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School Violence


Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris Harris and Klebold wrote much about how they planned to carry out the Columbine massacre but far less about why. A journal found in Harris' bedroom contained almost every detail that the boys planned to follow.

The time it took for shooters to develop a plan varied:

Some planned for only one day and others took as much as one year
A little more than 50% of the school shooters developed the idea for at least one month.
In 93% of the cases, a plan was developed before the attack occurred

education_Steven_Kazmierczak

Steven Kazmierczak

Steven Kazmierczak murdered five students at an Illinois college before turning a gun on himself. Kazmierczak’s ex-girlfriend stated that,
“He called me at midnight and told me not to forget about him,"
she said. He ended by saying, "Goodbye, Jessica".

Attackers sometimes tip their hand:

An attacker will often confide in someone close such as a friend, schoolmate, or sibling. In almost every case, the shooter
told at least one other student
Even if other students didn’t know all the details, most knew that something “big” was about to happen

education_Cho_Seung-Hui

Cho Seung-Hui

On April 16, 2007, Virginia Tech shooter killed at least 30 people and wounded 17 others before killing himself. It's also believed the 23-year-old student killed two other people earlier that day in a dormitory on campus. Cho’s writings were disturbing enough to cause concern by his writing professor.

More possible indicators of trouble:

Expressing thoughts of suicide
Talking about getting revenge
Efforts to acquire a gun
Written expressions of despair
Exhibiting behaviors that cause concern or expressing a need for help