During CNN's live coverage of Monday's shooting at the Washington Navy
Yard, anchor Carol Costello asked when the last time was that a gunman
wreaked "havoc at a U.S. military facility." In 2009, a jihadist killed
13 in a mass-shooting at Fort Hood in Texas.
"I used to work in Washington, live in Washington. This seems
so unusual to me that a gunman could create this kind of havoc at a U.S.
military facility," Costello stated. "Have you ever heard of it happening before, Brian?" she asked correspondent Brian Todd, reporting live from the vicinity of the shooting.
[Video below. Audio here [1].]
Costello added that "this is so unusual, because this is such a heavily-secured military facility. I've worked in Washington for many years, I've never heard of such a thing happening." She may have been referring to shootings at military bases near Washington, D.C., though her question simply referred to a "U.S. military facility."
Below is a transcript of the exchange, which aired on CNN Newsroom on September 16 at 10:01 a.m. EDT:
CAROL COSTELLO: I used to work in Washington, live in Washington. This
seems so unusual to me that a gunman could create this kind of havoc at a
U.S. military facility.
BRIAN TODD: Yes.
COSTELLO: Have you ever heard of it happening before, Brian?
TODD: I'm sorry, Carol. I missed that question. Could you repeat it please?
COSTELLO: I was just saying that this is so unusual, because this is
such a heavily-secured military facility. I've worked in Washington for
many years, I've never heard of such a thing happening.
TODD: Well, we haven't either in this area, Carol. This is the first
time we've seen something like this, at least in many, many years. Now
you remember the Fort Hood shooting in 2009, where that was a member of
the service who was convicted eventually of doing that shooting.