The criminal history and documented mental health struggles of the Lakewood Church shooter is reigniting calls for red flag laws, as the gunwoman’s mother-in-law described the incident as a “completely preventable horror.”

Before opening fire with an AR-15 in Houston’s Lakewood Church, 36-year-old Genesse Moreno had numerous encounters with law enforcement and the judicial system. She was arrested at least six times between 2005 and 2022, according to records obtained from the Texas Department of Public Safety.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: The Lakewood Church shooter’s long record of red flags
Her charges include unlawful carrying of a weapon, assault of a public servant, assault causing bodily injury, forgery, theft and marijuana possession. Moreno was also put under an order for emotional detention in 2016. In Texas, an emergency detention order allows a court to detain a person with a mental illness who “poses a substantial risk of serious harm to themselves or to others.”

Investigators detailed a pattern of arrests, mental health issues and anti-Semitic writings that they say might have catalyzed Sunday’s attempted massacre. During the first 24 hours of the investigation, officials also uncovered “anti-Semitic writings” and said her AR-15 was decorated with a sticker that read “Palestine.”

“My daughter-in-law when she was taking medication for schizophrenia was a very sweet and loving woman,” Walli Carranza, the mother-in-law of Moreno wrote on social media Monday. “But mental illness is real illness and when family members seek emergency protections they’re not doing so for their own sake but for the sake of the person who is ill.”

Carranza also said she believes if Texas had “strong red flag laws,” that would have stopped her daughter-in-law “from owning or possessing a gun.”

Federal, state and local authorities are currently investigating the nature of Moreno’s firearm purchase. Investigators said Monday they believe she purchased the firearm she used in December legally.

Houston Police Chief Troy Finner said there are limitations to preventing bad actors, when asked if Moreno’s criminal record would have put her on their “radar.”

“She did have a history, if you want to say that, but there are millions on top of millions of people who have a history,” Finner told Nexstar.

Investigators are still trying to determine why Moreno targeted the popular megachurch, where renowned Joel Osteen is the senior pastor. Two people were injured, including Moreno’s 7-year-old son, who is in critical condition. She was killed by law enforcement on scene.