Nine days ago – as I type this – a single gunman went into Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida and shot 31 people. He killed 17 and wounded 14 others. Unlike so many other active shooters, he didn’t commit suicide but was arrested. He was charged with 17 counts of premeditated murder. What makes this active shooter event different from others? There are a few characteristics of it in its totality and I’m going to review them, but the one thing I want to focus on throughout this piece is: VERY LITTLE focus has been given to the 17 dead and 14 wounded. MOST of the focus has been on the weapon used, gun control efforts and then, almost as an afterthought, some of the heroic actions taken during the event by faculty and students as they protected others.
So, let’s get the characteristics that made this different out of the way:
First, it’s come to light that the FBI was made aware, at least five months prior to the attack, that the arrested suspect had stated his plans to attack students at school. One month prior, a tip was fielded by the FBI’s hotline that the school shooting was going to occur, but the tip wasn’t properly followed up on.
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The remainder of this article is part of the book "Active Killers and the Crimes They Perpetrated," available in print or ebook via Amazon.
