SAN JOSE (KRON) – Speaking from a press conference in San Jose updating the situation of a mass shooting that has so far taken the lives of nine people, Gov. Gavin Newsom expressed outrage and frustration with America’s gun violence problem.
“And that numbness I think is something we’re all feeling,” Newsom said. “All of us gathered here today, looking at the scene, listening to governors, mayors, chiefs speaking in similar tone and terms, expression of condolences. All the right emotions and perhaps the right words, but it begs the damn question: What the hell is going on in the United States of America? What the hell is wrong with us?”
Newsom continued: “And when are we going to come to grips with this, when are we going to put down our arms, literally and figuratively, our politics, stale rhetoric, finger pointing, all a hand-wringing consternation that produces nothing except more fury and frustration. More scenes like this repeated over and over and over again.”
An employee opened fire Wednesday at a VTA rail yard in San Jose, killing nine people before ending his own life, authorities said.
KRON4 sources have identified the suspect as 57-year-old Sam Cassidy, a VTA worker.
The shooting took place at around 6:30 a.m. The rail yard is located next door to the sheriff’s department and across a freeway from the airport. The facility is a transit control center that stores trains and has a maintenance yard.
A suspicious house fire in San Jose also broke out just before the mass shooting and may be connected, according to San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo.
The San Jose Fire Department responded to the 1100 block of Angmar Ct at 6:36 a.m. for a fire. It was a single-family home and the fire was extinguished by 7:30 a.m.
Public records show Sam Cassidy, the man allegedly behind the shooting at the VTA railyard, owned a two-story home where firefighters responded Wednesday morning.
The Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said there were explosive devices inside the house that was on fire on Angmar Ct.