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A Georgia man who condemned the Covid-19 vaccine for falling for him and committed suicide was identified as a shooter who fired fire at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention late Friday, killing a police officer.
The 30-year-old suspect, who died during the incident, also tried to enter the CDC headquarters in Atlanta, but was stopped by security guards before driving to a pharmacy across the street to open a fire, law enforcement officials told The Associated Press on Saturday.
The man identified as Patrick Joseph White was armed with five guns, including at least one long gun, officials said they spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not permitted to publish the investigation.
The union representing CDC workers said the incident was not random and was a “monthly compound of abuse, neglect and slanderousness that CDC staff had endured.” It said federal officials have condemned misinformation about the vaccine and put scientists at risk.
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Attacks on prominent public health agencies
Police say White fired fire outside Atlanta’s CDC headquarters on Friday, leaving a bullet in the windows of the vast campus. At least four CDC buildings have been attacked, Director Susan Monares said in X.
DeKalb County Police Officer David Rose was fatally injured during the reaction. Rose, 33, a former Marine working in Afghanistan, graduated from the Police Academy in March.
White was found on the second floor of a building across the street from the CDC campus and was killed at the scene, said Atlanta Police Chief Darrin Siebaum. He added, “At this point, I don’t know if it was from an officer or if it was self-harm.”
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation said the crime scene is “complicated” and the investigation would take “long term.”
CDC Union calls for vaccine misinformation and more stringent security condemnation
Local 2883, the U.S. Government Employee Federation, said leaders from the CDC and Department of Health and Human Services must provide a clear and clear attitude when condemning vaccine disinformation.
Such an official statement by federal officials is necessary to prevent violence against scientists, the union said in a news release.
“Their leadership is important in enhancing public trust and ensuring that accurate science-based information wins,” the union said.
Shoot, a group of fired but laid off CDC employees, says HHS’s secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., is directly responsible for the villain of the CDC workforce through “his ongoing lies about science and vaccine safety that promoted an environment of hostility and mistrust.”
Kennedy contacted staff on Saturday and said, “No one should face violence while working to protect the health of others.”
Thousands of people are employed on campus, working on research into important diseases. The union said some staff were hanging out in various buildings late into the night, including more than 90 young children trapped inside the CDC Clifton School.
The union said CDC staff do not need to return to work immediately after experiencing such a traumatic event. In a statement released Saturday, the windows and buildings were first revised and said they would “be completely safe.”
“Staff shouldn’t have to work next to a bullet hole,” the union said. “Forcing returns under these conditions risks re-scarring staff by being exposed to the horrifying shooting reminders they have endured.”
The union also sought “perimeter security on all campuses” until the investigation was fully completed and shared with staff.
The shooter was stuck on the Covid-19 vaccine
Law enforcement officials say White’s father, who contacted police and identified his son as the shooter, said White was angry at the dog’s death and stuck to the Covid-19 vaccine.
White’s neighbor told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that White “feeled like a good guy,” but has spoken multiple times about his distrust of the Covid-19 vaccine in unrelated conversations.
“He was very unstable and I had a very deep belief that the vaccine was hurting him and hurting other people,” Nancy Hallst told the Atlanta Newspaper. “He emphasized that.”
However, Horst said he never believed White was violent: “I never thought he’d thought he’d take it out at the CDC.”
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