Jacksonville shooting suspect was hospitalized in psychiatric facilities: report

The suspect in Sunday’s shooting at a video game tournament in Jacksonville had been hospitalized twice for mental illness and played video games obsessively as a child, according to an Associated Press report.

The news outlet reported Tuesday that David Katz, 24, was in a psychiatric facility on two separate occasions as an adolescent. He was prescribed antipsychotic and antidepressant medications, as well.

Divorce filings from Katz’s parents show that they disagreed over how to handle their son’s mental illness, the AP reported. Katz’s mother claimed in the filings that his father downplayed David Katz’s need for medication.

{mosads}The filings also show that Katz reportedly played video games so much growing up that he sometimes refused to bathe or go to school, the AP reported. His mother at one point put his video game equipment behind a locked door, and Katz punched a hole in that door.

Authorities said Katz, of Baltimore, opened fire at a “Madden NFL 19” tournament in Jacksonville on Sunday, killing two people and injuring nine others. He died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police have not released a motive.

The shooting has renewed calls from some lawmakers for stricter gun laws, while pro-gun advocates like the National Rifle Association have cited the shooting as a reason to do away with “gun free” zones.

President Trump has not made a public comment on the shooting, though his daughter, Ivanka, acknowledged the incident shortly after it took place on Sunday.