In answer to many of the questions that remained from yesterday’s active shooting at Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Houston, police have identified the shooter and the child that was with her. What was originally shared was that a female shooter with a young child in tow opened fire at the church before being quickly killed by off-duty law enforcement officers working as security in the building. The church was between services at the time the woman entered the building.
As it turns out, the woman, who was originally described as between 30 to 35, turned out to be a 36-year-old trans woman named Genesse Ivonne Moreno. Moreno also reportedly had a long mental health history, as well as a lengthy history of criminal charges.
No motive has been determined.
The child that was with the shooter and who was critically injured in the shoot-out was originally believed to be 5 years old. However, the child described as the shooter’s son, is actually 7, and remains in critical condition after reportedly being shot in the head during the incident. It is still unclear who fired the shot that struck the boy. The security guards who exchanged fire with the shooter reportedly did so after Moreno aimed what news outlets are describing as a legally purchased AR-15 rifle with a Palestine sticker on it at the men.
Another bystander was shot during the incident, CNN reporting him as Tom George Thomas. Thomas was shot in the leg, sought treatment at a hospital and was released.