50 Dead, 53 Hospitalized In Orlando Shooting

Police departments across the country are increasing patrols near locations frequented by the LGBT community after 50 people were shot dead at a gay nightclub in Orlando.

In Los Angeles, the mayor says a heavily armed person who was headed to a gay pride parade was arrested by Santa Monica police. Mayor Eric Garcetti says the arrest was unrelated to the Orlando nightclub shooting.

FBI spokeswoman Laura Eimiller told City News Service that the agency was assisting the Santa Monica Police Department with the arrest of an individual," but would not supply any more details.

Tens of thousands have gathered in West Hollywood for the annual LA Pride.

Boston Pride organizers plan to hold a moment of silence at this weekend's scheduled block parties to honor the Orlando victims and police there said there will be a heavier presence at those events.

Police in Washington, D.C., said people attending today's Capital Pride Festival should expect extra police presence.

Officer Ernesto Rodriguez of Miami Beach Police Department says the agency is saddened by the massacre and out of an abundance of caution will step up patrols.

The Baltimore Police Department says it is reaching out to the city's LBGT community to discuss concerns and safety after the Orlando massacre.

The suspected Orlando nightclub gunman had been licensed as a private security officer in Florida.

State records show suspected shooter Omar Mateen held the firearms license since at least 2011. It was set to expire in September 2017.

It wasn't immediately clear where, if anywhere, Mateen had worked as a security officer. An armed guard license in Florida requires 28 hours of classroom training by a licensed instructor.

Obama Orders Flags Flown at Half-Staff

President Barack Obama has ordered flags to be flown at half-staff at the White House and federal buildings until sunset Thursday "as a mark of respect for victims of the act of hatred and terror" at a gay Florida nightclub.

He's also directing the same observance at embassies and other U.S. government facilities abroad.

Obama says the FBI is investigating it as an act of terrorism and that no effort will be spared to determine whether the shooter was affiliated with terrorist groups.

Obama spoke at the White House after 50 people were killed overnight at a nightclub in Florida. Officials have said 53 more are hospitalized.

Obama is noting that the killer targeted a gay nightclub. He says it's a "sobering reminder" that an attack on any American is an attack "on all of us."

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