Lewiston shootings: Sheriff had cause to take suspect into custody before shootings, report says

A new report from an independent commission found that the sheriff’s office had cause to take the suspect into custody before he shot and killed 18 people in Lewiston, Maine, last October.

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Democratic Gov. Janet Mills and Attorney General Aaron Frey put together an independent commission to go over events before the deadly shootings and those leading up to it, according to The Associated Press.

The commission’s report found that the sheriff’s office had cause to take Robert Card, 40, into custody before the shooting and to remove his guns.

The commission held multiple sessions in November where they heard from law enforcement, shooting survivors and family members of victims, the AP reported. They also heard from U.S. Army Reserve members. The hope was to see if there was anything that could have been done to prevent the shootings or what could be done in the future so something like it does not happen again.

Card allegedly opened fire in a bowling alley and bar on Oct. 25. Eighteen people were killed and over a dozen were injured.

Card was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound, the AP reported. He was found two days after a search.

His behaviors leading up to the shootings were something that his family and other service members were reportedly concerned about. His mental health was deteriorating and was known to law enforcement, the AP reported. Family members said that he seemed to be more paranoid and had found access to guns last May. By July, he was hospitalized for two weeks in a psychiatric unit after an incident with another reservist.

The Army in August did not allow him to handle weapons. According to the AP, he was declared nondeployable. A month later, a concerned reservist messages an Army supervisor about their concerns over Card. One of the messages said, “I believe he’s going to snap and do a mass shooting.”

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