Emotional witness implores politicians to drop partisanship to address shootings

LEWISTON, Maine (AP) — An emotional mother described freezing when she heard gunfire and then becoming separated from her daughter — not knowing whether she was dead or alive — during the deadliest shooting in Maine history.

Tammy Asselin also had a message for lawmakers dealing with legislation in the aftermath, telling them to “put down your partisan lines and try to approach this like a parent would with simple common sense.”

“Enough is enough. It truly angers me to know that we were so close to preventing this but we failed,” she said Monday, echoing the concerns of other survivors and family members who testified.

Police were aware that the gunman, Army reservist Robert Card, was suffering from deteriorating mental health ahead of the the Oct. 25 shootings that killed 18 people in a bowling alley and a bar and restaurant in Lewiston.

An independent commission, established by Democratic Gov. Janet Mills, is reviewing the facts surrounding shootings, including the police response, and the hearing on Monday took place in the city where the shootings took place.

The victims and family members on Monday shared some of the concerns of others who spoke at a previous hearing last month, expressing concerns that authorities had a chance to remove guns from Card before the rampage and did not.

<bsp-list-loadmore data-module="" class=«PageListStandardB» data-gtm-region=«READ MORE» data-gtm-topic=«No Value» data-show-loadmore=«true» data-gtm-modulestyle=«List B»> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> READ MORE </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline custom-headline=«div»> Police who responded to Maine mass shooting describe potential missed opportunities to end manhunt </bsp-custom-headline> <bsp-custom-headline