Father who lost son in Isla Vista killings raises concerns about rise in ominous subculture

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. – In the 10 years since the Isla Vista massacre, the debate over gun control and mental illness has only intensified.

One man who knows that best is Richard Martinez. He lost his only son, Christopher, that horrific night on May 23, 2014.

Martinez shared a powerful message with your News Channel as he sees a rise in an ominous subculture spreading.

"Other killings here in our country and in other countries have cited Isla Vista as inspiration," said Martinez.

Over the past decade, Martinez has become the face of grieving parents all across the country.

The 70-year-old's prominent role with Everytown for Gun Safety has connected Martinez with countless survivors of gun violence. (He stepped down from his post at the beginning of this year but remains actively involved.)

"I've heard thousands of stories at this point. It's been my job over the past several years to help them tell their stories and, it's been tremendously rewarding."

We met with Martinez near his home on the Central Coast, the same one he's lived in for 30 years. During our interview, we also found out that he's been driving his late son's car; he also keeps Christopher's artwork close to his heart and brought a selection of mementos to share.

Martinez is wary, though, about a growing mindset he sees among too many young men.

"I've been thinking about what happened in Isla Vista and what's happened since," he said. "I'm less interested in the specifics of the Isla Vista shooter. I don't even name him. I read in a newspaper article that he's the patron saint of incels."

Men who are involuntarily celibate.

Statistics show that the majority of mass shooters are men or teenage boys, many who'd worked or spent time at the scene of the crime. Some of the killings were racially motivated. Other shooters, as we later learned, felt alienated or ostracized by society. Some had expressed feelings of inadequacy or repulsion – in the eyes of women – as was the case with the 22-year-old Isla Vista killer.

"The Isla Vista killer put out a manifesto talking about his misogyny and retribution, wanting to kill young women. That's what he intended to do. He went to a sorority that night with the intention of killing young women and when they wouldn't let him in, he shot the two young ladies, the three young ladies outside the sorority, and then driving through town, shooting -- and that's when Chris was killed."

Martinez is convinced the I.V. killer was on a suicide mission -- like many other mass shooters.
He attributes growing gun violence to a subculture of incels and misogyny.

"This idea that women owe you something and that men are superior to women. You know, people who, for whatever reason, feel humiliated. That's often the driving emotion and are seeking revenge."

"Not one more" was Martinez's mantra since Chris died. So, this dad is on a mission to fill the void, to offer fatherly advice, in the form of a book.

"The first half of the book is if I were sitting with Chris and telling him about what happened, what happened in the weeks prior to his death and what happened that night, and then what's happened since. Then, the second half of the book is if I had a chance to talk to a killer before he began killing, what would I say to him? What would I say to a young person who's decided to kill themselves? Because that's what Isla Vista was. It was a suicide. He (the killer) gave up."

Martinez said he sees small steps towards progress.

"Stronger gun laws work. States that have stronger gun laws, have less gun violence. In 2022, Congress passed the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act. It was the first, gun violence prevention legislation that passed congress in 30 years."

And, here at home, Martinez praised local mothers making a difference for a whole new generation with the Moms Demand Action chapters in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara.

Martinez hopes that a fleeting wave of hatred is smothered by a parent's love for their child.

"A reporter once ask me, 'Would Chris be surprised at what you're doing?' You know, my activism or gun violence? And I said, 'No, because if the situation was reversed, he'd be doing the same thing.'"