The Riverside County Board of Supervisors observed a moment of silence Tuesday in honor of the local victims of the Las Vegas mass shooting, described by board Chairman John Tavaglione as “an extreme act of meanness.”
“A country music concert is full of fun, excitement. It’s full of life,” Tavaglione said. “But one individual decided to take people’s lives. It’s very, very difficult to deal with this over and over again. But it’s just a sign of the times unfortunately.”
The supervisor mentioned several of those killed by name — Angela Gomez, 20, of Riverside, Christopher Roybal, 28, of Riverside and Tom Day Jr., 54, of Corona.
“Monday was just a horrible, horrible day for our nation,” Tavaglione said. “All because of an extreme act of meanness and sickness on the part of an individual who had no care for life.”
The chairman confirmed with Undersheriff Bill DiYorio that two deputies who were attending the concert and wounded during the shooting spree are recovering. One of the victims, a correctional deputy, suffered an unspecified minor injury, while the other victim, a patrol deputy, suffered a serious wound and remains hospitalized. Their names have not been released.
Tavaglione was informed during the meeting that a Department of Probation employee, also not identified, was hurt as well, but not seriously.
Following Tavaglione’s remarks, county CEO George Johnson directed staff to reactivate a public safety committee that had been formed immediately after the December 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack to review the county’s procedures for dealing with mass casualty events — natural or intentional.
The committee disbanded after submitting recommendations on changes to various security protocols, which led to metal detectors and guards being permanently posted to the main entrance of the County Administrative Center in downtown Riverside.
Johnson said he wanted the committee back in place to take another look at security and contingency plans in the wake of the Las Vegas shooting rampage.
–City News Service