3 dead after gunman opens fire at Louisiana movie theater

The Grand Theatre in Lafayette, Louisiana.

(Image credit: Twitter.com/BillyCorben)

last updated 24 July 2015

A gunman entered a Lafayette, Louisiana, movie theater on Thursday night and opened fire, killing at least two people and himself, authorities said.

City Marshal Brian Pope told The Daily Advertiser that six people were injured, and the shooter killed himself. Witness Katie Domingue said she was at the Grand Theatre's 7 p.m. showing of Trainwreck, and about 20 minutes into the movie, heard a loud noise that she "thought was a firecracker." Domingue said she saw an "older white man" standing up and shooting down, and heard six shots before she ran with her fiancé to the nearest exit.

UPDATE: During a press conference late Thursday, authorities said the shooter was a 58-year-old white male who was a patron at the movie theater, CNN reports. His identity is known to police, but they are not releasing it to the public. Authorities said seven people were transported to area hospitals, with injuries ranging from not life-threatening to critical. Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) praised first responders, and asked that people send their "love and prayers" to the victims and their families. "The great thing about America is that when any of us suffer, whether it's one family or one community, we all suffer," he said. "This is a time for us to all come together."

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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.

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