Father of slain Virginia reporter makes emotional plea

ROANOKE, Va. -- The father of slain TV reporter Alison Parker says he will make it his mission to try to change gun laws.

Andy Parker said outside of CBS affiliate WDBJ-TV on Friday that he supports stronger gun laws and says people at gun shows should have to a background check before they can make purchases.

He says he has talked with Gov. Terry McAuliffe about gun laws, but was disappointed that he hadn't heard from Sens. Tim Kaine and Mark Warner.

Parker says he doesn't own a gun, but he believes he will have to buy one now that he is going to be a public advocate for stronger gun laws.

"You have got to help me make a difference," he told reporters.

He says politicians need to stand up to the NRA and that his daughter's murder will not be in vain. Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward were gunned down by a former colleague on Wednesday.

Vicki Gardner, who was being interviewed, lost a kidney and part off her colon from being shot in the back by Vester Flanagan. Flanagan later took his own life.

Gov. McAuliffe visited WDBJ-TV to lend his support and give condolences to the employees there.

McAuliffe visited Friday and spoke to the media outside of the station. He talked about his support for universal background checks for gun purchases and said "there are too many guns in America."

But McAuliffe, himself a gun owner, also says the gunman who killed to TV station employees had passed a background check.

After the shooting, several politicians renewed calls for stricter gun control legislation but Republican presidential candidate and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie is advocating against increasing gun laws, saying the country should focus instead on mental health issues.

"The fact is that we need to have more information about people's mental health background," Christie said in an interview with "CBS This Morning" early Thursday. "But we don't need new laws in this country to be able to do that. We have laws that exist now. We just need to enforce the ones we do."

As authorities continue their investigation, the community is still trying to cope with the tragedy, CBS News' Jeff Pegues reports.

"We all have daughters and sons, and it could be any of our children," Kathleen Fitzpatrick said.

Parker and Ward were just doing their jobs when Flanagan fatally ambushed them Wednesday during a live broadcast.

The medical examiner's office in Roanoke office said Friday that Parker's official cause of death was gunshot wounds to the head and chest and Ward's cause of death was gunshot wounds to the head and torso. Homicide is listed as the manner of death for both Parker and Ward. The medical examiner's office did not specify how many times Parker and Ward were shot during Wednesday's attack.

The husband of Vicki Gardner, the woman wounded in the attack, said his wife will need about three months to recover. He said she has lost a kidney and part of her colon. As of 6 a.m. Friday, Gardner remains in good condition, a hospital spokesperson said.

Court papers say after the shooting Flanagan sent a text message to a friend making a "reference to having done something stupid."

Inside his rented vehicle, police found a Glock pistol, ammunition and a "to do list," the contents of which were not released.

There was also a briefcase with three license plates, a wig, shawl and sunglasses -- a possible sign the former reporter was planning on getting away in disguise.

New images of Flanagan's apartment just blocks from the station reveal an impersonal, sparse interior. There were headshots of himself hanging on the kitchen refrigerator.

Flanagan, who used the name Bryce Williams on air, was fired from WDBJ in 2013.

Station manager Jeff Marks said the reporter was initially ordered to get counseling.

"We made it mandatory that he seek from our employee assistance program," Marks said. "He complied with what we asked him to do."

Flanagan sued for discrimination and wrongful termination. In court papers, the station said Flanagan was let go for "unsatisfactory job performance" and that after being fired he said, "you better call police because I'm going to make a big stink."

As police escorted him out, he put a wooden cross in the news director's hand saying, "you'll need this." Flanagan's case was dismissed.

"That all ended two and a half years ago," Marks said. "We're still at a loss to figure out what happened to him in those two and a half years."

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