Jiverly Voong, Kills 13 in NY, Fifth Massacre in Past Month, Three Cops Killed in Standoff at Richard Poplawski's Stanton Heights, Pa. Residence

Jiverly Voong, AKA Jiverly Wong (Photo: NY Daily News)

There is a very serious problem simmering in this country -- escalating gun violence. Something drastic needs to be done and quickly. We cannot just sit by and watch people being gunned down in this country on a weekly basis. The massacre in upstate New York comes on the heels of the massacre in the North Carolina nursing home, the massacre in Alabama, the mass killings of Lovelle Mixon of four police officers in Oakland, California, the slayings in Boston by Kerby Revelus of his sisters, as well as the rising incidents of murder-suicides in this country. It seems that the underlying theme in all these horrific crimes are extreme rage, financial hardships and easy access to high-powered guns. It is time for this country to enact stricter gun control laws, including zero-tolerance to offenders.

Coming on the heels of this senseless massacre, five police officers have been shot, three killed, at a Stanton Heights residence in Pittsburgh, Pa., after police tried to serve a warrant. There was a stand-off, with the suspect, Richard Poplawski, who was barricaded inside the home. It is now being reported that he is now in police custody. According to media reports, friends said Mr. Poplawski had several guns, including an AK-47 assault-type rifle, a .357 Magnum revolver, a .380-caliber handgun and a .45-caliber handgun. This gun-loving lunatic was afraid President Obama would ban firearms. The three dead officers are Eric Kelly, Stephen Mayhle and Paul Sciullo III. Kelly had been on the force for 14 years and the other two only two years each. Another officer was shot in the hand and a fifth broke his leg on a fence.

Mr. Voong was a Vietnamese immigrant who decided to play "judge and jury" with the lives of innocent people. Though no motive for the massacre has been released, it is ironic that he chose a place where he could identify with some of the people -- the American Civic Association. The community center was filled with people from different countries, all working to become a part of their new home -- learning English, taking a class to become an American citizen, much like the gun did when he became a citizen decades ago. He planned this massacre down to the last detail, as evident in his actions. He parked his car against the back door, stormed through the front and started his short reign of terror. Some people ran to the boiler room to get away from this horror. When the dust settled, 13 innocent people were dead, before he apparently killed himself. Four were critically wounded and fighting for their lives.

The man was found dead with a self-inflicted gunshot wound in an office, a satchel containing ammunition slung around his neck, authorities said. Police found two handguns - a nine mm and a .45-caliber - as well as a hunting knife, authorities said. He was prepared to do irreparable damage and, shamefully, he succeeded. It has been reported that he was angry at losing his job and he couldn't speak English very well. We are all experiencing some financial hardships in this economic climate, but you don't just pull the trigger and kill others to solve your problems. It is being reported in the New York Daily News that he reportedly talked to his coworkers about guns and that he was angry. He also reportedly went to target practice every weekend, another reason why he was able to do so much damage at the civic center.

These are two senseless crimes. At least Mr. Poplawski is still alive and will face some serious charges. We have to find a way to curb this escalating gun violence -- from the streets of the inner cities to the suburbs, there should be zero tolerance. We are experiencing an unprecedented level of violence that has no end in sight. I have lost count of the incidents that have occurred in the last six months alone. We have lost seven police officers in three weeks and numerous civilians. This bloodshed has to end.

Dozens March in Protest Organized by Uhuru Movement to Honor Lovelle Mixon who Shot and Killed Four Police Officers in Oakland

It is unconscionable to me that people could march and rally to honor cop killer Lovelle Mixon, who was shot by Oakland police after he fatally shot four officers last Saturday. What is the message that the organizer, the Uhuru Movement, is sending? That they are condoning the horrific actions of a career criminal. Sorry, but had that been a white man who shot and killed four black cops, they would be throwing the kitchen sink and everything else that they could find. Heck, they might have even ended up in Washington D.C. at the Capitol in protest. How do you honor someone who has deliberately killed four police officers or anyone, for that matter? This sets a terrible precedent in Oakland and around the country. The shootings were by far the deadliest incident for U.S. law enforcement since Sept. 11, 2001, and the deadliest in California in nearly four decades, according to media reports.

"OPD you can't hide - we charge you with genocide," chanted the demonstrators as they marched along MacArthur Boulevard, near the intersection with 74th Avenue where Mixon, 26, a fugitive parolee, gunned down two motorcycle officers who had pulled him over in a traffic stop. He killed two more officers who tried to capture him where he was hiding in his sister's apartment nearby.

The protest was organized by the Oakland branch of the Uhuru Movement, whose flyers for the march declared, "Stop Police Terror." Many marchers wore T-shirts featuring Mixon's photo, including a woman identified by march organizers as Mixon's mother. The woman declined to comment and gave her name only as Athena. Lolo Darnell, one of Mixon's cousins at the demonstration, said, "He needs sympathy too. If he's a criminal, everybody's a criminal." Asked about police allegations that Mixon was suspected in several rapes, including that of a 12-year-old girl, marcher Mandingo Hayes said, "He wasn't a rapist. I don't believe that."

Bystanders had mixed reactions. Nicole Brown said that she can't condone murder but that police don't respect residents of the area. Daria Belt said she had no sympathy for the protesters but sympathized for Mixon's family. Source: San Francisco Chronicle

The organizers have managed to confuse two issues -- police brutality and criminal behavior on the part of Mr. Mixon. Genocide is a very strong word to use, especially when they chant Lovelle Mixon's name in the same sentence. He is a cold-blooded murderer and there is absolutely no justification for what he did. His family deserves some sympathy for being thrust in the spotlight, but it seems that by dint of their actions in the aftermath of these horrific murders, they may have been enablers of this man. Also equally devastating is the fact that Mixon's DNA has been linked to the rape of a 12-year old girl. He was a suspect in several other rapes.

Sorry Uhuru Movement, you are clearly acting contrary to the meaning of your name. You see "uhuru" means freedom, independence, not stupid and racist in your actions. The organization has sent a terrible message that they coddle and embrace criminal behavior for the sake of race. This is the same group that came to national attention during the presidential campaign when several members interrupted President Obama's town hall meeting in St. Petersburg, Florida, shouting slogans at him and held up a banner which read, "What about the black community, Obama?"

Simply shameful and let me end by saying, Lovelle Mixon is a disgrace to the African American community. Yes, there may have been issues with the Oakland Police Department, but Lovelle Mixon killed four officers trying to do their jobs. Nobody told him to pull the trigger and kill these men. Founder Omali Yeshitela (born Joseph Waller) and Uhuru Movement do you honestly think anyone in their right mind will take your organization serious?

Hat tip to contributor Cheri Thomas for informing me about the rally.

Lovelle Mixon, 26, Kills Three Cops Mark Dunakin, Ervin Romans and Daniel Sakai, Fourth Cop John Hege Braindead

Lovelle Mixon, Contributed photo/Oakland Police Department

It is a tragedy of untold proportions that another scumbag has managed to wreak such havoc on our streets. Lovelle Mixon, 26, was fatally shot in a gun battle with SWAT officers in an apartment complex in Oakland, California, yesterday. Mixon's actions come as no surprise. You see, he had an extensive criminal history and was in violation of parole for assault with a deadly weapon. He had prior convictions in Alameda County for grand theft and possession of marijuana, the Oakland Tribune stated. The question I have is why this scumbag was allowed out of prison in the first place.

His family is speaking out.

His relatives told the Oakland Tribune that they could tell his frustration was building inside. After serving the better part of the last decade behind bars, the 26-year-old was free again in November. He planned to do better, family members said, and he wanted to meet the requirements mandated by his second time on parole.

The only problem is he did not know how. "He didn't know really where to start,'' said Mixon's wife Amara Langston, 25. "He was trying to make himself a better person and trying to realize his mistakes and what he was doing was wrong." Mixon tried to abide by the terms of his parole, the family members said, but obstacles continued to block his path. His parole officer stood-him up when they had planned a meeting, family members said. He couldn't find a job. He was depressed.

Just three months after being released from prison, Mixon was on his way back, deciding in February to skip a meeting with his parole officer immediately resulting in a no-bail warrant for his arrest. Mixon was ready to go back to prison, his grandmother Mary Mixon said, if only to get a new parole officer upon his release. Source: Oakland Tribune

According to media reports, the incident started about 1 p.m. Saturday in east Oakland when two motorcycle officers tried to pull over a car for a "fairly routine traffic stop," said Dave Kozicki, the deputy police chief. Emergency call dispatchers then received reports that two officers were shot and needed help, he said. Those officers were John Hege and Sgt. Mark Dunakin, 40, an 18-year veteran of the force, who died Saturday.

Clockwise from top left: John Hege, Sgt. Daniel Sakai,
Sgt. Ervin Romans and Sgt. Mark Dunakin.

On a tip, the SWAT team surrounded an adjacent building where Mixon was reportedly holed up. Those two slain police officers were Sgt. Ervin Romans, 43, and Sgt. Daniel Sakai, 35. Romans had been with the department since 1996; Sakai since 2000. Mixon reportedly committed suicide.

Once again the long arm of justice has failed us. This thug should have been in prison where he belonged. There is no reason why a person with such a long rap sheet should have been released from prison to roam the streets. How was this man able to get his hands on a gun? Seems that the guns laws are too lax. There should be zero-tolerance, especially when dealing with a career criminal as Lovelle Mixon. Yes, society has slammed the door shut on people with criminal records, but where is his sense of personal responsibility in all this? Did he have to knowingly kill three cops, with a fourth brain dead and a fifth injured? That makes absolutely no sense.

Lovelle Mixon, 26, Kills Three Cops Mark Dunakin, Ervin Romans and Daniel Sakai, Fourth Cop John Hege Braindead

Lovelle Mixon, Contributed photo/Oakland Police Department

It is a tragedy of untold proportions that another scumbag has managed to wreak such havoc on our streets. Lovelle Mixon, 26, was fatally shot in a gun battle with SWAT officers in an apartment complex in Oakland, California, yesterday. Mixon's actions come as no surprise. You see, he had an extensive criminal history and was in violation of parole for assault with a deadly weapon. He had prior convictions in Alameda County for grand theft and possession of marijuana, the Oakland Tribune stated. The question I have is why this scumbag was allowed out of prison in the first place.

His family is speaking out.

His relatives told the Oakland Tribune that they could tell his frustration was building inside. After serving the better part of the last decade behind bars, the 26-year-old was free again in November. He planned to do better, family members said, and he wanted to meet the requirements mandated by his second time on parole.

The only problem is he did not know how. "He didn't know really where to start,'' said Mixon's wife Amara Langston, 25. "He was trying to make himself a better person and trying to realize his mistakes and what he was doing was wrong." Mixon tried to abide by the terms of his parole, the family members said, but obstacles continued to block his path. His parole officer stood-him up when they had planned a meeting, family members said. He couldn't find a job. He was depressed.

Just three months after being released from prison, Mixon was on his way back, deciding in February to skip a meeting with his parole officer immediately resulting in a no-bail warrant for his arrest. Mixon was ready to go back to prison, his grandmother Mary Mixon said, if only to get a new parole officer upon his release. Source: Oakland Tribune

According to media reports, the incident started about 1 p.m. Saturday in east Oakland when two motorcycle officers tried to pull over a car for a "fairly routine traffic stop," said Dave Kozicki, the deputy police chief. Emergency call dispatchers then received reports that two officers were shot and needed help, he said. Those officers were John Hege and Sgt. Mark Dunakin, 40, an 18-year veteran of the force, who died Saturday.

Clockwise from top left: John Hege, Sgt. Daniel Sakai,
Sgt. Ervin Romans and Sgt. Mark Dunakin.

On a tip, the SWAT team surrounded an adjacent building where Mixon was reportedly holed up. Those two slain police officers were Sgt. Ervin Romans, 43, and Sgt. Daniel Sakai, 35. Romans had been with the department since 1996; Sakai since 2000. Mixon reportedly committed suicide.

Once again the long arm of justice has failed us. This thug should have been in prison where he belonged. There is no reason why a person with such a long rap sheet should have been released from prison to roam the streets. How was this man able to get his hands on a gun? Seems that the guns laws are too lax. There should be zero-tolerance, especially when dealing with a career criminal as Lovelle Mixon. Yes, society has slammed the door shut on people with criminal records, but where is his sense of personal responsibility in all this? Did he have to knowingly kill three cops, with a fourth brain dead and a fifth injured? That makes absolutely no sense.