"I still remember the events that took place at that farm, and I always will, even as I'm being laid to rest in a grave."
-Braeburn
"It was this event that really shook Equestria to its core and forced it to tighten gun laws. To this day, there's no doubt in anyone's mind that this was the catalyst for gun control in our country."
-Shining Armor
"We, as a nation, cannot tolerate these mass shootings, especially when children are involved. It is about damn time we fix our gun laws and keep guns out of the hands of criminals and those who are unstable!"
-Princess Celestia in a speech to Parliament pushing for the Gun Control Act of 2013, which passed just 7 months after the massacre.
"It all really began 2 years back in 2012," said Braeburn to a camera. "In that year, Big Mac and I had really bonded as close friends. In 2012, he was engaged to Cheerilee and was about to be married. Then, it happened."
As pictures of the car crash that killed Cheerilee flashed on the screen, another voice said, "We received the call at dispatch about 6 at night. When I pulled up, her car had been badly wrangled and her body had been thrown from the vehicle. I checked on her and realized immediately that she had died." The voice belonged to Collar Brass of the Ponyville Police Department. "It was hard on all of us. She was a well-liked teacher and all the kids cried for days about her. I remember my son asking me why Cheerilee had to die. I couldn't give an answer to him."
"Big Mac took it the hardest," said Braeburn. "After that day, he became a recluse and a stoic. The only thing he really was interested in was guns."
A video of Big Mac and Braeburn shooting a rifle then popped up on the screen. Big Mac said in the video, "I'm a hell of a better shot than you, Braeburn!"
Braeburn replied, "Yeah right, Big Mac."
Braeburn then said to the main camera, "The Apple Family always had a bunch of guns at the farm. Last time I checked before the massacre, there were 2 assault rifles, 5 pistols, 2 shotguns, and 8 rifles. All were legally owned, of course. Applejack had taught Apple Bloom how to shoot, as her parents and Granny Smith had taught her."
A home video of Apple Bloom aiming down a rifle and shooting at a target then flashed on the screen. She said in the video, "I got it! Right in the centre too!"
"Oh my God," said Applejack in the video. "You actually did! Yahoo!"
Braeburn then said to the main camera again, "We all knew Big Mac was going through depression, but... But we never knew he was that far gone."
"I had gone to the farm that day to visit the family," Braeburn said. "I had brought my parents with me to visit them. At the house were the 3 of us and Applejack, Granny Smith, Apple Bloom, and Big Mac. Caramel, Applejack's boyfriend, had also come over with his parents, making 10 of us. The next day, we were planning to have the Apple Family Reunion."
A reconstruction of the scene inside the house then played, showing Big Mac staying in the background, watching silently as the family talked and laughed.
"At 2:30," said Braeburn to the main camera. "I had left to get some lube oil for a piece of machinery at the farm. Big Mac told me to get it." Then, a reconstruction played of him walking away from the farm. "As I was about to leave the property, I heard gunshots."
In a played back recording, a dispatcher said, "Ponyville Police?"
Braeburn frantically said, "I just heard gunshots from the Sweet Apple Acres farm. We're not shooting anything for fun. I think something's wrong."
"Alright, sir. What is your name?"
"Braeburn, ma'am. Hurry it up. I hear more!"
In a reconstruction, Big Mac pulled out an AR-15 loaded with 30 rounds and aimed it at the family.
Then, he opened fire.
A coroner said to the main camera, "The first to die was Apple Bloom. She was hit twice in the head. As a result, her head was blown off. When we found the body, we found pieces of her head all over the kitchen and even on the other bodies. The second to die was Granny Smith. She had been hit in the back right leg while trying to run out before being shot at point-blank range in the back, penetrating her heart and killing her. By this time, everyone else had ran out of the room."
In the reconstruction, Big Mac climbed up the stairs, where Applejack and Caramel had ran to after the shots rang out. He then opened the door to Applejack's room and found her calling Ponyville Police's number. Just as she was connected, Big Mac killed the 2 of them with 5 rounds.
A dispatcher said, "Ponyville Police?" Then, on the other line, she heard screaming and gunshots. The other dispatcher was still talking to Braeburn, by now running back to the house.
"I knew by then that Big Mac was to blame," said Braeburn to the main camera. "There was no one else I could think of. Regardless, I ran back to the house and grabbed my snubnose .38 Colt Detective Special revolver from my car. I then shouted, 'Stop it! Please!'"
In a reconstruction, Big Mac ignored Braeburn's plea and then found Braeburn and Caramel's parents huddling in the basement. He pulled out a shotgun and blasted their bodies to bits with 8 shotgun blasts. He then went upstairs to confront Braeburn.
By then, it had been 3 minutes since the massacre started. The nearest police car was another 4 minutes away.
Big Mac shouted to Braeburn, "You're the only one in this damn family that I like. I don't wanna kill ya, but I will if I have to."
Braeburn replied, "C'mon, please... Drop the gun... Why? Why did you do it?" Tears began rolling down his face as he pleaded.
"The world is out to get me, Braeburn. I have nothing else to live for. Cheerilee's gone." He then went back into the house.
Braeburn tried to shoot at him, but missed. Big Mac then turned around and shot Braeburn in the left shoulder, causing him to fall to the ground in searing pain.
Meanwhile, Big Mac got ready in the house. He reloaded all of his guns and silently waited for police.
"I was the closest officer to the scene," said Collar Brass. "I showed up in 7 minutes and immediately began attending to Braeburn's injuries. The sergeant's car, with an officer and the shift's sergeant, pulled up another 2 minutes later alongside a fire chief car."
In a reconstruction, Collar Brass and the 2 other officers drew their guns as the fire chief then pulled out a rifle for self-defence if the need arose. Then, the officers charged into the building, shouting, "Drop the guns! Surrender!"
Big Mac then opened fire. He shot the sergeant 4 times and the other officer twice. Collar Brass was hit once in the shoulder and barely managed to get out of the house. The fire chief fired twice into the house, but missed Big Mac. Meanwhile, the sergeant laid, gravely injured, on the floor until Big Mac went up to him and shot him and the other officer in the head to finish them.
Collar Brass immediately radioed, "Mayday! Mayday! Mayday! I have 2 officers down!" As he did, 2 more police cars, an ambulance, and a fire truck pulled up.
"The firefighters immediately loaded Braeburn up," said Collar Brass to the main camera. "Within another 6 minutes, the entire police department and county sheriff was at the house alongside the county SWAT team."
"I don't remember much after being shot," said Braeburn to the main camera. "I think I lost consciousness from the pain shortly after I was shot. If Collar Brass hadn't shown up in time, I would have bled to death."
The reconstruction then played again. 25 minutes after the shooting had begun, the SWAT team began their assault. By then, the Gendarmerie had also been called.
8 officers, armed with automatic M-16s and tear gas grenades, stormed the house. Big Mac then opened fire on the group, hitting 3 of them before they were forced to retreat once again.
"By then, the 2 other officers that had been shot earlier had died," said a coroner to the main camera. "Because they weren't able to get to them because of the threat Big Mac posed, they both bled to death painfully."
In a reconstruction, the SWAT officers were rushed to several ambulances as the officers regrouped and planned to gas the house to drive Big Mac out.
Then, 6 minutes later, 4 gas grenades were thrown into the house. At that time, a truck carrying 6 Gendarmerie officers pulled up. Big Mac responded by firing a sniper rifle at the police officers, striking and killing 1, making a total of 11 deaths so far. That officer's head was instantly blown off by the high-powered rifle, spewing his blood and brains all over the place.
As a result of this shooting, Incident Command then ordered that the SWAT team and Gendarmerie immediately go in and take Big Mac down, and to not get out until he is. After copying the message, the SWAT team and the 6 Gendarmerie officers charged at the house and fired at Big Mac, who then fired back.
After 2 minutes, the gunshots were over.
On the floor laid 2 more SWAT officers, a Gendarmerie officer, and Big Mac, all dead, raising the death toll to 15 if you counted Big Mac. Surrounding them was the body of Apple Bloom and a giant pool of blood. Apparently, Big Mac, in desperation, had used her body as a shield. At the hospital, 1 of the SWAT officers shot earlier died the next day, making the final death toll 16.
A video then played of the military funeral of the 7 officers that had been shot. "It was an emotional ceremony," said Collar Brass in a voice-over. "I knew every Ponyville and County officer that was killed that day." He then wiped tears from his face as he continued. "Not a day goes by where I don't think of them."
A CNN Equestria news report then played. A breaking news bumper played before an announcer said, "We have breaking news from the small town of Ponyville where, apparently, a mass shooting has just occurred at a farm. We will keep you updated as soon as the information comes to us."
Princess Celestia then said to the main camera, "After the Apple Family Massacre, I asked one of my most important allies in Parliament, Gravel Shaker, if we could get a gun control bill passed. He said that it would not be easy, but we could make it happen. I then told him that if Parliament refused to act, I would."
Gravel Shaker then said, "Gun control was widely opposed by the right-wing establishment and was seen as an example of a dictatorial government trying to take freedoms away from citizens. Obviously, this would be a tough challenge, but I believed that we could make it work. The bill I proposed would have banned assault weapons, established universal background checks, banned magazines bigger than 10 rounds, and establish a 5-day waiting period for gun purchases. Along the way, we added more provisions to it, including a ban on calibres bigger than 9 millimetres, a ban on shotgun gauges bigger than 12 gauge, a ban on the sale of over 50 rounds at once, a national gun registry, and a ban on open carry in public places."
Princess Celestia said, "The bill entered the House of Commons and passed by just 12 votes. Then, it entered the House of Governors. There, we faced an even more uphill battle. Even so, Gravel Shaker was confident that the bill would pass. And it did, by just 1 vote."
A video then played of ponies celebrating the passage of the bill across Canterlot, followed by numerous videos of protests against the bill around Equestria.
Gravel Shaker then said, "Is it a divisive issue? Of course. I myself own a rifle for hunting. Yet the largest pro-gun control group in Equestria is mostly composed of hunters, called the Hunters for Common Sense Gun Laws Committee. Then, you have other hunters who are opposed to the law. Many of them are in the National Firearm Owners Association. Will we as a nation eventually get used to this law? I think we will."
THIS HAS BEEN A DOCUMENTARY BY IMPACT STUDIOS.
COPYRIGHT 2014.
ORIGINALLY AIRED ON EQUESTRIA BROADCASTING CORPORATION CHANNEL 1.