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{{Use American English|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox civilian attack
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| label = Midland–Odessa
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| injuries = 25 (24 by gunshot and 1 by
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| motive = Unknown (believed to be mental
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▲| perp = Seth Aaron Ator
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On August 31, 2019, a [[spree shooting]] occurred in the [[West Texas]] cities of [[Midland, Texas|Midland]] and [[Odessa, Texas|Odessa]], involving a gunman shooting multiple people from a vehicle.<ref name=nbc>{{Cite web|url=https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/multiple-people-injured-roaming-shooter-odessa-texas-police-say-n1048656|title=5 dead, 21 injured after motorist opens fire in Odessa, Texas|publisher=NBC News|language=en|access-date=August 31, 2019|date=August 31, 2019|author1=Dennis Romero|author2=Andrew Blankstein|author3=Tom Winter}}</ref> Eight people were killed, including the perpetrator, and twenty-five people were injured, including three police officers. It was the third major [[Mass shootings in the United States|mass shooting to take place in the United States]] in August 2019, following the [[2019 El Paso shooting|El Paso Walmart shooting]] and the [[2019 Dayton shooting|Dayton shooting]] (both of which took place 13 hours apart).
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== Shootings ==
At 1:27 p.m., Odessa Police Department responded to a call by Ator's former employer for a disturbance. Before the call, Ator was in the process of being terminated from his job for being rude to other employees at a contracted jobsite, but he became agitated and refused to hand over property belonging to the company. Ator started accusing the company of distributing [[child pornography]] before leaving. Ator got in his car and rammed through the business's fence as he left. While Odessa Police responded to the disturbance call, Ator contacted 911 and his call was transferred to the officers responding to the disturbance call. He started rambling about a cult stalking him and posting child pornography. He made claims that the employer kidnapped him and forced him to watch child pornography.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |last=Randle |first=Caitlin |date=February 3, 2020 |title=New documents clear up Odessa mass shooting timeline |url=https://www.mrt.com/news/article/New-documents-clear-up-mass-shooting-timeline-15022927.php |work=mrt}}</ref> He also demanded the police to help him track down the people stalking him, and that he would start shooting if any law enforcement tried to kidnap him. The police received several calls of a man, matching Ator's description, driving erratically and displaying a rifle. The police decided to wait for Ator, at the business, in case he would do a mass shooting there. They also deployed other units to keep track of Ator's location and search his address.
The shooting spree began at 3:17 p.m.<ref name=nbc /> during a traffic stop on [[Interstate 20 in Texas|Interstate 20]], where a [[Texas Highway Patrol|Texas state trooper]] was shot while attempting to stop a gold [[Toyota Camry (XV20)|1999 Toyota Camry]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Odessa shooting: Here's a look at the scenes impacted by the shooter|url=https://www.gosanangelo.com/picture-gallery/news/2019/09/01/odessa-shooting-here-is-what-happened/2188035001/|access-date=2021-09-10|website=www.gosanangelo.com|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=License Plate Decode Result|url=https://www.faxvin.com/license-plate-lookup/result?plate=LHH4711&state=TX|access-date=2021-09-10|website=FAXVIN| date=June 2017 |language=en-US}}</ref> over a failure to signal a left turn.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/article234601732.html|title=At least 5 dead in Texas shooting rampage after traffic stop|author=Paul J. Weber|date=August 31, 2019|agency=[[Associated Press]]|language=en|access-date=August 31, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190901050454/https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/article234601732.html|archive-date=September 1, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> The suspect continued into Odessa, Texas, and shot another person on the Interstate.<ref name="foxnews">{{Cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-shooting-death-toll-midland-odessa-suspect-dead|title=At least 21 shot, 5 killed in West Texas rampage, official says; suspect dead|last=Leon|first=Melissa|date=August 31, 2019|publisher=Fox News|language=en-US|access-date=September 1, 2019}}</ref> In Odessa, he abandoned the Toyota, hijacked a [[United States Postal Service]]-labeled [[Dodge Caravan#Ram Cargo Van (Ram C/V Tradesman)|Ram C/V Tradesman]], killed a 29-year-old letter carrier<ref name=nyt2/> and continued to drive and shoot people before police cornered and killed him in the parking lot of a Cinergy movie theater.<ref name="dallasnews">{{Cite web|url=https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2019/08/31/5-dead-several-wounded-after-gunman-targets-random-victims-in-midland-odessa-area-police-say/|title=5 dead, several wounded after gunman targets random victims in Midland-Odessa area, police say|last1=Smith|first1=LaVendrick|last2=Corchado|first2=Alfredo|date=August 31, 2019|website=Dallas News|language=en|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=September 1, 2019}}</ref>▼
▲The shooting spree began at 3:17 p.m.<ref name="nbc" /> during a traffic stop on [[Interstate 20 in Texas|Interstate 20]], where a [[Texas Highway Patrol|Texas state trooper]] was shot while attempting to stop a gold [[Toyota Camry (XV20)|1999 Toyota Camry]]<ref>{{Cite web|title=Odessa shooting: Here's a look at the scenes impacted by the shooter|url=https://www.gosanangelo.com/picture-gallery/news/2019/09/01/odessa-shooting-here-is-what-happened/2188035001/|access-date=2021-09-10|website=www.gosanangelo.com|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=License Plate Decode Result|url=https://www.faxvin.com/license-plate-lookup/result?plate=LHH4711&state=TX|access-date=2021-09-10|website=FAXVIN| date=June 2017 |language=en-US}}</ref> over a failure to signal a left turn.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/article234601732.html|title=At least 5 dead in Texas shooting rampage after traffic stop|author=Paul J. Weber|date=August 31, 2019|agency=[[Associated Press]]|language=en|access-date=August 31, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190901050454/https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/article234601732.html|archive-date=September 1, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Ator continued into Odessa, Texas, through East Loop 338 and wounded two more motorists as he drove north.<ref name="foxnews">{{Cite web|url=https://www.foxnews.com/us/texas-shooting-death-toll-midland-odessa-suspect-dead|title=At least 21 shot, 5 killed in West Texas rampage, official says; suspect dead|last=Leon|first=Melissa|date=August 31, 2019|publisher=Fox News|language=en-US|access-date=September 1, 2019}}</ref> He turned right onto a commercial parking lot, in TX-191, and drove around in a loop. During the loop, he cut through the parking lot and entered TX-191 westbound. He shot a motorist as he drove west, before turning right onto East Loop 338 again. Ator drove north before performing a [[U-turn]]. Ator drove southbound on East Loop 338 before driving onto TX-191 westbound. Ator entered the parking lot of a car dealership and stopped his car. He waved at a family standing outside the dealership before opening fire. He killed the teenage daughter of the family and wounded the son before driving off.<ref name=":0" /> Ator drove onto Preston Smith Road before turning right onto East 42nd Street. As Ator drove west on East 42nd Street, he shot into three vehicles, injuring four people, including a 17-month-old child. Ator reached an intersection and turned left onto John Ben Shepperd Parkway. As he made the turn, Ator wounded three motorists (2 directly and 1 via glass shards). Ator drove south on JBS Parkway and shot a man in a commercial parking lot in a [[Drive-by shooting|drive-by style shooting]]. Ator turned right and drove onto Maple Avenue. While driving westbound on Maple Avenue, he fired at a car without injuring anyone. At this point, Ator drove in a westward direction with minor deviations as he drove through the residential area of Odessa. Ator eventually turned onto East 38th Street from North Everglade Avenue, and shot a female motorist at the intersection of North Dixie Boulevard and East 38th Street. Ator turned onto Adams Avenue and stopped his Toyota Camry next to a [[United States Postal Service]]-labeled [[Dodge Caravan#Ram Cargo Van (Ram C/V Tradesman)|Ram C/V Tradesman]].<ref name=":1" />
Ator fired his rifle several times before dragging a 29-year-old letter carrier out of her mail van. He killed her, transferred items from his Toyota to the mail van, and hijacked the letter carrier's vehicle.<ref name="nyt2" /> In the hijacked van, Ator continued driving south on Adams Avenue and turned onto East 36th Street. He turned onto Walnut Avenue and drove northbound. He drove onto the lawn of a house at the corner of East 38th Street and Walnut Avenue before killing a man inside the home from outside. While shooting the man, he also injured another person in the area before performing a U-turn in an alleyway and driving back to Walnut Avenue to head south.<ref name=":1" />
For several minutes, Ator drove around Odessa without firing at anyone. Ator resumed shooting people when he fatally shot a motorist on East Yukon Road while driving eastbound near an intersection between East Yukon Road and North Grandview Avenue. Ator continued driving east, until he turned south onto Faudree Road. He fatally shot a man in his car at the intersection of TX-191 and Faudree Road. Ator turned left onto the south road of TX-191 and injured a motorist as he drove northeast. Ator was heading in the direction of the Cinergy movie theater. However, for unknown reasons, Ator then made a turn towards the parking lot of MCH Procare, a hospital. As he drove into the parking lot, he briefly passed the [[Chris Kyle]] memorial. Ator drove through the parking lot of the hospital and shot at two police vehicles, injuring two officers, as he left the parking lot. Ator made a turn onto Dr. Emmitt Headlee Street and drove east towards the evacuated Cinergy Odessa movie theater. Ator sped down the road towards a police roadblock consisting of two patrol vehicles with the intent of ramming through the barricade. One of the officers, blocking the road, intentionally struck the USPS van with his own vehicle and lessened the impact of the crash. The van finally stopped, and Ator tried to fire at police officers from within the van. Ator was quickly neutralized after a brief gun battle, where he was shot at least 16 times.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="dallasnews">{{Cite web|url=https://www.dallasnews.com/news/crime/2019/08/31/5-dead-several-wounded-after-gunman-targets-random-victims-in-midland-odessa-area-police-say/|title=5 dead, several wounded after gunman targets random victims in Midland-Odessa area, police say|last1=Smith|first1=LaVendrick|last2=Corchado|first2=Alfredo|date=August 31, 2019|website=Dallas News|language=en|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=September 1, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=crandle@mrt.com |first=By Caitlin Randle |date=2020-02-01 |title=New documents clear up Odessa mass shooting timeline |url=https://www.mrt.com/news/article/New-documents-clear-up-mass-shooting-timeline-15022927.php |access-date=2024-11-17 |website=Midland Reporter-Telegram |language=en}}</ref>
There was initial confusion over where the perpetrator was and how many individuals were involved. The confusion is apparent over the [[police scanner]] where one officer states about twenty minutes after the first officer was shot; "We're getting multiple calls for different victims in different locations. I've got people talking on four different channels, I'm not clear on anything, you're all talking."<ref name="Cava">{{Cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/09/04/texas-shooting-midland-odessa-police-scanner-audio-reveals-chase/2197222001/|title=A lone gunman fleeing Texas police stalked and shot people over a frenzied hour. Scanner traffic reveals the chaos|last1=Cava|first1=Marco della|last2=Frank|first2=BrieAnna J.|website=USA TODAY|language=en|access-date=September 5, 2019}}</ref>
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== Perpetrator ==
The day after the shooting, police identified the shooter as 36-year-old '''Seth Aaron Ator''' (September 17, 1982<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.myjournalcourier.com/news/article/Records-indicate-accused-Midland-Odessa-mass-14406380.php|title=Records indicate accused Midland-Odessa mass shooter's parents live in San Antonio|date=September 3, 2019|newspaper=MyJournalCourier}}</ref> – August 31, 2019) of [[Lorena, Texas]]. Officials initially refused to identify Ator as they did not want to give him any notoriety.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.kcbd.com/2019/09/01/police-reveal-name-midlandodessa-shooting-suspect/|title=City officials reveal name of Midland/Odessa shooting suspect|last=Digital|first=KCBD|date=September 1, 2019|website=KCBD 11|language=en-US|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-09-08}}</ref> Ator was born in [[Amarillo, Texas]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.mysanantonio.com/news/local/texas/article/Records-indicate-accused-Midland-Odessa-mass-14406258.php|title=Everything we know about the Odessa gunman, Seth Ator|date=September 3, 2019|newspaper=MySanAntonio}}</ref> and moved to Lorena in January 1995. Ator withdrew from [[Lorena High School]] in November 2000 to enroll in a GED program, which he later enrolled in
Ator lived in [[West Odessa, Texas|West Odessa]] in [[Ector County, Texas|Ector County]] in "a metal shack that lacked electricity, plumbing, a floor and even furniture"; he lived alone, except for a small dog.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.expressnews.com/news/local/article/Odessa-gunman-lived-in-a-dirt-floor-shack-and-14407506.php|title=Odessa gunman lived in a dirt-floor shack, a small dog his only companion|author=John MacCormack|date=September 3, 2019|newspaper=San Antonio Express-News}}</ref> A neighbor said that, well before his killing spree, he had yelled at her while carrying a large rifle. She also said he sometimes shot animals from his roof, which she had complained to police about, but they never responded to her complaint.<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/west-texas-shooting-odessa-midland/index.html|title=7 killed in West Texas shooting: Live updates|date=September 1, 2019|publisher=CNN}}</ref> Another neighbor told the [[Associated Press]] that her family had lived near Ator for the past five months and were afraid of him due to his tendency to shoot rabbits in the nighttime and him banging on their door early one morning.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Latest: Neighbor says gunman was "violent, aggressive" |url=https://www.mrt.com/news/texas/article/The-Latest-Police-expected-to-release-more-on-14407184.php |website=Midland Reporter-Telegram |accessdate=September 3, 2019 |date=September 3, 2019}}</ref>
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On September 4, ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' and news station [[KCBD]] reported that the FBI and law enforcement in [[Lubbock]] served a search warrant to a person of interest, suspected of illegally manufacturing and selling the rifle in connection with the shooting.<ref>{{cite web |title=FBI serves search warrant, apparently in connection with Midland/Odessa shootings |url=https://www.kcbd.com/2019/09/04/wsj-gun-used-by-midlandodessa-shooter-made-sold-illegally-by-lubbock-man/ |website=kcbd.com |publisher=KCBD |accessdate=September 4, 2019 |ref=Lubbock Search Warrant}}</ref>
Investigation showed that the rifle used in the shooting was purchased on October 8, 2016 from Marcus Anthony Braziel, 45, of Lubbock, Texas. Braziel pleaded guilty in October 2020 to one count of dealing firearms without a license and one count of subscribing to a false tax return related to his firearm dealing. He was sentenced to 24 months in federal prison. In a four-year span, Mr. Braziel inadvertently sold firearms to four prohibited persons: a convicted felon, a man under felony indictment, an immigrant in the U.S. illegally, and Mr. Ator, a man who the courts previously deemed unfit to possess a firearm.<ref>{{Cite web|author=KCBD Staff|title=Lubbock man who sold Midland/Odessa shooter AR-15, sentenced to 2 years in prison|url=https://www.kcbd.com/2021/01/07/lubbock-man-who-sold-midlandodessa-shooter-ar-sentenced-unlicensed-firearms-dealing/|access-date=2021-02-10|website=www.kcbd.com|date=January 8, 2021 |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Aftermath ==
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Multiple politicians issued statements about the shooting, including President [[Donald Trump]], Texas Senator [[Ted Cruz]], Texas [[United States House of Representatives|Representative]] [[Mike Conaway]], [[Governor of Texas|Texas Governor]] [[Greg Abbott]], and [[Attorney General of Texas|Texas Attorney General]] [[Ken Paxton]].<ref name="cnn" /><ref name="foxnews" /><ref>{{cite web |title=Officials release statements on Odessa shooting |url=https://www.cbs7.com/content/news/Officials-release-statements-on-Odessa-shooting-558984991.html |website=www.cbs7.com |accessdate=August 31, 2019 |language=english}}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{Cite web|url=https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2019/9/1/20843331/west-texas-shooting-odessa-midland-democrats-republicans-donald-trump-gun-reform-prayers|title=Politicians call for culture shifts and new laws after another mass shooting. Neither seem likely.|last=van Wagtendonk|first=Anya|date=September 1, 2019|website=Vox|access-date=September 1, 2019}}</ref> Democrats generally urged more gun restriction laws, while Republicans offered prayers, called for cultural changes, and pointed out mental illness issues.<ref name="auto1" />
[[Texas House of Representatives|Texas State Representative]] [[Matt Schaefer]], a Republican from [[Tyler, Texas|Tyler]], rejected calls for tighter gun restrictions, which he described as violating "God-given" gun rights; instead, Schaefer advocated a "YES to God" and a "YES to praying for protection".<ref>{{cite web|author=Kate Sullivan|title=Texas state lawmaker calls for 'praying for protection' instead of gun reform in wake of mass shooting |url=https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/01/politics/texas-state-rep-praying-for-protection-shooting/index.html |publisher=CNN|accessdate=September 3, 2019 |date=September 1, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Texas politician rejects gun control, urges 'praying for protection' hours after mass shooting |url=https://www.sbs.com.au/news/texas-politician-rejects-gun-control-urges-praying-for-protection-hours-after-mass-shooting |date=September 1, 2019 |website=[[SBS World News]] |accessdate=September 3, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Fearnow |first1=Benjamin |title=Texas Republican touts God, prayer in rant against gun control advocacy calls to 'do something' |url=https://www.newsweek.com/matt-schaefer-texas-republican-congressman-god-prayer-mass-shootings-twitter-victims-1457129 |website=[[Newsweek]] |accessdate=September 3, 2019 |date=September 1, 2019}}</ref> Schaefer's comments received national attention.<ref name="Mansfield">{{cite web|author=Erin Mansfield|title=Tyler Rep. Matt Schaefer's gun comments provoke national rebuttal and support|url=https://tylerpaper.com/news/local/tyler-rep-matt-schaefer-s-gun-comments-provoke-national-rebuttal/article_a0e3abdc-ce93-11e9-a885-67f727bc914a.html|newspaper=Tyler Morning Telegraph|date=September 3, 2019 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2019/09/01/odessa-shooting-texas-lawmaker-doubles-down-gun-rights-viral-tweets/2187360001/|title=Odessa shooting: Texas lawmaker's defiant defense of gun rights sparks sharp debate|last=Moritz|first=John|date=September 1, 2019|website=[[USA Today]]|language=en-US|access-date=September 3, 2019}}</ref>
On September 4, Democrats in the Texas House held five press conferences in Houston, Dallas, San Antonio, Austin, and El Paso. Sixty-one members of the House Democratic Caucus signed a letter delivered to Governor Abbott asking him to call an emergency special session "on protecting Texans from gun violence," urging him to address the gun violence epidemic. In a statement, Abbott spokesman John Wittman said "Governor Abbott made clear in Odessa that all strategies are on the table that will lead to laws that make Texans safer. But that doesn’t include a helter-skelter approach that hastily calls for perfunctory votes that divide legislators along party lines. Instead, the Governor seeks consensus rather than division, The Democrats who are part of today’s partisan pitch can be part of the bi-partisan legislative process announced yesterday that is geared toward achieving real solutions, or they can be part of politics as usual that will accomplish nothing. Legislating on tough issues is hard and takes time. If Democrats really want to change the law, they need to stop talking to cameras and start talking to colleagues in the Capitol to reach consensus." In response, [[Donna Howard]] of the Texas House of Representatives, at a press conference in Austin said: "You know who can build a consensus is the Governor. If the Governor speaks up and says he will get behind certain legislation, we will have a consensus..."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rapaport |first1=Wes |title=Texas House Democrats turn up the heat on Gov. Abbott to call special session on gun reform |url=https://www.kxan.com/news/texas-politics/texas-house-democrats-turn-up-the-heat-on-gov-abbott-to-call-special-session-on-gun-reform/ |website=KXAN.com |accessdate=September 4, 2019 |ref=Special Session |date=September 4, 2019}}</ref>
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[[Category:Odessa, Texas]]
[[Category:Spree shootings in the United States]]
[[Category:Mass murder in the United States in the 2010s]]
[[Category:Mass murder in Texas]]
[[Category:Mass shootings in Texas]]
[[Category:Drive-by shootings]]
[[Category:Vehicular rampage in the United States]]
[[Category:2010s vehicular rampage]]
[[Category:2019 road incidents]]
[[Category:2010s road incidents in North America]]
[[Category:Hijackings in the 2010s]]
[[Category:Hijackings in North America]]
[[Category:Motor vehicle theft]]
[[Category:Mass murder in 2019]]
[[Category:Mass shootings involving AR-15–style rifles]]
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