Title: A resolution honoring the victims of the mass shooting in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Policy area: Crime and Law Enforcement

Summary:
This resolution mourns the deaths and celebrates the lives of the 12 victims who were killed in the shooting at the Virginia Beach Municipal Center on May 31, 2019.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 248 Agreed to Senate (ATS)]

<DOC>






116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
S. RES. 248

 Honoring the victims of the mass shooting in Virginia Beach, Virginia.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             June 12, 2019

    Mr. Kaine (for himself and Mr. Warner) submitted the following 
             resolution; which was considered and agreed to

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
 Honoring the victims of the mass shooting in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

Whereas, on Friday, May 31, 2019, 12 people were killed in a mass shooting at 
        the Municipal Center in Virginia Beach, Virginia;
Whereas 11 of the 12 victims were employees of the city of Virginia Beach with 
        more than 150 years of combined service to the city, and the remaining 
        victim was a contractor who had come to the Municipal Center for 
        business;
Whereas Laquita C. Brown, a 4-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Works who was known for her love of travel with 
        friends and her ability to light up a room with her presence, was 
        murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Ryan Keith Cox, a 12-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Utilities who was known for his kindness and 
        beautiful singing voice, and who ran into danger looking for more people 
        to save after ensuring his coworkers were sheltered in a barricaded 
        room, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Tara Welch Gallagher, a 6-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Works who worked as an engineer to provide clean 
        drinking water for her community, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Mary Louise Gayle, a 24-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Works who was known as a cheerful coworker and 
        devoted mother and grandmother, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Alexander Mikhail Gusev, a 9-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Works who emigrated from Belarus to Virginia Beach 
        to find a better life and who was known as a generous and devoted 
        coworker, friend, brother, and uncle, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Joshua O. Hardy, a 4-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Utilities who was known for his kindhearted nature 
        and love for his family and faith, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Michelle ``Missy'' Langer, a 12-year employee of the city of Virginia 
        Beach Department of Public Utilities who was known for her beaming smile 
        and passion for the Pittsburgh Steelers, and who had plans to retire 
        soon, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Richard H. Nettleton, a 28-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Utilities who was a selfless leader in regional 
        utility system planning and a veteran of the 130th Engineer Brigade of 
        the Army, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Katherine A. Nixon, a 10-year employee of the city of Virginia Beach 
        Department of Public Utilities who was known for her intellect and who 
        was a loving wife and mother of 3 children, was murdered in the 
        shooting;
Whereas Christopher Kelly Rapp, an 11-month employee of the city of Virginia 
        Beach Department of Public Works who was known for his kindness, his 
        passion for playing the bagpipes, and his devotion to his wife, was 
        murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Herbert ``Bert'' Snelling, a contractor who had come to the Municipal 
        Center to get a permit and who was celebrating his 38th wedding 
        anniversary, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas Robert ``Bobby'' Williams, a 41-year employee of the city of Virginia 
        Beach Department of Public Utilities, who was awarded with 8 service 
        awards in recognition of his lifetime of devoted work and who was 
        planning on retiring later in the year to spend more time with his 
        family, was murdered in the shooting;
Whereas the actions of those city employees who alerted their coworkers to 
        danger and pulled them into shelter saved an unknowable number of lives;
Whereas police officers responded within minutes of the first reports of 
        shooting, heroically risking their lives by running into the line of 
        fire;
Whereas 1 police officer was shot while confronting the gunman and survived 
        because he was wearing a bulletproof vest;
Whereas those who were present at, or responded to, the scene of the shooting 
        encountered a ``war zone'' of horrific violence that will be forever 
        seared into their memories;
Whereas mental health providers, counselors, and faith leaders have tended to 
        the invisible wounds of the shooting, and will continue to do so for 
        decades to come;
Whereas Virginia Beach Chief of Police James Cervera, Mayor Bobby Dyer, and City 
        Manager David Hansen have led their community through its darkest hour 
        with courage, dignity, professionalism, and compassion; and
Whereas, within hours of the shooting, the residents of Virginia Beach had come 
        together in an outpouring of support for those affected, showing the 
        resiliency of love in the face of evil: Now, therefore, be it
    Resolved, That the Senate--
            (1) joins the Commonwealth of Virginia in mourning the 
        deaths and celebrating the lives of the 12 victims killed in 
        the shooting at the Municipal Center in Virginia Beach on May 
        31, 2019;
            (2) applauds the heroism, dedication, and compassion of the 
        police officers, first responders, and emergency medical 
        personnel who responded to the shooting and tended to the 
        wounded, in some cases risking their own lives while saving 
        others;
            (3) recognizes the strength of the Virginia Beach community 
        in coming together to show that this tragedy will not define 
        them; and
            (4) reaffirms its responsibility to find ways to prevent 
        more individuals in the United States from dying in acts of 
        violence.
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