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May 27th, 2014
10:09 PM ET

Richard Martinez remembers his son killed in Isla Vista and calls for action

Richard Martinez lost his only son in the Isla Vista rampage. He has gone through more in the last few days than most people can imagine. He spoke to Anderson about his son's love of basketball and how he was a fierce competitor while remaining a gentle person. He also called on lawmakers to take action to prevent another tragedy.

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Filed under: Isla Vista rampage
soundoff (11 Responses)
  1. brentgreen777

    Smart Kids

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GhK2clvmSCU

    November 26, 2014 at 11:52 pm |
  2. momofscoot

    Watched last night's show so thankful that Mr. Martinez has a broadcaster and network that supports his efforts in making this about his son's life and not that of the perpetrator. I applaud you Anderson and CNN for taking the higher and more responsible road of not showing the killer or his rantings in order to try and end this situation from happening again. I am the mother of a 22 year old son killed in a robbery of the restaurant where he worked one of the worst things then and now was that the crime was labeled by the gang members pictures and names and finally became the (restaurant name) incident. My son's name became lost in all of this. I pray for Mr. Martinez and all others who have lost loved ones to senseless violence. As family members our lives are forever changed. I know that gun control will never be possible in this country when even members of my own family fight me on the issue. But the right of letting the victims be the focus of our stories would be helpful. We do need to take the stigma away from mental illness as well.
    Any of you out there who would criticize the remarks of Mr. Martinez, try and remember that none of us choose to enter into the club he now finds himself in. Parents mourning loss is a group that really wants NO more new members.

    May 28, 2014 at 11:46 am |
  3. brentgreen777

    As a father of four children, I am terribly troubled by the pain and loss that Richard Martinez has had to endure. It is frustrating that the media has used this terrible tragedy as a platform for gun control. The lack of understanding of the true cause of why this happened takes us further away from what should be the focus of the problem, which is the person that committed the act. This person obviously should not have a gun, or a knife, or a car. Six people were killed, three by knife and three by a gun, and one person terribly injured, and almost killed by the car. So who or what is the culprit–the car, the knife, the gun, or the person that used them? Mr. Martinez, bless his soul, is distraught. He needs to be mad at something, and for him that something is guns. He may have had a predisposition against guns before this tragedy that was exponentially magnified by this incident. Do you think the parents of the three young men that were stabbed to death believe this is a gun control issue? Of course not. Respectfully, Mr. Martinez is in no condition to discuss the merits of gun ownership. We should be discussing how to best engage the problem. We should closely analyze the what happened leading up to this event. We should look to how local law enforcement failed to act on warnings from the parents and health care professionals. We should ponder how moral degradation has eroded the mental and emotional health of our young people. We, as a nation, should take responsibility for this senseless crime. This is a sticky and complex issue. If only it was as simple as getting rid of all of the guns, knives and cars. Unfortunately, it is a bigger problem that. May God help heal these wounds, and may God help us figure this out.

    May 28, 2014 at 3:26 am |
    • gordonh2014

      Brent Green. You are wrong. I have read some of the notes the killer left. " the gun gave me power" it's all about the gun. Every time there is a shooting in your country, I blame the NRA. They are bullying your country why? To sell more guns. Wake up. More guns is not the answer. Why not try back ground checks on gun owners. 90% of Americans and 100% of the rest of the world would agree. At least try something. Doing nothing will only cause more shootings. Wayne Lapiere and The NRA are a cancer to the American people. There slogan should be "Amercans killing Amercans since 18??" When the NRA debates a gun topic. They send Ted Negent. How sad. The one person that tried to make changes and help stop mass shootings got fired. Piers Morgan. At least he tried. I would bet the NRA had something to do with that. The World is watching America. You got a bully NRA God Bless

      May 28, 2014 at 11:40 am |
      • spruceman

        Owning a gun does make make a person a murderer. There are millions of guns in the USA. If guns caused murder, there would civil war right now and thousands of deaths each day. I don`t think it is as cut and dried as this article claims. Peoples emotions play a really big role in these killings. Real or imagined slights seems to be a major cause and well as these shooters becoming alienated and disenfranchised from society in general. There doesn`t appear to be any help or place to go for people who have been ostracized or who are in emotional pain. People commit suicide every day but how did they get to a point where they want to take other innocent people with them in a blaze of media glory? What creates such a situation? This is where the focus should be and this is where solutions should be sought.

        Blaming guns and the NRA is a red herring in that it is not addressing the root cause. If people cannot get a gun they will use knives or as we have seen in the middle east, build bombs. Try running a ducking and hiding or fighting back from a bomb blast.

        Blaming guns only means that these killers will not get the help they need as all the resources go into trying to control guns instead of people. And it is people who need to be controlled, not inanimate objects.

        This latest killer blamed innocent women for his pain. And now Mr. Martinez is acting the same way by blaming the innocent people of the NRA and politicians who do not condone or promote the murder of others. This blame game seems to be part of the problem. And that mindset is nothing new. Racists have been doing it forever.

        It does no good to be divided on this by pointing fingers of blame. All citizens, including gun owners, need to come together with a plan.Everyone needs to work together. And those against guns should back of from their toxic rhetoric and divisive words about banning guns because it is causing a rift and smacks of totalitarianism, something we should all be afraid of as history has proven time and time again.

        May 29, 2014 at 12:52 pm |
        • nanopod

          Why do people feel they need to own guns in the first place? To defend themselves. Wow. Shooting each other is not the answer. While it may initially and seemingly stop a criminal act – it in itself is a criminal act (shooting another Human being).
          It seems the majority of gun owners in the States also believe in a god like figure. They pray to this figure for help and guidance, out of complete ignorance. Take responsibility for your actions. Theres no need to be aggressive all. the. time. Try communicating with each other. Being present for one another. Listening. Your outdated want of weaponry to defend yourself from 'tyranny in the government' is tired. Your so-called "Right' to bear arms, boring. I wish the rest of the world could annex the United States. Let them live in their bubble of fear, hate, hypocritical religious beliefs and bigotry until they grow up!

          May 30, 2014 at 2:33 pm |
          • brentgreen777

            Nanopod, You're either very young or just naive. If you take a passive stance in every situation, you will end up like Europe during Nazi Germany. As long as there is good people there will be evil people. When ideas diverge, communication isn't effective. When there are crazy people in the world, you should have a way to counteract a physical threat such as a weapon, which can be used to deter and protect. Besides, shooting someone is not a criminal act if done in self defense. And the reason the world cannot annex is the US is because if they tried, we would shoot their A%ses off.

            November 26, 2014 at 11:42 pm |
            • nanopod

              Oh, the world will and can annex individuals like yourself Mr. father-of-four poor children that will grow up either as ignorant as their Troll backwoods papa or hating him.

              December 1, 2014 at 11:17 pm |
      • brentgreen777

        GordonH2014, you err in your logic. You said the killer's notes said "the gun gave me power." That is the point. The killer is crazy, not the gun. There are lot's of people who own guns for good reasons, including myself. I have guns for amusement, sport, and protection. I've never shot anyone or threatened anyone with a gun, but I know that it is there so that if someone threatens my family, I will have an equalizer against evil people who wish to do harm to others.

        November 26, 2014 at 11:20 pm |
  4. seanpascalle

    Mr Cooper, i am waiting patiently for any anchor or producer on CNN to ask the following questions:
    Make of gun that was used? manufacturer?, where was it purchased? any background check done? AND how many people especially kids that was killed in the USA by the same weapon in the past year?
    Thank You.

    May 27, 2014 at 11:16 pm |
    • brentgreen777

      seanpascalle, I'm not sure how that is at all relevant

      November 26, 2014 at 11:22 pm |

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