A gunman shooting from a rooftop killed seven people and wounded dozens more during a Fourth of July celebration in Highland Park, Ill., on Monday morning. A 21-year-old man who was taken into custody Monday evening after an extensive manhunt was charged on Tuesday with seven counts of first-degree murder.
Here’s what we know so far.
The suspect faces life in prison without parole if convicted.
Robert E. Crimo III, 21, a man the authorities had initially said was a person of interest,was arrested on Monday night and charged on Tuesday.
The Lake County state’s attorney, Eric F. Rinehart, said conviction on the first-degree murder counts would lead to a mandatory prison sentence of life without possibility of parole.He said many more state charges were likely to be brought in connection with other people who were harmed in the attack.
A judge ordered Mr. Crimo held without bail on the murder charges on Wednesday.
The victims included a 78-year-old grandfather and a synagogue staff member.
The Lake County coroner, Jennifer Banek, released names on Tuesday of six of the seven people who died:
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Katherine Goldstein, 64 of Highland Park.
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Irina McCarthy, 35, of Highland Park.
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Kevin McCarthy, 37, of Highland Park.
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Jacquelyn Sundheim, 63, of Highland Park.
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Stephen Straus, 88, of Highland Park.
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Nicolas Toledo-Zaragoza, 78, of Morelos, Mexico.
The Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office said a seventh person, Eduardo Uvaldo, 69, died in a hospital there.
More on the Highland Park Shooting
Seven people were killed and many more wounded in a mass shooting at the Fourth of July parade in Highland Park, a Chicago suburb.
More than 30 people were injured, ranging in age from 8 to 85.
A high-powered rifle was used.
The police say a Smith & Wesson semiautomatic rifle was used in Monday’s attack.
Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli of the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said the high-powered rifle used in the shooting appeared to have been purchased legally by Mr. Crimo in the Chicago area, and that Mr. Crimo had legally purchased a total of five guns, including the rifle. Chief Covelli said the suspect bought his firearms before he turned 21.
The motive for the shooting is unknown.
Chief Covelli said Mr. Crimo planned the shooting for several weeks, but the authorities had not yet established a motive. “We have no information to suggest at this point it was racially motivated, motivated by religion, or any other protected status,” the chief said, adding that there was no indication that anyone else was involved.
The gunman used a disguise to get away.
The authorities said the gunman wore women’s clothing to disguise his identity. He climbed up a fire escape ladder to gain access to the roof where he staged his attack.
In an initial court appearance on Wednesday, where Mr. Crimo appeared by video, Ben Dillon, a prosecutor, said Mr. Crimo opened fire — emptying a 30-round magazine, firing from another, then inserting a third magazine. Officials recovered 83 bullet casings, Mr. Dillon said.
After the shooting, Mr. Crimo left the scene on foot, blending in with fleeing paradegoers, the authorities said.
The police said Mr. Crimo walked to his mother’s home in Highland Park and borrowed her car. He then drove to the Madison area in Wisconsin where, Chief Covelli said, the police believed that he considered using a second rifle he had with him in the car to carry out another shooting at a holiday celebration, but decided against it. He then returned to Illinois.
The attack was one of a number of shootings in recent days.
The mass shooting in Highland Park was the fourth in Illinois since Friday in which at least four people were struck, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The state has among the strictest gun-safety laws in the nation — including universal background checks, red flag warnings and safe storage requirements — but it is surrounded by states like Indiana that have far fewer restrictions to gun purchase and ownership.
Authorities in at least a dozen other cities reported shootings over the weekend, most of them on Monday.
