Bobby Crimo was taken into custody in relation to the shooting at Highland Park, Illinois, where a gunman opened fire on a July 4 parade, killing seven and leaving at least 30 injured. The 22-year-old has been charged with seven counts of first-degree murder and as per the prosecutor, Crimo confessed to the attack after being apprehended, Reuters reported. 

Crimo was denied bail in his first court appearance before Judge Theodore Potkonjak. Ben Dillon, the prosecutor for the county, said that Crimo had confessed, and no plea was entered at the time of the hearing either. 

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The rapper spoke briefly, saying he did not have a lawyer, and a public defender was assigned to him. “He does pose, in fact, a specific and present threat to the community”, the judge noted, denying him bail. 

As per authorities, Crimo planned the attack for weeks, before he climbed on a rooftop, assumed a sniper’s position, and opened fire with a rifle. 

The incident has redrawn focus on gun laws in the United States, which had already become a hotly debated topic following the killings at Buffalo and Uvalde. Illinois, however, has one of the strongest gun safety laws in the country and many cities have banned the purchase of rifles. Highland Park has a ban in place since 2013, prohibiting the purchase of semi-automatics or high-capacity magazines. 

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Illinois is also among the first Midwestern states to have banned ghost guns or untraceable weapons. After the incident, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke to those in Highland Park saying, “There is a lot of healing that’s going to have to happen that is both physical and emotional. There is no question that this experience is something that is going to linger in terms of the trauma”, and added that the shooting needed to be taken “seriously”.