# 2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting

The 2013 Los Angeles International Airport shooting was a mass shooting which occurred on November 1, 2013 at around 9:20 a.m. in Terminal 3 of the Los Angeles International Airport. Paul Anthony Ciancia, aged 23, opened fire with a Smith & Wesson M&P15 rifle, killing a Transportation Security Administration (T.S.A.) officer and injuring several other people.

## Quotes
### 2013

* America's most popular rifle, the AR-15 is at the center of the debate on gun control raging through the United States. As the smoke clears from a shooting at Los Angeles International Airport this morning, there appears to be a familiar rifle laying on the ground by the feet of officers and first responders — an AR-15. Los Angeles' ABC News affiliate confirms that the weapon was indeed an AR-15, and images of the scene indicate that, as well. It was also the weapon of choice for James Holmes in Aurora, Colo., and Adam Lanza in Newtown, Conn.
** Jones, Brian (November 1, 2013). "Another AR-15 Rampage? Here Are The Facts About America's Most Popular Rifle". Business Insider. Retrieved on October 28, 2018.
* There were five gunshot victims. Two of the wounded were T.S.A. agents, and two others were hurt while trying to escape. Prosecutors said Mr. Ciancia shot Mr. Hernandez several times at point-blank range, went up an escalator, and then, seeing the wounded officer move, returned to fire again. He shot at least two other uniformed T.S.A. employees and one passenger, the documents said. The gun was described as a Smith & Wesson 223 M & P15 rifle. Mr. Ciancia had assembled a small arsenal. Law enforcement officials said two legal guns registered to him were purchased early this year at The Target Range in Van Nuys, a neighborhood of Los Angeles. The rifle recovered at the airport was also purchased by Mr. Ciancia in the Los Angeles area, according to a senior federal official.
** Medina, Jennifer; Lovett, Ian (November 2, 2013). "At Los Angeles International Airport, Two Lives Collide in a Fatal Instant". The New York Times. Retrieved on October 25, 2018.
* CIANCIA pulled a Smith & Wesson .223 caliber M&P-15 assault rifle out of his bag and fired multiple rounds at point-blank range at a TSA officer who was then on duty and in uniform, wounding the officer. CIANCIA began to walk up an escalator, looked back at the wounded officer, who in video appeared to move, and returned to shoot the wounded officer again.
** Khoobyarian, Stephen J. (November 2, 2013). "Criminal complaint: United States of America v. Paul Anthony Ciana". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 25, 2018.
* The gunman was carrying a signed handwritten note in his duffel bag that said he wanted to "instill fear into their traitorous minds," said David Bowdich, special agent in charge of the Counterterrorism Division at the FBI's Los Angeles office. "His intent was very clear in his note," Bowdich told reporters Saturday. "In that note he indicated his anger and his malice toward the TSA officers."... He carried a Smith & Wesson .223-caliber M&P-15 assault rifle, five loaded magazines and a trove of ammunition, Bowdich said.
** Mather, Kate; Stevens, Matt; Powers, Ashley (November 2, 2013). "LAX shooting: Dramatic details emerge of rampage targeting TSA agents". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 29, 2018. ; Tanfani, Joseph; Powers, Ashley; Mather, Kate (November 3, 2013). "LAX shooting: Alleged gunman's motive remains a mystery". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 28, 2018. ; Mather, Kate; Stevens, Matt; Powers, Ashley (November 3, 2013). "Suspected LAX gunman had his targets clearly in mind". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 29, 2018. ; Mather, Kate; Stevens, Matt; Powers, Ashley (November 3, 2013). "LAX shooting: Gunman wanted to kill several TSA agents, complaint says". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 29, 2018.
* Police officials missed checking in on Paul Anthony Ciancia "by a matter of minutes" before a deadly shooting rampage occurred at Los Angeles International Airport, the chairman of the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee said Sunday. Ciancia, who police say shot and killed a Transportation Security Administration screener at LAX, was dropped off at the airport by one of his roommates about 9 a.m. Friday, shortly before the deadly shooting rampage occurred, according to authorities. Around the same time, Los Angeles police officers paid a visit to his apartment in Sun Valley in response to concerns from his family after they received text messages indicating that he wanted to harm himself.... When he entered LAX, Ciancia was wearing dark clothes and a bulletproof vest and had not purchased a ticket. He carried a Smith & Wesson .223-caliber M&P-15 assault rifle, five loaded magazines and a trove of ammunition, Bowdich said.
** Staff (November 4, 2013). "LAX shooting: LAPD missed intercepting alleged shooter by minutes". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 30, 2018.
* A Transportation Security Administration worker injured in the deadly shooting rampage at Los Angeles International Airport spoke to reporters for the first time Monday, saying his first thought was to help the passengers around him. Tony Grigsby, 36, limped from the front door of his South L.A. home to a microphone stand, a brace on his right foot and cane in his right hand.... "All I could think about was helping them," he said. "I may be injured right now, but the concern really is to take care of you." Grigsby was one of three TSA agents struck when a gunman carrying a Smith & Wesson .223-caliber M&P-15 assault rifle opened fire Friday morning at the nation's third-busiest airport.
** Vives, Ruben; Mather, Kate (November 4, 2013). "Injured TSA worker: 'All I could think about was helping' people". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 30, 2018.
* The semiautomatic rifle used in the shooting was purchased at a Van Nuys gun store and could fit into the bag the gunman brought to the airport, a federal law enforcement source told The Times. The source said the weapon was a Smith and Wesson M&P 15, caliber .556, which was purchased at the Target Range Gun Store, 16140 Cohasset St., Van Nuys. The source said the weapon is “collapsible” to be assembled later. But it could “easily fit ready to fire” into the luggage bag the alleged shooter brought into the airport, added the source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the case is ongoing.
** Bloomekatz, Ari (November 4, 2013). "Family of LAX shooting suspect 'shocked and numbed' by rampage". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on November 30, 2018.
* The gun used by the government-hater to kill a checkpoint screener and wound three others? It was the type of firearm that would have been banned from the California market under legislation vetoed by Gov. Jerry Brown. Not that it would have mattered for Gerardo Hernandez, 39, the TSA agent who was murdered. The bill would not have taken effect until Jan. 1. And Paul Anthony Ciancia, 23, the disgruntled, alleged assassin, could have kept his semiautomatic rifle by registering it. And, yes, he also could have armed himself with a handgun and probably inflicted the same damage. But presumably he chose the Smith & Wesson M&P 15, .223-caliber semiautomatic — hauling with him five loaded detachable magazines and a trove of ammunition — because he had in mind creating even more mayhem. Such military-style assault rifles, after all, are the weapons of choice for mass killers. Ciancia was stopped only when critically wounded by LAX police. SB 374, by Senate leader Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento), would have banned the sale of most semiautomatic rifles capable of accepting detachable magazines. The aim was to close a loophole used by gun manufacturers to circumvent California's ban on assault weapons. Because of Brown's veto, these especially lethal firearms are still available for purchase in California. And they'll continue to be used by wackos in horrific shootings.
** Skelton, George (November 10, 2013). "Governor, Californians split on gun legislation". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 28, 2018.
* The semiautomatic rifle used in the LAX shooting rampage Friday was purchased at a Van Nuys gun store and could fit into the bag the alleged gunman brought to the airport, a federal law enforcement source told The Times. The source said the weapon was a Smith and Wesson M&P 15, 5.56-millimeter and .223-caliber, which was purchased at the Target Range Gun Store, 16140 Cohasset St., Van Nuys.
** Serrano, Richard A.; Tanfani, Joseph; Mather, Kate (November 11, 2013). "LAX shooting: Gunman's rifle may have been ready to fire in his bag". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 25, 2018.
* A Transportation Security Administration officer killed at Los Angeles International Airport during a rampage three weeks ago was shot 12 times, with bullets piercing organs, grazing his heart and severing a major artery, according to a final autopsy report released Friday. Gerardo I. Hernandez, 39, died within two to five minutes of the Nov. 1 attack inside Terminal 3. The gunman, identified by authorities as Paul Anthony Ciancia, 23, targeted TSA agents during the shooting, the Los Angeles County coroner's office said earlier this week. Hernandez, a married father of two from Porter Ranch, was shot through his right arm, torso, waist, hip, back, buttock and groin by the gunman's semiautomatic rifle, according to the 22-page autopsy report. Many of the shots were fired into the back of the unarmed agent, who became the nation's first TSA officer to be killed in the line of duty. Authorities say Ciancia entered the terminal about 9:30 a.m., pulled his rifle out of a bag and fired at Hernandez. The gunman walked up an escalator, then returned to shoot Hernandez again, U.S. Atty. Andre Birotte has said. The coroner's report described extensive injuries to many of Hernandez's vital internal organs. The autopsy noted Hernandez suffered "a complete transection of the abdominal aorta distal to superior mesenteric artery" and extensive damage to his spinal cord. Hernandez suffered 16 wounds to his gastrointestinal tract. Many of the rounds lodged in his body, the report noted. Medical examiners recovered 40 bullet fragments, which were given to the FBI as evidence, according to the report. Two other TSA officers and a schoolteacher were wounded before Ciancia was shot and critically wounded by two airport police officers. In Ciancia's possessions, FBI agents recovered a Smith & Wesson .223-caliber rifle as well as notes expressing his hatred for the TSA and the government in general.
** Winton, Richard; Mather, Kate (November 22, 2013). "Autopsy report reveals TSA agent shot 12 times in LAX attack". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 25, 2018.
* A Transportation Security Administration officer killed at Los Angeles International Airport during a rampage three weeks ago was shot 12 times, with bullets piercing organs, grazing his heart and severing a major artery, according to a final autopsy report released Friday.... The coroner’s report described extensive injuries as bullets careened and sliced through many of Hernandez’s vital internal organs, grazing his heart and a lung and perforating his bladder and severely damaging one of his kidneys. Hernandez, the autopsy noted, suffered “a complete transection of the abdominal aorta distal to superior mesenteric artery” and extensive damage to his spinal cord. Hernandez suffered 16 wounds to his gastrointestinal tract. Many of the rounds lodged is his body, the report noted. Medical examiners recovered 40 bullet fragments, which were given to the FBI as evidence, the report said.... In Ciancia’s possession, FBI agents recovered a Smith & Wesson .223-caliber rifle and notes expressing his hatred for the TSA and the government in general.
** Winton, Richard; Mather, Kate (November 22, 2013). "TSA officer killed at LAX: Bullets hit several organs". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 30, 2018.
* Multiple witnesses said the gunman appeared to be targeting T.S.A. officials. The indictment alleges that Mr. Ciancia shot the three officers using a Smith & Wesson 5.56-millimeter M&P15 semiautomatic rifle.
** Lovett, Ian (December 17, 2013). "Suspect in T.S.A. Agent’s Killing Is Indicted on 11 Charges". The New York Times. Retrieved on October 25, 2018.
* The man accused in the fatal shooting rampage at Los Angeles International Airport was indicted by a federal grand jury Tuesday on 11 felony counts, including murder and attempted murder, prosecutors announced.... The final three counts are related to allegations that Ciancia used the Smith & Wesson M&P-15 to commit acts of violence at an international airport.
** Mather, Kate (December 17, 2013). "Alleged LAX shooter indicted by federal grand jury". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 30, 2018.
* The alleged gunman behind the fatal shooting rampage at Los Angeles International Airport could face the death penalty. Paul Anthony Ciancia, 23, was indicted Tuesday by a federal grand jury on 11 felony counts, including murder and attempted murder, prosecutors announced.... The final three counts are related to allegations that Ciancia used the Smith & Wesson M&P-15 to commit acts of violence at an international airport.
** Mather, Kate (December 18, 2013). "Alleged LAX gunman could face death penalty". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on October 30, 2018.
* Mr. Ciancia is charged with the murder of Gerardo I. Hernandez, who was the first T.S.A. officer killed in the line of duty, as well as the attempted murder of two other security officers. He shot all three with a Smith & Wesson 5.56-millimeter M&P15 semiautomatic rifle, according to the indictment.
** Lovett, Ian (December 26, 2013). "Los Angeles Airport Shooting Suspect Pleads Not Guilty". The New York Times. Retrieved on October 25, 2018.

### 2015

* Federal prosecutors will seek the death penalty against the man charged in the deadly 2013 shooting at Los Angeles International Airport, according to court documents filed Friday.... "Defendant Paul Anthony Ciancia acted with the intent that his crimes would strike fear in the hearts of Transportation Security Administration employees," prosecutors wrote. "By committing his crimes on a weekday morning in a crowded terminal at one of the busiest airports in the world … Ciancia terrorized numerous airline passengers and airport employees."... Authorities allege Ciancia was dropped off outside the airport, carrying a Smith & Wesson .223-caliber M&P-15 assault rifle, five loaded magazines and a trove of ammunition.
** Mather, Kate; Winton, Richard (January 2, 2015). "Federal prosecutors to seek death penalty in fatal LAX shooting". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on November 1, 2018.

### 2016

* Paul Ciancia, the gunman whose 2013 rampage at Los Angeles International Airport left a Transportation Security Administration officer dead and three others injured, has agreed to plead guilty to all pending federal charges, according to court papers filed Thursday.... Ciancia, who had been living in Los Angeles for about 18 months before the shooting rampage, had purchased the Smith & Wesson semiautomatic rifle nearly seven months before he stormed into the terminal.... "I'm so sorry that I have to leave you pre-maturely, but it is for the greater good of humanity. This was the purpose I was brought here," he told his brother. To his sister, Ciancia wrote that he had to "stand up to these tyrants." He asked his sister not to let the media distort his actions. "There wasn't a terrorist attack on Nov 1. There was a pissed off patriot trying to water the tree of liberty," he wrote.
** Hamilton, Matt (September 1, 2016). "LAX shooter's plea agreement reveals he did not consider himself a terrorist, but a 'patriot'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on November 1, 2018.
* An unemployed motorcycle mechanic who gunned down airport screening officers at Los Angeles International Airport in a 2013 attack that sent passengers running for their lives pleaded guilty Tuesday to murder and 10 other charges.... He was armed with a Smith & Wesson semiautomatic rifle he had purchased seven months earlier. Officers found a handwritten note and ammunition in a duffel bag Ciancia had dropped. Ciancia, who was living in the Los Angeles area after growing up in Pennsville, N.J., said in the note that he wanted to kill at least one TSA officer but hoped to kill more. "If you want to play that game where you pretend that every American is a terrorist, you're going to learn what a self-fulfilling prophecy is," his note said, according to court documents. The note added, "I want to instill fear in your traitorous minds. I want it to always be in the back of your head just how easy it is to take a weapon to the beginning of your Nazi checkpoints."
** "Man who killed TSA officer at LAX in 2013 pleads guilty and avoids death penalty". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. September 6, 2016. Retrieved on November 1, 2018.

## See also

* Smith & Wesson M&P15