Who is Aaron Alexis?

Aaron Alexis killed 12 people in a shooting at the Washington Navy Yard in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 16, 2013. He also shot three others and died after exchanging gunfire with the police. Alexis had been discharged two years earlier from the Navy Reserve due to misconduct.

Despite multiple past incidents of gun-related contact with the police, Alexis held a security clearance and was working for a defense contractor at the time of the Navy Yard shooting. He is believed to have assembled his shotgun inside the restroom of a Navy Yard building to which his work allowed access. The FBI cited Alexis' mental health as a factor in the shooting.