FBI ballistics tests could not conclusively prove Omar Mateen fired all the fatal shots
The FBI has released its ballistics report from the Pulse nightclub massacre, revealing that forensic tests were unable to conclusively prove who fired the fatal shots.
The release on Thursday came two weeks after prosecutors in Orlando, Florida insisted that that no clubgoers were hit by responding officers' bullets in the June 2016 attack.
Fourteen law enforcement officers who fired more than 180 shots during a more than three-hour standoff with gunman Omar Mateen were cleared by State Attorney Aramis Ayala on February 14.
Mateen had pledged allegiance to Islamic State and stormed the gay nightclub armed with a 9mm Glock Model 17 and a .223 SIG Sauer rifle.
Deborah Barra, the Florida state attorney's chief assistant, led a six-month review of the shooting that determined that Mateen, who was killed by police, was responsible for all of the civilian deaths.
The FBI ballistics report on the Pulse massacre said several of the bullets recovered from victims could be from either Mateen's Glock Model 17 (similar to above) or police weapons
Mateen also used a .223 SIG Sauer rifle similar to the weapon above in the shooting
Police are seen responding to the Pulse shooting in June 2016. State prosecutors found that no civilians were killed by police gunfire, through the FBI could not prove it with ballistics
'No civilians were struck. Each time law enforcement pulled the trigger, it was reasonable and justified,' Barra said at a press conference earlier this month.
While the FBI's report doesn't contradict that assessment, it reveals that it can't be backed up by forensic science in every case.
For instance, one set of eight 9 mm fragments tested by the lab 'contained no marks of value for comparison purposes,' the report states.
The report could not exclude either Mateen's Glock pistol or one of several guns used by law enforcement officers as the gun that fired the bullets, which were recovered from the bodies of civilian victims.
However, the examiners noted that the fragments shared characteristics with the bullets found loaded in magazines found strewn outside the nightclub.
The FBI declined to comment further on the contents of the ballistics report.
The FBI report included an examination of 987 items, including bullet fragments and cartridges. An FBI agents is seen investigating the scene soon after the attack
Family members of the victims had clamored for months for the release of the FBI report, even after Florida prosecutors released their findings earlier this month.
The state of Florida's six-month review of the massacre included 350 witness statements, police radio traffic, officers' body and dash cameras, footage from cameras inside the club and 911 calls, according to Barra.
Mateen fired 186 times with an assault weapon and 22 times with a handgun. At one point, his assault weapon jammed, based on a spent shell found in the weapon, Barra said.
'That is significant because that actually saved lives,' she said.
At another time during the standoff, SWAT team members punched a hole through what they thought was a bathroom where clubgoers were trapped, but it ended up being a hallway. They later opened a hole through which patrons in the bathroom could escape.
Orange circuit Chief Assistant State Attorney Deborah Barra is seen at a press briefing on February 13, at which she insisted no civilians were killed by police at Pulse nightclub
The prosecutor's office concluded that responding officers and deputies engaged with Mateen five separate times.
Mateen was hit seven times during the fourth engagement and killed during the fifth engagement.
Even though he was down after being shot, he appeared to have wires protruding from him and his handgun was just an inch or two from his reach. Fearing he had explosives, a SWAT team member shot him in the head to ensure he was no longer a threat, Barra said.
The wires turned out to be from an exit sign that had fallen.
Mateen's wife was acquitted last year of aiding and abetting him and lying to FBI agents during a federal trial, and much of the evidence used in the review couldn't be evaluated until afterward.
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2019/03/01/fbi-releases-ballistics-report-from-pulse-nightclub-massacre/
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FBI ballistics tests could not conclusively prove Omar Mateen fired all the fatal shots
The FBI has released its ballistics report from the Pulse nightclub massacre, revealing that forensic tests were unable to conclusively prove who fired the fatal shots.
The release on Thursday came two...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2019/02/28/21/10427088-6757991-image-m-45_1551390317613.jpg
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