White House Lowers Flag to Half-Staff in Memory of Las Vegas Victims

In memory of the victims of Sunday night's Las Vegas shooting, the White House has lowered its [...]

By Libby Birk

In memory of the victims of Sunday night's Las Vegas shooting, the White House has lowered its flag to half-staff, ABC News reports.

President Trump ordered that American flags be lowered after issuing a solemn address from the White House Monday morning.

In the address, he called the mass shooting an "act of pure evil" and announced that he will be visiting Las Vegas on Wednesday to meet with first responders and families of victims.

The shooting, which took place during country music singer Jason Aldean's set of the Route 91 Harvest Festival Shooting, left 59 dead and more than 500 injured. It was the deadliest mass shooting in modern U.S. history.

The shooter, identified as 64-year-old Vegas man Stephen Paddock, opened fire on the crowd from a hotel room on the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort. Paddock reportedly killed himself before police entered the room.

Authorities say Paddock had occupied the room since Sept. 28, and police found an "excess of 10 rifles" when the room was searched.

While the Islamic State (ISIS) has claimed responsibility for the attack and says that Paddock converted to Islam months before the shooting, U.S. senior officials say there is no proof of his religious conversion or any concrete ties to the militant group.

In the hours after the mass shooting, media sources have found that Paddock does not fit the profile of a typical mass shooter; he lived in a retirement home in Mesquite, Nevada 80 miles northeast of Vegas and had no criminal record aside from a traffic violation.

TMZ found record of Paddock's hunting license in Alaska, as well as a pilot's license issued in 2003, noting that he would have undergone physical and mental evaluations to obtain the latter.

In his address, Trump said the nation was united "in sadness, shock and grief."

"We cannot fathom their pain, we cannot imagine their loss," Trump said of those who lost loved ones in the massacre.

If you are looking for a loved one in the Las Vegas area, you can call 1-866-535-5654.

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