On Saturday, August 31st, a gunman opened fire at a traffic stop in Odessa, Texas, killing seven and injuring 25 others. The perpetrator, Seth Ator, began shooting after being pulled over for failing to signal a left turn. The shooting rampage ended when the perpetrator was shot and killed by police in a movie theater parking lot. In a press conference held in the aftermath, Agent John Wester of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) said the shooter had previously failed a background check when trying to purchase a gun and it is unknown at this time how he gained access to the firearm. Greg Abbott, Republican Texas governor tweeted Monday morning, “not only did the Odessa gunman have a criminal history……he also previously failed a gun purchase background check in Texas……& he didn’t go thru [sic] a background check for the gun he used in Odessa. We must keep guns out of criminals’ hands.”  This was Texas’ second mass shooting in one month. The victims’ names and short biographies have been listed below.

Leilah Hernandez, 15, had just celebrated her quiñcenera in May. She had been planning it for two years and her grandmother said she had felt like a princess in her bright green dress.

Edwin Peregrino, 25, was an uncle to two nephews and a niece but wanted to start his own family now that he’d matured, according to his sister.

Mary Granados, 29, according to a family friend, was, “ beautiful inside and out, with a great heart and always ready to be a friend, always had a smile on her face!”

Kameron Brown, 30, was a U.S. Army veteran who served in Afghanistan. 

Raul Garcia, 35, lived in El Paso.

Joseph “Joe” Griffith, 40, was a math teacher who developed close bonds with students, helping one student pass a standardized test after failing it the year before.

Rodolfo “Rudy” Arco, 57, was fun-loving and compassionate according to his sister. He was an entrepreneur who started a trucking business in Odessa and had previously owned several taquerias in Las Vegas.

An Instagram post recognizing one of the injured went viral over the weekend. It focused on Anderson Davis, a 17-month-old, who, according to her mother “has shrapnel in her right chest, which thank God is superficial. She has a hole through her bottom lip and tongue and her front teeth were knocked out.” She is in stable condition and is expected to fully recover.