St. Louis school shooter failed a background check. Why didn't police take his gun?

ST. LOUIS — Police officers were called to the home of Orlando Harris on Oct. 15, nine days before he went on a shooting rampage inside a St. Louis high school. Harris’ mother had asked officers to remove the weapon, an AR-15 rifle, from her home, citing her son’s mental health struggles. Police had been called to the home before.St. Louis police had also been informed that Harris, 19, recently failed a federal background check when he tried to buy a weapon from a local dealer.So why didn’t police confiscate the AR-15 before Monday’s attack at Central Visual and Performing Arts and Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience, which left two people dead and seven others injured?They say slight differences in state and federal gun possession laws tied their hands when Harris’ mother asked them to remove the weapon on Oct. 15. They also point to a controversial new law in Missouri that claims state statutes supersede federal law when it comes to gun possession. “It is our belief that under existing state law SLMPD would have no authority to seize the firearm in question,” police Sgt. Charles Wall said in a statement.But some experts side with Missouri Gov. Mike…
Read More