The shooter who massacred 26 people at a church in Texas escaped a Mental Institution back in 2012. Devin P. Kelley, the gunman who killed at least 26 people and injured 20 at the First Baptist Church, tried to take a bus out of New Mexico after escaping a behavioral facility, according to a report by El Paso Police in Texas.
More about Kelley
According to this police report, Kelley was committed back in 2012 after he was caught sneaking guns onto an Air Force base and then attempting to “carry out death threats” he had made against his superior officers.
After his escape from custody, the police in El Paso caught him as he attempted to flee to New Mexico.
At that time, the gunman was still considered very dangerous. Additionally, he was facing criminal charges for threatening superior officers.. This incident occurred in the same year that Kelley assaulted his wife and her son.
According to Air Force documents, Kelley was sentenced in November 2012 for the domestic assault. This offense was only discovered after authorities decided to investigate Kelly's profile after the massacre. The authorities went after military documents since Kelly was a member of the US Air Force at the Holloman Air Force Base in New Mexico.
As it turns out, the domestic violence offense was never recorded in the system.
This could have prevented Kelley from buying the gun, an AR-556, he used to attack the church in San Antonio, Texas. Investigations will be carried out further to see how Kelley’s offense did not get recorded into the system.
The massacre
Wearing all black and a mask with a skull on it, Devin Kelley decided to go into a church and start killing people.
Investigations are still being carried out to find out the true motive, but it is believed that it had something to do with a family feud. The gunman shot at the church before entering it. When he got inside, Kelley shot at those who tried to run out. Witnesses who survived the horror stated that Kelley stood patiently inside the church killing people, along with the ones running for the exits.
One woman, who was shot in the legs, described Kelley executing another woman by shooting her in the chest four times. The witness stated that this woman was lying on the ground begging for mercy. Authorities believe that the shooter had plenty of time to shoot people inside that church and that more could have died.
A local, Stephen Willeford, exchanged gunshots with Kelley outside of the church. It is believed that Willeford wounded Kelley in the leg before the gunman took off in a truck. That truck was chased by other locals for about ten miles. Kelley was found dead inside the truck from what is believed to be a self-inflicted wound.
