VOA慢速英语--加州酒吧发生枪击事件致12人死亡

Gunman Kills 12 People in California Bar Shooting

A gunman opened fire at a crowded bar in Southern California Wednesday night, killing¹ 12 people and wounding many others.

The Borderline Bar and Grill² in Thousand Oaks is popular among local college students. It was holding its weekly country music and dance night at the time of the shooting.

Police have identified the suspected killer³ as 28-year-old Ian David Long, a former Marine⁴. He was found dead in the office of the Borderline, after reportedly having shot himself.

Ventura County Sheriff Geoff Dean told reporters Thursday that Long had served in Afghanistan. Dean said Long reportedly used a handgun in the attack. The gun had a special device that permitted it to hold more bullets than usual. The device is illegal in California.

There was no known motive⁵ for the shooting, Dean said. He added, “Obviously he had something going on in his head that would cause him to do something like this.”

It is the latest mass killing in the United States, and comes less than two weeks after 11 people were killed in a shooting at a Jewish religious center.

It also marks the deadliest mass shooting in the country since 17 people were killed earlier this year at a high school in Parkland, Florida.

The Borderline Bar is popular with students of California Lutheran University, Pepperdine University and other area schools.

Nineteen-year-old Cole Knapp was inside Borderline at the time of the shooting. He told the Reuters news agency that he saw the shooter enter the bar and stop at the counter. Then, Knapp said, he heard gunfire and saw a young woman at the counter shot repeatedly.

Knapp said, “It took a couple of seconds for people to realize what was going on and once that happened it was just utter chaos⁶."

Seargent Ron Helus of Ventura County Sheriff's Office was the first law enforcement official to arrive at the Borderline Wednesday night. He was shot inside and later died at a hospital.

Dean said he believed about 150 to 200 people were inside the bar at the time of the shooting. “It could have been much, much worse,” he said.

Dean told reporters that officers went to the home of the suspected shooter about six months ago. Neighbor Tom Hanson had called the police with concerns about Long’s behavior.

Hanson told the Associated Press he had heard shouting and loud noises coming from the Longs’ home. He said, “I was concerned because I knew he had been in the military.”

Mental health specialists talked with Long and found that no special action was necessary.

Long had no criminal record.

President Donald Trump⁷ ordered flags to be flown at half-staff at public buildings and other areas Thursday. On Twitter, he praised police and other law enforcement for their “great bravery.” He also wrote, “God bless all of the victims and families of the victims.”

U.S. Representative Jerry Nadler is the top Democrat⁸ on the House Judiciary Committee. He said lawmakers would seek to pass gun control legislation when the House meets in January with a Democratic majority. He wrote on Twitter, “We must find a way to stop the senseless and many times preventable killings⁹ that are robbing our country of innocent lives.”

Thousand Oaks is a wealthy area about 60 kilometers northwest of Los Angeles. The website Niche¹⁰ named it the third-safest city in the United States in 2018.

Dean told reporters Thursday, “I’ve learned it doesn’t matter what community you’re in….It doesn’t matter how safe your community is. It can happen anywhere.”

I’m Caty Weaver¹¹.

Words in This Story

bar - n. a building or room where alcoholic¹² drinks and sometimes food are served

marine - n. a member of the U.S. Marine Corps¹³ (Marine Corps: the part of the U.S. military that consists of soldiers who serve at sea and also on land)

motive - n. a reason for doing something

counter - n. a piece of furniture with a flat surface that workers and customers stand on opposite sides of when doing business in a store, restaurant, etc.

utter - adj. complete and total

chaos - n. complete confusion and disorder¹⁴ : a state in which behavior and events are not controlled by anything

half-staff - n. the position in the middle of a mast or pole

1 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

2 grill   

n.烤架，铁格子，烤肉；v.烧，烤，严加盘问

参考例句：

• Put it under the grill for a minute to brown the top.放在烤架下烤一分钟把上面烤成金黄色。
• I'll grill you some mutton.我来给你烤一些羊肉吃。

3 killer   

n.杀人者，杀人犯，杀手，屠杀者

参考例句：

• Heart attacks have become Britain's No.1 killer disease.心脏病已成为英国的头号致命疾病。
• The bulk of the evidence points to him as her killer.大量证据证明是他杀死她的。

4 marine   

adj.海的；海生的；航海的；海事的；n.水兵

参考例句：

• Marine creatures are those which live in the sea. 海洋生物是生存在海里的生物。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

5 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

6 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

7 trump   

n.王牌，法宝；v.打出王牌，吹喇叭

参考例句：

• He was never able to trump up the courage to have a showdown.他始终鼓不起勇气摊牌。
• The coach saved his star player for a trump card.教练保留他的明星选手，作为他的王牌。

8 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

9 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

10 niche   

n.壁龛；合适的职务(环境、位置等)

参考例句：

• Madeleine placed it carefully in the rocky niche. 玛德琳小心翼翼地把它放在岩石壁龛里。
• The really talented among women would always make their own niche.妇女中真正有才能的人总是各得其所。

11 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

12 alcoholic   

adj.（含）酒精的，由酒精引起的；n.酗酒者

参考例句：

• The alcoholic strength of brandy far exceeds that of wine.白兰地的酒精浓度远远超过葡萄酒。
• Alcoholic drinks act as a poison to a child.酒精饮料对小孩犹如毒药。

13 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

14 disorder   

n.紊乱，混乱；骚动，骚乱；疾病，失调

参考例句：

• When returning back,he discovered the room to be in disorder.回家后，他发现屋子里乱七八糟。
• It contained a vast number of letters in great disorder.里面七零八落地装着许多信件。