'You don’t want to believe it could happen here': Annapolis residents mourn fatal shooting at Capital Gazette

Hundreds turn out for vigils after five die in shooting at local paper

Even as US President Donald Trump has referred to journalists as "the enemy of the American people," and decried the press as "fake news," the residents of Annapolis, Maryland have held a special place in their hearts for the Capital Gazette.

For decades, the paper has covered their elections, sports games, celebrations, and controversies. In the words of local resident John Korin: “It’s how we wake up in the morning.”

So when a lone gunman opened fire on the Capital’s newsrooms on Thursday, killing five people and injuring two more, it was no surprise that hundreds of people came out to mourn the tragedy.

Residents flooded downtown Annapolis on Friday night for a candle-lit march from the capitol building to the harbour. Many of them held up the front page of that day’s paper, which bore the photos of those killed in the shooting. Others carried signs reading “#AnnapolisStrong,” or simply, “Enough”.

“You don’t want to believe that it could happen where you live,” Brittany Zalovick, a local waitress, told The Independent. But, she added: “I think this town especially bands together really well.”

Annapolis resident John Korin holds up the front page of the Capital Gazette at a vigil (Emily Shugerman/The Independent)

As if to prove that point, the town held not one, but three vigils for the victims on Friday – just hours after suspect Jarrod Ramos was ordered held without bail on five counts of first-degree murder. He has yet to enter a plea.

That afternoon, congregants at the local Unitarian Universalist church gathered to remember Wendi Winters – a special projects editor for the paper and a familiar face in the community. Four women who huddled outside the church knew her especially well: They were members of a Girl Scouts troop that Ms Winters lead nearly 10 years ago.

Troop member Lauren Johnson recalled how Ms Winters helped her secure a scholarship to college by featuring her in the Capital's "Teen of the Week" column. Another member, Amy Laking, recalled how Ms Winters sat with her for more than 12 hours in a Toronto emergency room after she fell ill on a Girl Scouts trip.

When the women – now in their late 20s – heard the news of Ms Winters’ death, they rushed back to Annapolis to offer their support. Rallying together in times of crisis, they said, was something that Ms Winters had taught them.

Inside the church, Reverend John Crestwell Jr said he felt the shooting would galvanise his community to push for stricter laws around gun violence. While many religious leaders prefer to offer only thoughts and prayers in the aftermath of a shooting, Mr Crestwell said: “We’re done with that. The time for that is over.”

Down the road, at a vigil outside the local Westfield mall, another group of religious leaders urged unity in the face of tragedy. Local ministers, rabbis, imams and politicians took turns offering up their prayers at the sunset vigil, which was expected to draw only a few dozen people but brought in more than 100.

Les Owen, a local filmmaker, said he came to the vigil to honour John McNamara – one of the reporters killed in the shooting, who had interviewed him about a documentary project earlier that year. Mr McNamara came over to his house for their interview, Mr Owen recalled, and instantly put him at ease.

“It ended up just being like a conversation between old friends,” Mr Owen said, adding: “He just loved people – you could see it in his writing.”

A memorial sprung up outside the offices of the Capital Gazette (Emily Shugerman/The Independent)

Editorial page editor Gerald Fischman, assistant managing editor Rob Hiaasen, and sales assistant Rebecca Smith were also killed in the shooting, which police have called a "targeted attack". Wes Adams, the Anne Arundel County State Attorney, said Mr Ramos barricaded the back door of the building and set off a smoke grenade before "hunting down" his victims with a pump-action shotgun.

The 38-year-old had a running feud with the paper over an editorial it published about his criminal charges. He sued the Capital for defamation and lost, but continued to harass its writers online – including in a tweet where he warned against calling Mr Trump "unqualified".

Mr Trump offered up his own thoughts on the shooting on Friday, saying the attack "shocked the conscience of our nation and filled our hearts with grief".

"Journalists, like all Americans, should be free from the fear of being violently attacked while doing their job," he said from the East Room of the White House.

Meanwhile, thirty miles away, one such journalist had driven nearly an hour to pay her respects to the Capital staff. Sheilah Kast, a radio host in Baltimore, drove to Annapolis after work that night to attend the vigil outside the Westfield mall.

While she wouldn’t speculate as to the alleged shooter’s motive, she said: “The bottom line is that these were four journalists and one supporting staff member who were killed just for where they worked.”

“I think we all need to stand up and reflect on it and what it tells us, and what we need to do in our society," she added.