People gather while grieving the death of family members on April 19, 2026 in Shreveport, Louisiana. Eight children were killed and two women were wounded during a domestic violence incident in the early morning hours, according to local authorities. Photo: VCG

A gunman in Louisiana, the US, killed eight children including seven of his own and shot two other people on local time Sunday in an early morning attack of domestic violence carried out across two houses, US news service POLITICO reported, citing authorities. The report noted that the incident marked "one of the nation's deadliest mass shootings in more than two years."

The gunman, identified as Shamar Elkins, 31, was shot dead after a police chase on Sunday norming, according to The New York Times (NYT). 

The NYT quoted family members of the gunman as saying that Elkins had mental health problems and had recently expressed suicidal thoughts. The children ranged in age from one to 14, officials said, and seven of the eight were Elkins'. He shot them execution style, according to a spokesman for the Shreveport Police Department, the NYT reported.

According to the NYT, earlier this month, the gunman called his mother Mahelia Elkins and his stepfather, Marcus Jackson on Easter Sunday and their son sounded "despondent." Elkins told them through tears that he wanted to take his own life. He told Jackson that his wife wanted a divorce, and that he was drowning in "dark thoughts."

Ms. Elkins said she did not know exactly what problems her son was having with his wife. She added that her son worked for UPS and had served in the Army.

The Army said in a statement on Sunday that Mr. Elkins served in the Louisiana Army National Guard from August 2013 to August 2020 as a signal support system specialist and a fire support specialist. He had no deployment and left the Army as a private.

Elkins also shot two other people, including his wife, who was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries on Sunday, officials and relatives said.

Records show that Elkins had at least two prior convictions, including for driving while intoxicated in 2016 and for the illegal use of weapons in 2019, per the NYT report.

The police have not offered a possible motive and their investigation is ongoing, per the report. 

The POLITICO report highlighted that it was the deadliest mass shooting in the US since eight people were killed in a Chicago suburb in January 2024, according to a database maintained by The Associated Press and USA Today in partnership with Northeastern University.

Chinese observers pointed out that this latest tragedy in Louisiana once again reflects the deadly overlap of veterans' mental health issues, the widespread availability of guns, and lax management. This dangerous combination makes such horrific incidents in the US seem almost inevitable and it is precisely these recurring tragedies that call for deeper and more sustained reflection.

Such tragic case reflected the harsh reality of gun violence in the US, a problem remains extremely severe, Li Haidong, a professor at China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Monday. 

From a moral and conscientious standpoint, nearly everyone agrees that this situation must change. Yet in political and cultural reality, fundamental change remains highly unlikely. This creates one of the sharpest ironies and widest gaps between the so-called American Dream and American reality: a nation that promotes freedom, equality, and safety on the surface, contrasted against the persistent tragedies and sense of powerlessness caused by unchecked gun proliferation, Li noted.