In the first six months of 2022, the U.S. had at least 314 mass shootings. The issue has plagued the country, and while the number is higher in the U.S., these tragic events occur overseas, too -- recently Thailand saw its first mass shooting in two years, in which an ex-cop killed 38 people, 24 of them children, in a daycare center.
Michael Haggard is a mass shooting expert who came to St. Louis for a conference by the National Center for Victims of Crime. He said that survivors of crimes like these, especially in the U.S., end up dealing with a mix of complex emotions.
"The victims come out not only with a sense of the tremendous loss that they suffered that day, and having to deal with that trauma, but also that they're part of a bigger picture of of an epidemic in the United States more than anywhere else," Haggard said. "And so they're re-victimized, continuing with the next mass shooting. So it is very different from a trauma aspect."
Haggard said that first-responders have been undergoing active shooter training for 20 years. But, he said, sometimes that training still can't prepare people for when it actually happens. He pointed to the Uvalde shooting, which drew criticism of law enforcement who waited too long to go in and stop the shooter.
"It's one thing to be continually trained with it, when but when you're up against someone who has worn body armor, has multiple assault weapons, military style weapons, who's going there for a specific purpose, the best law enforcement are put in a situation that a lot of them have not been used to," he explained.
Haggard also talked about how families and survivors deal with the aftermath of shootings, and how they're advised to deal with media coverage. He said having people there to advocate for them is key.
"They're trying to sift through this madness that just happened. And so we try to protect them from it to the extent because it's overwhelming," he said. "But also, when they're ready to get their voices heard, because they care very much about what's the next step and how are we going to change this."
Hear more from Michael Haggard on how survivors can deal with the trauma of mass shootings, and more:
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