Alfred Bourgeois was a Louisiana truck driver who was convicted in federal court of torturing and killing his two‑year‑old daughter, often referred to in court records as “JG,” in 2002. After a paternity test established he was the child’s father and he was granted temporary custody, prosecutors presented evidence that Bourgeois abused and tortured the toddler over several weeks, including whipping her with an electrical cord, burning the bottoms of her feet with a cigarette lighter, and repeatedly striking her head with a plastic baseball bat, leading to severe injuries. The killing occurred while he was on a trucking delivery to the Corpus Christi Naval Air Station in Texas, where, prosecutors said, he became enraged when the girl tipped over her training potty and slammed her head into the truck’s cab — including the window and dashboard — causing fatal brain injuries. The child died the next day at a hospital from her injuries. A federal jury convicted him of murder in 2004 and unanimously recommended the death penalty, which was carried out by lethal injection at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana, on December 11, 2020.

The Anaconda Road Massacre was a deadly labor conflict that took place on April 21, 1920, near Butte, Montana, during a major miners’ strike against the powerful Anaconda Copper Mining Company. As members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) and the Metal Mine Workers Industrial Union picketed along Anaconda Road to demand better wages, an eight‑hour workday, and an end to anti‑union practices, tensions with mine officials and local law enforcement escalated. Deputized mine guards opened fire on the unarmed striking workers gathered outside the Neversweat Mine, shooting at them as they tried to flee; sixteen miners were wounded and one, Tom Manning, was killed. Federal troops were brought in the next day to prevent further violence, but the strike eventually collapsed, and no one was ever held accountable for Manning’s death, leaving the massacre as a stark example of the violent lengths to which industrial interests could go to suppress organized labor in early 20th‑century America.

The Andino bombing was a terrorist attack that occurred on June 17, 2017, at the Centro Andino shopping mall in Bogotá, Colombia, when an improvised explosive device planted in a women’s bathroom detonated in the crowded mall during the afternoon, killing three women — including a 23‑year‑old French volunteer — and injuring nine others. Authorities condemned the blast as an act of terrorism and launched a major investigation, offering rewards for information and arresting several suspects allegedly linked to a small far‑left urban guerrilla group called the People’s Revolutionary Movement (MRP); the group itself denied responsibility for the attack. Colombian leaders, including then‑President Juan Manuel Santos and city officials, vowed not to let the violence derail the country’s ongoing peace process and urged unity in the face of the tragedy.

Anthony “Tony” Todt is a former Connecticut physical therapist who shocked the nation when he was convicted in April 2022 of murdering his wife, three children, and the family dog in their Celebration, Florida vacation home in December 2019. Investigators found the decomposing bodies of 42‑year‑old Megan Todt and their children—Aleksander (13), Tyler (11), and Zoe (4)—wrapped in blankets upstairs after authorities went to the house to serve a warrant related to a healthcare fraud investigation; the dog, Breezy, was also dead inside the home. Prosecutors presented evidence that Todt drugged and stabbed his family, then lived in the house with the bodies for weeks before being discovered. During the trial, Todt made conflicting statements — at times claiming he and his wife had planned the deaths as part of a pact to “pass over” before an apocalypse, and at others alleging his wife was responsible — but a jury unanimously found him guilty on multiple counts of first‑degree murder and animal cruelty. Judge Keith Carsten sentenced him to four consecutive life sentences without parole, plus time for animal cruelty, calling him a “destroyer of worlds.”

The Aurora theater shooting occurred on July 20, 2012, during a midnight screening of The Dark Knight Rises at a Century 16 movie theater in Aurora, Colorado. Armed with multiple firearms, James Holmes entered the theater wearing tactical gear and began shooting indiscriminately, killing 12 people and injuring 70 others. The attack shocked the nation, highlighting vulnerabilities in public spaces and sparking debates over gun control, mental health, and mass shooting prevention. Holmes was captured outside the theater shortly afterward and later convicted of multiple counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder, receiving 12 life sentences without parole plus 3,318 years for the wounded. The Aurora shooting remains one of the deadliest mass shootings in U.S. history and is remembered for the extraordinary heroism of theatergoers who helped protect others amid the chaos.

On June 10, 2025, one of the deadliest attacks in modern Austrian history unfolded at the Dreierschützengasse secondary school in Graz, when a 21‑year‑old former student opened fire inside the building, killing 10 people — including nine students aged roughly 14 to 17 and a teacher — and injuring more than a dozen others before taking his own life in a school restroom. Police said the shooter acted alone and used at least two firearms that he legally possessed, but no clear motive has been confirmed, despite investigators finding a farewell letter and other materials at his home. The massacre prompted an immediate nationwide outpouring of grief, with Austria observing three days of national mourning, minute‑long silences, candlelight vigils, and widespread tributes as citizens, officials, and European leaders condemned the violence and honored the victims. In the aftermath, Austrian authorities vowed to review gun laws and school safety measures amid calls for stricter regulation and prevention efforts.

Avicii (born Tim Bergling) was a world-famous Swedish DJ, producer, and electronic music pioneer whose melodic house hits like Wake Me Up and Levels defined a generation of dance music fans. On April 20, 2018, Avicii died by suicide at the age of 28 while in Muscat, Oman. His family later confirmed that he struggled with mental health issues and the pressures of fame, describing him as someone who “could not go on any longer” and highlighting his private battle with stress, anxiety, and health complications from years of touring. His death sparked a global conversation about mental health in the music industry, the toll of relentless touring schedules, and the need for support for artists behind the scenes, leaving fans and fellow musicians mourning the loss of one of EDM’s brightest talents.

The Boston Marathon bombing occurred on April 15, 2013, when two homemade pressure-cooker bombs detonated near the finish line of the marathon, killing 3 people and injuring over 260 others, many critically. The attack was carried out by brothers Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, motivated by extremist Islamist beliefs. In the days following the bombing, a citywide manhunt led to a violent confrontation in Watertown, Massachusetts, during which Tamerlan Tsarnaev was killed and Dzhokhar was captured after hiding in a boat. The incident prompted massive emergency responses, widespread media coverage, and unprecedented public safety measures, including the temporary shutdown of Boston’s transit system. Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was later tried, convicted, and sentenced to death, though his sentence has faced multiple appeals, highlighting ongoing debates over terrorism, justice, and national security. The Boston Marathon bombing remains a defining moment in U.S. history, remembered for both the tragedy of the attack and the resilience shown by the victims and the city.