South Carolina Lawmaker Sorry He Said Victims ‘Waited’ to Be Shot

South Carolina State Rep. William Chumley apologized Wednesday for turning the Charleston shooting at a historic black church into a gun debate. Chumley, a Republican, told CNN on Tuesday night that the nine victims “waited their turn to be shot.” Chumley said someone inside could have stopped the shooting and “we’d have less funerals than we’re having.”

“I deeply regret using those words and giving that impression. My view, which I was clumsily trying to express, was that it is painfully regrettable that someone was not able to intervene in this demented killer’s life to stop him right up to the moment he squeezed the trigger.

“Please let me be clear: The responsibility for the despicable murders in Charleston rests solely on the murderer. If any of my remarks suggested differently, I am deeply sorry.”