Texas Church Involved in Shooting Set to Be Demolished

The Texas church in Sutherland Springs where an attack took place this weekend is going to be demolished.

The pastor of the small-town First Baptist Church says that it would be too painful to continue using the building in the aftermath of the shooting in which 26 people were killed and 20 others were injured, according to WKRN.

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A spokesman for the national Southern Baptist Convention said that Pastor Frank Pomeroy discussed the plans this week with the denomination’s top executives who traveled to the town to show support.

Sing Oldham, the spokesman, says that Pomeroy hopes to convert the church location into a memorial for the victims of Sunday’s shooting. He also said that the pastor is hoping to build a new sanctuary on other property that the church owns.

The shooter, who has been identified by the authorities as Devin P. Kelley, entered the church around 11:30 a.m. armed with guns and body armor. The latest reports from the police say that he methodically shot victims in the head, execution-style.

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The attack was captured video and lasted for an estimated seven minutes. An official said it is not clear at this time how many shots Kelley actually fired. However, he was armed with magazines capable of holding more than 400 rounds of ammunition.

Before fleeing the scene, the gunman was shot twice by an armed bystander. Kelley was then followed by the bystander and another man. The gunman was found dead after crashing his car, but he reportedly died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Kelley’s mother-in-law was a regular member of the church and he had previously attended service there in the past prior to the attack. Authorities explained that Kelley had an ongoing dispute with his estranged second wife’s family, and his wife’s grandmother was one of the people killed in the attack.