On Sept. 29, 2025, U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from California, posted on X that five mass shootings had taken place in the country in 24 hours. He accused the FBI of failing to protect people in the U.S. under the leadership of President Donald Trump (archived):
As of this writing, Swalwell's post had gained 1.2 million views and 74 likes. The claim also spread to Facebook and Threads.
Swalwell's criticism of the FBI came less than two weeks after he had a confrontational exchange with the agency's director, Kash Patel, during an oversight hearing at the House Judiciary Committee. Swalwell asked Patel whether he had reviewed the files related to late financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Asked why not after he said no, Patel said, "What I've been doing is been busy providing the safest country this country has seen in modern U.S. history in historic speed."
There is no single definition of a "mass shooting." For example, the U.S. Congress has defined "mass killing" as "three or more killings in a single incident." The FBI defines "mass murder" as "a multiple homicide incident in which four or more victims are murdered, within one event, and in one or more locations in close geographical proximity."
The Gun Violence Archive, which keeps a database of mass shootings, defines them as shootings in which at least four people are shot — either wounded or killed — not including the shooter. The Rockefeller Institute of Government defines "mass shooting" as follows:
A mass shooting is an incident of targeted violence carried out by one or more shooters at one or more public or populated locations. Multiple victims (both injuries and fatalities) are associated with the attack, and both the victims and location(s) are chosen either at random or for their symbolic value. The event occurs within a single 24-hour period, though most attacks typically last only a few minutes. The motivation of the shooting must not correlate with gang violence or targeted militant or terroristic activity.
Due to the fact that there is no unified definition of such incidents, we contacted Swalwell's office asking for clarification on the incidents he was referring to in his post. We will update this story should we receive a response.
However, based on the attacks that received the broadest coverage, Snopes found Swalwell was almost correct. Five mass shootings occurred in the U.S. on Sept. 27 and 28, 2025. Nevertheless, the last mass shooting occurred 25.5 hours — not 24 — after the first one.
The first mass shooting occurred at 9:30 p.m. Eastern time Sept. 27 in Southport, North Carolina. Police arrested a man who allegedly shot at a restaurant by the sea, killing three people and injuring at least five.
The second took place in Eagle Pass, Texas, around 12:15 a.m. Central time Sept. 28, when a man opened fired on the parking lot of a casino, killing two people and injuring five others. Police arrested a suspect.
The third happened in New Orleans around 2:20 a.m. Central time the same day, killing one person and injuring three more. Police had not found a suspect as of this writing.
The fourth, in which a man killed four people and injured eight in a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Grand Blanc, Michigan, took place around 10:30 a.m. Eastern time Sept. 28. Police killed the gunman, who also set fire to the church.
The fifth also happened in Michigan. At 11 p.m. Eastern time Sept. 28, the shooter opened fire during a game of dice in Highland Park, injuring four people, including two minors.
Because Southport, North Carolina, and Highland Park, Michigan, are in the same time zone, these five shootings happened within a 25.5-hour period, not 24 hours.
Snopes identified a sixth attack in Selma, Alabama: a drive-by shooting at 8 p.m. Central time Sept. 28 — within the 24-hour period — that resulted in one death and three injuries. It was not clear whether Swalwell had this one in mind when he posted on X.
The FBI website includes a page on preventing mass violence and another on what to do during active-shooter situations. It falls under the agency's responsibilities to help deter mass shootings through intelligence gathering and early intervention.