2017 Las Vegas Shooting

The Las Vegas shooting of October 1, 2017, was the deadliest mass shooting in modern American history. Stephen Paddock, a 64-year-old retired accountant and real estate investor, opened fire from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino on the Las Vegas Strip, targeting the Route 91 Harvest music festival taking place in an open-air venue below. The attack killed 60 people and wounded more than 400 by gunfire, with over 850 total injuries when accounting for the ensuing panic. Paddock then killed himself before police breached his hotel room.

Stephen Craig Paddock was born in Clinton, Iowa, in 1953. He lived a largely unremarkable life, working as an accountant, postal carrier, and IRS agent before accumulating wealth through real estate investments and becoming a professional video poker player. He lived with his girlfriend, Marilou Danley, in a retirement community in Mesquite, Nevada.

In the months before the attack, Paddock purchased an arsenal of weapons — 23 firearms were found in his hotel suite. Many of the rifles were modified with bump stocks, which allowed them to fire at a rate approaching that of fully automatic weapons. Paddock checked into the Mandalay Bay on September 25, 2017, requesting a corner suite with a view of the festival venue.

At 10:05 PM on October 1, Paddock smashed two windows in his suite and began firing into the crowd of approximately 22,000 concertgoers below. The shooting lasted approximately 10 minutes, during which Paddock fired more than 1,000 rounds. Among the 60 people killed were attendees from across the country, ranging in age from 20 to 67.

Despite the most extensive investigation in the history of the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department and the FBI, investigators were unable to determine a clear motive for the attack. The FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit concluded in its January 2019 report that the motive remained ultimately indeterminate.

The Las Vegas shooting prompted nationwide debate about gun control, particularly regarding bump stocks, which were subsequently banned by the ATF in December 2018.

Stephen Paddock died by self-inflicted gunshot on October 1, 2017, precluding criminal prosecution. His girlfriend Marilou Danley was investigated as a person of interest but was not charged. In November 2019, MGM Resorts International reached a settlement of up to million with approximately 4,400 victims and their families, representing one of the largest mass shooting settlements in U.S. history. The ATF banned bump stocks through a regulatory rule change in December 2018, effective March 2019 (later struck down by the Supreme Court in Garland v. Cargill, 2024, which ruled the ATF had exceeded its authority). The FBI closed its investigation in January 2019 without determining a definitive motive. No criminal charges were filed against any person in connection with the shooting.