Tag Archives: Pulse Massacre

Orlando’s ABC affiliate reports: A Clermont church is planning a “Make America Straight Again” conference just days after the three-year mark of the Pulse nightclub shooting. In preparation for the event, church leaders have reached out to the Lake County Sheriff’s Office and asked if they could hire deputies to work security for the conference. The Sheriff’s Office later declined …

The Washington Post reports: Rick Scott, when he was Florida’s governor, made the proclamation a year ago to mark the anniversary of the massacre at the Pulse nightclub two years before. A gunman killed 49 people at the LGBTQ-oriented club in 2016, what was then the largest mass shooting in U.S. history, and Scott, now a Republican senator, noted that …

Gentle readers, on today’s third anniversary of the Pulse massacre, I’m rerunning my account of that day. The story below originally ran on Pride Life’s website on July 12th 2016 and makes its first appearance on JMG today. Their Phones Kept Ringing One month ago today, Sunday June 12th, around 8AM I began my day, as usual, by examining my …

CNN reports: In the days ahead of the third anniversary of the mass shooting at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Florida lawmakers have proposed plans to designate the nightclub a national memorial. U.S. Reps. Darren Soto and Stephanie Murphy, both from Central Florida, announced their plan to declare Pulse a federal landmark at a service in front of the temporary memorial …

Curbed New York reports: Nearly a year after it was first announced, New York City’s first official memorial dedicated to the LGBTQ community is set to debut in Hudson River Park. Governor Andrew Cuomo, along with City Council speaker Corey Johnson, Senator Brad Hoylman, and other elected officials, unveiled the monument, two years in the making, which is intended to …

Just in from DNC chairman Tom Perez: “Two years ago, our nation witnessed one of the deadliest mass shootings in American history. It was an attack on the LGBTQ community, the Latinx community, and LGBTQ people of color everywhere. It was an attack on the American people and the values of diversity and equality that all of us should cherish. …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: An emotional, rain-soaked rally on the eve of the Pulse anniversary Monday evening was mixed with anguish and raw anger over the lack of progress on gun reform and gay rights in Florida and the sheer number of mass shootings that have happened since. “Six hundred and twelve days,” said Brandon Wolf, a survivor of the …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: The onePULSE Foundation is unveiling the Orlando nightclub’s “interim” memorial today, designed to be a temporary tribute to the victims and survivors of the 2016 mass shooting. During a dedication ceremony this morning, Pulse nightclub owner and onePULSE Foundation founder Barbara Poma thanked local companies that contributed to the project. She also praised the survivors and …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: Noor Salman is not guilty of helping her husband, Omar Mateen, carry out the mass shooting that claimed 49 lives at Pulse nightclub on June 12, 2016, a jury decided Friday. The 12-member jury delivered its verdict after deliberating for about 12 hours over three days. Salman was also acquitted of obstruction of justice. Prosecutors accused …

CNN reports: Attorneys for Noor Salman called for a dismissal of charges or a mistrial, saying that new details from prosecutors reveal that Pulse gunman Omar Mateen’s father was an FBI informant who is currently under a criminal investigation. According to a motion filed by the defense, Assistant US Attorney Sara Sweeney sent an email on Saturday to the defense …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: Survivors of the mass shootings at Orlando’s Pulse nightclub and a South Florida high school embraced Wednesday outside the club where 49 people were killed nearly two years ago. “We’re all family,” said Neema Bahrami, who was an event manager at Pulse at the time of the attack. Pulse survivors, wearing shirts that read “We Will …

USA Today reports: A handwritten statement given to the FBI by the wife of Pulse nightclub gunman Omar Mateen says she saw him prepare for the deadly attack for months and knew that the LGBT nightclub was his target. The 12-page statement, quietly released by federal authorities at the end of December in a batch of records in the case, …

USA Today reports: The widow of Pulse nightclub gunman Omar Mateen will stand trial in Orlando, home to the nation’s second deadliest mass shooting in modern history, after a federal judge ruled staying in the city wouldn’t prevent a fair trial. Lawyers for Noor Salman had fought to move the case outside the city, arguing intense media coverage of the …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: Attorneys for the wife of Pulse nightclub shooter Omar Mateen wrote in a motion filed on Monday that he was using online dating websites such as Plenty of Fish to cheat on her. Noor Salman’s attorneys said in the motion that Mateen used a mutual friend as a cover story so he could go out with …

The work finished on National Coming Out Day. CBS News reports: A crosswalk to honor the Pulse nightclub victims was completed early Wednesday by the city of Orlando. A petition on change.org for the installation of the sidewalk was signed by more than 2,000 people to pledge their support to honor the men and women who lost their lives at …

Orlando’s ABC affiliate reports: A man who protested outside Pulse nightclub Monday following a ceremony marking the anniversary of the attack was handcuffed by Orlando police. Local officials and the community had just finished a remembrance ceremony at the venue, which honored the victims and first responders. The man, who has not been identified, was part of a group of …

This afternoon on the one year anniversary of the Pulse massacre, Trump issued the above tweet memorializing the victims. One year ago today, however, after first tweeting that he was “praying” for the victims, Trump was full of self-praise an hour later, tweeting, “Appreciate the congrats for being right on radical Islamic terrorism, I don’t want congrats, I want toughness …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: As he walked up to the Pulse nightclub, memories of last June clouded Ramses Tinoco’s head. He still remembered hearing the gunshots. He remembered running for his life. But the place that has haunted him for a year was different early Monday. Dozens of angels stood guard outside, their wings made of PVC pipes and flowing …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: The Orlando shooting at Pulse Nightclub on June 12 will be memorialized with an “iconic, meaningful, national” memorial and eventually a museum, where Orlando’s millions of visitors will learn about the club, the tragedy and the victims. Leaders of the not-for-profit onePULSE Foundation officially launched the effort to building the memorial Thursday morning. “Today, I’m able …

The Orlando Sentinel reports: As the one-year anniversary of the Pulse terror attack nears, the nightclub’s owner, Barbara Poma, next week will announce details about plans for a permanent memorial at the scene of the nation’s largest mass shooting. “Pulse has always been a part of me, but after this tragedy which took 49 lives, it became a part of …