This week marks the 4th anniversary of the deadly mass shooting that took the lives of five people at the Capital Gazette newspaper in Annapolis, Maryland. On Tuesday, the city will pay tribute to those victims.
At 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, the City of Annapolis will host a wreath-laying ceremony at the Guardians of the First Amendment Memorial on Compromise Street, followed by an unveiling of artwork honoring the victims at City Hall.
“In remembering the victims, we honor their lives and work, and celebrate the love and respect they were held in, here in their local community; and we renew our commitment to fight for gun safety,” said Annapolis Mayor Gavin Buckley.
Four years ago, Jarrod Ramos entered the Capital Gazette newspaper office in Annapolis and began opening fire on its employees. After a siege that lasted hours, five people were killed and two were critically injured.
Those victims were: Gerald Fischman, Rob Hiaasen, John McNamara, Rebecca Smith and Wendi Winters.
Ramos was found criminally responsible for the shooting during a jury trial last summer and was sentenced in September to six consecutive life sentences, five without the possibility of parole.
The Guardians of the First Amendment Memorial was revealed by the city last year to honor those five staff members who were killed: Gerald Fischman, Rob Hiaasen, John McNamara, Rebecca Smith and Wendi Winters.
The incident remains the largest mass shooting of journalists in the nation’s history.