Arkansas Governor Sarah Huckabee Sanders issued a statement Monday that both the United States flag and Arkansas flag would be lowered to mourn the lives of the lost in Fordyce shooting. This will occur beginning at sunrise on Friday, June 28, 2024 and end at sunset on the same day.
SHOOTING DETAILS & IMAGES BELOW:
PREVIOUSLY:
FORDYCE SHOOTING KILLS 4; 11 MORE INJURED
At approximately 11:30 a.m. on Friday, June 21, 2024, Arkansas State Police (ASP) responded to a shooting incident at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce. A total of 15 individuals were shot, including law officers and the gunman.
Twelve of the shooting victims were civilians. Four of the victims eventually died. The shooter was critically injured after being shot by law enforcement and is in custody. Other victims range in condition between critical and not-life-threatening.
It was initially report that there were 14 shot, but an additional victim from the shooting was identified late Saturday. People injured from gunfire included 12 civilians, two law enforcement officers and the suspect.
Those killed in the shooting were all civilians. They were:
Shirley Taylor, age 62
Callie Weems, age 23
Roy Sturgis, age 50
Ellen Shrum, age 81
Those who survived injuries sustained in the shooting were 5 female and 3 male civilians, ranging in age from 20 to 65. Five of those individuals remain hospitalized, including a woman who is in critical condition in Little Rock. Three of the injured civilians were treated and released from the Dallas County Medical Center on Friday.
ASP has named the suspected shooter in today’s Fordyce grocery store shooting as Travis Eugene Posey, 44, of New Edinburg.https://t.co/kUZBQJCFp7 pic.twitter.com/EPf0rTciNI
— Arkansas State Police (@ARStatePolice) June 22, 2024
Six officers working for the Fordyce Police Department and the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office were on the scene during the incident. Four additional Fordyce Police officers and an off-duty officer employed by the Stuttgart Police Department arrived on scene after the suspect was taken into custody.
Jacob Murry, 26, an officer who serves both the Fordyce Police Department and the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office, was treated Friday for minor injuries related to gunfire. Fordyce Police Officer James Johnson, 31, was released from a Little Rock hospital Saturday evening after being treated for a gunshot wound.
Stuttgart Police Officer John Hudson, 24, received minor injuries unrelated to gunfire. He rendered medical aid to an injured individual after the incident had concluded. Hudson was previously incorrectly included as an officer with injuries related to gunfire.
Suspect Travis Eugene Posey, 44, of nearby New Edinburg, Arkansas, will be charged with 4 counts of Capital Murder. Additional charges are pending. He was treated for non-life-threatening injuries after exchanging gunfire with law enforcement. Posey was released to ASP custody and transported to the Ouachita County Detention Center, where he remains. ASP’s Criminal Investigation Division is investigating the shooting.
This afternoon, ASP Colonel Mike Hagar briefed the media on the latest developments related to a Fordyce grocery store shooting that occurred Friday, June 21, 2024.
Read more here: https://t.co/66ZHPpsXXA
View the media briefing here: https://t.co/k0CXh02sUm pic.twitter.com/VYCOI9inve
— Arkansas State Police (@ARStatePolice) June 23, 2024
GOVERNOR’S FLAG PROCLAMATION:
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS COME – GREETINGS:
WHEREAS: On the morning of Friday, June 21, 2024, a lone gunman opened fire at the Mad Butcher grocery store in Fordyce, Arkansas, injuring eight civilians and two law enforcement officers, and killing four;
WHEREAS: The deceased Arkansans range in age between 23 and 81. They were loved by their families and by the Fordyce community. Their loss is a tragedy for the entire State of Arkansas;
WHEREAS: The injured victims range in age between 20 and 65. Many of those at the grocery store hid in the store’s freezer to escape the gunman. Arkansans at the Mad Butcher risked their lives to help others during the shooting, showing the courage and compassion of our people. They assisted each other during the shooting and after, helping those who had sustained injuries get aid;
WHEREAS: Law enforcement responded to the scene of the crime within minutes and distracted the shooter, putting their own lives in harm’s way and preventing further tragedy before apprehending him. Two officers were injured;
WHEREAS: This tragedy has hit the small, close-knit town of Fordyce hard. Neighbors, friends, and family have come together to comfort each other in the wake of this event and offer prayer and a helping hand to anyone in need, and;
WHEREAS: Arkansans are praying for the town of Fordyce, the families of the victims, and all impacted by this senseless tragedy, and the State will continue to provide aid and resources to the community.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, SARAH HUCKABEE SANDERS, acting under the authority vested in me as Governor of the State of Arkansas, do hereby order that the United States flag and the state flag of Arkansas be flown at half-staff throughout the State from sunrise to sunset on Friday, June 28, 2024, one week after the tragedy, in memory of the lives lost.
IN TESTIMONY WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Great Seal of the State of Arkansas to be affixed this 24th day of June, in the year of our Lord 2024.
Browse the list of all the events in Saline County at www.mysaline.com/events.