Last night’s horrific attack on an outdoor country music festival in downtown Las Vegas has killed at least 59 people and injured more than 500 others. Today, a member of one band that performed earlier that day says that surviving the experience reversed his opinion on gun control. “We need gun control RIGHT. NOW.,” wrote Caleb Keeter, guitarist for the Texas country group Josh Abbott Band, in a message posted to Twitter. “My biggest regret is that I stubbornly didn’t realize it until my brothers on the road and myself were threatened by it.”
“I’ve been a proponent of the 2nd amendment my entire life,” Keeter explained. “Until the events of last night. I cannot express how wrong I was. We actually have members of our crew with CHL [concealed handgun] licenses, and legal firearms on the bus.
“They were useless,” he continued. “We couldn’t touch them for fear the police might think that we were part of the massacre and shoot us. … Enough is enough. Writing my parents and the love of my life a goodbye last night and a living will because I felt like I was’t going to live through the night was enough for me to realize that this is completely and totally out of hand.”
The shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival began around 10 p.m., during a headlining set by country star Jason Aldean, when a gunman fired from a window on the 32nd floor of the nearby Mandalay Bay hotel tower. Police said Stephen Paddock, 64, had 23 guns with him in his hotel room when his body was found.
Keeter’s group, the Josh Abbott Band, had performed earlier in the afternoon. On Twitter, frontman Josh Abbott wrote that his band had safely evacuated from the Mandalay.
Everyone in JAB is accounted for. They evacuated us from Mandalay. My fiancée is still in room. They won’t let me in but she’s safe
— Josh Abbott (@joshabbottband) October 2, 2017
Update: I got back to Taylor & our room in Mandalay about 30 minutes ago. The rest of the band & crew are home now. Was a long awful night
— Josh Abbott (@joshabbottband) October 2, 2017
I’ll never unhear those gunshots; and our band & crew will never forget how that moment made them feel. Our hearts are with all the victims
— Josh Abbott (@joshabbottband) October 2, 2017
“That being said,” Keeter added in a follow-up tweet, “I’ll not live in fear of anyone. We will regroup, we’ll come back, and we’ll rock your fucking faces off. Bet on it.” Read his full statement on gun control below.
— Caleb Keeter (@Calebkeeter) October 2, 2017
This post has been updated.