What Went Wrong? Unpacking the St. Louis School Gun Saga
The Gun That Got Lost in a Game of Hide & Seek
Picture a 19‑year‑old named Orlando Harris, a kid who, after a tense night, decided the school was a bad idea for a shootout. He dialed in an AR‑15‑style rifle, the same one his mom had apparently tossed into the shred‑bin of their home three months ago.
- Mom discovers a gun in the house → contacts cops.
Punch‑line: The gun vanished before the school could say hello. - Police vacated the firearm → handed it to an unknown adult.
- Seven hearts still beat, but two—teachers and teens—never made it.
Locked Doors, Forced Entry & The Uvalde “Lesson”
The school was locked—a proper lock. “The only way in was by force,” the commissioner said, hinting at a daring break‑in that will likely haunt the hallway murals.
Uvalde, Texas, is still fresh in hard‑to‑forget memories. In that catastrophe, the front door was left open, and the law learned a hard lesson. Washington cops are commonly derided for that oversight. Now, St. Louis is asking if a juvenile “lock‑out” caused the tragedy.
Should We Mind the Red Flag?
Missouri doesn’t have a “red flag” law, so no police could simply confiscate the gun based on risk prediction. Basically, the state says you’re free to hold guns unless someone gets an official court order to take them away.
Because a gun can shuffle hands without a dealer’s paperwork, tracing it by serial number turns into a detective game that’s tough as a mule pulling a cart uphill.
Did the Shooter Target Anyone?
We’re not 100% sure who Harris wanted to hit. The 61‑year‑old teacher and the 16‑year‑old classmate were gone, but whether the shooter had aimed at them specifically remains unknown—yet.
The truth appears in the narrative: “The school was the target,” the commissioner said, stress‑testing the notion that Harris felt alone, disconnected – as if the hallway walls were shouting “YOU’RE NOT INVITED”.
What About Mental Health?
- Mom says the family knew Harris had struggles and did everything possible to get help.
- But we’re still missing how the gun slipped through after its carriage a while back.
In sum: A gun left behind, a lock that didn’t hold up, a teenage mind wrestling with isolation, and a state that’s overlooked a law that may have prevented this kind of tragedy. It’s a tragic puzzle with missing pieces that could spell prevention if we could only finish that picture.
