July 4 Parade Shooter Charged With Seven Counts Of Murder

What is supposed to be a day of joy has turned to sadness and sorrow for many families whose loved ones were attacked at Monday’s July 4 celebration.

The gunman accused of attacking an Independence Day parade in suburban Chicago has been charged with seven counts of first-degree murder, a prosecutor said.

Lake County State’s attorney Eric Rinehart promised that dozens more charges would be sought. He added that the suspect if convicted of murder, would receive a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.

It comes after police said Robert E Crime III legally bought two high-powered rifles and three other weapons despite authorities being called to his home twice since 2019 after he threatened suicide and violence.

A spokesman for the Lake County Major Crime Task Force told a news conference that the suspected shooter, who was arrested late on Monday, used a high-powered rifle “similar to an AR-15″ to spray more than 70 rounds from atop a commercial building into a crowd that had gathered for the parade in Highland Park, an affluent community of about 30,000 on the Lake Michigan shore.

Police said they were called to the suspect’s home in September 2019 after a family member called to say he was threatening “to kill everyone” in the home.

Task force spokesman Christopher Covelli said police confiscated 16 knives, a dagger, and a sword, but said there was no sign he had any guns at the time.

The suspect legally purchased the high-powered rifle in Illinois within the past year, Mr. Covelli said. In all, police said, he purchased five firearms, which were recovered by officers at his father’s home.

Police in 2019 also responded to a reported suicide attempt by the suspect, Mr. Covelli said.

The day after the shooting, authorities reported the death of a seventh person. More than three dozen other people were wounded in the attack, which Mr. Covelli said the suspect had planned for several weeks.