The following cartoon is being shared widely as the debate continues
6/18/2015 12:13:55 PM
Charleston Police Chief Greg Mullen says the suspect was at a prayer meeting for almost an hour before opening fire.
6/18/2015 12:16:16 PM
Celebrities have also been reacting to the news, which many Americans have woken up to in the last couple of hours.
6/18/2015 12:19:08 PM
The death of Reverend Clementa Pinckney, the church's pastor and a Democratic member of the state Senate, has been confirmed by his cousin, Kent Williams.
6/18/2015 12:27:51 PM
No reaction from President Obama yet but future candidates for next year's elections have been voicing their shock.
6/18/2015 12:37:10 PM
Charleston shooter allegedly told one of the survivors, "I have to do it. You rape our women. You're taking over our country. And you have to go". Story to follow.
6/18/2015 1:52:02 PM
Dylann Storm Roof has been named as the suspected killer. A photo of him which has emerged shows him wearing apartheid-era patches of the former regimes of South Africa and Rhodesia.
6/18/2015 2:03:29 PM
Attorney General Loretta Lynch: "We will do everything in our power to heal this community and make it whole again."
6/18/2015 3:12:46 PM
Dylann Roof, suspect in the shooting, has been arrested with a weapon in a car on the road in Shelby, North Carolina.
Police chief Greg Mullen said Roof was cooperative when a local police officer in Shelby who stopped him. Local police in Shelby made the arrest.
Officers were led to Roof thanks to a tip from a member of the public.
The authorities said they don't have any reason to believe anyone else was involved, according to the International Business Times.
6/18/2015 3:51:19 PM
US President Barack Obama has made a powerful speech on the tragic incident, and urged the nation to "reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries."
Obama said he has been called upon too often to mourn the deaths of innocent people killed by those "who had no trouble getting their hands on a gun."
"Now is the time for mourning and for healing," he said, AP reported.
"But let's be clear. At some point, we as a country will have to reckon with the fact that this type of mass violence does not happen in other advanced countries. It doesn't happen in other places with this kind of frequency. And it is in our power to do something about it."
The president said that while he was could not talk about details of the case due to the ongoing investigation, he added: "I don't need to be constrained about the emotions that tragedies like this raise."
"I've had to make statements like this too many times," adding stricter gun controls are unpopular with the town's Republican Congress.
Obama said the shooting in a black church also raised questions "about a dark part of our history" of racism.
6/18/2015 4:24:57 PM
This is the latest line from AP on the situation: An agency that tracks extremists and white supremacist groups has said that suspected killer Dylann Roof in the fatal shooting of nine people at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, wasn't known to officials there.
Richard Cohen, president of Southern Poverty Law Center in Montgomery, Alabama, says suspect 21-year-old Dylann Storm Roof — who is white — wasn't known to the organization.
Cohen says it's not clear whether Roof is connected to any of the 16 white supremacist organizations the law center has identified as operating in South Carolina.
But Cohen says Roof appears to be a “disaffected white supremacist” based on his Facebook page, which Cohen viewed.
Cohen notes that Roof was pictured wearing a jacket with emblems of the old apartheid regime in South Africa and the former African nation of Rhodesia, which was the name of Zimbabwe under white rule.
6/18/2015 6:24:32 PM
A bomb threat at the Morris Brown AME Church, where a vigil for the shooting is being held, is now all clear, according to the authorities.
Police in Greenville, South Carolina were also investigating a bomb threat at West End Community Church, where another vigil was taking place.
6/18/2015 6:33:38 PM
The nine victims are: Clementa Pinckney, Tywanza Sanders, Cynthia Hurd, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, Susie Jackson, Myra Hurd, DePayne Doctor, Ethel Lance and Daniel Simmons Sr.
6/18/2015 7:58:27 PM
Images coming out of shooting suspect Dylann Roof, wearing a bulletproof vest, being led to a patrol car.
6/18/2015 8:11:59 PM
Shelby, NC police chief says the tip that led to the arrest of suspect Dylann Roof came from a local business, according to the AP. The unidentified business notified authorities of a suspicious person at about 10:30 Thursday morning.
6/18/2015 8:23:21 PM
Victims of the shooting ranged in age from 26 to 87 and included pastors, a recent college graduate and a member of the church's choir.
6/18/2015 8:24:12 PM
Reports coming now that Dylann Roof will be extradited to Charleston to face charges.
6/18/2015 8:31:24 PM
It appears a memorial is taking shape outside the church in Charleston to show support for the nine victims.
6/18/2015 8:39:30 PM
Reports from local media claims that shooting suspect is set to fly from the Shelby airport to Charleston just after 5 pm.
6/18/2015 8:55:24 PM
From the AP: A friend says the white man accused of killing nine people inside a historic black church in Charleston had told him recently that black people were taking over the world and that something needed to be done for the white race.
Joseph Meek Jr. told The Associated Press on Thursday at his home in Lexington, South Carolina, that 21-year-old Dylann Roof had reconnected with him a few weeks ago. The two had been best friends in middle school but lost touch when Roof moved away about five years ago.
Meek says that Roof's racial comments came completely out of the blue and that his friend had been nothing like that before he moved away.
Meek says he could tell something was troubling his friend recently, but he wasn't able to find out what was bothering him before the shooting.
6/18/2015 9:20:36 PM
The following cartoon is being shared widely as the debate continues6/18/2015 12:13:55 PM
Was already weary. Was already heavy hearted. Was already tired.
Heartbreaking news from Charleston - my thoughts and prayers are with you all. -Hby Hillary Clinton via twitter 6/18/2015 12:37:24 PM
Our thoughts and prayers are with the individuals and families affected by the tragic events in Charleston.by Jeb Bush via twitter 6/18/2015 12:37:43 PM
Jun. 18, 2015
Jun. 18, 2015
#BREAKING: Suspect said he was there to "shoot black people," witnesses told law enforcement. #CharlestonShooting on.hln.tv/APjJCby HLN via twitter 6/18/2015 2:23:44 PM
BREAKING NEWS: #CharlestonShooting gunman identified as #DylannRoof of Lexington, SC driving a black Hyundai tag #LGF330.by ChristinaCNN via twitter 6/18/2015 2:31:04 PM
"We don't have any reason to believe there was anyone else involved" authorities, on Dylann Roof arrest in #CharlestonShootingby ibtimesnews via twitter 6/18/2015 3:58:50 PM
SC Governor: Now we have to explain to our kids how we can go to church and feel safe. #CharlestonShootingby WBZ NewsRadio via twitter 6/18/2015 4:10:02 PM
#Obama: Something particularly heartbreaking about a death happening in place we seek solace, place of worship. #CharlestonShootingby USATOpinion via twitter 6/18/2015 4:23:44 PM
“Dylann use to be a super emo, with long blonde hair and he was pretty quiet.” more on #CharlestonShooting nyti.ms/1GuNXQgby karenzraick via twitter 6/18/2015 5:05:47 PM
This is the 14th time @POTUS has had to make a statement about a mass shooting.Will it ever end?yahoo.com/politics/obama… #CharlestonShootingby Nicole Sperling via twitter 6/18/2015 5:25:05 PM
This is the latest line from AP on the situation: An agency that tracks extremists and white supremacist groups has said that suspected killer Dylann Roof in the fatal shooting of nine people at a historic black church in Charleston, South Carolina, wasn't known to officials there.
“@WhiteHouse: Full video: Watch President Obama's statement on the tragic #CharlestonShooting. snpy.tv/1CftWZT”by Allison Seymour via twitter 6/18/2015 6:46:01 PM
