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Vox Sentences: The deadliest school shooting since Parkland

Vox Sentences is your daily digest for what’s happening in the world, curated by Ella Nilsen. Sign up for the Vox Sentences newsletter, delivered straight to your inbox Monday through Friday, or view the Vox Sentences archive for past editions.

America grieves another mass shooting; Britain prepares for a royal wedding.


Three months after Parkland, it happened again

Santa Fe High School
Bob Levey/Getty Images
  • At least 10 people have been killed in a school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas, about 30 miles southeast of Houston. [Vox / Jane Coaston and Jen Kirby]
  • The majority of the victims are reportedly students. At least one officer working for the school was hurt. [NYT / Manny Fernandez, Alan Blinder, and Niraj Chokshi]
  • Dimitrios Pagourtzis, 17, is a suspect in the shooting. He was taken into custody and has been charged with capital murder and aggravated assault of a police officer. [KHOU]
  • A shotgun and a .38 revolver were used in the attack. Law enforcement also found explosive devices on campus and in the surrounding area. [Houston Chronicle]
  • Pagourtzis, a student at the school, obtained the weapons from his father, who was a legal gun owner, according to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R). It is not clear whether the firearms were taken by or given to the son. [Washington Post / Brittney Martin, Mark Berman, and Susan Svrluga]
  • Pagourtzis posted a picture of a T-shirt with the words “Born to Kill” on his Facebook account a few weeks ago. That, and a journal, may offer some clues to Pagourtzis’s motives. [NYT / Julie Turkewitz]
  • The shooting in Santa Fe is the deadliest school shooting since the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida. Parkland student activists reacted to the tragedy on social media. “Santa Fe High,” Emma Gonzalez wrote on Twitter, “you didn’t deserve this.” [Washington Post / Marissa J. Lang]
  • One Sante Fe student, interviewed after the shooting, put it chillingly. “It’s been happening everywhere,” Paige Curry said. “I’ve always felt it would eventually happen here too.” [Vox / Zack Beauchamp]

Harry and Meghan are getting married tomorrow

  • In much, much lighter news, there’s a royal wedding tomorrow! [Vox / Constance Grady]
  • Meghan Markle and Prince Harry will tie the knot Saturday at St. George’s Chapel in Windsor Castle, outside of London. The ceremony starts at noon local time: That’s 7 am Eastern, so no sleeping in. [Vox / Constance Grady]
  • Any wedding, royal or not, has some drama. Much of it has been around Markle’s family. The latest: Markle’s dad won’t be walking her down the aisle because of a recent heart surgery. [Washington Post / Emily Yahr and Sonia Rao]
  • So who will? Markle will make a statement and walk herself partway down the aisle. Then Prince Charles, Harry’s dad, will step in. (Cue the awwws.) [CNN / Max Foster and Judith Vonberg]
  • But the bigger question: What will Markle be wearing? [Los Angeles Times / Karen Yossman]
  • Markle, a divorced American biracial actress, is shaking up the British monarchy. [NYT / Ellen Barry]
  • And many, in Britain and around the world, are celebrating Markle’s biracial identity. [Vox / Sarah E. Gaither]
  • Not all Brits are excited about the nuptials. Lots of people are grumbling about the $45 million bill. Much of that goes to security, which means taxpayers are on the hook. [Independent / Tom Embury-Dennis]
  • But for all the royal wedding haters out there, some consolation: Constitutional monarchies are actually pretty great. [Vox / Dylan Matthews]

Miscellaneous

  • Bernie Sanders’s 2016 campaign manager speaks on why Sanders won’t call himself a Democrat and how he (kind of) beat Hillary Clinton. [Slate / Isaac Chotiner]
  • “In little more than 24 hours, three families in Surabaya had been transformed into agents of death.” On the terror attacks in Indonesia. [NYT / Hannah Beech and Muktita Suhartono]
  • Sexual harassment by predators in foreign newsrooms is hurting coverage of the Asia-Pacific region. [Foreign Policy / Joanna Chiu]
  • Take a moment to delight in New York’s baby peregrine falcons. [Gothamist / Zoe Azulay]

Verbatim

“I’m sorry that I ruined the surprise.”

President Donald Trump, after announcing he’s going to nominate Robert Wilkie for Veterans Affairs secretary. [CNN / Jeremy Diamond, Juana Summers, and Allie Malloy]


Watch this: The royal weddings that shaped European history

To Queen Victoria, marriages were about strategic alliances. [YouTube / Sam Ellis]


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