NationStates Jolt Archive

Seems two people are being held hostage at a high school. Seems school violence just won't go away. :(

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15032063/

10 mins til someone is recorded giving an eyewitness testament that the hostage taker was wearing a towel on his head and quoting from the koran.:rolleyes:

10 mins til someone is recorded giving an eyewitness testament that the hostage taker was wearing a towel on his head and quoting from the koran.:rolleyes:

So, it takes one post these days before we descend into this sort of bullshit?

However, as I was going to say, I'd like to wish the best of luck to the police and hostages. Nobody, especially childeren, deserve to be in that kind of situation.

10 mins til someone is recorded giving an eyewitness testament that the hostage taker was wearing a towel on his head and quoting from the koran.:rolleyes:

More than likely wearing a black trenchcoat and looking like a goth.

Here (http://www.kusa.com/acm_news.aspx?OSGNAME=KUSA&IKOBJECTID=f0907283-0abe-421a-01d9-13eae7db41d7&TEMPLATEID=0c76dce6-ac1f-02d8-0047-c589c01ca7bf)'s a bit more detail.

Seems he's only holding two people at the moment. No towels mentioned. The kids have all been gotten out okay.

So, it takes one post these days before we descend into this sort of bullshit?


you didn't notice the :rolleyes: , or you actually think all the muslim hating and paranoia is completely justified?

Only two hostages? Boring. People really should put more effort into their crimes.

Here (http://www.kusa.com/acm_news.aspx?OSGNAME=KUSA&IKOBJECTID=f0907283-0abe-421a-01d9-13eae7db41d7&TEMPLATEID=0c76dce6-ac1f-02d8-0047-c589c01ca7bf)'s a bit more detail.

Seems he's only holding two people at the moment. No towels mentioned. The kids have all been gotten out okay.

That website hurts my eyes

Here (http://www.kusa.com/acm_news.aspx?OSGNAME=KUSA&IKOBJECTID=f0907283-0abe-421a-01d9-13eae7db41d7&TEMPLATEID=0c76dce6-ac1f-02d8-0047-c589c01ca7bf)'s a bit more detail.

Seems he's only holding two people at the moment. No towels mentioned. The kids have all been gotten out okay.

Thanks.

Hopefully this will resolve itself peacefully. I would think it most likely to be an irate parent who is doing this. Without more information I can't come up with a better guess as to a motive for this.

BAILELY, Colo. -- Two female students at Platte Canyon High School in Bailey are being held hostage after a gunman walked into the school at about noon, said he had a bomb in a backpack and fired several shots inside the school.

The man had initially held six people inside the second-floor clasroom hostage, but four people have been released.

Platte Canyon and Fitzsimmons Middle School, which is next door, has been completely evacuated. All students -- other than the two who are being held hostage -- have been accounted for.

There are no immediate reports of injuries. A man reportedly went into the high school with a backpack, saying he had a bomb. Two students are still being held hostage, 7NEWS reported.

Six nearby schools were locked down as a precaution. The two schools that are impacted are about four miles west of Bailey, which is in Park County.

At 2 p.m., students from the school complex -- which houses both Fitzsimmons Middle School, Platte Canyon and the school district administration building -- could be seen walking to buses parked on a closed portion of U.S. Highway 285, about a mile west of the school. The buses are taking the students at Deer Creek Elementary School, where many parents have gathered.

U.S. Highway 285, which runs in front of the school, was closed in that area. Emergency equipment was parked on the highway in front of the school and Airtracker 7 Pilot Rich Westra said there is a steady stream of emergency equipment coming down the highway from direction of Denver.

The evacuations came after a loud noise, said Jan Howard, a secretary to the superintendent of schools.

"I don't know what the noise was," she said.

Colorado Department of Public Safety spokesman Lance Clem said a man with a gun was holding the student captives, after earlier releasing one of five initially taken hostage.

As a precaution, nearby Jefferson County schools were also locked down in the Conifer area. Schools in Fairplay, Colo., about 30 miles away, were also locked down as a precaution. The schools that were locked down as a Conifer High School Elk Creek Elementary, West Jefferson Middle School, West Jefferson Elementary and Deer Creek Elementary.

Parents of students from Platte Canyon and Fitzsimons were asked to go to the Park County Sheriff's sub-station in Bailey.

The Jefferson County SWAT team and bomb squad were called to the school to aid Park County Sheriff's deputies.

The high school football field, across the highway from the school complex, was being used as a staging area for ambulances and emergency personnel. A helicopter ambulance also landed on the football field.

Platte Canyon High School has 467 students enrolled during the 2005-2006 school year, according to its Web site.

Fitzsimmons Middle School has about 350 students.

Bailey is about 40 miles southwest of Denver.

Jefferson County authorities are all too familiar with school attacks: That sheriff's office handled the 1999 attack at Columbine High School in which two students killed 13 people before taking their own lives.

That's from the Denver ABC affiliate.

CNN says four hostages.

Why take hostages when you just make it worse? Something set that kid off, I'm sure.

CNN says four hostages.

Why take hostages when you just make it worse? Something set that kid off, I'm sure.

I won't name my news source since on NSG their the most biased source of them all. Anyways, I heard it was an adult who took the people hostage.

I won't name my news source since on NSG their the most biased source of them all. Anyways, I heard it was an adult who took the people hostage.

I've heard both an adult and a student. The news web sites here in Denver are just saying "a gunman" now. But the authorities have confirmed that he has two girls hostage.

Yeah, CNN on tv is "Bomb Scare/Hostages" for three seconds and then 5 minutes on some dinner at the White House.


Drop the politics, people might DIE!:mad:

*first ever use of mad smiley*

Seems the guy is an adult, and he does have two girls as hostages. Bomb squad and SWAT are on the scene and the police have had sporadic contact with the guy.

Yeah, CNN on tv is "Bomb Scare/Hostages" for three seconds and then 5 minutes on some dinner at the White House.


Drop the politics, people might DIE!:mad:

*first ever use of mad smiley*

People die every day. Can't worry about all of them.

Seems the guy is an adult, and he does have two girls as hostages. Bomb squad and SWAT are on the scene and the police have had sporadic contact with the guy.

If he was so reasonable to let hostages go (if that is what happened) then hopefully the situation isn't as serious as it could be.

People die every day. Can't worry about all of them.

Dying by a bomb gets ratings however. Very dramatic and messy and loud. Good TV for the news organizations.

It seems like kids in Colorado get really depressed.
(columbine)

Location: Geostationary orbit over Drunk Commies Deleted

*Looks up*

*Looks up*

I'm always watching you....
*eye twitch*

It seems like kids in Colorado get really depressed.
(columbine)

Yeah, well ... They have confirmed that this is an adult, 35 years old, I heard in one report. Don't know if the bomb he says he has is real or just a threat, but he did fire at least one shot inside the school. They don't know what, if any relationship he has to the girls he's holding hostage, or if he's a parent of a student at the school, or why he's doing this. Obviously, they're moving very cautiously.

Yeah, well ... They have confirmed that this is an adult, 35 years old, I heard in one report. Don't know if the bomb he says he has is real or just a threat, but he did fire at least one shot inside the school. They don't know what, if any relationship he has to the girls he's holding hostage, or if he's a parent of a student at the school, or why he's doing this. Obviously, they're moving very cautiously. Cautiously... Right that's why they stopped Negiotiations and rushed him.

He fired the shot because the SWAT ran in.
If they could get 4 out of 6 out then I bet they could have gotten him to surrender.

It feels to me that either the Police wanted to get this guy because they weren't able to get the Columbine guys or they were getting impatient. I hope that girl doesn't die from this.

I miss the good old days when kids just used to beat the shit out of eachother. :(

Um...upon further review, I also miss the good old days when adults used to beat the shit out of kids.

;)

Cautiously... Right that's why they stopped Negiotiations and rushed him.

He fired the shot because the SWAT ran in.
If they could get 4 out of 6 out then I bet they could have gotten him to surrender.

It feels to me that either the Police wanted to get this guy because they weren't able to get the Columbine guys or they were getting impatient. I hope that girl doesn't die from this.

The reports I've seen said he fired at least one shot when he first went into the school, and then he shot the one girl as the SWAT team went in, yes. They did get him - in custody, not a body-bag - but there's no word on the girl's condition. And yes, I do hope she's okay.

The reports I've seen said he fired at least one shot when he first went into the school, and then he shot the one girl as the SWAT team went in, yes. They did get him - in custody, not a body-bag - but there's no word on the girl's condition. And yes, I do hope she's okay.

They got him?

They got him?
Yes, they set off a bomb to distract him (A flashbang or breaching charge is my guess) Then rushed him in the class room. Still he managed to shoot one of the hostages, she's in Critical condition and on the way to the hospital.

Personally I think the police screwed up.

Yes, they set off a bomb to distract him (A flashbang or breaching charge is my guess) Then rushed him in the class room. Still he managed to shoot one of the hostages, she's in Critical condition and on the way to the hospital.

Personally I think the police screwed up.

Maybe. The ABC affiliate here is saying now they did kill him and yeah, the girl in critical condition. The other girl's unharmed.

1. This just proves no school security policy will stop a gunman, except orders to fire on sight. Schools should stop the BS with this and that. Cameras are a stretch, but I let it slide.

2. What the hell is with Colorado and high school gunmen.

1. This just proves no school security policy will stop a gunman, except orders to fire on sight. Schools should stop the BS with this and that. Cameras are a stretch, but I let it slide.

2. What the hell is with Colorado and high school gunmen.

1. Yes, well, shoot on sight will cut down on parental visits and those pesky visiting sports teams.

2. The guy was an adult. No black trenchcoats in sight.

I went to that school, gang. My sisters were in the school during the hostage situation. Both are alright, but unfortunately, the shot hostage was a close friend of my sister, and somewhat of a friend of mine as well. We're still waiting desperately to hear about her condition.

I just...it's so hard to believe this would happen where I live. It's Bailey, for sakes! Nothing ever really happens there. And yet, this did. Amazing, in a most horrifying way. Especially since for the longest time I thought my sister was the shot hostage. It wasn't until I returned from picking up my father in Denver that I found out she was safe, along with the other sister.

Maybe. The ABC affiliate here is saying now they did kill him and yeah, the girl in critical condition. The other girl's unharmed.

The girl has since been pronounced dead. Police still don't know who this guy is or why he did this.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15032063/

Only two hostages? Boring. People really should put more effort into their crimes.this is not the movies..

It was originally six hostages, DCD. He released four over time.

truly sad,as is everytime an innocent person dies needlessly,for what ever agenda.

why does this make the news? Why don't they broadcast every time an inner-city school has a shooting or stabbing or bomb threat?

on a less bitter note, I'm sorry for those involved.

why does this make the news? Why don't they broadcast every time an inner-city school has a shooting or stabbing or bomb threat?

on a less bitter note, I'm sorry for those involved.

Had this been posted several hours earlier, I might have responded with a great deal of emotion, probably finally earning a Mod's wrath about my troll-like behavior over the past few hours and being Mod-smacked.

It earns the news because it's...well, the news. You know American news. It always goes for the best ratings. Furthermore, consider the number of parents that were desperate for any scrap of information. We're talking 770 people in Fitzsimmons and Platte Canyon in total. That's(ignoring the more-than-one-child factor) 770 sets of parents scared to death that their child might have died. And one set of parents had to face that. Hell, I'm just an older brother, and I was frightened out of my mind the whole time.

Had this been posted several hours earlier, I might have responded with a great deal of emotion, probably finally earning a Mod's wrath about my troll-like behavior over the past few hours and being Mod-smacked.

It earns the news because it's...well, the news. You know American news. It always goes for the best ratings. Furthermore, consider the number of parents that were desperate for any scrap of information. We're talking 770 people in Fitzsimmons and Platte Canyon in total. That's(ignoring the more-than-one-child factor) 770 sets of parents scared to death that their child might have died. And one set of parents had to face that. Hell, I'm just an older brother, and I was frightened out of my mind the whole time.

Oh, I would totally understand your reaction. I'm a younger brother, and would react much the same for my sister or her friends.

But my point is this happens in urban environments every day. I know a teacher in Chicago who has a box of bullets that have been found or entered the classroom during the day. She just picks them up and keeps teaching.

Where I was born (Meriden, CT...a moderate city), there were literally daily shootings/stabbings at the public library. A kid in the middle school was shot for going into the wrong bathroom. This was way before any of the major school shootings. These are schools of up to 1000 students, and any given day, they might go in the "wrong" bathroom.

I've worked in a daycare where 4 and 5 year olds come dressed in gang colors because their parents or siblings dressed them. They could easily be shot for that. They have come to daycare with knives on them. They have threatened (at acted on these threats) several times

My point is, this isn't a new phenomenon. It has just entered the suburbs.

I am glad to hear your sister is okay tho. I know the feeling of being worried about a sibling.

I went to that school, gang. My sisters were in the school during the hostage situation. Both are alright, but unfortunately, the shot hostage was a close friend of my sister, and somewhat of a friend of mine as well. We're still waiting desperately to hear about her condition.

I just...it's so hard to believe this would happen where I live. It's Bailey, for sakes! Nothing ever really happens there. And yet, this did. Amazing, in a most horrifying way. Especially since for the longest time I thought my sister was the shot hostage. It wasn't until I returned from picking up my father in Denver that I found out she was safe, along with the other sister.

Sympathies to you, and more to the family involved. How well did you know them?

Update... It seems the reason he wanted only girls... Was a sexual reason. And that he could sexually assaulted them while he was holding them hostage. That ****ing bastard.

Sympathies to you, and more to the family involved. How well did you know them?

Me? I didn't really know the family at all. But, as I said, my sister was a close friend of Emily Keyes, and she's not been taking it very well. I doubt she's felt anything other than depressed and miserable since we first heard about who it was that died.

The Lone Alliance: I know. Had he chosen the classroom next door, my other sister would have been THE prime target. (Trust me, she's that beautiful.)

However, that wasn't going to happen. The way Platte Canyon is set up, the classrooms are divided mostly amongst the four pods. In each pod, you have six classrooms, an open area for computers, and a teacher workspace. Four of those classrooms are more or less completely open to the rest of the pod. (I say more or less because there is a glass sliding door that occupies part of the way out to the pod, to help with noise baffling. It's hardly anywhere near enough to even fully shut, of course.) The other two are closed in, with one normal door into the pod, and one out to the hallway. One of those two has a set of windows outside; the other set looks out on the library, which is centrally located inbetween all four pods.
The gunman chose the one that looks upon the library, Mrs. Smith's room. There are blinds, of course, and if you were going to choose a classroom anywhere in that building to be secure enough, both from entry into the classroom and spying/sniper spotting into it, it would be that classroom or its mirror in the Math pod. which is the other pod on the second floor. Though these classrooms are mirrored on the ground level, the second floor would provide more security. The gunman certainly knew the layout of the school. (Not that it's that hard to memorize.)

The pod the criminal was in is the English pod. Right below it, connected by an emergency stairwell--often used by teachers to simply go up and down, since it's an open stairwell--to the Social Studies pod. The fourth pod is actually used for the 8th grade classes from Fitzsimmons, since it's such a small school. The two buildings are connected by the enormous cafeteria, referred to as the Canyon room.

As for whether classes will resume anytime soon...I doubt that. This has shaken everything up far too much for that. The damage to that room alone will keep the English pod overcrowded anyway, since all six classrooms are used in that pod, unlike the way the rest of the pods tend to be used. You won't get anyone to step in there and hold a class anyway. Hell, students might even refuse to step into the English pod itself.

All I know about the damage, however, is what is reported in the news. They're cracking down severely on anyone who goes even NEAR the school right now, so I can't get anywhere near it. As soon as I can find out for myself the full details, I'll let you all know. In the meantime, I'll kjeep you up to date on what all's going on.

So, through the Denver Post, I have an idea of the damage to the room. An approximately man-sized hole has been blown into one wall, every single desk and chair are on their sides, and the door the S.W.A.T. team entered through is almost completely destroyed.

Also, the gunman was intending to commit suicide from the start. He had sent a letter to his brother-in-law in April, mentioning he was going to do something "his family wouldn't be proud of." He was depressed, so he decided to kill himself in a way that would hurt as many people as possible. I suspect he cased out a few mountain schools before finally deciding on Platte Canyon. He made a list of students to take hostage to use for his sexual fantasies before killing them all, me suspects. I think the "big thing" that was going to happen at 4:00 is most assuredly the murder of both students. Emily was shot trying to escape when the S.W.A.T. team burst into the room, as it turns out.