The cloudy image of the gunman in Saturday's
horrific shooting in Tucson is starting to come
into focus, as neighbors and acquaintances paint
a picture of a troubled young man whose
disturbing behavior started to flare up in just the
last few years.
Alleged gunman Jared Lee Loughner, charged in
the shooting that left six dead and 14 wounded
including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, has a minor
criminal record dating back to 2007. But his
former high school principal, Richard Faidley, told
FoxNews.com that he didn't have any major
disciplinary problems in school before that.
"I don't recall anything of any significance with
that individual," Faidley said, other than that he
was involved in the school band program.
But Loughner's problems have now escalated to
the point that his family has barricaded itself in
their home, hounded by reporters and spectators
who want to know how the 22-year-old could
have gone on a killing spree on a sunny Saturday
afternoon in Tucson.
The FBI was forced to wait outdoors Monday
while the family removed the plywood it had
used to blockade the door. After a few minutes of
removing the wood, FBI began another search of
the property that has been upended in the orderly
and ongoing law enforcement investigation.
Speaking in her annual state of the state speech,
Gov. Jan Brewer said the attack was an assault
not merely on individuals, but on "on our
republic, on our democracy." She said despite the
impact, Arizona will not be brought down.
"In fact, we've been lifted up by America's
thoughts and prayers and we're deeply grateful
for them," she said.
As for Loughner's descent, his problems seem to
have started to mount after he dropped out of
Mountain View High School in 2006. It's unclear
whether his behavior seriously startled anyone in
the years immediately following, but after
attending a local transitional school and then
enrolling in Pima Community College, his
classmates and his professors noticed something
was wrong with Loughner.
Last year may have been a breaking point.
According to the college, campus police got
involved on five separate occasions for
"classroom and library disruptions" involving
Loughner between February and September of
last year. Things came to a head after campus
police discovered a YouTube clip he filmed on
campus that showed him saying the college is
constitutionally illegal.
Loughner was suspended on Sept. 29 and
withdrew a few days later. He was told that if he
ever wanted to return he'd have to obtain a
"mental health clearance" from a mental health
professional saying he did not present a danger.
Loughner never presented such a document and
never returned to school.
Ben McGahee, a math professor who pushed for
Loughner to be removed, told Fox News he was
scared for other students' safety.
Pima college students were equally concerned.
Classmate Lynda Sorenson, 52, offered an eerily
prescient warning in a personal e-mail to friends
last summer.
"We have a mentally unstable person in the class
that scares the living crap out of me. He is one of
those whose picture you see on the news, after
he has come into class with an automatic
weapon," she said in an e-mail, published by The
Washington Post. "Everyone interviewed would
say, Yeah, he was in my math class and he was
really weird. I sit by the door with my purse
handy. If you see it on the news one night, know
that I got out fast..."
Sorenson wrote that Loughner was "seriously
disturbed," though she wasn't sure whether he
was "on drugs."
Apparently, he was. Loughner was rejected from
the Army in late 2008 when, during the
application process, he admitted to using
marijuana numerous times, according to a
military source.
His 2007 arrest on record in Pima County was for
possessing drug paraphernalia and other minor
infractions.
A high school friend of Loughner, Caitie Parker,
has given a detailed account of his personality
and background on her Twitter page over the
past few days. According to Parker, Loughner
had "a lot of friends until he got alcohol poisoning
in ‘06" and dropped out of high school.
She described him as "left wing" and "quite
liberal" and "oddly obsessed with the 2012
prophecy." Parker described him as a "pot head"
who was into rock music, though she hadn't
seen him since 2007.
"I think he slowly descended in a psychotic break.
Something in him snapped. He wasn't always like
this," she wrote.
Loughner's neighbors described the young man
as generally quiet and not talkative or friendly.
"It was almost as if he had blinders on," Stephen
Woods, who lives next door, told Fox News on
Monday. He said his son Anthony would try to
wave to Loughner and he would just keep on
walking. "No response, he wouldn't even look at
him."
Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/10/loughners-meltdown-began-adulthood-near-say/
horrific shooting in Tucson is starting to come
into focus, as neighbors and acquaintances paint
a picture of a troubled young man whose
disturbing behavior started to flare up in just the
last few years.
Alleged gunman Jared Lee Loughner, charged in
the shooting that left six dead and 14 wounded
including Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, has a minor
criminal record dating back to 2007. But his
former high school principal, Richard Faidley, told
FoxNews.com that he didn't have any major
disciplinary problems in school before that.
"I don't recall anything of any significance with
that individual," Faidley said, other than that he
was involved in the school band program.
But Loughner's problems have now escalated to
the point that his family has barricaded itself in
their home, hounded by reporters and spectators
who want to know how the 22-year-old could
have gone on a killing spree on a sunny Saturday
afternoon in Tucson.
The FBI was forced to wait outdoors Monday
while the family removed the plywood it had
used to blockade the door. After a few minutes of
removing the wood, FBI began another search of
the property that has been upended in the orderly
and ongoing law enforcement investigation.
Speaking in her annual state of the state speech,
Gov. Jan Brewer said the attack was an assault
not merely on individuals, but on "on our
republic, on our democracy." She said despite the
impact, Arizona will not be brought down.
"In fact, we've been lifted up by America's
thoughts and prayers and we're deeply grateful
for them," she said.
As for Loughner's descent, his problems seem to
have started to mount after he dropped out of
Mountain View High School in 2006. It's unclear
whether his behavior seriously startled anyone in
the years immediately following, but after
attending a local transitional school and then
enrolling in Pima Community College, his
classmates and his professors noticed something
was wrong with Loughner.
Last year may have been a breaking point.
According to the college, campus police got
involved on five separate occasions for
"classroom and library disruptions" involving
Loughner between February and September of
last year. Things came to a head after campus
police discovered a YouTube clip he filmed on
campus that showed him saying the college is
constitutionally illegal.
Loughner was suspended on Sept. 29 and
withdrew a few days later. He was told that if he
ever wanted to return he'd have to obtain a
"mental health clearance" from a mental health
professional saying he did not present a danger.
Loughner never presented such a document and
never returned to school.
Ben McGahee, a math professor who pushed for
Loughner to be removed, told Fox News he was
scared for other students' safety.
Pima college students were equally concerned.
Classmate Lynda Sorenson, 52, offered an eerily
prescient warning in a personal e-mail to friends
last summer.
"We have a mentally unstable person in the class
that scares the living crap out of me. He is one of
those whose picture you see on the news, after
he has come into class with an automatic
weapon," she said in an e-mail, published by The
Washington Post. "Everyone interviewed would
say, Yeah, he was in my math class and he was
really weird. I sit by the door with my purse
handy. If you see it on the news one night, know
that I got out fast..."
Sorenson wrote that Loughner was "seriously
disturbed," though she wasn't sure whether he
was "on drugs."
Apparently, he was. Loughner was rejected from
the Army in late 2008 when, during the
application process, he admitted to using
marijuana numerous times, according to a
military source.
His 2007 arrest on record in Pima County was for
possessing drug paraphernalia and other minor
infractions.
A high school friend of Loughner, Caitie Parker,
has given a detailed account of his personality
and background on her Twitter page over the
past few days. According to Parker, Loughner
had "a lot of friends until he got alcohol poisoning
in ‘06" and dropped out of high school.
She described him as "left wing" and "quite
liberal" and "oddly obsessed with the 2012
prophecy." Parker described him as a "pot head"
who was into rock music, though she hadn't
seen him since 2007.
"I think he slowly descended in a psychotic break.
Something in him snapped. He wasn't always like
this," she wrote.
Loughner's neighbors described the young man
as generally quiet and not talkative or friendly.
"It was almost as if he had blinders on," Stephen
Woods, who lives next door, told Fox News on
Monday. He said his son Anthony would try to
wave to Loughner and he would just keep on
walking. "No response, he wouldn't even look at
him."
Source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2011/01/10/loughners-meltdown-began-adulthood-near-say/
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