‘I’ve got a bad stomach’: LA Galaxy star Sacha Kljestan pleads for gun control in emotional press conference after Highland Park massacre as he says he’s ‘not so ***’ about football amid ‘sick ‘vicious circle’
- LA Galaxy midfielder Sacha Kljestan used his media duties to speak out on gun control
- The 36-year-old revealed the lack of action in the US “is making me sick”.
- Robert “Bobby” Crimo III, 22, is suspected of killing six people in Chicago
- The Highland Park massacre is the 15th mass murder in the country in 2022
LA Galaxy midfielder Sacha Kljestan used his post-game press conference to make the case for new gun laws in the wake of the Highland Park massacre in Illinois.
Robert “Bobby” Crimo III, 22, is suspected of killing six people and injuring more than a dozen others during a July 4th parade. The US has seen 309 mass murders so far this year.
After his team’s 4-0 win over CF Montreal. of which he played 13 minutes, Kljestan sat down in front of reporters and said: “I’ll actually be very brief and won’t answer any questions about the game. I am not joking.
“I’m sick of what happened in Illinois today and I think we need to talk about gun control. You can write about the game if you want, but I’m not really giving up.
“It’s a sick vicious cycle that happens over and over again and we don’t do anything about it and it makes me sick.
LA Galaxy midfielder Sacha Kljestan spoke about the Highland Park massacre during his press work
Robert “Bobby” Crimo III is pictured during his arrest after an hours-long manhunt in Illinois
Crimo, 22, is suspected of killing six people and injuring more than a dozen others during a July 4 parade
“Congress, Senators, if anyone sees this – do something. Our children are shot, we say “thoughts and prayers” and nothing happens. We talk about it on social media and it doesn’t do anything. And then our government does nothing and then someone gets shot again.
“It’s sick, it annoys me and I can’t think of anything else but that.
“I’m not a politician but I’m a human being and my kids, I’m scared for them when they go to school and that makes me angry. If it doesn’t bother you, if you don’t want new gun laws in this country, then there’s something wrong with you.”
A member of the press then brought up the recent Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v Wade, which again gives states the power to criminalize abortion.
“It’s ridiculous that we have nine people who don’t really represent what the majority of Americans want to make decisions about,” the 36-year-old replied. “Then take women’s liberties and put everyone’s lives at risk by allowing these insane laws.”
The 36-year-old also spoke about the Supreme Court’s recent ruling overturning Roe v Wade
Armed police officers conduct a search of the vehicle after Crimo’s arrest after a brief chase in Lake Forest yesterday
Kljestan was then asked if he had discussed these issues with his children. “It’s sick,” he added. “They tell me they practice at school when a shooter comes in. It’s sad.”
Crimo, a Donald Trump-supporting rapper with a seemingly successful music career, was arrested after an hours-long manhunt involving local and state authorities.
Police said he was “known to law enforcement,” but it’s not yet known if that’s due to the disturbing content he’s shared online, which has now acquired chilling relevance in the wake of the shooting.
So far, the synagogue teacher Jacki Sundheim, a married mother, and the grandfather Nicolas Toledo, 78, have been named as victims.
A total of 26 victims were injured, 25 of whom received gunshot wounds. Six remain in hospital for treatment. The victims’ ages ranged from eight to 85, with around four or five of those shot dead believed to be children.
Independence Day horror: A police officer bows his head in grief next to abandoned baby strollers and chairs after a shootout that killed six people in Highland Park, Illinois