Nine Mass Shootings Reported Across US Over The Weekend; 13 Dead, 46 Injured

Nearly ten mass shootings occurred across the United States over the weekend, resulting in dozens of casualties, data from a nonprofit tracking American gun violence showed.

There were nine mass shootings in the U.S. between Friday and Sunday, according to the records of the Gun Violence Archive (GVA).

The organization defines mass shootings as incidents where four or more people, not including the gunman, are shot or killed in a single incident.

A total of 13 people got killed in last weekend's mass shootings, which occurred in the states of Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Missouri, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee.

Another 42 people were left injured, according to the GVA.

Among the victims, 15 were children or teens, USA Today reported.

The number of mass shootings over the weekend is unusual for mid-February in the U.S., experts told the outlet.

About 81 mass shootings have taken place in the country this year so far, according to data provided by the GVA.

There were reportedly 59 mass shootings during the same time last year.

The incidents underscore ongoing inaction from state and federal lawmakers, according to Daniel Webster, the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Policy and Research.

"[S]tate lawmakers have pushed Right to Carry laws that either eliminate the need to get a license to carry concealed guns or make getting such a license very easy. But the 'more guns everywhere' approach has been found to increase violent crime and does nothing to reduce mass shootings," he said.

All states that witnessed mass shootings over the weekend — aside from Illinois and South Carolina — do not require a license to carry concealed guns that are loaded, Webster, considered one of the nation's leading experts in firearm policy and the prevention of gun violence, noted.

Around 57% of Americans support the idea of adopting stricter gun laws, a 2022 poll conducted by American research firm Gallup found.

In comparison, only 10% surveyed answered laws should be "made less strict."

President Joe Biden pleaded with the U.S. Congress to pass meaningful gun control after a man fatally shot six people, including his ex-wife and stepfather, at three different locations in a rural Mississippi community Friday.

"These are commonsense steps that Congress could take right now and save lives. We owe action to American communities being torn apart by gun violence," the head of state said in a statement.