美国国家公共电台 NPR--What motivated a gunman to open fire on a Lunar New Year celebration near LA

What motivated a gunman to open fire on a Lunar New Year celebration near LA

Transcript¹

California's Monterey Park community is reeling following a mass shooting at a dance club Saturday night. The city is tight knit and a center of Asian American and Pacific Islander life.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Some other news now. Police want to know what motivated a gunman to open fire on a dance hall near Los Angeles during the Lunar New Year weekend. Ten people died. Ten were injured. The suspect was a 72-year-old man who later killed himself. Josie Huang of our member station KPCC has been talking with people in the community where it happened.

JOSIE HUANG, BYLINE²: Monterey Park has one of the largest Lunar New Year festivals anywhere in the country. But jubilation³ turned to fear as news broke of a mass shooting at the Star Dance Studio, a fixture⁴ in the neighborhood, especially for older immigrants learning to cha-cha or to waltz. Locals woke Sunday to the sight of police barricades⁵ and helicopters circling above.

(SOUNDBITE OF HELICOPTERS)

HUANG: Hong Liu learned that a manhunt was underway as she went downtown to shop for groceries.

HONG LIU: (Non-English language spoken).

HUANG: She said she was going home right away because it was too scary.

LIU: (Non-English language spoken).

HUANG: She said Monterey Park is a safe city where you could never imagine something like this happening. The sense of security that Monterey Park offers is a big reason why so many immigrants move here. The city, which is two-thirds Asian, has been called the first suburban⁶ Chinatown, also Little Taipei and the Chinese Beverly Hills. Restaurants and shops here draw Asians from across LA. But a pall⁷ had fallen over what would normally be a bustling⁸ weekend.

June Cai and her husband were in Monterey Park to look at a used car.

JUNE CAI: (Non-English language spoken).

HUANG: She says any interest in marking the new year disappeared after the shooting. Their hearts just weren't in it. Out of caution, the city had canceled the second day of the Lunar New Year Festival. Officials initially⁹ worried that anti-Asian hate was a possible motive¹⁰, given a surge in such attacks during the pandemic. Tensions remained high until early evening. That's when police identified the suspect.

LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said the suspect's relationship to the victims is not known, but that he could have claimed more lives. Luna said the suspect went to a second dance studio in the neighboring city of Alhambra.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ROBERT LUNA: Two brave community members decided¹¹ they were going to jump into action and disarm¹² him, and the suspect ran away.

HUANG: That firearm, Luna said, was a semiautomatic assault pistol with an extended magazine attached - illegal to own in California. The suspect's van was spotted¹³ Sunday morning and pulled over by police in Torrance, a city 30 miles south of Monterey Park. Police say he shot himself as officers approached his van. Many questions remain unanswered.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

JUDY CHU: What was the motive for this shooter? Did he have a mental illness?

HUANG: Democratic Congressmember Judy Chu represents Monterey Park. She used to be its mayor. She acknowledged those who had worried about their safety during the manhunt. And she offered reassurance¹⁴.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

CHU: Feel safe. You are no longer in danger because this shooter is gone.

HUANG: But June Nachalai couldn't help but still feel unsettled. The Thai Chinese esthetician immigrated¹⁵ to the U.S. 25 years ago.

JUNE NACHALAI: When I first came here, I told myself, this is a great place to live. But the more I live longer, I don't feel safe like before.

HUANG: She said she was avoiding driving near the crime scene because she got emotional thinking about the 10 victims - how they died, who they were. Please say their names will be released once their families have been notified.

For NPR News, I'm Josie Huang in Monterey Park.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

3 jubilation   

n.欢庆，喜悦

参考例句：

• The goal was greeted by jubilation from the home fans.主场球迷为进球欢呼。
• The whole city was a scene of jubilation.全市一片欢腾。

4 fixture   

n.固定设备；预定日期；比赛时间；定期存款

参考例句：

• Lighting fixture must be installed at once.必须立即安装照明设备。
• The cordless kettle may now be a fixture in most kitchens.无绳电热水壶现在可能是多数厨房的固定设备。

5 barricades   

路障，障碍物( barricade的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The police stormed the barricades the demonstrators had put up. 警察冲破了示威者筑起的街垒。
• Others died young, in prison or on the barricades. 另一些人年轻时就死在监牢里或街垒旁。

6 suburban   

adj.城郊的，在郊区的

参考例句：

• Suburban shopping centers were springing up all over America. 效区的商业中心在美国如雨后春笋般地兴起。
• There's a lot of good things about suburban living.郊区生活是有许多优点。

7 pall   

v.覆盖，使平淡无味；n.柩衣，棺罩；棺材；帷幕

参考例句：

• Already the allure of meals in restaurants had begun to pall.饭店里的饭菜已经不像以前那样诱人。
• I find his books begin to pall on me after a while.我发觉他的书读过一阵子就开始对我失去吸引力。

8 bustling   

adj.喧闹的

参考例句：

• The market was bustling with life. 市场上生机勃勃。
• This district is getting more and more prosperous and bustling. 这一带越来越繁华了。

9 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

10 motive   

n.动机，目的；adv.发动的，运动的

参考例句：

• The police could not find a motive for the murder.警察不能找到谋杀的动机。
• He had some motive in telling this fable.他讲这寓言故事是有用意的。

11 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

12 disarm   

v.解除武装，回复平常的编制，缓和

参考例句：

• The world has waited 12 years for Iraq to disarm. 全世界等待伊拉克解除武装已有12年之久。
• He has rejected every peaceful opportunity offered to him to disarm.他已经拒绝了所有能和平缴械的机会。

13 spotted   

adj.有斑点的，斑纹的，弄污了的

参考例句：

• The milkman selected the spotted cows,from among a herd of two hundred.牛奶商从一群200头牛中选出有斑点的牛。
• Sam's shop stocks short spotted socks.山姆的商店屯积了有斑点的短袜。

14 reassurance   

n.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• He drew reassurance from the enthusiastic applause.热烈的掌声使他获得了信心。
• Reassurance is especially critical when it comes to military activities.消除疑虑在军事活动方面尤为关键。

15 immigrated   

v.移入( immigrate的过去式和过去分词 )；移民

参考例句：

• He immigrated from Ulster in 1848. 他1848年从阿尔斯特移民到这里。 来自辞典例句
• Many Pakistanis have immigrated to Britain. 许多巴基斯坦人移居到了英国。 来自辞典例句