The mother of Michigan church shooter, Thomas Michael Sanford, took to Facebook to express thoughts on accountability just days before the tragic event in Michigan.
On September 26, Brenda Walters-Sanford shared a post, two days prior to her 40-year-old son, Thomas Jacob Sanford, driving his truck into a church in Grand Blanc Township, where he subsequently opened fire and set the premises ablaze, resulting in at least four fatalities.
Her post declared, “Talking to someone who constantly avoids accountability is not a real conversation — it’s a battle. It’s a cycle of deflection, projection, twisting, and playing the victim,” indicating the complexities of dealing with individuals who do not own up to their actions.
Walters-Sanford also mentioned, “When I try to express how your actions have hurt me, you don’t listen with the intention of understanding; you listen with the intention of defending yourself. That’s not communication — that’s self-preservation of your ego.”
The post, which seems to be a widely circulated message on Facebook, leaves it ambiguous whether Walters-Sanford was referring to her son, another acquaintance, or simply commenting on the current political divide in America.
It further elaborated: “I don’t owe my peace to someone who only wants to win an argument, not to understand my heart. My energy is not a prize for someone committed to misunderstanding me. At some point, you have to value yourself enough to stop begging someone to hear you.”
Days after Walters-Sanford posted the message, her son, an ex-Marine, smashed a pickup into a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints church in Michigan, opened fire and set the building ablaze during a crowded Sunday service and then was fatally shot by police.
Police said Thomas Jacob Sanford opened fire on more than a hundred people who had gathered for a service at the Church of Latter Day Saints in Grand Blanc on Sunday
The shooter’s mother Brenda Walters-Sanford shared the above message two days before the massacre in Michigan
The charred wreckage of the building is still being searched as of Monday. It’s pictured on Sunday after the attack
At least four people were killed and eight wounded on Sunday, and authorities were searching the building ruins for more victims.
The attack occurred about 10:25 a.m. while hundreds of people were in the building in Grand Blanc Township, outside Flint.
The man got out of the pickup with two American flags raised in the truck bed and started shooting, Police Chief William Renye told reporters. The attacker apparently used gas to start the fire and also had explosive devices but it wasn’t clear if he used them, said James Dier of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
One family friend told journalist Ty Steele that Sanford had been battling PTSD.
‘It’s hard to feel sad for someone who did something so terrible, and I still feel sad. I had heard through family events that he had had PTSD,’ she said.
‘He would make comments occasionally and it was something that was kind of talked about. It wasn’t talked about in depth… so I don’t know the depth of his issues.’
Sanford’s loved ones, including his wife and both of his parents, also frequently shared pro-Trump messaging on their social media pages.
On Sunday, just hours before Sanford’s name was released to the public, his mother had shared a lengthy post about Trump and hoping he would bring in tighter rules for Congress members.
‘Life isn’t a FREE RIDE!! No matter what JOB you have!!’ she wrote.
The alleged shooter’s silver truck, decked out with American flags, is seen rammed into the church after he opened fire with an assault rifle on hundreds of congregants, including children
In one image, Sanford poses alongside his wife and son wearing a pro-Trump shirt with the message ‘Make Liberals Cry Again’
She also frequently posted about conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s death, indicating she believed there was ‘more to’ the shooting.
The FBI is leading the investigation and considered it an ‘act of targeted violence,’ said Ruben Coleman, a special agent in charge for the bureau.
Officers responding to a 911 call were at the church within 30 seconds, Renye said. After the suspect left the church, two officers pursued him and ‘engaged in gunfire,’ killing him about eight minutes later, the chief said.
People inside the church shielded children and moved them to safety during the attack, Renye said.
Flames and smoke poured from the large church for hours before the blaze was extinguished.
Two bodies were found during a search of the debris, and Renye said more victims could be found as searchers made their way though the entire church. One of the wounded people was in critical condition Sunday evening and the seven others were stable.
Renye said ‘some’ people were unaccounted for, but he didn’t have an exact number.
Michigan State Police Lt. Kim Vetter said bomb threats were made at other churches in the area after officers shot and killed Sanford. No bombs were found and police were investigating the threats.
The 40-year-old father-of-one killed at least four people and injured eight others during his horrifying rampage
Investigators were searching Sanford’s residence but authorities did not say what they found or provide any additional details about him, including whether he was a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, widely known as the Mormon church.
Sanford served in the Marines from June 2004 through June 2008, working as an automotive mechanic and vehicle recovery operator, according to military records obtained by The Detroit News. He was deployed to Iraq from August 2007 through March 2008 and had the rank of sergeant.
It was the latest of many shooting attacks on houses of worship in the US over the past 20 years, including one in August that killed two children during Mass at the Church of the Annunciation in Minneapolis.
It also was the second mass shooting in the U.S. in less than 24 hours. On Saturday night, a man in a boat opened fire on a crowd in Southport, North Carolina, killing three and injuring five.
