February 11, 2009 5:01 PM
- Text
Signs Were There, Was Security In Place?
(CBS/AP)
Almost as soon as the shooting stopped at Virginia Tech, the questions began. How could such a tragic crime have happened in a place where parents believed their children were safe?
Former professor of criminology Adam Thermos has made campus security his business — and his passion — for almost 20 years. He said it's difficult to judge the Virginia Tech administration until the investigation is completed.
"The reality is, a lot of the universities today are going to be looking into their mission statement and whether or not they can really fulfill this mission of providing a safe environment for their students," Thermos, who founded the campus security consulting group Strategic Technology Group, told The Early Show co-anchor Russ Mitchell.
Details on the life of 23-year-old Cho Seung-Hui, the student responsible for the deadliest shooting rampage in modern U.S. history, are slowly emerging, as well as indications that there were warning signs of what was to come.
Police and university officials offered no clues as to exactly what set him off.
"He was a loner, and we're having difficulty finding information about him," school spokesman Larry Hincker said.
But Katherine Newman, a professor of sociology at Princeton University, said most school shooters are rarely loners, but rather failed joiners.
Professor Carolyn Rude, chairwoman of the university's English department, said she did not personally know the gunman. But she said she spoke with Lucinda Roy, the department's director of creative writing, who had Cho in one of her classes and described him as "troubled."
"There was some concern about him," Rude said. "Sometimes, in creative writing, people reveal things and you never know if it's creative or if they're describing things, if they're imagining things or just how real it might be. But we're all alert to not ignore things like this."
She said Cho was referred to the counseling service, but she said she did not know when, or what the outcome was. Rude refused to release any of his writings or his grades, citing privacy laws.
The Chicago Tribune reported on its Web site that he left a note in his dorm room that included a rambling list of grievances. Citing unidentified sources, the Tribune said he had recently shown troubling signs, including setting a fire in a dorm room and stalking some women.
ABC, citing law enforcement sources, reported that the note, which is several pages long, explains Cho's actions and says, "You caused me to do this."
Newman said that most school shooters give warning signs, sometimes as much as nine months in advance. She thinks Cho was giving off those signals because many students at Virginia Tech were not shocked about who the shooter turned out to be. Nonetheless, Newman said it is difficult to discern the difference between someone who is depressed and someone who is going to snap and do something awful.
"All of us know many people who suffer from depression," she said. "Very few of them are going to become killers. So I think it's difficult to identify them in advance. It's much more likely that we can stop these events by listening to the warning signals that they send off and being alert to them. I think that's actually what Virginia Tech did do but a dedicated killer is difficult to stop."
Investigators believe Cho at some point had been taking medication for depression, the Tribune reported.
Classmates said that on the first day of an introduction to British literature class last year, the 30 or so English students went around and introduced themselves. When it was Cho's turn, he didn't speak.
Former professor of criminology Adam Thermos has made campus security his business — and his passion — for almost 20 years. He said it's difficult to judge the Virginia Tech administration until the investigation is completed.
"The reality is, a lot of the universities today are going to be looking into their mission statement and whether or not they can really fulfill this mission of providing a safe environment for their students," Thermos, who founded the campus security consulting group Strategic Technology Group, told The Early Show co-anchor Russ Mitchell.
Details on the life of 23-year-old Cho Seung-Hui, the student responsible for the deadliest shooting rampage in modern U.S. history, are slowly emerging, as well as indications that there were warning signs of what was to come.
Cho, a senior majoring in English, arrived in the U.S. as boy from South Korea in 1992 and was raised in suburban Washington, D.C., officials said. He was living on campus in a different dorm from the one where Monday's bloodbath began.Photos: Virginia Tech Mourns
Police and university officials offered no clues as to exactly what set him off.
"He was a loner, and we're having difficulty finding information about him," school spokesman Larry Hincker said.
But Katherine Newman, a professor of sociology at Princeton University, said most school shooters are rarely loners, but rather failed joiners.
"People who continuously try to join social groups and are rebuffed," said Newman, the author of "Rampage: The Social Roots of School Shootings." "And their daily experience is one of rejection and friction."
Professor Carolyn Rude, chairwoman of the university's English department, said she did not personally know the gunman. But she said she spoke with Lucinda Roy, the department's director of creative writing, who had Cho in one of her classes and described him as "troubled."
"There was some concern about him," Rude said. "Sometimes, in creative writing, people reveal things and you never know if it's creative or if they're describing things, if they're imagining things or just how real it might be. But we're all alert to not ignore things like this."
She said Cho was referred to the counseling service, but she said she did not know when, or what the outcome was. Rude refused to release any of his writings or his grades, citing privacy laws.
The Chicago Tribune reported on its Web site that he left a note in his dorm room that included a rambling list of grievances. Citing unidentified sources, the Tribune said he had recently shown troubling signs, including setting a fire in a dorm room and stalking some women.
ABC, citing law enforcement sources, reported that the note, which is several pages long, explains Cho's actions and says, "You caused me to do this."
"Some of the other shooters I studied also wrote murderous essays, which they turned in to teachers, which shocked them," Newman said. "Virginia Tech was far more proactive than most schools I've studied. The other similarity I find eerie is he's the younger brother of a successful older sister — graduated from Princeton. One of the other cases I studied was very much like this. A younger brother who wasn't as successful as his valedictorian sister. In a high-achieving society, that can be difficult burden."Click here for an interactive gallery of the victims.
Newman said that most school shooters give warning signs, sometimes as much as nine months in advance. She thinks Cho was giving off those signals because many students at Virginia Tech were not shocked about who the shooter turned out to be. Nonetheless, Newman said it is difficult to discern the difference between someone who is depressed and someone who is going to snap and do something awful.
"All of us know many people who suffer from depression," she said. "Very few of them are going to become killers. So I think it's difficult to identify them in advance. It's much more likely that we can stop these events by listening to the warning signals that they send off and being alert to them. I think that's actually what Virginia Tech did do but a dedicated killer is difficult to stop."
Investigators believe Cho at some point had been taking medication for depression, the Tribune reported.
Classmates said that on the first day of an introduction to British literature class last year, the 30 or so English students went around and introduced themselves. When it was Cho's turn, he didn't speak.
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