LANSING – Gov. Gretchen Whitmer has ordered U.S. and Michigan flags within the State Capitol Complex and on all state buildings to be lowered to half-staff until sunset on June 4, 2019, to honor the victims of the deadly mass shooting in Virginia Beach.
"My heart is with the loved ones of the victims and the residents of Virginia who were deeply impacted by this senseless tragedy," Whitmer said. "Our nation has lost far too many people to gun violence, and we cannot continue to let these acts of violence become the norm."
On Friday, a gunman opened fire in a municipal building in Virginia Beach, Virginia, killing 12 people and sending four others to the hospital. Officials released the names of the 12 people killed in the shooting:
- Alexander Mikhail Gusev
- Christopher Kelly Rapp
- Herbert "Bert" Snelling
- Joshua Hardy
- Katherine A. Nixon
- Laquita C. Brown
- Mary Louise Gayle
- Michelle "Missy" Langer
- Richard H. Nettleton
- Robert "Bobby" Williams
- Ryan Keith Cox
- Tara Welch Gallagher
The State of Michigan remembers the victims and stands in solidarity with residents of the Commonwealth of Virginia by lowering flags to half-staff. Michigan residents, businesses, schools, local governments and other organizations also are encouraged to display the flag at half-staff.
To lower flags to half-staff, flags should be hoisted first to the peak for an instant and then lowered to the half-staff position. The process is reversed before the flag is lowered for the day.
Flags should be returned to full-staff on Wednesday, June 5, 2019.
