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Arizona House Speaker says state hasn't had a 'major mass shooting'

Posted at 11:20 AM, Aug 06, 2019
and last updated 2019-08-06 14:20:09-04

TUCSON, Ariz. — The Arizona Speaker of the House has corrected a statement sent to a reporter that drew outrage online.

After the weekend shootings in Texas and Ohio, political reporter Dennis Welch asked Speaker Rusty Bowers whether the Arizona legislature planned to pass any firearms legislation in the upcoming legislative session.

In his response, Bowers said the state "has been fortunate enough not to experience a major mass shooting," apparently forgetting the Jan. 8, 2011 shooting in Tucson that left six people dead -- including a 9-year-old girl -- and 15 others injured -- including Congresswoman Gabby Giffords.

About an hour and a half later, Bowers issued a correction on his previous statement -- but not before a flood of angry tweets and replies.

RELATED: Jan. 8 survivor talks about coping with mass shootings

Other tweets were quick to point out that Tucson's Jan. 8 shooting was not the only "major mass shooting" in Arizona's history.