MSNBC host and conservative commentator Hugh Hewitt on Monday suggested that schools ban trench coats days after a gunman reportedly wearing a trench coat opened fire at a Santa Fe, Texas, high school.
Hewitt, speaking on “The Hugh Hewitt Show” on Salem Radio Network on Monday in a clip posted by Media Matters, noted that the suspected shooter allegedly did not use an assault-style rifle. He instead used a shotgun and a .38 revolver belonging to his father, according to authorities.
{mosads}Hewitt said that measures like universal background checks and a ban on assault-style weapons — as he said Democrats often call for in the wake of mass shooting — likely would not have prevented the Texas shooting.
“Point being, this is about identifying and segregating individuals away from guns who are not in the position to own them with due process protection,” Hewitt said.
He said that local officials and politicians should take steps to identify those individuals.
“To the teachers and administrators out there, the trench coat is kind of a giveaway. You might just say no more trench coats. The creepy people, make a list, check it twice,” Hewitt said.
“And be aware of your social media activities. And ask people, the old cliche does apply, ‘see something, say something,’ ” Hewitt said.
Hewitt noted that while it’s unclear why the gunman chose to carry out the shooting, there are “patterns” in shootings.
“There’s a pattern, pattern recognition is important here. And people need to put down the rhetoric and pick up the study,” Hewitt said. “And read, listen, pray, think, not just shout. That’s the easiest thing to do, just to shout.”
Authorities identified Dimitrios Pagourtzis, 17, as the suspected shooter at Santa Fe High School, just south of Houston. He was charged with capital murder after allegedly killing 10 people in the shooting Friday.