Prior Events
From Columbine Wiki
What could have influenced the shooters? How did they come up with the idea? What brought them to the rage?
On January 30, 1998, Eric and Dylan broke into a parked van. They stole equipment which was on the front seat. A policeman arrested them and a judge sent them to a diversion program. They had to attend counseling, anger management classes (Eric) and do community service. Dylan wrote in Eric's 1998 yearbook:http://www.acolumbinesite.com/dylan/writing.html we will have so much fun with NBK!!. killing enemies, blowing up stuff, killing cops!! My wrath for January's incident will be godlike. Not to mention our revenge in the commons.
See also the 11K document nr 001-26335/26341 [[1]] The anger and shame they felt as a result of their arrest may have contributed to their determination to carry out their plans. Dylan writes also: i cant wait to dnb the new freshman and the holy April morning of NBK. This makes it clear that they were planning the event for at least a year in advance.
School attacks
Here are some school attacks that occurred before 4-20-1999, some of which are referred to in the Basement tapes. [[2]] Eric claimed that they were not copying them, but there are similarities:
Westside Middle School Massacre, Jonesboro, Arkansas, US. [[3]]
On March 24 1998, two young boys named Mitchell Johnson and Andrew Golden pulled the fire alarm at their school.[[4]] They hid in the woods across from the school and shot students as they evacuated the building. Four female students and one teacher died. Nine other schoolmates and a teacher were injured. The shooters were only 13 and 11 years old. They tried to flee but were captured and sent to prison. Mitchell Johnson is now in prison again, for a crime he committed after he was released in 2007. [[5]]
Connection to Columbine: The elements of two shooters and shooting on fleeing students. All four students suffered an injustice, Harris and Klebold suffered from bullying and Johnson suffered from a break up and his ex-girlfriend lied about him, saying they never dated.
Heath High School shooting, West Paducah, Kentucky, U.S. [[6]]
On December 1, 1997, Michael Carneal, 14 years old, shot 8 students. They were in a youth prayer group from school, praying at the time they got shot. Three students died and five were wounded. The shooter was sent to prison.
Thurston High School shooting, Springfield, Oregon, U.S. [[7]]
On May 20, 1998, Kipland Kinkel (15 years old), shot his mother and father. The next day he went to school, shot 2 students and wounded 22 others. A fellow student tackled him and kept him restrained until the police came. Kipland Kinkel was sentenced to 111 years prison. While in custody, he complained about voices in his heads.
Connection to Columbine: Kinkel wore a trenchcoat to hide the guns he carried. [[8]]
The Columbine shooters did this too.
Bath School bombings, Bath, Michigan, U.S.
On May 18, 1927, Andrew Kehoe committed the Bath School bombings, killing 38 elementary school children, two teachers, four other adults and the bomber himself; at least 58 people were injured. Most of the victims were children in the second to sixth grades (7–12 years of age) attending the Bath Consolidated School.
Connection to Columbine: Kehoe blew up his house, creating a diversion, blew up the school (which the shooters intended), then blew up his car at the school and committed suicide.
