Texas endures pain of another mass shooting

Since 2017, nearly 100 people have been killed by mass shooters in public places in the state of Texas.

That number does not include shootings at private residences, like the one in Cleveland, Texas, when a neighbor asked the suspect to stop firing his semi-automatic rifle in his yard because it kept a baby awake.

The suspect, who was caught after a four-day search, was identified as a Mexican national who immigration officials said had been deported from the US four times since 2009.

The latest public mass shooting occurred on Saturday at a shopping mall in Allen, Texas, a city of 105,000 about 40 kilometers north of downtown Dallas, in which eight people were killed.

The shooter was shot and killed by a police officer who happened to be in the area. Video on social media showed him lying on his back in a pool of blood with what appeared to be a gunshot wound to the head.

It was the 199th mass shooting in the US this year, according to the Gun Violence Archive.

After each shooting, a similar refrain is heard. On the left is a call for more gun control and the banning of "assault weapons".

On the right is an unbending defense of the Second Amendment and how "a good guy with a gun" can stop mass shootings, although that hasn't always been the case in Texas, a state that makes it easy for people to carry weapons. The mall in Allen did not allow weapons on the premises.

In the middle are the victims, whether they are people out shopping for groceries, praying at a church, or innocent children in a school building.

US President Joe Biden urged Congress to enact tighter restrictions on firearms and ammunition. "Such an attack is too shocking to be so familiar. And yet, American communities have suffered roughly 200 mass shootings already this year, according to leading counts," said Biden, who ordered flags lowered to half-staff.

Republican Texas Governor Greg Abbott, who has signed laws easing firearms restrictions following past mass shootings, called the mall attack an "unspeakable tragedy".

The assailant who killed eight people at the mall was identified by authorities on Sunday as Mauricio Garcia, 33, who had been staying at a nearby motel.

Garcia had several social media accounts and appeared to be drawn to neo-Nazi and white supremacist content, said the NBC News report, adding that he was wearing a patch on his chest with a right-wing acronym.

However, it was too early to ascribe a motive, said authorities.

Some news outlets, including The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post, citing law enforcement sources, reported that Garcia had possible links online to white supremacist ideology, saying he had a right-wing tattoo.

The wounded remained hospitalized on Sunday, including three in critical condition, said the Allen Police Department. They range in age from 5 to 61, authorities said.

Agencies and Xinhua contributed to this story.