Kalamazoo Shooting

Starting at 6 pm local time, Saturday, February 20, 2016, a man in a black Chevy HHR began driving around Kalamazoo, Michigan, shooting and killing people. Some initial reports said nine or seven people were killed. It turns out that six did die, as one 14-year-old girl shot at a Cracker Barrel restaurant did not expire. She remains in critical condition in a hospital.

It was the 42nd shooting of 2016.*

The first shooting took place around 6 p.m., when a woman was shot four times in an apartment complex parking lot....She was with her three children. The woman is in serious condition.
Shortly after 10 p.m., two people were shot and killed at a car dealership....the victims were there looking at a vehicle.
Kelly Bainbridge was with her fiance and friends at Bell's Brewery in Kalamazoo when she started getting texts and calls from concerned family members about the gunman.
"As the shootings continued to occur, the situation because more frightening," Bainbridge told CNN. She was less than 4 miles away from the dealership.
Some of her friends decided to leave the bar, but Bainbridge and her fiance stayed. The brewery's owner locked the doors to protect his patrons.
Less than 8 miles away, the third shooting occurred, this time outside a Cracker Barrel. Five people in two separate cars were shot....
The suspect was arrested about two blocks away from the brewery, Bainbridge said. Source.

Kalamazoo County, Michigan, prosecutor Jeff Getting said Sunday that there is "no reason to believe" that the shooting rampage was related to terrorism. All the victims were picked at random.

The suspect, Jason Brian Dalton, 45, was arrested when his vehicle was recognized in downtown Kalamazoo early Sunday morning.

Authorities recovered a weapon from the suspect's car, his black Chevy HHR, shown below. (I hated to hear this news, as I always do, but also then to learn about Dalton's car, since my own personal car is a black Chevy HHR that was a sync I didn't wish to read.)

Uber driver?

 The man suspected of killing six people and injuring two more in a Saturday evening shooting rampage in Kalamazoo, Michigan, was an Uber driver who may have picked up passengers that same evening, according to the ride-sharing company and police. 

"Jason Brian Dalton had passed a background check, and was a driver-partner with Uber," said Uber's chief security officer, Joe Sullivan, in a statement. "We have reached out to the police to help with their investigation in any way that we can."

While the company did not address reports that Dalton picked up and dropped off customers Saturday night, authorities told CNN that it was "certainly part of our investigation."
"We're looking into his connection to Uber and whether or not he was picking up fares in between the shootings," said Public Safety Chief Jeff Hadley. CNN.

Jason is a common given name for a male. It comes from Greek Ἰάσων (Iasōn), meaning "healer," from the verb ἰάομαι, iaomai, "heal," "cure," cognate with Ἰασώ, Iasō, the goddess of healing and ἰατρός, iatros, "healer," "physician."

Brian is a male given name of Irish and Breton origin, as well as a surname of Occitan origin. It is common in the English-speaking world. It is possible that the name is derived from an Old Celtic word bre meaning "hill", or by extension "high, noble."

The name Dalton is an English name, with the meaning "from the farm in the dale." The Old English meaning is "valley town."

The name "Dalton" is familiar due to the Dalton Gang. The Dalton Gang was a group of outlaws in the American Old West during 1890–1892. It was also known as The Dalton Brothers because three of its members were brothers. The gang specialized in bank and train robberies. The Dalton Gang continues name-recognition because of its popular culture mentions.

Kalamazoo

Originally known as Bronson (after founder Titus Bronson) in the township of Arcadia, the names of both the city and the township were changed to "Kalamazoo" in 1836 and 1837, respectively. The Kalamazoo name comes from a Potawatomi word, first found in a British report in 1772. However, the Kalamazoo River, which passes through the modern city of Kalamazoo, was located on the route between Detroit and Fort Saint-Joseph (nowadays Niles, Michigan). French-Canadian traders, missionaries, and military personnel were quite familiar with this area during the French era and thereafter. The name for the Kalamazoo River was then known by Canadians and French as La rivière Kikanamaso. The name "Kikanamaso" was also recorded by Father Pierre Potier, a Jesuit missionary for the Huron-Wendats at the Assumption mission (south shore of Detroit), while en route to Fort Saint-Joseph during the fall of 1760. Legend has it that "Ki-ka-ma-sung," meaning "boiling water," referring to a footrace held each fall by local Native Americans, who had to run to the river and back before the pot boiled. Still another theory is that it means "the mirage or reflecting river." Another legend is that the image of "boiling water" referred to fog on the river as seen from the hills above the current downtown. The name was also given to the river that flows almost all the way across the state. Source.

HHR

The Chevrolet HHR (for Heritage High Roof) is a retro-styled station wagon launched by Chevrolet at the 2005 Los Angeles Auto Show as a 2006 model — and designed by Bryan Nesbitt. The HHR shares the GM Delta platform with the Chevrolet Cobalt, Pontiac G5, and Saturn Ion. In Mexico, it was sold alongside its predecessor, the Opel-sourced Chevrolet Zafira compact MPV.

The vehicle's design was inspired by the mid-1940s Chevrolet cars and trucks, specifically the 1947 Chevrolet Suburban and Advance Design pickups, with large, square fender flares and a hemispherical grille. The design of the HHR has been credited to Bryan Nesbitt who was a former designer at Chrysler where he was the lead designer of the Chrysler PT Cruiser.

The HHR was assembled in Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, and was available for sale throughout North America.

In the fourth quarter of 2010, Chevrolet announced that the HHR would be discontinued after the 2011 model year, with the last HHR's available in dealerships starting in late January to early February. HHRs were also available for fleet order until May 2011.

*42

Update: Uber riders who rode with Dalton in-between the shootings describe his vehicle as being silver, as it appears to be in the following photo.

Empire State Building Shooting

Note the plaid shirt. Apparently the main victim was shot near the Empire State Building.

The FBI and the ATF are at the iconic Empire State Building, investigating a shooting. Four to six people have been shot, with ten in total injured, with two people dead, including the gunman who was killed by the NYPD.  A witness says the gunman was firing indiscriminately. Most of the activity appears to be on 33rd Street.

New York City officials say at least four people have been shot outside the Empire State Building and that the gunman is dead.

City police say at least four people have been wounded in the Friday morning shooting. Some of the victims were reportedly found inside the lobby of the Empire State Building while some were found on the street.

A fire department spokesman says it received a call about the shooting just after at 9 a.m. Friday and that emergency units were on the scene within minutes.

Aliyah Imam tells Fox 5 News that she was standing at a red light when a woman standing next to her fell to the ground. She says the woman was hit in the hip. She says the gunman was "shooting indiscriminately at people."

The shooting reportedly occurred at 33rd Street and Fifth Avenue, and it is 33rd Street that is blocked off.  Hazan Imports, outside of where this occurred, is located at 10 W 33rd St, New York, NY 10001. Their website is a deadlink, http://www.hazanimport.com.

This grab is from WABC-TV; emergency personnel respond to reports of several people being shot outside the Empire State Building, Friday, Aug. 24, 2012, in New York. Authorities say the shooter is dead. Photo by AP/WABC-TV.

Gawker published a series of photos (the mildest one above is shown) allegedly of the shooter, in a gray suit, dead, being examined by police.

Empire State Building is in the foreground, with the Twin Towers under attack on 9/11/2001.

Latest reports by NYC Police is that this is "not domestic terrorism," but allegedly the gunman was fired from his job yesterday. The date of this person leaving his job was given incorrectly in the early reports. He was laid off a year ago from Hazan Imports*.

Ralph Hazan is in charge of Hazan Imports. A "John Hazan" works at Bain & Company, Inc.

At the news conference this am, it was revealed the victim was a coworker, 41, shot by Jeffrey Johnson, first reported to be 53. Johnson was killed in a shootout with law enforcement officers. Nine other people (seven men, two women) were injured in crossfire.

The New York Times metro desk tweeted that Johnson was 58, not 53, and lives on East 82nd Street in Manhattan. He apparently lost his job a year ago when the company downsized.

The New York Post reported that Johnson stalked his former boss down the street and shot him.

Jeffrey Johnson, his neighbors said, went to McDonald's every day wearing the same suit he apparently wore during the shooting.

Johnson was an artist, who posted his art at several sites on the Internet.

Images of the victim are showing up more quickly than Johnson's photo.

A relative identified the victim as Steve Ercolino (pictured), who was the vice president of sales at Hazan. (The name Ercolino means "bow leg," and is also associated with the name Miller, for one "who works in a mill.")


Mayor Michael Bloomberg is a spokesperson for the "Mayors Against Illegal Guns," heading a campaign called “Demand A Plan,” which is pushing the 2012 presidential candidates to “detail specific plans to prevent the gun violence.”

On February 24, 1997, a gunman shot seven people on the observation deck, killing one, then fatally killing himself.
++++
*Hazan Imports

Here is a 2009 press release about that company:


Hazan Import Corp.

Hazan Imports, located in NYC at 10 West 33rd Street, brings over 30 years of experience in the handbag industry run by Isaac and Ralph Hazan. They are entering the branded market with BUM Equipment. They want entry into the majors and feel the BUM brand can open the doors for them. Ralph Hazan foresees a big opportunity in the kids’ segment of bags. “Branding is the name of the game for us. Today’s world is brand-centric,” states Ralph Hazan. Hazan chose BUM for its consistent ranking in the top 10 for consumer awareness and brand appeal. “We feel BUM Equipment will bring a fresh appeal to our product, adding to our huge and still growing customer base,” adds Hazan. Stephen Wayne remarks, “Hazan is a leading handbag company known to be young thinking, dynamic and always fashion conscious.”

Hazan will be distribute BUM to chains including specialty stores, mass merchandisers and sporting goods stores as well as independent retailers nationwide. Prices will retail from $14.99 to $39.00. Sales Manager, Steve Ercolino says, “We have kicked off our Spring selling with an emphasis on the Varsity look for Back to School. We are mixing fabrics and offering a fresh look plus color is more important than ever and is driving sales.” Nostalgia and vintage are the statements for Fall 2007. Hazan has developed a unique stamping process that puffs the fabric they treat and retailers are ecstatic it. “This eye-catching styling is crucial to the savvy junior brand consumer in our marketplace,” adds Ercolino.

Hazan’s design concept is simple says Ralph Hazan: “Take the best of the past and infuse it with the best of today! “We have high expectations for the BUM Equipment brand, and we hope to enjoy a glorious ‘revival’ with both old and new audiences.”

From sweats to a complete ACCESSORIES LINEUP in 2007: According to Stephen Wayne, “With the signing of both L’Egent and Hazan, we now have a full line of accessories under the BUM Equipment brand.” In Addition to the signing of these two new licenses, L’Egent and International and Hazan Imports, At the end of December Bum Equipment renewed all of its other existing licenses to new and additional terms. ROI EYEWEAR continues with Ophthalmic Sunglasses for another three years as one of the most successful licensees on the Bum roster. ROIhas been a licensee of Bum since 1997. Wayne is pleased to also announce the renewals of GENENDER INTERNATIONAL for watches and MONARCH LUGGAGE/BAY TRAVELGEAR for luggage and backpacks. They too have been licensees of Bum Equipment since 1997. BROWN SHOE for footwear and GOLD MEDAL HOSIERY for hosiery and cold weather accessories have renewed their contracts for additional terms too. Bum Equipment footwear can be found at all Famous Footwear retail stores across America.

Source.