'Certainly' possible that Highland Park shooter's father 'could be held civilly liable,' Gov. Pritzker says

• Illinois Gov. Pritzker said it is possible the Highland Park shooting suspect's father could be "civilly liable."
• Pritzker said criminal charges for the father may not be filed, but "no final conclusion has been reached."

Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said it is "possible" that the Highland Park gunman's father could be held "civilly liable" for the shooting that left seven people dead on July 4.

The father of a man suspected of the mass shooting at a Fourth of July parade previously said he sponsored his son's gun permit application thinking that he wanted to go to a shooting range.

In an interview with CNN's Jake Tapper, Pritzker said criminal charges for the father may not be filed, but "no final conclusion has been reached."

"I certainly think that it's possible that the father could be held civilly liable, but at this point anyway, the authorities are saying that no charges have yet been decided upon," Pritzker said.

The father, Robert Crimo Jr., said he sponsored his son's firearm owner's identification card, which Illinois residents must have to possess firearms or ammunition legally.

The 21-year-old shooting suspect was granted a gun license just months after police took several knives from his bedroom after it was reported that he made a threat to "kill everyone."

The director of the Illinois State Police defended the decision to give the Highland Park shooting suspect a gun permit despite a "clear and present danger" report that had been lodged against him, saying that there was insufficient evidence to establish a clear and present danger."

On CNN, Pritzker said there were warning signs that the shooting suspect wanted to "cause harm to people."

"There were signs of, you know, this white supremacy symbol," Pritzker said. "There is evidence obviously of someone who was looking to cause harm to people. We don't exactly know whether it is focused on one particular group or another."

The Democrat governor added that many people from surrounding communities traveled to the Highland Park area for the parade.

"I can tell you that at that Highland Park Fourth of July celebration, there were many people who are Jewish. There were many people who are not. There were a large contingent of Latino families there," Pritzker said. "People are suffering and need help."