Columbine High School massacre
The Columbine High School Massacre occurred on April 20, 1999 at Columbine High School in Jefferson County near Littleton, Colorado, United States. Two teenage students, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, executed a planned shooting rampage killing 12 other students and a teacher before committing suicide. It is considered to be the worst school shooting in U.S. history.
Chronology of events
All times Mountain Daylight Time (-6 UTC).
April 20, 1999: Shooting at Columbine High
18 minutes of terror
At 6:15 AM, on Tuesday, April 20th, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold arrived at the local bowling alley for their early morning class. The class was Bowling, and it was one they never missed. Dylan wore a shirt with the label "Serial Killer" in the front, but the shirt had been seen before and no one thought anything of it. Neither of them gave no indication of what they were planning to do that day; they acted as they would've acted on any regular day at school, except that after class ended, they left the bowling alley, and did not return to Columbine, as they we supposed to, until 11:10 AM.
At 11:10 AM on April 20th, 1999, Harris and Klebold arrived at Columbine in separate cars, almost simultaneously. Harris parked in the Junior Parking lot and Dylan in the Senior Parking lot at spaces not assigned to them. From these spots, both of them had perfect views of the first floor cafeteria and each one was covering a main exit of the school. The two entered the cafeteria a few minutes before "A" lunch began and placed two duffel bags, each one with a 20-lb. propane bomb inside rigged to explode at 11:17 AM. At the moment they entered the cafeteria, a custodian removed the security camera video tape and rewound it, so the act of placing the bombs was not recorded, though once restarted, one could clearly see the bags.
Their initial plan of attack was not a shooting, but to wait outside the cafeteria for the bombs to explode and then shoot anyone who attempted to escape. The bombs had enough explosive power to take out the entire cafeteria and bring the library above crashing down. Each shooter returned to their car to wait until the bombs exploded so they could proceed with their plan, which was to kill at least 500 students.
When the cafeteria bombs failed to explode, Harris and Klebold met up near Harris' car and armed themselves with a duffel bag and backpack containing two sawed-off shotguns, a 9mm semi-automatic carbine rifle, and a 9mm Tec-9 semi-automatic pistol then proceeded toward the cafeteria. They went to the top of the west entrance steps, the highest point on campus. From this vantage point, the cafeteria side entrance was at the bottom of the staircase, the school's main west entrance is to their left, and the athletic fields to their right (for better reference, this is the same outdoor staircase seen in many pictures of the attack).
At 11:19 AM, a witness saw Eric Harris take off his trenchcoat and yell "GO! GO!". At that moment they pulled out their shotguns, aiming them at Rachel Scott and Richard Castaldo who were sitting on a grassy knoll to their left, next to the west entrance of the school, eating lunch. Both were hit and critically injured. After the initial shots, one of the shooters shot Rachel again, killing her. It is unclear which one shot first and which one killed Rachel.
As they shot, Daniel Rohrbough and his two friends, Sean Graves, and Lance Kirklin were walking up the outside staircase directly below the shooters. Lance reported seeing them standing at the top, when suddenly they began shooting towards them. Daniel fell back onto Sean, and a bullet pierced through Sean's foot, they then turned their guns on Lance, standing across from them; all three fell wounded. Next, Dylan walked down the steps towards the cafeteria and stepped inside, probably checking to see why the bombs hadn't exploded. Danny began to struggle down the steps when Eric walked up to him and shot him close range in the head, killing him.
Dylan returned to the stairs and walked back up the steps with Eric. The two began shooting South (away from the school) at five students sitting on the grassy knoll adjacent to the steps, opposite the west entrance of the school. Michael Johnson was hit but kept running and escaped. Mark Taylor fell to the ground crippled; he played dead, the other three escaped uninjured. Next, they proceeded to shoot down the steps at several students standing near the cafeteria entrance, hitting Anne-Marie Hochhalter. They then attempted to shoot at students standing near the soccer field a few yards away but did not succeed at hitting anyone. Inside the school, teacher Patti Nielson walked towards the West Entrance with student, Brian Anderson. She was about to walk outside and ask the two students to "knock it off" thinking it was a video they were shooting, or a prank. Brian opened the first set of double doors and Nielson came up behind him when Klebold and Harris shot out the windows. Brian Anderson was injured by flying glass and Nielson was hit in the shoulder by shrapnel. She stood up and ran down the hall and into the library where she hid under the administrator desk. Brian was caught between the exterior and interior doors.
Meanwhile, a police deputy arrived at the scene and began shooting at Harris and Klebold, distracting them from the injured Anderson. Brian staggered out of the area and made it to a utility closet next to the library where he remained until the ordeal ended. Harris attempted to shoot at the officer, who then radioed in a Code 33 (officer in need of emergency assistance). Harris' gun jammed and so he ran inside the school with Klebold.
The pair proceeded down the main North Hallway shooting at anyone they saw, and throwing pipe bombs. While doing so, they hit student Stephanie Munson in the ankle. She was able to walk out of the school and make it to a house across the street. After going up and down the hall several times, shooting at several students, but not injuring any, they headed back towards the West Entrance and turned the corner of the library hallway. Moments earlier Coach Dave Sanders had evacuated the cafeteria through the staircase leading up to the second floor. The staircase was around the corner from the library hallway in the main South Hallway. He and another student turned the corner and started walking down the library hallway when they saw the shooters coming around the corner from the north hallway, they quickly turned around and ran the other way (It is believed, but not confirmed, that Sanders was heading for the library to help evacuate the students there). The shooters came around the corner and shot at both of them, hitting Dave Sanders right as he reached the south hallway, but not hitting the student. The student ran into a science classroom while Sanders struggled on the floor. The shooters went back up the North Hallway and Sanders struggled over to the Science area where a teacher took him into room SCI-3. There, two students administered first aid, but no help ever came. He died at 3:00 PM, approximately.
Next, the shooters would begin their deadlist massacre thus far in the library. Inside, Patti Nielson was on the phone with 9-1-1 explaining the situation. The time period between when she entered the library and when the shooters entered the library was approximately five minutes. Before entering, the shooters threw two pipe bombs into the cafeteria from the staircase in the South Hallway, both which exploded, one of which can be seen on the security tapes. They then threw another in the library hallway which exploded damaging some lockers. The two then walked through the heavy doors of the library where 52 students, 3 library staff, and Ms. Nielson were hiding under desks and inside exterior break rooms.
When Eric and Dylan entered the library they yelled for everyone to "Get up!" loud enough that they could be heard on the 9-1-1 recording. Staff and students hiding in the library exterior rooms said they heard the gunmen say things such as: "Everyone with a white cap or baseball cap, stand up!" and "All jocks stand up! We’ll get the guys in white hats!" - wearing a white hat at Columbine was a sign of being a 'jock'. When no one stood up, one was heard to say: "Fine, I’ll start shooting!" Dylan then shot at a display case on the other end of the administrator desk. Shrapnel injured a nearby student Evan Todd who had taken refuge underneath a copy machine.
The two made their way down to the opposite side of the library where two rows of computers were. They set down their duffel bags filled with ammunition and reloaded. Kyle Velasquez was sitting at the north (or upper) row of computers, he had not ducked down below the desk. Eric shot him first, killing him. The two then proceeded over to the windows facing the outside staircase they were just at. They noticed police evacuating students and began to shoot at them, police returned fire.
Dylan turned away from the windows, took off his trenchcoat, and fired his shotgun at a nearby table, injuring Patrick Ireland, Daniel Steepleton and Makai Hall. Eric then grabbed his shotgun and walked over to the south (or lower) computer desk putting his gun underneath the desk without looking to see who was under it. He shot and killed Steven Curnow who was underneath the furthest desk in the row. He then shot under the next computer desk, hitting Kasey Ruegsegger who was beside him, injuring her.
Next, he walked over to the table across from the lower computer table, tapped the top twice with his gun, knelt down and said "peek-a-boo" shooting Cassie Bernall in the head. The recoil from the weapon hit his face, making his nose bleed (Popular belief has it that Cassie was the individual who was asked "Do you believe in God?" but it has since come out that the shooters asked this same question of several students. The answer given didn't seem to dictate which students were shot, but it is known that Cassie was not asked this question after all). Patrick Ireland came out of hiding and tried to administer first aide to one injured near him, seeing this, Dylan shot at him, hitting him twice in the head, and once in the foot as he tried to get back under cover. The shot to his foot blew his shoe clear off. He was knocked unconscious, but remarkably survived.
Eric then turned to the next table where student Bree Pasquale sat next to the table rather than beneath it (there wasn't enough room for her to be beneath the table). Eric asked her if she wanted to die, to which she replied with a plea for her life. Witnesses report him as being disoriented as this occured but became reoriented when Dylan called to his attention that he had found Isaiah Shoels, Matthew Ketchner, and Craig Scott (Rachel Scott's brother, and popular athletes at the school). Dylan tried to pull Isaiah out from underneath the table but was unable to. He made a racial comment towards Isaiah, then Eric knelt down and shot him, killing him. Dylan also knelt down and opened fire, hitting and killing Matt. Craig Scott remained remarkably uninjured in his friend's blood, pretending to be dead. Eric then turned and threw a CO2 bomb at the table where Makai, Daniel, and Patrick were. Makai threw the bomb back out where it exploded further south (away from the shooters).
Eric then went over to the book cases between the west and center section of tables in the library. He jumped on the book cases and shook them, then shot at something in that general area (it is not known what he shot at, since no one could see him at this point). Dylan walked through the main area past the first set of bookcases, the central desk area, and a second set of bookcases into the east area. Eric walked past the central area and met up with him there. Dylan shot out a display case next to the door, he then turned and shot at the closest table to him, injuring Mark Kingten. He turned to the table to his left (east) and shot at it injuring Lisa Kreutz and Val Schnurr with the same bullet. Dylan then closed his distance at the table and shot as quickly as he could, killing Lauren Townsend.
Eric, in the meantime, went over to another table where two girls were hiding, bent down and looked at them, then dismissed them as "Pathetic". Val, who had been hurt badly, began to cry out at that point "Oh, God help me!". Dylan went back to her, asked her if she believed in God. She floundered in her answer, saying no at first and then yes, trying to get the answer 'right'. He asked her why and she said it was because it was what her family believed. He taunted her and walked away (this story was later wrongly attributed to Cassie Bernall).
From there Eric moved to another table, shooting and injuring Nicole Nowlen and John Tomlin. When John tried to crawl out, Dylan shot and killed him. Eric then walked around the table and shot and killed Kelly Fleming, who was near the table where Lauren Townsend had died. He then fired under the table, hitting Lauren and Lisa again and wounding Jeanna Park, who was under the table as well. Despite hitting Lauren again, autopsies determined she was already killed by the first shot.
At 11:34AM the shooters moved to the center of the library where they reloaded their weapons at a table midway across the room. Eric noticed a nearby student whom he recognized and told him to identify himself. The student was an acquaintance of Dylan's and he asked Dylan what he was doing, to which Klebold replied: "Oh, just killing people." The student asked if they were going to kill him and Dylan told him to get out of the library. He fled immediately, making a safe escape through the library's main entrance.
After the student was gone Eric turned and fired on the table directly north of where they'd been, shooting Daniel Mauser in the face at close range, killing him. Then both shooters moved south and fired under a table there, injuring Jennifer Doyle, Austin Eubanks, and killing Corey DePooter. These would be their last deadly shots.
Both shooters headed toward the library counter. Eric threw a Molotov cocktail toward the southwestern end of the library as he went, but it failed to explode. He then came around the east side of the counter and Dylan joined him from the west, both converging near where Evan Todd had moved to after the copier incident. The shooters made fun of him and debated killing him but eventually walked away. Dylan fired a shot into the library staff break room, hitting a television. He then slammed a chair down on top of the computer terminal that was on the library counter, beneath which Patti Nielson was hiding. The two walked out of the library at 11:37AM, ending their brutal massacre.
After leaving the library they went down to the cafeteria where they were caught by the security cameras. Eric attempted to detonate the failed propane bomb without success. Another Molotov cocktail was thrown but it too failed. The two left the cafeteria and walked around the main North and South Hallways of the school without any direction shooting aimlessly at anything. Several times they looked through the small windows on the classroom doors and even made eye contact with students, but never attempted to enter the room. They shot into an empty science room (SCI-8), and then threw a small fire bomb into an empty storage closet. When the bomb exploded, they ran off, a teacher in the adjacent room put out the fire. The two made their way over to the main office where they continued to shoot aimlessly.
Inside the library, the 34 uninjured and 10 of the injured evacuated the room through the north door, leading out into the sidewalk to the west entrance where their rampage had began. Patrick Ireland, who had been knocked out and Lisa Kreutz who was nearly paralyzed remained behind, as did Patti Nielson. Sometime between 12:05 and 12:08 the shooters entered the library again, but it was empty except for the unconscious Patrick Ireland, and Lisa Kreutz who played dead. They shot out the window once more at policemen without success and then moved over to the table next to where Matthew Ketchner and Isaiah Shoels lay, there, they shot themselves, committing suicide. At 2:38 PM, Patrick Ireland regained consciousness and ran over to the windows where he attempted to exit. He was then taken out of the school through the library windows by SWAT team members; this was infamously televised.
Others Injured
A few other students and one teacher were injured in the school after taking a 15 foot fall through the ceiling above the staff lounge in an attempt to escape from the school. These injuries were not attributed to the shooters. Those injured in this incident were:
- Lisa Cortenbach, 16
- Nicholas Foss, 18
- Joyce Jankowski, 45
- Adam Kryler, 16
The shooting stops
By noon, SWAT teams were stationed outside the school and ambulances started taking the wounded to local hospitals. Parents gathered at nearby Leawood Elementary School. The call for additional ammunition to police officers in case of a shootout came at 12:20. However, the killers had stopped shooting at 12:00 pm.
The SWAT teams started checking every room in the high school in great detail by 12:30. Even desks and backpacks were examined. Authorities reported pipe bombs being found by 1:00 pm.
SWAT teams started to free hidden students by 2:30. The students and teachers were taken away, questioned, and were offered medical care in small holding areas. Officers found bodies in the library by 3:30, removing the injured Lisa Kreutz.
By 4:00 the sheriff made an initial estimate of 25 dead students and teachers; his estimate was 10 over the true count but closer to the total count of dead and wounded. Police officers were searching the bodies of Harris and Klebold in the library. At 4:30 the school was declared safe, yet at 5:30 additional officers were called in as more explosives were found in the parking lot. At 6:15 pm, officials found a bomb in a car in the parking lot, so the sheriff marked the entire school as a crime scene with yards of yellow tape. All of the dead were still inside the school at the time. At 10:45 pm, one of the homemade bombs detonated while police tried to defuse it.
Aftermath
April 21: bomb squad combs the school, first press conference held
The next day, on April 21, bomb squads combed the high school looking for bombs. At 08:30 am, the official death toll of fifteen was released. The bomb squad declared the building safe for officials to enter. By 11:30, a spokesman of the sheriff said, "The investigation is under way." Thirteen of the bodies were still inside the high school as investigators photographed the building.
By 2:30 pm, a press conference was held by Jefferson County District Attorney David Thomas and Sheriff John Stone, saying that they suspected that other children helped plan the shooting. Formal identifications of the dead had not taken place yet, but families of the children thought to have been killed were notified that this probably happened. Throughout the late afternoon and early evening, the rest of the bodies were gradually removed out of the school and taken to the Jefferson County Coroner's Office to be identified and autopsied. By 5:00 pm, the identities of those dead started to be known.
April 30: 2nd press conference held; officials decide to not mention Guerra affidavit
A few days after the shooting, high-ranking members of Jefferson County and the Jefferson County Sheriff Office meet together to decide if they should reveal that investigator Guerra knew of the Harris website two years prior to the massacre. They decide to not disclose this information at a press conference held April 30th, nor do they mention it in any other way. Over the next two years the original Guerra documents are lost.
September 2001: Guerra affidavit becomes publicly known
The existence of the Guerra affidavit becomes known to the general public and a series of grand jury investigations are launched into the coverup activities of the Jefferson County officials. The final grand jury investigation is released in September 2004.[1][2]
Aftershock and the search for reasons
Analysis of journals and videos left behind by Harris and Klebold revealed that the pair had developed an elaborate, sometimes fantastic plan for not only the school shooting, but also a massacre in the neighborhood and, if they were unable to escape from the United States, a planned hijacking of an airplane which they would then crash into New York City.
In the aftermath of the shootings, there was a great deal of debate about what "provoked" the killers and whether anything could have been done to prevent the crime. The reality of social cliques in high schools was a frequent topic of discussion. Many argued that the pair's isolation from the rest of their classmates prompted feelings of helplessness, insecurity and depression, as well as a strong desire for attention. Some schools also began programs to expose and stop school bullying, which many charged had fueled anger and resentment within Harris and Klebold. Supposedly, the two had briefly offered themselves as "bullying bodyguards" to keep other kids from being teased; however, their actions were inappropriate, and they soon were caught carrying fake guns.
In the weeks following the shootings, media reports about the two killers portrayed them as outcast "nerds" who were unpopular and ostracized by much of the school's population; later such characterizations were revised as both Harris and Klebold were documented to have both a close circle of friends and a wider informal social group (However, neither were they "popular" kids and could best be described as being members of the school's "rejects" although by no means were they isolated) . It was also reported that anti-gay epithets were frequently directed at them; although their actual sexual orientation was unknown; both were known to have had girlfriends. Harris and Klebold were peripheral members of a club called the "Trenchcoat Mafia" in which they wore heavy black trench coats. A backlash against the "Goth" subculture resulted from both students and administrators across the country. By the time of the shootings, most of the major members of the group had already either graduated or dropped out of Columbine.
Some analysts noted that the date of the shooting coincided with Adolf Hitler's 110th birth anniversary, and was one day after the anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing, though it was not known whether knowledge of either of these dates influenced Harris and Klebold.
Harris and Klebold were fans of violent video games such as "Doom" (in fact, Harris often created levels for the game; these were widely distributed, and can still occasionally be found on the Internet as the Harris levels. Rumors that the layout of these levels resembled that of Columbine High School circulated but have been debunked as documented on the Snopes urban legends website [3]). Some analysts argued that part of the killers' problem may have been a result of their constant exposure to violent imagery in such video games, as well as music, and movies, theorizing that their obsession with these forms of media may have led them to have trouble telling the difference between reality and fantasy. A lawsuit against several video game manufacturers was filed as a result by parents of some of the victims.
It has been publicly revealed that Harris had been prescribed and was taking Luvox (Fluvoxamine maleate), an SSRI antidepressant, at the time of the shooting spree. Some analysts have argued that this medication may have contributed to Harris' actions, as an alleged side-effect of these drugs is a loss of empathy for other human beings, and a correlation is claimed between "school shooters" whose medical history has been made public and use of or recent discontinuation of such medications. Other researchers have pointed out that such claims are not based upon rigorous scientific testing.
Long-term impact
In response to concerns over the causes of Columbine and other school massacres, many schools later instituted new anti-bully policies as well as so-called "zero tolerance" approaches to weapons and threatening behavior. Despite the horrific nature of the Columbine incident, some experts in social science feel the zero-tolerance in schools has gone overboard.
In the months following the shooting, some Christians were captivated by reports of Cassie Bernall, who, when asked "Do you believe in God?" by one of the shooters, responded "Yes" before being shot and killed. Alternate accounts surfaced soon thereafter, attributing the remark to victim Rachel Scott. Both Bernall and Scott were regarded as Christian "martyrs" by many. The official investigation attributed the statement to survivor Valeen Schnurr.
Shooters
Victims
As well as the two deceased shooters, there were 13 fatalities and 23 injured.
Deceased
- Cassie Bernall, 17
- Steven Curnow, 14
- Corey DePooter, 17
- Kelly Fleming, 16
- Matthew Kechter, 16
- Daniel Mauser, 15
- Daniel Rohrbough, 15
- Dave Sanders, 47 (Teacher)
- Rachel Scott, 17
- Isaiah Shoels, 18
- John Tomlin, 16
- Lauren Townsend, 18
- Kyle Velasquez, 16
Injured
- Brian Anderson, 17
- Richard Castaldo, 17
- Jennifer Doyle, 17
- Stephen Eubanks, 17
- Nicholas Foss, 18
- Sean Graves, 15
- Makai Hall, 19
- Anne Hochhalter, 17
- Patrick Ireland, 17
- Joyce Jankowski, 45
- Michael Johnson, 15
- Mark Kintgen, 17
- Lance Kirklin, 16
- Lisa Kreutz, 18
- Adam Kryler, 16
- Stephanie Munson, 17
- Patricia Nielsen, 35
- Nicole Nowlen, 16
- Jeanna Park, 18
- Kasey Ruegsegger, 17
- Valeen Schnurr, 18.
- Danny Steepleton, 17
- Mark Taylor, 16
- Lisa Cortenbach, 16
Cultural impact
The massacre was one of the subjects of the controversial 2002 Michael Moore documentary film Bowling for Columbine, about the culture of violence in the US.
Photographic coverage of the aftermath of the shooting, particularly the reactions of students, won the Denver Rocky Mountain News a Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News Photography for the year 2000.
The Columbine shooting spree also served as the inspiration for the fictional 2003 Gus Van Sant film, Elephant.
In addition, aspects of the Columbine disaster were the basis of Douglas Coupland's 2003 book Hey Nostradamus!
In 2004, shots of surveillance footage of the Columbine shooting spree was seen in the music video for "Alert Status Red" by Matthew Good. Many viewers found it insensitive that it included actual footage of the massacre. Good originally pulled it off of his website, but had second thoughts and put it back on.
Firearms
Before the shootings, Harris and Klebold illegally acquired and drastically modified a TEC-DC9 semi-automatic handgun, a rifle, two sawed-off shotguns, and built 99 improvised explosive devices of various designs and sizes. Even before the massacre began, the two perpetrators committed numerous felony violations of state and federal law, including the National Firearms Act and the Gun Control Act of 1968.
All four guns were illegally obtained by straw purchases. Robyn Anderson bought the rifle and two shotguns for Harris and Klebold, but was never charged for her violations of federal gun laws. Mark Manes and Philip Duran were found guilty of supplying the handgun to the two youths and received prison terms.
See also
- School massacre
- List of United States firearms topics
- Madejczyk Massacre Averted, Bridgman, Michigan school shooting plot
External links
- Map showing the school as it was attacked, and the timeline
- Another timeline of the tragedy
- Another chronology of the attack
- Category at ODP
- Issues about police at Columbine
- Luvox and the Littleton Columbine High School Shootings
- Information about the investigators' detailed timeline
- Website about Daniel Mauser
- Article in Slate magazine