agents there," said Joyce. "We've arrested some dangerous people on the back roads of Cumberland County with three or less deputies, yet this was a show of force or a show of whatever they were trying to do."
Of the agents' decision to leave the recruit's car running in the street, Joyce added, "Folks, that's bush-league policing."
Cumberland County Sheriff Kevin Joyce had some harsh words about ICE detaining one of his corrections recruits. He described the agents' actions as "bush league policing." https://t.co/ZfnNF4Vq6K pic.twitter.com/v2ucdT73xI
— WMTW TV (@WMTWTV) January 22, 2026
Joyce was one of more that 10 sheriffs who attended a meeting last year with border czar Tom Homan to learn about the Trump administration's alleged plan to remove violent criminals from the streets.
“The book and the movie don’t add up,” Joyce said.
Democratic US Senate candidate Graham Platner addressed the recent arrests in a video he posted on social media from the Copenhagen airport as he travels back to Maine from Norway, saying, "Our home is under attack" and calling on state leaders to allow law enforcement to directly act to protect Mainers from ICE.
"ICE is just kidnapping people," he said. "People who are here legally, including local law enforcement. I'm sick and tired of hearing that legally, there's nothing that law enforcement in Maine can do to protect citizens from these thugs. I very much urge our state leadership to empower local law enforcement to do what it's supposed to do, which is protect our communities. Right now our communities need protecting from the authoritarian overreach of ICE. And if they aren't going to do that then we all need to turn out."
Maine has been invaded by a masked secret police force.
They have taken people who are here legally. They have taken people with no criminal records. They have taken a local police officer.
Even local law enforcement are not safe from ICE.
Our home is under attack. pic.twitter.com/iqZHs2Ovbp
— Graham Platner for Senate (@grahamformaine) January 23, 2026
A rally is planned in Lewiston on Saturday, and Portland residents are planning to gather Friday evening to protest ICE's surge in the state.
Mainers have taken cueseng from communities in cities such as Minneapolis and Chicago, where ICE has been met with strong shows of resistance to the Trump administration's anti-immigrant enforcement in recent months.
Back Cove Books in Portland reported Thursday that it was ordering a second shipment of free whistles for community members to warn neighbors when ICE is in the vicinity or conducting an arrest, as it was "very quickly running out" of its first shipment in just one day.
Businesses across the city have placed signs designed by a local artist declaring "NO ICE" in their windows.
And about 75 protesters banged pots and pans outside a hotel where they believe, based on reports, that ICE agents are staying in Portland on Thursday night.
Panagioti Tsolkas, communications manager for the Maine Immigrant Rights Coalition, told Common Dreams that the group has trained hundreds of volunteers to help verify reports of ICE operations. Other local groups have reported huge numbers of residents volunteering to deliver groceries to immigrants and people of color who don't feel safe leaving home.
"This community is engaged and not just lowering their heads or turning away," Tsolkas said. "Maine also really values itself as a welcoming place. And that culture has been developed, especially with the refugee resettlement program and population. That's part of the reason that Maine is being targeted, is because it has a history of being a welcoming place and accepting place."
Despite stereotypes about Maine being "remote and cold," he added, "I think [what] people are hearing and seeing is that people in Maine really pride themselves as being a place that has a welcoming value as a core principle."
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2 Maine Republicans Say Lewiston Mass Shooting Was God's Retribution for Abortion Rights
"Viewing mass shooters as instruments of God seems like it's the perfect next step for Republicans," said one critic. "It combines everything that drives the modern Republican Party."
Apr 11, 2024
Two Maine state Republican lawmakers on Thursday were formally censured for saying during a legislative debate that the deadliest shooting in the state's history was the result of God's wrath over abortion, and issued apologies—but rights advocates said their views should not be treated as an aberration in the GOP.
"Viewing mass shooters as instruments of God seems like it's the perfect next step for Republicans," said writer Mark Sumner. "It combines everything that drives the modern Republican Party."
State Rep. Michael Lemelin (R-88) invoked last year's shooting in Lewiston, Maine on Wednesday night during a debate over L.D. 227, a proposal to protect healthcare providers from being targeted by other states' restrictions on gender-affirming and reproductive care.
Lemelin urged his colleagues to consider last year's passage of L.D. 1619, which expanded access to abortion later in pregnancy and went into effect on October 25—the same day a gunman opened fire at a bowling alley and a restaurant in Lewiston, killing 18 people and injuring 13 others.
"When 1619 passed and went into law on October 25, you told God life doesn't matter," Lemelin said. "Keep in mind that the law came into effect on October 25. God heard you and the horrible events on October 25 happened."
Lemelin added that there would be "severe consequences" if the House passed L.D. 227, and also tied recent severe rain and snowstorms in Maine to God's opposition to the state's support for abortion rights.
"Radical religiosity is becoming far too common in mainstream politics," said Ryan Fecteau, a Democratic former Maine House speaker. "It is dangerous and threatens good governance."
Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle denounced Lemelin's comments, but the outcry didn't stop Rep. Shelley Rudnicki (R-67) from rising to tell her colleagues she agreed "with Rep. Lemelin and everything he said."
"The GOP is now blaming mass shootings on abortion," said California Gov. Gavin Newsom, a Democrat. "Seriously."
When L.D. 227 later passed in a vote of 80-70, Rudnicki called it "a very sad day for Maine."
Lemelin has previously downplayed the Covid-19 pandemic—just as then-President Donald Trump, Fox News personality Sean Hannity, U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), and others did in 2020—and called the climate crisis a "hoax," a view also shared by numerous Republican politicians.
The House voted unanimously to censure Lemelin and Rudnicki, requiring them to deliver "brief, identical apologies on the House floor" that allowed them "to resume their ability to speak and vote."
State House Speaker Rachel Talbot Ross (D-118) told the lawmakers Thursday that their remarks were "extremely offensive and intentionally harmful to the victims and the families of the Lewiston tragedy, the House of Representatives, and the people of Maine."
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US Appeals Court Upholds Illinois Assault Weapons Ban Amid Calls for Federal Law
One lawyer said it is "proof that these laws are consistent with the Second Amendment and can—and should—be upheld by courts across the country."
Nov 04, 2023
Illinois Democrats and gun control advocates on Friday welcomed a federal appeals court decision upholding the state's ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines amid renewed demands for a similar restrictions nationwide in the wake of a mass shooting in Maine.
"The 7th Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed what gun safety advocates have said from day one—the Protect Illinois Communities Act is a commonsense law that will keep Illinoisans safe," said Democratic Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, who signed the law that state legislators passed after a July 4, 2022 massacre at a parade in Highland Park, a Chicago suburb.
"Despite constant attacks by the gun lobby that puts ideology over people's lives, here in Illinois we have stood up and said 'no more' to weapons of war on our streets," added Pritzker. "This is a victory for the members of the General Assembly who stood alongside families, students, and survivors who worked so hard to make this day a reality. Now Congress must act so Illinois is not an island surrounded by states with weak protections."
Illinois state Rep. Bob Morgan (D-58)—who represents Highland Park, was at the parade with his young children, and spearheaded the legislative fight for the law—similarly celebrated the new ruling "a huge win" while also calling for federal legislation.
Democratic Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson also welcomed the decision, saying: "This landmark legislation is an important step for our communities, providing commonsense gun control measures that have been so desperately needed in our city and throughout the state. This decisive measure will aid in keeping weapons of war out of our neighborhoods and off our streets, creating safer communities for all."
The three-judge appellate panel collectively considered six cases challenging state and local bans: four out of the Southern District of Illinois; one against the state, Chicago, and Cook County; and another involving a firearm shop owner from suburban Naperville and the National Association for Gun Rights—who unsuccessfully sought an intervention from the U.S. Supreme Court.
The gun violence prevention group Brady served as counsel for the city of Naperville in the case. In response to the "important victory," Douglas Letter, the organization's chief legal officer, declared that "states and cities should have the right to stop these weapons of war from decimating our communities, and this ruling demonstrates that assault weapon and large-capacity magazine bans are indeed constitutional."
"When the victims of the Highland Park shooting were gunned down by an assault weapon, their local and state leaders took a stand to say enough is enough," he said. "The gun industry feels threatened by the groundswell of voices trying to hold them accountable, and after today, they should feel even more unsteady."
Everytown Law executive director Eric Tirschwell highlighted that the the Chicago-based court's ruling notably came after right-wing U.S. Supreme Court determined last year in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association Inc. v. Bruen that gun restrictions must be "consistent with the nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation."
The 2-1 decision Friday "to uphold this lifesaving law is not only a victory for gun safety," Tirschwell said, "it also marks the first significant appeals court decision on this issue since the Supreme Court's decision in Bruen and is proof that these laws are consistent with the Second Amendment and can—and should—be upheld by courts across the country."
U.S. Judges Diane Wood and Frank Easterbrook—respectively appointed by former Presidents Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan—supported upholding the state and local laws, while Judge Michael Brennan, an appointee of President Donald Trump, dissented.
"The Second Amendment to the Constitution recognizes an individual right to 'keep and bear arms. Of that there can be no doubt, in the wake of the Supreme Court's decisions," Wood wrote, citing cases including Bruen. "But as we know from long experience with other fundamental rights, such as the right to free speech, the right peaceably to assemble, the right to vote, and the right to free exercise of religion, even the most important personal freedoms have their limits."
"Government may punish a deliberately false fire alarm; it may condition free assembly on the issuance of a permit; it may require voters to present a valid identification card; and it may punish child abuse even if it is done in the name of religion," she continued. "The right enshrined in the Second Amendment is no different."
Wood also pointed out that the ruling pertains to preliminary injunctive relief, so the panel did not "rule definitively on the constitutionality of the act or any of the municipal ordinances," meaning that the policies could face future challenges.
The decision in Illinois coincided with President Joe Biden's trip to Lewiston, Maine, where a mass shooter last month killed a total of 18 people at a bowling alley and a bar before being found dead from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Biden—who is seeking reelection next year—and others in his administration have called for reinstating a federal assault weapons ban. After the Maine shooting, Vice President Kamala Harris said that "it is a false choice to suggest we must choose between either upholding the Second Amendment or passing reasonable gun safety laws to save lives. Congress can and must make background checks universal. Pass red flag laws. Ban high-capacity magazines. And renew the assault weapons ban."
Such policies are unlikely to pass during the current session, considering the makeup of Congress—though after the carnage in his hometown of Lewiston, Rep. Jared Golden (D-Maine) last month endorsed an assault weapons ban and sought forgiveness for his past opposition to it.
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We Are Failing Our Most Innocent by Doing Nothing About Gun Violence
Polls consistently show that about 65% of Americans favor stricter gun control laws; if it’s true that majorities rule in democracies, then we’re apparently not a democracy.
Nov 02, 2023
The chamber of commerce photo of Lewiston, Maine, is a lovely image of a tidy American city of 37,000 beneath a canopy of resplendent autumn colors. It looks much like many of our own cities here in Wisconsin.
Sadly, the tragedy that unfolded in Lewiston last week could well have happened here. In fact, it has, and it will again. The victims were slaughtered in a bowling alley and a bar, businesses well-known in Wisconsin cities.
Eighteen dead in Lewiston. Many others injured. Thousands forever stained by the violent act of one man with an assault rifle. Predictably, some politicians rushed to tell us to pray. As though whatever God they want us to petition will forgive them on judgment day for failing to do something about this uniquely American carnage. So from this old bleeding-heart liberal I feel nothing but pity for those who could have made a difference but did not. If there is a hell, they’re going to be roasting for a long time.
For the rest of us, there are cold, hard facts:
- Polls consistently show that about 65% of Americans favor stricter gun control laws. If it’s true that majorities rule in democracies, then we’re apparently not a democracy. One is also left to wonder why the other 35% of our citizens don’t want to end this slaughter.
- This year, with two months left to unfold, has produced 565 mass shootings, defined as four or more shot excluding the shooter, according to the Gun Violence Archive, a nonprofit that provides information on gun violence but is not an advocacy group. For perspective, there are 3,164 counties or the equivalent in the U.S., so the mass shootings amount to one for every 5 1/2 counties.
- Overall deaths by firearms in general in 2022 were more than 35,000.
- The death toll for 2023 as of late last week was 246 children aged 0-11 and 1,157 teens aged 12-17, according to the group. Last year, 995 children 0-11 died by gunfire, and 5,157 teens died.
- That leads to perhaps the saddest statistic of all: Firearms have been the leading cause of death for U.S. children and teens since 2020, representing 19% of all deaths for children 18 years and younger in 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Talk about slaughter of the innocents.
It’s telling that the last statistic comes from the CDC. Yes, gun violence is a disease in America.
Most Americans, including those who don’t own a firearm, are opposed to eliminating guns. And it’s never going to happen. I own one, though I haven’t dusted it off since my hunting buddy died a decade ago. Hunting is as sacrosanct in Maine as it is in Wisconsin. A buddy who moved here from Portland, Maine, 47 miles from Lewiston, texted me last week about a pal of his in lockdown back home:
Just talked to my friend Bob… He is sitting in his house 20 minutes away from where it happened with his hunting rifles loaded, just hoping the guy sticks his head up.
Fair enough, but we know by now that more guns are not the answer.
Look, nothing is going to change much of the violence in a nation that embraces it. Remove assault rifles, and people will still kill each other. Suicides and accidental shootings by handguns will continue at high numbers. But for God’s sake, to do nothing is to admit we have failed our most innocent, be they school children, congregants in places of worship, shoppers in malls and grocery stores, or people in any number of other venues.
Hope seems hard to come by, but I’m placing mine with the young people who have grown up amid this carnage. The Lewiston shootings led to outcry from young activists, including David Hogg and Trevon Bosley, co-founder and board chair, respectively, of the March for Our Lives organization. They are members of the youth-led gun control movement born out of the country’s deadliest high school mass shooting: the 2018 slaughter of 17 humans in Parkland, Florida, and they represent thousands of young Americans demanding change.
They go after politicians of both stripes for the hypocrisy they spin. They dispel false claims and push for meaningful change. Want to make a difference? Support them with a donation. I just did.
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Mass Shootings and the 100th Monkey
In our years-long struggle to eradicate the scourge of mass shootings, could we be approaching a tipping point?
Nov 01, 2023
Another American first. We’re closing in on 600 mass shootings in 2023 and—good news, people—there’s still two months left in the year. Can we get to 650? 700? USA! USA! USA!
Banks. Bars. Beauty Salons. Big box stores. Bowling alleys. Concerts. Colleges and universities. Convenience stores. Dance studios. Gas station. Grocery stores. Halloween parties. Houses of worship. Massage parlors. Mushroom farms. Movie theaters. Nail salons. Nightclubs. Restaurants. Schools. Shopping malls. Spas. Please forgive me if I missed other venues where (primarily) white men hunt to kill in the land of the free and the home of the brave.
While the Maine shooter was clearly suffering a mental health crisis, don’t let that fact distract you from the larger truth: The shooter, once again, was male.
On October 25, a 40-year-old white male Army reservist murdered 18 people and wounded 13 in Lewiston, Maine. Even before authorities discovered that he had died by suicide, a Maine congress member did a 180, reversing his views on gun control. Rep. Jared Golden, a Democrat, told a press conference:
I have opposed efforts to ban deadly weapons of war like the assault rifle used to carry out this crime. The time has now come for me to take responsibility for this failure—which is why I now call on the United States Congress to ban assault rifles like the one used by the sick perpetrator of this mass killing in my hometown of Lewiston.
Don’t hold your breath waiting for Congress to take up his proposal. The best newly installed Speaker of the House, evangelical Christian and staunch gun control opponent Rep. Mike Johnson (R-La.), could manage to offer was, “This is a dark time in America… Prayer is appropriate at a time like this, that this senseless violence can stop.” That’s it, Mr. Speaker? That’s your “Sandy Hook” promise? WWJD?
One of Maine’s most famous residents, author Stephen King, wrote on social media, “It’s the rapid-fire killing machines, people. This is madness in the name of freedom. Stop electing apologists for murder.”
King, whose titanic body of work includes the aptly named 1982 novel, The Dark Tower: Gunslinger, is just the latest prominent voice calling to stop the madness. What’s true, and what continues too often to go unexamined amid the horror of the latest mass shooting, is the gender of the shooter. While the Maine shooter was clearly suffering a mental health crisis, don’t let that fact distract you from the larger truth: The shooter, once again, was male.
Last December, commemorating the 10th anniversary of Sandy Hook, I reiterated my long-standing assertion that:
If we are ever to radically reduce, if not prevent, this almost exclusively U.S. phenomenon, the murderer’s gender must move from the periphery to the center of the discussion. If we refuse to turn our attention, resources, and political muscle to asking why the killers are almost always white men, we will be doomed to a never-ending cycle: murder, outrage, mourning, repeat.
April 20, 2024, will mark the 25th anniversary of the mass shooting at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, where two alienated young white males, 17- and 18-years-old, slaughtered 13 and wounded 21. Imagine if we had begun back then paying attention to how we raise boys, beginning in preschool? How many alienated, lonely, and bullied males might we have helped to live a healthy boyhood and a productive manhood? It’s not too late. The warning signs are often right in front of us.
While a dysfunctional House of Representatives is highly unlikely to take up my suggestion anytime soon for Congress to authorize the CDC to begin a pilot study of Head Start preschool boys, that’s not a reason to stop trying. There are plenty of staff in both the Senate and the House who would gladly run with this idea.
Despite my doom and gloom, I believe we are inching closer to reaching the “100th monkey effect”: the phenomenon in which a new behavior or idea inexplicably begins to quickly spread from one group to all related groups as soon as a critical number of members begins to exhibit the new behavior or acknowledge the new idea. In other words, in our years-long struggle to eradicate the scourge of mass shootings, could we be approaching a tipping point?
You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.
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Progressives Praise Lewiston's Rep. Golden for Seeking Forgiveness, Backing Assault Weapon Ban
"It shouldn't have to take a tragedy in your own state to come around, but we welcome Rep. Golden in the fight to ban these weapons," said George Takei.
Oct 27, 2023
Progressives in Congress and on social media praised U.S. Rep. Jared Golden—one of the most conservative House Democrats—after he reversed course and embraced a ban on assault weapons following Wednesday night's mass shooting that left 18 people dead and 13 others wounded in his hometown of Lewiston, Maine.
"I have opposed efforts to ban deadly weapons of war, like the assault rifle used to carry out this crime," Golden said during a Thursday press conference, referring to the previous night's massacre at multiple locations. "The time has now come for me to take responsibility for this failure, which is why I now call on the United States Congress to ban assault rifles like the one used by the sick perpetrator of this mass killing in my hometown."
"For the good of my community, I will work with any colleague to get this done in the time that I have left in Congress," said Golden, a Marine Corps veteran who has broken with his party to vote against gun control measures including universal background checks. "To the people of Lewiston, my constituents throughout the 2nd District, to the families who lost loved ones, and to those who have been harmed, I ask for forgiveness and support as I seek to put an end to these terrible shootings."
Numerous progressive U.S. lawmakers took to social media to thank Golden.
"This is so powerful from my colleague Rep. Golden. Thank you for your humility and for giving everything you have to this fight to ban assault rifles," Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said on social media.
"My heart grieves for every lost life in your community and all those who are hurting and afraid," she added. "We must respond with action."
Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) wrote: "I respect Rep. Golden for working to protect his community in the wake of tragedy and showing integrity by calling for an assault weapons ban."
Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Calif.) asserted that "if more members of Congress had your courage, we could finally get these weapons of war off the streets and out of our communities."
Congresswoman Becca Balint (D-Vt.) said: "Jared Golden is facing a hard reelection campaign. He is making a choice that is the right thing to do for his district and for this country."
Gun control campaigner Fred Guttenberg—whose 14-year-old daughter Jamie Guttenberg was murdered in the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre in Parkland, Florida—said he is "truly thankful" that Golden "just apologized and called for an assault weapons ban."
"Honestly, though, I am sad and angry," he added. "Just imagine if he had before... Parkland or any other shooting. My message to any elected person is to support these measures before it happens in your community and before you need to apologize."
Actor and activist George Takei wrote that "one of the most conservative Democrats in the House, Jared Golden from Maine, has apologized for opposing a ban on assault weapons in the wake of the deadly shootings in his state."
"It shouldn't have to take a tragedy in your own state to come around, but we welcome Rep. Golden in the fight to ban these weapons," he added.
Maine's other House member, Rep. Chellie Pingree, told the Portland Press Herald Thursday that she has "always believed there was no good reason to own a military-style assault weapon."
Meanwhile, Republican U.S. Sen. Susan Collins of Maine—for whom Golden once worked on the Senate Homeland Security Committee—dodged reporters who on Thursday asked if she would support an assault weapons ban.
"I think it is more important that we ban very high-capacity magazines," she said. "I think that would have more input and more effectiveness. Certainly, there's always more that can be done."
Maine's other U.S. senator, Independent Angus King, expressed his incredulity over the shooting, noting what he called a "deep and long history of safe gun use in the state."
Hours before the massacre—allegedly perpetrated by an Army reservist with a history of mental health issues who remains on the run—both Collins and King voted for an amendment that critics say will make it easier for U.S. veterans with mental illness to keep or get guns. The measure passed 53-45.
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'Madness in the Name of Freedom,' Says Stephen King After Maine Gun Massacre
The author and one of the state's most famous residents said the culprit is clear: "It’s the rapid-fire killing machines, people.... Stop electing apologists for murder."
Oct 26, 2023
With a massive manhunt still underway Thursday morning in the state of Maine for the suspect behind the massacre in the city of Lewiston that left 18 people dead and at least 13 wounded, defenders of stronger gun control laws lashed out at political leaders who have failed to back or impose assault weapons bans or other measures despite the nation's epidemic of mass killings.
Schools were closed across the state Thursday and a shelter-in-place order remained in effect for a large region surrounding Lewiston in central and southern Maine as police looked for Robert Card, aged 40, announced overnight as the person of interest in shootings in two separate locations.
Among the critics aiming their ire at political failures was author and longtime Maine resident Stephen King. "The shootings occurred less than 50 miles from where I live. I went to high school in Lisbon," King tweeted early Thursday, including a reference to the small town where an automobile believed to belong to Card was found by law enforcement after the shootings.
"It’s the rapid-fire killing machines, people," King said. "This is madness in the name of freedom. Stop electing apologists for murder."
The gunman who carried out Thursday night's shooting at the Sparetime Recreation bowling alley and Schemengees Bar & Grille was shown in security camera footage released by law enforcement to be carrying a long gun which some experts identified as an AR-15-style semiautomatic assault rifle.
Scott Sweetow, a former member of the FBI's Terrorist Explosive Device Analytical Center, said in an interview with NBC10 in Boston that the gunman in the footage was "kitted out to kill people."
"THIS DOES NOT HAPPEN IN OTHER COUNTRIES," tweeted King in a separate post.
Former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, founder of the gun violence prevention organization GIFFORDS, called the events in Lewiston another "senseless act of gun violence" that exposes the failures of the nation's elected leaders.
"It doesn't have to be this way and it shouldn’t be this way," Giffords said. "Entire communities shouldn’t have to live in fear of an active shooting. My heart breaks for the Lewiston community, the victims, and the survivors. Earlier this week, I visited Uvalde and met with the families and survivors of that mass shooting. I'm angry that yet another community has to experience this pain. Our leaders must act."
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