Fox News commentator Lisa Kennedy Montgomery defended the right of transgender Americans to own firearms during an on-air debate following last week’s shooting at Annunciation Catholic Church in Minneapolis. “Yes, this person was mentally ill. It’s not the trans part,” she said on the 27 August edition of “The Five,” arguing that mental illness—not gender identity—was the relevant factor behind the attack. Authorities say the shooter, identified by the FBI as Robin Westman, a transgender man born Robert Westman, killed two children and wounded 17 others before taking his own life. The bureau has opened a hate-crime investigation, while local officials review how the state’s red-flag statutes were applied. Kennedy’s remarks, which included a call for parents to be “nosy” about potential warning signs, drew sharp criticism from some conservative commentators who accused Fox News of downplaying the assailant’s gender identity. Co-host Harold Ford Jr. countered that longer background checks could help prevent similar attacks, highlighting the broader divide over mental-health screening and gun policy.