Personal Narrative: An Angry Gunman In High School

Twenty-six year old, Chris Harper Mercer was the cause of the Umpqua community college shooting. Nine victims were killed and the gunman was the tenth one who died. Those who died were the age range of 18-67. There were students who ended up being injured during the scene. “A motive for the shooting remained unclear” (Barajas, 2015, para.6). Assumptions have been made about how and why the shooting occurred, but we still do not know the real reason behind all of this. Questions will never be solved, but “according to several witness accounts, the shooting took place in Classroom 15 in Snyder Hall” (Barajas, 2015, para.15). Mercer was armed with three pistols and a rifle. This event was planned out. The question is, why do school shootings

When the powerful sounds of.357 Magnums and sawed-off shotguns echoed off the school walls, the streetwise students slid off their chairs and huddled under their desks.” (Kotlowitz, 66) The dual tragedy of the elementary school being subject to such ruthless violence and the instinctual reaction of the children to seek cover from stray bullets makes the reader feel both sorrow and anger at

It was a warm spring morning in the little town of Littleton, Colorado. The birds played beautiful music while small beams of sun slowly escaped from behind the clouds and through the kitchen windows of all the houses. Classes were starting at seven-thirty just like any other day, however at eleven- twenty a bloody massacre began at Columbine High School. “ There was a girl crouched beneath a desk in the library, and the guy came over and said, ‘Peekaboo,’ and shot her in the neck,” said Kirkland, a 15-year-old sophomore. Two seniors who belonged to a group called the Trench Coat Mafia, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold, entered the school with guns, knives, and bombs hidden beneath their trench coats and started opening fire on their classmates and teachers.

Countries all over the world are dealing with violence, but gun violence is a huge problem in America specifically. With shootings occurring all around the country, disaster strikes the fictional town of Opportunity, Alabama, when a high school dropout re-enrolls with a gun in hand. Tyler is the boy who brings a gun to school, but This Is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp tells the events of this school shooting through the eyes of Tyler’s ex-girlfriend, Tyler’s sister, her girlfriend, and her girlfriend’s twin brother. Though the event begins and ends within the course of two hours, this book teaches strong lessons about the understanding of privacy, how important preparedness is, and appreciating loved ones.

The next morning Kip was set on revenge. He jumped into his Mom’s car hiding a 9mm handgun, a .22 caliber automatic rifle, a .22 caliber handgun, a knife, and 1,127 rounds of ammo underneath his trench coat(PBS). When he got 2 blocks away from Thurston High School he parked his Mom’s car and casually walked in to the back of his high school(TruTV). Immediately Kip fired two shots, killing Ben Walker and the other wounding Ryan Atteberry(PBS). Then Kip entered the cafeteria and fired 48 rounds from his rifle, wounding 24 students and killing Mikael Nicholauson(PBS). Then Kip fired a total of 50 rounds, accumulating 37 more hits, and killing two others(TruTv). Finally, when his rifle ran out of ammunition an already wounded student Jacob Ryker tackled Kip(TruTv). Seeing this happen several other students jumped in. During the struggle Kip drew the 9mm hand gun, and fired one shot before he was disarmed, injuring Ryker again as well as another student(TruTv). Thankfully the students were able to restrain Kip until the police arrived.

“Don’t you move boy”, I scream, attempting to secure authority. As hard as I try to avoid crossroads, they always come across in my path. The black guy screams words I cannot understand, and I’m somehow tempted to pull the trigger. The longer I look at him the more surprisingly aggravated I become. Of course it was the black guy, why wouldn’t it be the black guy. I’m out here pulling a Taser on an innocent man, perhaps scaring him to death while the real suspect is across the street. My trigger finger becomes heavy. He screams inaudibly again. “Shut up damn it, or so help me God, I will shoot right through you”, I threaten. He seems frightened and suddenly reaches into his pocket, I flinch. My finger pulls back. My gun kicks as my bullet goes soaring ahead. Blood comes rushing down his temple as he drops down on the cold, hard, Gray Street ground.

The assailant’s intention is to assault as many individuals as possible with no hope of surviving. According to the New York City Police Department report on active shooters, 46% of active shooters are stopped by law enforcement officials, or other bystanders, and 40% of the active shooters either commit suicide or attempt suicide. (NYPD, 2011) Police departments nationwide are training their officers to confront the active shooters quickly and as aggressively as possible. (Cain, 2010) Police departments have begun introducing various tactics in concealment, entering doorways, and working in small groups to have a tactical advantage in eliminating the assailant. Police agencies have been working closely with their local schools to avoid future massacres. Many police agencies have implemented various approaches to ensure their response times are sharp. Daviess County, Kentucky Sherriff’s office began offering a 2-day training program that demonstrates various entry and movement techniques when confronting an active shooter (Cain, 2010) Many other agencies have introduced live-fire scenarios using artificial projectiles, and the use of ballistic shields. (Law Staff, 2008) As school shootings can never be predicted it is imperative that the education institutions and law enforcement agencies are ready and vigilant at all times to avoid other nationwide massacres.

Six years later in Pearl, Mississippi, Assistant Principal Joel Myrick was walking to his office when he heard the distinct sounds of gunfire in his school. His instincts were to grab his sidearm. However, federal laws banned him from carrying it on school property (Laugesen, 2007). He watched as the gunman leveled his rifle at students and pulled the trigger. As soon as the gunman heard the sounds of approaching emergency responders, he proceeded with his plan by attempting to flee the high school and make his way to the nearby middle school. While police were dealing with the situation at the high school, he would have the freedom to inflict more deaths (Laugesen, 1999). However, in a heroic act, Myrick had run to his truck to retrieve his handgun, hoping he would not have to use it on a student. As the gunman was fleeing in his mother’s car, Myrick leveled his gun at the shooter and caused him to lose control of the vehicle (Laugesen, 1999). In the heat and adrenaline rush of the moment, a properly trained person was able to save untold lives that day at the middle school and possibly other locations. While he was waiting for law enforcement to arrive, emotions could have justified him pulling the trigger, but his training and moral compass

Professor Amy Johnson was in a meeting of Clergywomen when she received an alert from her daughter's school is in locked down, due to a gun violence threat. Since the early 1970s school shootings at elementary, secondary and higher education institutions have been a traumatic reality for American society. Everyday threat sends some school into lockdown because of which students get scared even those turn out to be false alarms. Because of this, All schools are conducting drills in which students hide under their seats or other safe areas from the imaginary shooter. In less than four months into 2018, there have been 16 shootings in America. At least 130 students, staff and family members buried. The school shooting is now the global issue. More than 187,000 students have been exposed to gun violence at a school since Columbine. Developed countries like America, Pakistan, Finland, and Canada are also under the influence of this matter. The causes behind this massacre are multiple like the mental illness of a child, parenting issue, financial crisis, revenge, intolerance, anger, frustration or maybe more. School shootings are not solely a problem for the United States, both comparative and international approaches have been used to understand this global problem.

"I'm angry someone would do this to us. There are lives ruined, families ruined, and our whole school year is ruined" (Brackely 1). Casey Brackely, once a student that attended Columbine High School, remembers the tragedy of the horrific Columbine shooting that killed and injured many students. Mass shootings in the United States have been on the rise since the 1980’s, especially in the last decade. These shooters motives and profiles are almost all terrifyingly alike. Many of these shooters try to imitate and parallel the tragic shooting of the Columbine High School in 1999. These shootings have made peaceful organizations, such as an elementary school; become a place of violence and death. Currently, in the United States, an epidemic of

Soon after the 1999 massacre, school lockdowns became widespread and ushered new security measures in school across the U.S. The effort of installing Lockdowns were strengthened after the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Instructors and staff members applied these safety procedures to protect students at the school. Students were swept into the storage closets and behind bookcases where they would hide until the situation is fully resolved. Today, instructors are advised to snap off the lights, lock the doors and usher students into closets and corners while the school officials contact the police. In this locked room, students' text one another, play cards or board games or just wait until they are told everything is back to normal. Indeed, since the Columbine shooting, 32 states have enacted laws demanding schools to perform lockdown drills to keep students safe from intruders (Muschert 11). However, over the years, in the past decade, shooting has increased. The introduction of lockdown drills has not materialized in today’s setting as gun control laws have failed. The massive ownership of guns allowed in the Second Amendment of the U.S Constitution has promoted school shootings. Today, students have access to guns from parents and there is no minimum age for owning a long gun. It means even a child can own a rifle. The weakness of legal ownership of guns in the U.S is clear. So, even with

The problem with society, is that people tend to wait for the problem to occur before making a change. Troubled children and teens have always existed but unfortunately now we’ve entered into an era where shootings are no longer just seen in action movies, it has now become a reality in our schools. Why do these children end up killing their classmates and why the number of school shootings in America have increased in the past several years? These articles try to give some kind of explanation into why these tragic accidents occur. As well as preventions that teachers, parents, and the community as a whole can partake in. This paper will focus on these two main ideas or themes.

The originality of the term ‘prisoner or patient’ can date back to the early 19th century, when specialist institutional provision was introduced to care for people with a mental deficiency. Many people, who required treatment for such deficiencies, were primarily cared for by their families and the parish authorities; known as ‘Care in the Community’ (Bartlett and Wright, 1999:183-185). Anyone displaying behaviour deemed abnormal were declared ‘insane’, and if violent behaviour was exhibited they were confined to ‘Madhouses’ or placed in ‘Workhouses’. The introduction of the Lunacy Act in 1845 and 1890 was regarded, as a ground-breaking outcome in the treatment of the mentally ill (Eldergill, 1998:61). The Act helped reform the status

I was in trouble. I had broken the urinal. First I got suspended by the principle for 2 days. Sure not going to school is fun but I had to work outside all day as punishment. I was also sure that it would go on my record so I was sad about that. Secondly i got a ticket . If you did not know tickets are very expensive. I was going to have to work off that bill. Finally I had to go to court. It was 240$ which is a lot but what could i do. That is how I got in trouble in 8th grade.

Intelligent. Young. Passionate. I am a self defined person who loves helping others and has many goals. Furthermore, I’m dedicated to creating a better me and consuming as much knowledge possible. I indulge myself within the arts, education, and community service in order to shape a better me.