The Seattle shooter who killed one woman and shot five other women in their stomachs after declaring he was a “Muslim-American” who was “angry at Israel” has been charged with nine felony counts including murder, hate crimes, and kidnapping. I happen to think this is far more important news than Mel Gibson getting charged. But what do I know:

The man accused in the shooting rampage at Seattle’s Jewish Federation office last week was charged Wednesday with nine felony counts, including aggravated first-degree murder and violation of the state’s hate-crime law.

“Make no mistake, this was a hate crime,” King County Prosecutor Norm Maleng told a news conference. “The attack on these women was an attack on the Jewish community, not only in Seattle but throughout our nation and the world…”

…Maleng said Haq also is charged with five counts of attempted first-degree murder in the wounding Friday afternoon of five women at the federation’s downtown offices; one count of first-degree kidnapping, involving a teenage girl who was briefly taken hostage; one count of first-degree burglary for allegedly entering a locked facility to commit a crime; and one count of malicious harassment under the state’s hate-crime law.

“I think you can tell from the tenor of my remarks that this is one of the more aggravated cases and heinous and tragic cases that we’ve had in our community,” the prosecutor said.

Seattle photographer/blogger Byron Dazey took photos at the crime scene and documents a run-in with a “tolerant” type. Lots of good local coverage at Sound Politics. John from Wuzzadem provides his unique commentary on the “lone” shooter debate.

And Cox and Forkum say it all:

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Tim Graham e-mails:

Michelle, I’m really surprised that this very anti-Semitic shooting was a one-day story on the networks….as they chug along on Mel Gibson…It completely conforms to the Passion pattern….The worst anti-Semitism in the world seems to be in Gibson’s head, not in the Muslim world.

Plus, this Seattle shooting is getting much less coverage than say, a school shooting in the late 90s with one death would have received!

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Previous:

Naveed Haq’s “people”
A random gallery of lone shooters
Meet the Muslim shooting suspect
Shooting in Seattle: Muslim revenge

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