Skip to main content

Mass shooting suspect had earlier gun crime conviction

AZ: TUCSON SHOOTING SUSPECT FACES 19 CHARGES

Click here for updates on this story

    TUCSON, Arizona (KGUN) — In the aftermath of that mass shooting that happened in Tucson over the weekend we are learning more about the history of the man charged in that case and we are talking to people about how concerned they are about visiting downtown.

The shooting began with what Tucson Police called a confrontation between two groups that know each other.

Police say one man, 21 year old David Leroy French started shooting. Nine people were wounded. French became number ten when officers shot him.

Now he’s facing 19 charges in all.

We checked court records and found he pleaded guilty in a gun case from two years ago when an argument led to him firing shots at a man.

In that earlier case French pleaded guilty to aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The judge gave him four years probation. That conviction made French a felon and made it illegal for him to even possess a weapon.

At this latest shooting Eddie Ramirez was working security about a block away at the new Johnny Gibson’s Food Court.

He heard the commotion right after the shooting and was grateful for the quick response by TPD. But that burst of violence is still troubling.

“Preventing it is a hard thing. It just depends on the people. Like they shouldn’t have firearms. I don’t think it’s safe for them to. It just depends on them. You know, it’s not something we can stop. I wish that it was more in our control to stop stuff like this, but I don’t see it stopping anytime soon. It’s just an everyday thing in the world, sadly.”

Mindy Driscoll and Eric Berg are just wrapping up a visit from Montana. To them the mass shooting doesn’t really reflect on Tucson.

Mindy says, “I have to admit that I was not shocked-not because of anything unique to this community, but just it seems to be the situation that we’re in in this country right now, where there’s a new mass shooting almost every week. It feels like.”

Eric says, “I would say it is a little shocking, just because we were here for a few days and it was just a really nice town, and it just doesn’t seem like something like that should happen there. But again, like she said, it does seem to happen too often all over.”

Please note: This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate and does not contain original CNN reporting. This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.

US measles cases surpass 2,000 for the 2nd year in a row: CDC

Human crowd surrounding an injectable measles vaccine bottle on purple background. Horizontal composition with copy space. ( MicroStockHub/Getty Images)(NEW YORK) -- Measles cases in the United States have surpassed 2,000 for the second year in a row, according to data updated Friday from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).So far in 2026, 2,030 confirmed cases have been recorded in 38 states and the District of Columbia, CDC data shows.Cases have been confirmed in: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin and Wyoming.Just 10 measles cases were reported among international travelers so far this year, according to CDC data.Last year, 2,288 confirmed measles cases were reported for all of 2025. Prior to this, measles cases had not surpassed 2,000 in the U.S. since 1992.The U.S. also saw its first measles deaths in more than a decade last year, including two among unvaccinated school-aged children in Texas and one among an unvaccinated adult in New Mexico.The majority of measles cases in 2026 have been confirmed among children and teenagers aged 19 and younger, according to the CDC.About 92% of cases are among people who are unvaccinated or whose vaccination status is unknown, CDC data shows.Meanwhile, 4% of cases are among those who have received just one dose of the measles, mumps, rubella (MMR) vaccine and 4% of cases are among those who received the recommended two doses, according to the CDC.Dr. William Schaffner, a professor of preventive medicine at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, referred to the latest figures as "very disappointing and very concerning.""It indicates that an increasing number of parents are either postponing or withholding their children from vaccination, and this is very concerning because it permits this virus back now into in the United States to continue to spread and obviously to cause illness in the children affected," he told ABC News.January 2026 marked one year since measles cases were first detected on Texas. It’s unclear if the cases confirmed on Jan. 20, 2025, are linked to those that have been found other states; if so, it would mean the U.S. has seen a year of continuous transmission.If it's determined that the U.S. has experienced 12 months of continuous measles transmission, it could lead to a loss of the country's elimination status that was earned in 2000. Measles would once again be considered endemic or constantly circulating.The review of the measles elimination status in the U.S., which is determined by the Pan-American Health Organization, will take place in November 2026.Schaffner said the U.S.'s measles elimination status is threatened as a result of so many cases."Measles, because it's the most contagious virus, is like the canary in the coal mine; it's the alert that lets us know that we're also opening ourselves up to other transmissible diseases that vaccines could prevent," he said.The CDC currently recommends that people receive two doses of the MMR vaccine, the first at ages 12 to 15 months and the second between 4 and 6 years old. One dose is 93% effective, and two doses are 97% effective against measles, the CDC says.However, CDC data show vaccination rates have been lagging in recent years. During the 2024 to 2025 school year, 92.5% of kindergartners received the MMR vaccine, according to data. This is lower than the 92.7% seen the previous school year and the 95.2% seen in the 2019 to 2020 school year, prior to the COVID-19 pandemic.Schaffner said that public health specialists need to listen carefully to parents who are skeptical or hesitant of getting their children vaccinated."Have them speak to their own family doctors and pediatricians, have those conversations, and our pediatricians and family doctors have to provide a level of comfort and reassurance," he said. "Facts are fundamental, but more importantly, these parents need reassurance and a level of comfort that what their doctors ... are recommending is in the best interest of their child and the communities in which their children live.""These diseases are bad and can be really bad. The vaccines are good and really good," Schaffner added.Copyright © 2026, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.
Read Next Story

Related Stories

Latest News
Ebola cases 'increased rapidly' since late May, WHO says
2 minutes ago

Ebola cases 'increased rapidly' since late May, WHO says

WHO says risk of Ebola in World Cup host countries is low

American doctor previously infected with Ebola in DRC returns to US

DRC reports record number of Ebola cases in a single day as outbreak hits 1-month mark

Fewer than half of Americans say they can afford healthcare: Gallup