"Yes, we're putting out a damn paper tomorrow." The Capital Gazette stand defiant.
The Capital Gazette in Annapolis, Maryland have gone to print in spite of the fact that five of its journalists were shot and killed by a gunman on Thursday.
A suspect being held by police has been named as Jarrod Ramos, who is believed to have unsuccessfully filed a lawsuit for defamation against the paper in 2012.
The gunman reportedly shot through a glass door into the newsroom.
A spokesperson confirmed that the perpetrator, "entered the building with a shotgun and looked for his victims as he walked through the lower level."
The five victims of the attack have been named as,
- Wendi Winters, 65, reporter
- Rebecca Smith, 34, sales assistant
- Robert Hiaasen, 59, editor
- Gerald Fischman, 61, editorial writer
- John McNamara, 56, reporter and editor
On Friday morning, the paper confirmed that they would go to print the day after the attack.
https://twitter.com/capgaznews/status/1012549266492067840?s=21
The Capital Gazette subsequently posted its front page in the wake of the devastating attack.
https://twitter.com/capgaznews/status/1012549267368693760?s=21
More than 170 people were safely escorted away from the building, which houses a number of other businesses.
Reporter Phil Davis tweeted in the immediate aftermath of the attack.
https://twitter.com/PhilDavis_CG/status/1012422058972676097
Carl Hiassen, whose brother Robert was one of those killed, posted a moving tribute to Facebook with a picture of him standing alongside the slain Capital Gazette editor.
He wrote:
I am devastated and heartsick to confirm the loss of my wonderful brother Rob today in the mass shooting in the newsroom at the Annapolis Capital Gazette.
Rob was an editor and columnist at the paper, and one of the most gentle and funny people I've ever known. He spent his whole gifted career as a journalist, and he believed profoundly in the craft and mission of serving the public's right to know the news.
We called him Big Rob because he was so tall, but it was his remarkable heart and humor that made him larger than all of us.
Please keep our family in your thoughts and prayers tonight.
Hug your loved ones like there's no tomorrow.
