Latest news with #AnneMarieHochhalter
CBS News
20-04-2025
- Sport
- CBS News
Colorado students honor Columbine victims with day of service ahead of shooting anniversary
Sunday marks 26 years since the shooting at Columbine High School that claimed the lives of 13 people in 1999. Anne Marie Hochhalter , one of the survivors who was shot and paralyzed in the shooting, died in February. The Jefferson County Coroner later ruled that her death was ultimately caused by complications from her injuries sustained in the shooting. While no formal remembrance was planned for Sunday, members of the Columbine community gathered Friday for a day of service. The Columbine High School baseball team volunteered at L.O.L.A.'s Rescue, an animal shelter in Aurora. "We're taking the tragedy of that day and turning it into a beneficial way to give back to the community," Jack Collum, a player on the team, said. "We're here at L.O.L.A.'s Rescue, hanging out with some dogs and helping clean up the area around here, so it's a great feeling being able to help out." The day of service was held early this year due to the Easter holiday.
New York Times
13-03-2025
- Health
- New York Times
Death Toll in 1999 Columbine School Shooting Climbs to 14 With Homicide Ruling
For more than a quarter of a century, the death toll in the Columbine High School mass shooting, a statistic intertwined with the gun violence epidemic in the United States, stood at 13 victims. But another name has now been added to the list: Anne Marie Hochhalter, who was a student at the time and was paralyzed from the waist down as a result of the shooting. Her death on Feb. 16 has been officially classified by a coroner in Colorado as a homicide, bringing the number of victims to 14. In a 13-page autopsy report, Dr. Dawn B. Holmes, a forensic pathologist with the Jefferson County coroner's office, linked Ms. Hochhalter's death to the injuries that she suffered as a 17-year-old high school junior. 'Complications of paraplegia due to two (2) gunshot wounds are a significant contributing factor,' Dr. Holmes wrote. The report, which was obtained on Thursday by The New York Times, said that Ms. Hochhalter had died from sepsis, an extreme immune response to an infection. Twelve students and a teacher were killed when two heavily armed students opened fire at the school in Littleton, Colo., on April 20, 1999, before taking their own lives. At the time, it was the deadliest school shooting in U.S. history. It also left 21 other people wounded. Ms. Hochhalter was eating lunch with friends when the gunfire erupted. She was hit twice, in the chest and the back. Despite experiencing a lifetime of medical challenges as a result of her injuries and having to use a wheelchair, Ms. Hochhalter maintained her independence and spoke often about gun violence. Her brother, Nathan, who was a freshman at Columbine at the time of the shooting but was not injured, said on Thursday that it made no sense to include his sister among the other people who were killed that day. 'She got an extra 26 years,' Mr. Hochhalter said. 'She was very independent, but it was not an easy 26 years.' Mr. Hochhalter, 40, said that his sister had considered herself a survivor instead of a victim: She was able to drive, go to the store and attend school and lived by herself for a number of years. Police officers discovered Ms. Hochhalter's body at her home in Westminster, Colo., on Feb. 16 while conducting a welfare check. Sue Townsend, who became close to Ms. Hochhalter after her stepdaughter, Lauren Townsend, was killed in the shooting, told The Times last month that Ms. Hochhalter had been dealing with lingering effects from her injuries, including a pressure sore and an infection. Over the years, the trauma manifested itself on a multitude of levels for Ms. Hochhalter and her brother. Six months after the shooting, their mother, Carla June Hochhalter, walked into a pawnshop, asked to see a gun, loaded it and killed herself. The elder Ms. Hochhalter, 48, had been struggling with depression and other mental health issues before the Columbine shooting, her daughter later said. In 2016, when Sue Klebold, the mother of one of the Columbine shooters, released a memoir, 'A Mother's Reckoning,' Ms. Hochhalter wrote a note addressed to Ms. Klebold on Facebook saying that she harbored no ill will. 'Just as I wouldn't want to be judged by the sins of my family members, I hold you in that same regard,' Ms. Hochhalter wrote. 'It's been a rough road for me, with many medical issues because of my spinal cord injury and intense nerve pain, but I choose not to be bitter towards you. A good friend once told me, 'Bitterness is like swallowing a poison pill and expecting the other person to die.' It only harms yourself. I have forgiven you and only wish you the best.'
The Hill
13-03-2025
- The Hill
Columbine survivor's death ‘best classified as homicide': Coroner report
DENVER (KDVR) — The February death of a woman shot during the 1999 Columbine High School massacre has been classified as a homicide. Anne Marie Hochhalter, 43, who suffered two gunshot wounds on April 20, 1999, died on Feb. 16 at her home, according to her former principal, Frank DeAngelis. The Jefferson County Coroner's Office released a copy of her autopsy report on Wednesday. The report stated that two gunshot wounds Hochhalter suffered, resulting in her use of a wheelchair in the 25 years since, likely turned into further issues and led to her death. The report said that Hochhalter died of 'sepsis due to Streptococcus pyogenes.' 'Complications of paraplegia due to two remote gunshot wounds are a significant contributing factor,' the report stated. 'The manner of death is best classified as homicide.' Hochhalter's family previously said they suspected she died of natural causes stemming from her injuries from the massacre, where two seniors shot and killed 12 students and one teacher, then killed themselves. Another 21 people were injured by the gunfire. Hochhalter spoke out in 2016 in support of the mother of one of the shooters who released a book reflecting on the mass shooting, especially concerning her relationship with grief and battles with shame. Hochhalter wrote at the time in a lengthy Facebook post that she wasn't sure she would ever read the book but said she had forgiven the mass murderer's mother. In 2012, she also spoke publicly in support of the families and survivors of the Sandy Hook Elementary Shooting in Newtown, Conn. 'I really hope the good stories will come out and show a community can come together just like Littleton did after Columbine,' Hochhalter said. 'I feel kind of helpless when I hear about these things and I want to help, I just don't really know how.' 'Thank God somebody reported': Parents react to Ponderosa High School bomb threat The Associated Press reported that Hochhalter struggled with intense pain from her wounds. Yet her brother said she was tireless in her drive to help others — from people with disabilities to rescue dogs and members of her family. 'She was helpful to a great many people. She was really a good human being and sister,' Nathan Hochhalter told The Associated Press. She attended the 25th anniversary vigil last April with her brother, who was trapped in a classroom during the shooting. Anne Marie Hochhalter had not attended the 20th anniversary event because of post-traumatic stress disorder, she said in a social media post last year. 'I've truly been able to heal my soul since that awful day in 1999,' she wrote. Others killed in the Columbine mass shooting were Rachel Scott, 17; Daniel Rohrbough, 15; William David Sanders, 47; Kyle Velasquez, 16; Steven Crunow, 14; Cassie Bernall, 17; Isaiah Shoels, 18; Matthew Kchter, 16; Lauren Townsend, 18; John Tomlin, 16; Kelly Fleming, 16; Daniel Mauser, 15, and Corey DePooter, 17.
Yahoo
13-03-2025
- Yahoo
Coroner report: Columbine survivor's death ‘best classified as homicide'
DENVER (KDVR) — The death toll for the Columbine High School mass shooting in 1999 has risen by one. Anne Marie Hochhalter, a survivor of the Columbine High School mass shooting, died on Feb. 16 at her home, according to her former principal, Frank DeAngelis. Hochhalter, 43, suffered two gunshot wounds during the massacre, where two seniors shot and killed 12 students and one teacher, then killed themselves. Another 21 people were injured by the gunfire. Father shares impact of Thornton traveling nurse's death in Montana river The Jefferson County Coroner's Office released a copy of her autopsy report on Wednesday. The report stated that two gunshot wounds Hochhalter suffered in 1999, resulting in her use of a wheelchair in the 25 years since, likely turned into further issues and led to her death. The report said that Hochhalter died of 'sepsis due to Streptococcus pyogenes.' 'Complications of paraplegia due to two remote gunshot wounds are a significant contributing factor,' the report stated. 'The manner of death is best classified as homicide.' Hochhalter's family previously said that they suspected she died of natural causes stemming from her injuries in the shooting. Hochhalter spoke out in 2016 in support of the mother of one of the shooters who released a book reflecting on the mass shooting, especially concerning her relationship with grief and battles with shame. Hochhalter wrote at the time in a lengthy Facebook post that she wasn't sure she would ever read the book, but said she had forgiven the mass murderer's mother. In 2012, Hochhalter also spoke publicly in support of the families and survivors of the Sandy Hook Elementary Shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. 'I really hope the good stories will come out and show a community can come together just like Littleton did after Columbine,' Hochhalter said. 'I feel kind of helpless when I hear about these things and I want to help, I just don't really know how.' 'Thank God somebody reported': Parents react to Ponderosa High School bomb threat The Associated Press reported that Hochhalter struggled with intense pain from her gunshot wounds over the past 25 years. Yet her brother said she was tireless in her drive to help others — from people with disabilities to rescue dogs and members of her family. 'She was helpful to a great many people. She was really a good human being and sister,' her brother, Nathan Hochhalter, said to The Associated Press. Hochhalter attended the 25th anniversary vigil in April with her brother, who was trapped in a classroom during the shooting. She had not attended the 20th anniversary event because of post-traumatic stress disorder, she said in a social media post last year. 'I've truly been able to heal my soul since that awful day in 1999,' she wrote. Others killed in the Columbine mass shooting were Rachel Scott, 17; Daniel Rohrbough, 15; William David Sanders, 47; Kyle Velasquez, 16; Steven Crunow, 14; Cassie Bernall, 17; Isaiah Shoels, 18; Matthew Kchter, 16; Lauren Townsend, 18; John Tomlin, 16; Kelly Fleming, 16; Daniel Mauser, 15; Corey DePooter, 17. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Guardian
19-02-2025
- The Guardian
Columbine shooting survivor dies 26 years after being paralyzed in massacre
A former Columbine high school student who only narrowly survived the deadly 1999 mass shooting there – and subsequently spent nearly three decades grappling with complications from her wounds in the attack – has died. Anne Marie Hochhalter, 44, died on Sunday from what were described as natural causes, according to a statement from the principal at Columbine when the shooting at the Colorado school occurred. Frank De Angelis's statement, as reported by Colorado's Denver Gazette, called Hochhalter 'a pillar of strength for … so many' after she fostered a love of dogs and music despite having to live in a wheelchair after the shooting. 'She was an inspiration and exemplified never giving up,' he added in the statement. Hochhalter, then 17 and a clarinet player, was eating lunch at the cafeteria when she was shot in her back and chest with a semiautomatic pistol on the day of the Columbine shooting. She was among the most grievously wounded of more than 20 people who were injured during the attack, which killed 12 of her schoolmates as well as one teacher. The two shooters – who were students – then died by suicide in what remains one of the deadliest school shootings in the US's ignominious history of such cases. Surgeons managed to save Hochhalter's life. But, as the Denver Post reported, her wounds left her paralyzed – and they were not the only traumatic ordeal she was confronted with that year. Six months after the shooting, her mother, Carla Hochhalter, walked into a local pawn shop, asked to see a gun and used it to take her own life. The Denver Post recounted how the younger Hochhalter prioritized living as normal a life as possible amid the media frenzy surrounding the killings at Columbine, which came during one of more than 400 school shootings between then and the day she died. She lived independently at a handicap-accessible home, showering her love on her dogs and friends. Beside the clarinet, she also loved playing the harp, piano and guitar, her brother, Nathan Hochhalter, said to the Post. 'She never wanted to be called a victim,' Anne Marie Hochhalter's close friend Sue Townsend – whose stepdaughter, Lauren Townsend, was killed at Columbine – told the Denver Gazette. 'She considered herself a survivor.' Sue Townsend told the Post that she believed Hochhalter ultimately died from complications associated with medical ailments stemming from her injuries in the Columbine shooting. But, in her remarks, Townsend suggested that Hochhalter never stopped battling to overcome the devastation that 1999 had inflicted on her. For instance, when the mother of one of the Columbine shooters published a book in 2016, Hochhalter wrote the author a letter saying she held no recriminations for her, as the Post reported. 'It's been a rough road for me, with many medical issues because of my spinal cord injury and intense nerve pain, but I choose not to be bitter towards you,' Hochhalter wrote to Sue Klebold, whose book was titled A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy. 'A good friend once told me, 'Bitterness is like swallowing a poison pill and expecting the other person to die.' It only harms yourself. I have forgiven you and wish you the best.' Hochhalter further elaborated on those sentiments in two social media posts, which she published on successive Aprils in 2023 and 2024 – the 24th and 25th anniversaries of the Columbine shooting, respectively. 'Why did I survive and so many others didn't that horrific day?' she wrote in April 2023, as the Gazette noted. 'I think of that often, and I've tried to live the best life possible in honor of the 12 students and one teacher we lost 24 years ago.' A year later, Hochhalter wrote: 'I've truly been able to heal my soul since that awful day in 1999.'
