Gabby Giffords remembers the victims and survivors of the FSU mass shooting one year later

WASHINGTON — GIFFORDS, the national gun violence prevention organization founded by former Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, released the following statement recognizing one year since the deadly mass shooting at Florida State University. Two people were killed and six were injured in the shooting. Additionally, 28 of the survivors of the FSU shooting were also survivors of the 2018 Parkland mass shooting, making this the second school shooting these students experienced.

“A year ago today, students, faculty and other members of the FSU community went to campus expecting to attend work and class in safety. Instead, a man who shouldn’t have had access to a firearm ripped that safety away, stealing lives and causing lifelong wounds,” said former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords. “Today, I’m mourning those whose lives were stolen too soon. My thoughts are also with the survivors and their families, many of whom had already lived through a school shooting. I will always stand with FSU’s victims and survivors, and will never stop fighting to transform our nation into a place where students can go to school in peace.”

In 2026, GIFFORDS Florida successfully opposed anti-safety bills in the Florida legislature. One such bill would have reversed a post-Parkland law raising the minimum gun purchasing age from 18 to 21. The FSU shooter was 20 years old, meaning this bill would have allowed him to legally purchase his own firearm had it passed.

However, lawmakers successfully passed HB 757, which will allow certain university employees to carry concealed firearms on campus. The bill will put students and faculty at unnecessary risk, increasing the likelihood of gun violence, including accidental shootings and suicide. What’s more, the FSU shooter obtained one of the guns used in the shooting from a step-parent — Florida’s current laws do not require unattended firearms to be stored safely in all circumstances.