Police Find No Link Between Virginia Gunman, Victims
via bloomberg
Police said today they can find no link between the Virginia Tech gunman and his first victims in last week's shooting rampage, the deadliest in U.S. history.
Emily Hilscher, 19, and dormitory resident assistant Ryan Clark, 22, were the first of 32 people slain on the Blacksburg campus April 16. Witnesses saw gunman Seung Hui Cho waiting outside Hilscher's dorm at about 7 a.m. that day, State Police Superintendent Steve Flaherty said today in a televised press conference.
``There's no motive that we're convinced of or can support with evidence,'' Flaherty said. Cho left a videotaped manifesto, aired on NBC News, that cited grudges against the world and a desire for fame like that of previous school shooters.
Police gave new details of Cho's shooting spree, which ended across campus at the Norris Hall classroom building. The 23-year- old gunman, who had studied there, chained and locked the building's three entrances from the inside before proceeding to the second floor.
In the space of nine minutes, Cho fired more than 170 bullets and killed 30 people, said Virginia Tech Police Chief Wendell Flinchum. Police arrived at Norris Hall to the sound of gunfire and spent five minutes breaking in, he said.
Officers entered the building and climbed the stairs as Cho fired his last bullet, a shot he had saved for himself. Officers found the senior-year English major's body among those of his victims.
Extra Ammo
Nearby were Cho's 9 mm and .22-caliber pistols, Flinchum said, as well as unused ammunition. Evidence gathered in the past week shows Cho had practiced at local shooting ranges.
In addition to those killed, 25 people were hurt, including some injured after jumping to safety from second-floor windows, Flinchum said.
Classes resumed two days ago at Virginia's biggest school, formally known as Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University.
Virginia Governor Tim Kaine, a Democrat, appointed a commission last week to investigate the killings. The panelists, including former U.S. Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, will consider such things as state laws on mental health.
Cho's state of mind was questioned in December 2005, when a Virginia magistrate judge ruled Cho posed a danger to himself or others.
The U.S. Justice Department is also looking at how much access law officers have to mental health information and what barriers prevent them from obtaining it.
