Walz’s account of his son’s encounter with gun violence offers a poignant moment in the vice president debate

A revelation during the debate about gun violence personally affecting Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz’s son offered a moment of compassion from Republican candidate JD Vance Tuesday night.

During the debate, the Minnesota governor said his 17-year-old son, Gus Walz, witnessed a shooting in St. Paul while playing volleyball at a community center.

On January 18, 2023, JuVaughn Turner, then 16, was shot in the head outside the Jimmy Lee Recreation Center in St. Paul by Exavir Dwayne Binford Jr, a 26-year-old employee at the center. The leisure center is located a few kilometers from Les Walzes. ‘at home in Saint-Paul.

In February, Binford pleaded guilty in December to first-degree assault. At sentencing, the lawyer representing the victim’s mother said he had to have part of his skull removed and was still suffering from seizures.

The moment came during a question about gun violence.

“Well, I think for all the parents watching tonight, this is your biggest nightmare. Look, I have a 17-year-old and he witnessed a shooting at a community center playing volleyball,” Walz said. “These things don’t leave you.”

Vance responded as Walz spoke, saying, “It’s horrible.”

Once it was his turn to respond during the debate, he shared his condolences with Walz.

“Tim, first of all, I didn’t know your 17 year old witnessed a shooting, and I’m sorry about that and I hope he’s okay. Christ, have mercy, it’s horrible,” Vance said.

Walz responded, “I appreciate you saying that.”

Walz previously told MPR News senior political reporter Dana Ferguson that Gus, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, was still dealing with the issue a year later.

“He was there with little kids, smaller kids, he was kind of watching them, he was dragging them under the bleachers,” Walz said in an interview with Ferguson in March.

After Gus entered the national spotlight following his emotional reaction at the Democratic National Convention in August, coach David Albornoz posted on Facebook about his relationship with Walz, noting that “I’ve known him since a kid got shot in the parking lot and he helped keep everyone safe and calm, taking care of the kids in the gym with us while I rushed outside.

In the interview, Walz said local gun restrictions are a good thing and that he supports laws that would allow cities or counties to ban guns in public spaces.

“As a parent of a young person who attended that facility, I think it would have been a good decision to keep those firearms out of there,” Walz said in March.

Walz is a gun owner and hunter and once had an A rating from the NRA, but he has distanced himself from the organization. In 2017, he said his views on gun restrictions changed after hearing from people affected by gun violence.

In his 2023 State of the State address, he called on lawmakers to pass gun control legislation.

“The time for thoughts and prayers is long gone. What we need is action, and we need it now. he said. “We all know very well that weapons of war have no place in our schools, in our churches, in our banks or anywhere people want to live in peace. »

Later that year, Walz signed two bills strengthening background checks and adding a new process for requesting the removal of firearms from those suspected of posing a risk. In spring 2024, he signed another proposal to strengthen penalties for providing entertainment to people who cannot legally obtain it.