On Monday evening, those is the NYC Tristate area were aghast at the report of a Midtown Manhattan mass shooting that left 5 people dead, including the shooter.  In a 3-page note found at the scene, the 27-year-old male shooter claims to have suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, writing, “Study my brain please… I’m sorry.”  While CTE does not lessen the horror of the shooter’s actions, it could explain why these actions were taken by a man described by a former coach as, “a quiet kid, well-mannered, very coachable.” 

Government-funded studies have shown that high school football can cause neurological trauma.  NYC Mayor Adams confirmed, “We’re looking at his note that talked about CTE… but it is far from conclusive.”  CTE does affect impulse control.  The shooter, though, had the foresight to book and take a trip from Las Vegas to NYC, NFL headquarters, and to purchase a high-powered rifle.  Additionally, his letter reveals that his sense of right and wrong was intact.

NOTE: I choose not to post any statements related to said incident from any of the current candidates for NYC Mayor.  Eric Adams’ statement was specifically related to his mayoral duties.

(The accompanying link is still relevant to the current NYC occurrence.  Of course, new research has been done, and new conclusions have been reached, since it was first posted in 2018.)