Five years later, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords remembers Dayton

WASHINGTON — Ahead of August 4, former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, founder of the national gun safety organization GIFFORDS, released the following statement honoring the victims of the mass shooting in Dayton, Ohio, five years ago. Nine people were killed and 27 were injured in just 32 seconds. The shooter used a stabilizing brace and a 100 round drum magazine. 

“Hours after a mass shooting in El Paso, Texas, Dayton, Ohio experienced a parallel tragedy outside a bar, when a Saturday night out turned into horror and loss,” said former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. “This weekend, I’m thinking of those lost that night and the survivors whose lives were irrevocably changed. GIFFORDS stands with the Dayton community and we will never give up in our fight to stop gun violence.”

The shooter used a stabilizing brace and a 100 round drum magazine. Stabilizing braces can essentially convert a handgun into an illegal unregistered short-barreled rifle, which allows the weapon to be concealable and maneuverable like a handgun while firing with the accuracy of a rifle. After urging from GIFFORDS, in 2023, ATF finalized a rule clarifying that certain stabilizing braces are short-barreled rifles under the National Firearms Act. GIFFORDS led a public campaign in support of ATF’s decision to advance this regulation.

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