Latest news with #ColumbineHighSchool
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Yahoo
Sheriff: Arrests made after details of planned shooting at Cottonwood middle school emerge
Two teenagers were arrested Sunday after an investigation revealed they were planning an attack on a Cottonwood middle school, the Tehama County Sheriff's Office said. Investigators said details about the attack emerged from an online gaming conversation that a Tennessee resident had with one of the teenagers and was relayed to authorities. The resident became concerned when the teen started talking about school violence. The teen talked 'about a having a manifesto and plan to target Evergreen Middle School in Cottonwood. The suspect also sent photographs of himself and an accomplice to the reporting party in the same attire and pose as the Columbine school shooters,' a Tehama County sheriff's news release said. The two teens had planned to attack the school on May 9, but one of the teens backed out, the sheriff's office said. The shooting at Columbine High School in Colorado on April 20, 1999, killed 12 students and one teacher. A USA TODAY story marking the 25th anniversary said, 'The massacre became a blueprint for dozens of copycats, led to major changes in school safety, and sparked an enduring legacy of activism as survivors push for better gun control and offer their support to the next generation of Americans affected by gun violence.' Meanwhile, based on the information from the Tennessee resident, Tehama County authorities investigated the threats. They also received photographs and other evidence that was sent to the Tennessee resident. Working with Evergreen school administrators, investigators alerted the school and identified the two teenagers. On Sunday, investigators served search warrants on the teens' homes in the Bowman and Lake California areas. During the searches, investigators found evidence that backed the Tennessee resident's claims, the sheriff's office said. The news release does not say what evidence was found. A 14-year-old and 15-year-old were arrested on suspicion of criminal threats, manufacturing destructive devices, possession of a destructive device and conspiracy to commit any felony, the sheriff's office said. They were booked into the Tehama County Juvenile Justice Center. The sheriff's office did not release the names of the teenagers. This article originally appeared on Redding Record Searchlight: Sheriff: Teens arrested for plans to attack Tehama middle school
New York Post
09-05-2025
- Politics
- New York Post
Republican DA bucks blue state's ‘broken sentencing' with tough-on-crime approach
A tough-on-crime Republican district attorney is using his years of prosecuting some of the most infamous cases in Colorado to crack down on crime across the blue state. In January, George Brauchler became the first-ever district attorney for Colorado's 23rd Judicial District, making it the first time in more than 60 years that Colorado added a new judicial district. He previously served as DA for the 18th Judicial District, where he prosecuted some of the state's biggest mass shooting cases, including at an Aurora movie theater and Columbine High School. 'I was a very young prosecutor when Columbine happened, and Columbine was the high school immediately to the south of where I graduated from high school,' Brauchler told Fox News Digital during an interview. 'And so, when it occurred to be assigned to prosecute the felonies out of that, I thought at the time that would be the biggest, worst case I would ever handle, and I was wrong and that's an amazing revelation to come to in this job.' Soon after Brauchler was elected to a 'broader version' of his current jurisdiction, the Aurora theater shooting case happened. 'A guy walked into a movie theater at about 2:25 in Alameda and tried to murder a theater full of people, and I ended up prosecuting that. We also ended up having a mass shooting here at a school at the end of my time in office. I was also asked to do the mock cross-examination of the victim in the Kobe Bryant rape case out of Vail back, I don't know, almost 20 years ago now. It's not anything you could really ever plan for. It's just, you're there. You always say yes,' Brauchler explained while reflecting on his earlier career. 5 George Brauchler became the first-ever district attorney for Colorado's 23rd Judicial District, making it the first time in more than 60 years that Colorado added a new judicial district. Fox News 'You end up developing a skill set and an expertise. And then you find yourself in a position to run for the first new district attorney's office in over 60 years in Colorado. And you think, for whatever it's worth, as humbly as I can put this, there just isn't anybody that brings to this job right now the kind of experience that I have. And I hope to use it for the benefit of my community.' Last month, Brauchler secured a rare first-degree murder conviction in a high-profile DUI case, which marked the first murder trial in Colorado's newly formed 23rd Judicial District. The case involved Paul Stephenson, 57, who Brauchler said drank a bottle of Fireball and two beers before crashing into a minivan that was parked in Castle Rock last August. 'That case was so disturbing to me on a lot of levels,' Brauchler said. Lt. Col. Matthew Anderson, a 39-year-old Air Force test pilot and father of four, was killed while pumping gas. His wife was inside the gas station store at the time of the crash. One of their children suffered a fractured skull and two others were also injured. 'On a Sunday afternoon, filling his car with gas while his wife goes to get the kids Popsicles, some two-time convicted drunk pours himself into a lifted Chevy Silverado, crosses five lanes of traffic, hops a curb, hits the accelerator to 98% and crushes that car at 45 miles an hour, injuring three of the kids and killing Lt. Col. Matt Anderson,' Brauchler said, describing the horrific scene that unfolded. 5 Eric Harris, left, and Dylan Klebold, carrying a TEC-9 semi-automatic pistol, are pictured in the cafeteria at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado, during their April 20, 1999, mass shooting. AP 'In Colorado, the gut reaction charge would be, oh, that's vehicular homicide. And that sounds horrible, but in Colorado, we have some of the weakest traffic laws in the country. So vehicular [homicide] would have only been punishable at most by 12 years in the Department of Corrections. Given our broken sentencing scheme, that guy would have been paroled in probably less than four years, and that seemed wholly unacceptable to me and everybody that looked at this case,' Brauchler continued. To ensure that justice was served, Brauchler said his office got a 'little aggressive' and charged the driver with first-degree murder based on 'extreme indifference.' 'We pursued it. And I'm not going to tell you it didn't have risks. I'm not going to tell you that I didn't have a pit in my stomach. But in about three and a half hours of deliberation after about a weeklong trial, the jury came back and said, 'Yeah, guilty of first-degree murder,' and we're all pretty satisfied with that outcome,' Brauchler said. Brauchler added what this case also highlighted was that he feels 'we have lost sight of the purpose of the criminal justice system and taken our eye off the ball on day-to-day crimes,' like DUI. 'One thing about this is that there is no time of day, no road you can drive on that you can say, 'Well, I'm safe from drunk drivers at this time on this road.' My God, this was Sunday. On a road in the middle of Castle Rock, not a highway, on a road but across the street from the Douglas County Fair. If we don't, I think, vigilantly attack this problem as much as any other, maybe more so, we're going to see more of this, and this is the most preventable crime there is. This guy chose to risk people's lives, and now he's going to lose his freedom,' Brauchler said. Brauchler said Anderson's wife and children have recovered, but the ripple effects of witnessing the horrific scene are 'still unknown as to how far they stretch through their lives.' 5 Colorado movie massacre gunman James Holmes (C) leaves court for the last time before beginning his life sentence with no chance of parole after a hearing in Centennial, Colorado, on Aug. 26, 2015. REUTERS 'How does seeing the violent death of their father in front of them, the way they saw him lying in the parking lot with a massive head injury, missing his leg above the ankle, how does that haunt them throughout the rest of their lives? I don't think anybody knows,' Brauchler said. 'I have spoken with the widow many times. She is resilient and tough, but you can also see there's something missing in her eyes. I don't know how better to describe it, but I've seen it a lot with loss like this and that blue flame that flickers back there that tells you somebody's fully engaged is just a little more diminished. It's a little harder to see. And my hope for that family is that they can figure out a way to find happiness even without Col. Anderson.' Tom Mustin, director of media relations for Brauchler's office, told Fox News Digital that 'typically, DUI cases lead to vehicular homicide charges, but this case set a new precedent and reflects DA Brauchler's tough-on-crime approach that helped win him the office.' 'I don't shy away from the description 'tough on crime,' but when did simply enforcing the law and having an expectation that there would be accountability for breaking it become 'tough on [crime]?'' Brauchler said. 'That just tells you how far we've shifted away from the idea of personal responsibility for criminal conduct. But I'm proud of the position we've taken. It's been well-received everywhere. And I mean not just in our jurisdiction, but when I go to other jurisdictions.' 5 This July 2012 evidence file photo provided by the Arapahoe County District Attorney's Office shows an assault weapon and blood on sandals following the July 20, 2012, Colorado theater shooting by James Holmes in Aurora, Colo. AP Brauchler, a Republican DA in the heavily blue Denver metro area, said Colorado has 'taken such a sharp turn towards the progressive left that every other office is now dominated by Democrats,' which makes his position unique. 'I'll tell you one thing that sticks out to me that's odd is that I've made a real point of telling the public, even before I took office, we're going to be an office that stands for the rule of law, and that if people come down here to steal from us or victimize us, they ought to expect to be incarcerated,' Brauchler said. 'That message has been so overwhelmingly received and in a positive way, like people clap when I say that.' Brauchler added that when he started working in his field 30 years ago and had this same messaging, it would have been a 'yawn fest.' 'People would have been like, 'Duh, that's what prosecutors and police do.' But that's how far we've shifted in the other direction,' Brauchler said. When asked about other high-profile cases like the Menendez brothers' case in California, Brauchler said 'there's no good message that comes out of these two ever walking out of prison.' 5 Brauchler shows a map he made in jest showing where criminals can drive to bypass the new district, during a press conference at the Douglas County Administration Building in Castle Rock, Colorado on Dec. 18, 2024. Denver Post via Getty Images 'I remember when these cases happened, and I followed them like everybody else,' Brauchler said. 'But this was a brutal, planned murder for the most selfish reasons possible. Anything they come up with at this point, by way of excuse, has already been air-dried in front of the jury and rejected when they were convicted. There's no good message for America that comes out of these guys ever taking a free breath again.' Brauchler said what is troubling about the Menendez brothers' case being brought back up is that 'every time something like this happens and someone sees any amount of success, it encourages others to do this.' 'You have to believe that there are any number of defense attorneys out there who are willing to shoot for the notoriety or the paycheck. In order to try to capture something like this, I'm not denigrating them. I know that's business, but the answer should be that we should forget about the Menendez brothers.' Brauchler said what the Menendez brothers' case highlights is something that has been happening since the Aurora theater shooting that is amplifying killers. 'There has been a real concerted effort by decent people and many in the media to no longer amplify the killers; like, we should be focused on the victims. I would say since the Aurora theater shooter, I've said that guy's name maybe four times through the whole trial, which lasted from Jan. 20th until April 7th, 2015. I said his name exactly twice. And that was by design,' Brauchler explained. 'And so here we are again, focused on the Menendez brothers and the Netflix things about the Menendez brothers. And I understand that, but we should really de-glorify the criminals and focus more on the victims and the crime that was committed. And I think that if you let these guys out, you do the opposite.' Brauchler added that there are even studies now about thecorrelation between the amount of notoriety that a criminal gets and then copycat-type crimes. 'I'll give you an example with Columbine. The STEM school mass shooting that I covered, both of those shooters had passing fascination with those Columbine shooters. We had a near-mass shooting at another high school right down the road from my kid's high school. They both had a fascination with the Columbine shooters and the Aurora theater shooter. Guess which case he researched before he left his apartment back on July the 19th to go murder these people? Columbine. So, the more notorious an event or some people become, it does have an effect on other folks,' Brauchler said. 'I get it, we have to report the bad guy or bad girl at least once,' Brauchler continued. 'Then after that, let's not talk about them anymore. Let's talk about the crime. Let's talk about the victims, and let's go to court.'
Sky News AU
28-04-2025
- Health
- Sky News AU
Westfield Bondi Junction inquest: Joel Cauchi bookmarked pages about serial killers and massacres in the days before the attack
Joel Cauchi had bookmarked pages about serial killers and mass killings in the days before the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbing attack, an inquest has heard. Cauchi, 40, killed six people and injured 10 others in a mass stabbing at the Sydney shopping centre on April 13, 2024. The inquest will examine Mr Cauchi's schizophrenia diagnosis and why he remained unmedicated and unsupervised for five years before the attack. It will also investigate gaps in Queensland's mental health system that allowed him to "fall through the cracks". Counsel Assisting the Coroner, Dr Peggy Dwyer, delivered a two-hour opening statement on the first day of the inquest, outlining evidence that Cauchi had become preoccupied with weapons, violence, and mass murder. She said the browsing history that suggested evidence of planning before the attack started in late 2022. Cauchi's web history included multiple mass shooting events, including the 1999 Columbine High School massacre. Dr Dwyer said Cauchi had also purchased multiple KA-BAR knives - one of which was used on the day of the attack. "Apart from Mr Cauchi's dark thoughts, there is no direct evidence indicating any motive in relation to what happened," Dr Dwyer said. The inquest heard about a prior incident in January 2023, when police were called to the family home after Cauchi's father confiscated several knives similar to the one used in the April attack. "The court will explore whether that was a missed opportunity for intervention by police, which may have led to Mr Cauchi being re-engaged with the mental health system," Dr Dwyer said. Cauchi was also using cannabis, which may have worsened his condition. Dr Dwyer said the drug likely "exacerbated" his symptoms. The court heard disturbing details about the victims who died: Dawn Singleton, Jade Young, Yixuan Cheng, Ashlee Good, Pikria Darchia, and Faraz Tahir. The inquest also acknowledged the heroic actions of civilians, first responders, and NSW Police Inspector Amy Scott, who fatally shot Cauchi less than six minutes after the rampage began. "Your Honour, there is no question with respect to the propriety of her actions. Her professionalism on 13 April 2024 is clearly beyond doubt," Dr Dwyer said. Of nearly 250 civilian witness statements submitted, only two civilians are expected to give oral evidence - Damien Guerot and Silas Desperaux, the "bollard men" who helped guide Inspector Scott to the attacker. Inspector Scott and the two French construction workers will give evidence on Tuesday. The five-week inquest will also hear security, emergency response, and psychiatry experts in the weeks ahead.
Daily Mail
28-04-2025
- Daily Mail
Horrific new details emerge about crazed killer Joel Cauchi's evil obsession before he launched Westfield Bondi Junction massacre
Schizophrenic knifeman Joel Cauchi was preoccupied with violence, weapons and mass killings for years before the Westfield Bondi Junction massacre. Cauchi's internet browsing in the lead up to his rampage showed he was obsessed with serial killers and may have made some 'rudimentary plans' for his own attack. Before killing six people at the shopping centre he had conducted internet searches of the Columbine High School massacre in which 13 students were murdered. The opening day of an inquest into the Westfield Bondi Junction heard Cauchi had been 'floridly psychotic' when he committed the outrage. The inquest is investigating the deaths of five women and one man killed by 40-year-old Cauchi on April 13 last year. It will also examine the wounding of ten others and the death of Cauchi, who was shot by Inspector Amy Scott at the scene. The inquiry began at the State Coroners Court at Lidcombe in Sydney 's west on Monday and is set to run for five weeks. State Coroner Teresa O'Sullivan is presiding over the inquest, which Cauchi committed with a US Marines-style Ka-Bar utility knife he bought on February 24 last year. Those killed were shoppers Dawn Singleton, 35, Jade Young, 47, Yixuan Cheng, 27, Ashlee Good, 38, Pakria Darchia, 55 and security guard Faraz Tahir, 30. The families of Ms Singleton, Ms Young and Ms Good - excluding Dawn's father, multimillionaire businessman John Singleton - have engaged prominent barrister Sue Chrysanthou SC to represent them at the inquest. The families of Ms Cheng, Ms Darchia and Mr Tahir are also legally represented, as are shopping centre management and both NSW and Queensland police. Mr Singleton had urged the NSW Attorney-General not to proceed with the inquest because it would be too traumatic for the families of those killed to relive the events. 'If it was going to bring some justice I would understand - but it can't, it's just so unfair,' he has said. 'No good can come of making the details of this public all over again, the CCTV footage images. 'We all know what happened and who did it and he's gone, there's nothing to gain.' Ms Chrysanthou said at a directions hearing earlier this month the victims' families 'except for John Singleton... understand the mandatory nature of this inquest and they support it'. 'Their lives have been changed in a way that none of us can really comprehend,' she said. 'It is important for them to understand if anything else could have been done.' At the same hearing, senior counsel assisting the coroner, Peggy Dwyer, confirmed no graphic footage of the attacks would be played in court. At an earlier hearing in November, Dr Dwyer said the massacre 'shocked our community and has caused unspeakable grief for the families and loved ones of those who were killed and injured'. Joel Cauchi's mental health will loom large in the inquiry. Evidence will include the reports of four psychiatrists and two general practitioners. 'The parents of Mr Cauchi have spoken publicly and express their shock and sadness at the actions of their son, a man who had struggled with mental illness since he was a teenager and had no criminal history,' Dr Dwyer said. Among the issues to be canvassed will be Cauchi's previous treatment and the circumstances of him ceasing the use of psychotropic medication since 2020. The coroner will consider the emergency response of Westfield Bondi Junction staff and whether there should be restrictions on weapons such as the Ka-Bar knife Cauchi used to kill his victims. Expert evidence will be heard comparing what happened at Westfield Bondi Junction with the Manchester Arena bombing of 2017 and the mass shootings in Christchurch in 2019. At the time of the Westfield Bondi Junction attacks, Cauchi had been living rough around Maroubra in Sydney's east and had not taken his psychotropic medicine for the past four years. On the morning of April 13 he went to a Kennards storage unit at Waterloo in the inner-city and at 11.10am retrieved a backpack containing the Ka-Bar knife. For the next four hours Cauchi used public transport to move between the city and eastern suburbs before entering Westfield Bondi Junction via Bronte Road at 3.12pm. Dr Dwyer told the directions hearing in November what happened next as Cauchi began to attack unsuspecting shoppers with the knife he had hidden in his backpack. 'In less than three minutes, he stabbed 16 people, killing six and injuring ten others,' she said. 'At 3.31pm, Mr Cauchi walked over the air bridge on level four towards the Sourdough Bakery, and he stood in line behind Ms Dawn Singleton. 'Mr Cauchi removed the knife from his backpack, and as everybody knows, tragically, he stabbed and fatally injured Dawn, who was the first of his 16 victims.' For the next 57 seconds Cauchi stabbed or attempted to stab anyone who came within his reach. He stabbed Jade Young near the Sourdough Bakery at 3:33:01 and Yixuan Cheng between Cotton On and the Peter Alexander store at 3:33:18. 'At 3.34, after exiting Myer and running back towards the Sourdough Bakery, and outside AJE Athletica, Mr Cauchi attacked Ashlee Good in the back from behind,' Dr Dwyer said. 'When Ashlee was stabbed, she turned and then saw Mr Cauchi attacking her daughter's pram. 'She ran at him and fought him off, receiving another stab wound as a result of that, this time in the chest, but undoubtedly saving the life of her daughter.' Cauchi ran back past Sourdough Bakery and at 3:34:26 stabbed Faraz Tahir then fellow security guard Muhammad Taha. 'He fatally wounded Faraz, and he seriously injured Muhammad,' Dr Dwyer said. Cauchi fatally stabbed Pikria Darchia at 3:34:51. 'Pikria was the last person who was stabbed fatally that day, but other people were injured after that time,' Dr Dwyer said. 'At 3:35:40, Mr Cauchi stabbed the final 16th victim, who was seriously injured.' Inspector Scott had been in her car when she heard a police radio alert and headed for the shopping centre. She entered level four of Westfield Bondi Junction at 3.37pm. Civilians helped direct Inspector Scott to Cauchi, who began to run as she gave chase. Four members of the public, armed with chairs and other objects, followed Inspector Scott, ready to assist. Cauchi had fled along the level five air bridge and was about 15m from Inspector Scott when she first confronted him. When Cauchi ran towards the police woman with the Ka-Bar held in his right hand she stepped back, yelled at him to stop and drop the knife, and drew her service weapon. Cauchi did not stop and from 3:38:40 Inspector Scott discharged her pistol three times, killing the knifeman with shots to the shoulder and neck. The fatal shots were fired less than six minutes after Cauchi had begun his stabbing spree and one minute and 19 seconds after Inspector Scott had arrived at the shopping centre. Cauchi grew up in Queensland, mostly in Toowoomba, with his parents Andrew and Michele. They say he was diagnosed with schizophrenia around the age of 18 and for the next 18 years generally complied with taking medication. From 2012 until February 2020 Cauchi regularly saw a psychiatrist and his medication was reduced over the years until it was stopped entirely in June 2020. Cauchi had moved to Brisbane in February that year and from about that time until the Westfield Bondi Junction stabbings had no particular treatment plan.
Bloomberg
21-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Bloomberg
Roblox User Group Re-Creates Real-Life Mass Shooting Events
A group of Roblox users is re-creating real life school shooting incidents on the gaming platform that's popular with kids, including attacks at Columbine High School and the Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Known as 'Active Shooter Studios,' or A.S.S., the group has attracted hundreds of fans on Roblox to its detailed re-creations of the events, according to a report prepared by the Anti-Defamation League's Center on Extremism.
