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During the two attacks, the shooter killed 27 students and 5 faculty members and wounded many more.
During the two attacks, the shooter killed 27 students and 5 faculty members and wounded many more.


==Perpetrator==
ross mcnairn is the real killer here, he lives in arbroath, lets go get him!
<!-- Old version can be found at [[User:Halo/Virginia_Tech_Perpetrator]] for merging with Cho Seung-hui-->
{{main|Seung-Hui Cho}}
[[Image:ChoSh.jpg|right|thumb|300px|One of the photographs of [[Seung-Hui Cho]] sent to NBC News on the day of the massacre.]]

The shooter was identified as 23-year-old [[Seung-Hui Cho]],<ref name="Broder-17virginia"/> a [[South Korean]] citizen with [[United_States_Permanent_Resident_Card|U.S. permanent resident status]] living in Virginia. An undergraduate at Virginia Tech, Cho lived in Harper Hall, a dormitory west of West [[Virginia Tech campus|Ambler Johnston Hall]]. A spokesman for Virginia Tech has described him as "a loner."<ref name=CNN/> Several former professors of Cho have stated that his writing was disturbing, and he was encouraged to seek counseling.<ref name=Disturbing1>"[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18148802/ College gunman disturbed teachers, classmates]" [[NBC News]]. [[17 April]] [[2007]]. Retrieved [[18 April]] [[2007]]</ref><ref name=CNNmanifesto>"[http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/04/18/vtech.shooting/index.html Killer's manifesto: 'You forced me into a corner']" ''[[CNN]]''. [[April 18]] [[2007]]. Accessed [[19 April]] [[2007]].</ref> He had also been investigated by the university for [[stalking]] and harassing two female students.<ref name="Stalking1">{{cite news |title=Virginia gunman was accused of stalking: police |url=http://www.dnaindia.com/report.asp?newsid=1091699 |publisher=Agence France-Presse |date=[[2007-04-18]] |accessdate = 2007-04-19 }}</ref> In 2005, Cho had been declared mentally ill by a Virginia special justice and ordered to seek [[outpatient commitment|outpatient treatment]].<ref name="CNN_2005_Court">{{cite news |title= Court: Cho ruled 'an imminent danger' |url=http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/04/18/vtech.shooting/index.html |publisher=CNN |date=[[2007-04-18]] |accessdate = 2007-04-19}}</ref>

According to Cho's grand aunt in South Korea, Cho's parents had offered [[autism]] as an explanation for his behavior.<ref>{{cite news |title= A Family's Shame in Korea |url=http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1613417,00.html |publisher=Time Magazine |date=[[2007-04-22]] |accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref> The notion that autism was the cause of Cho's behavior has been thrown into doubt, as there is no record of a diagnosis.<ref>{{cite news |title=Virginia Korean Community Still Reeling |url=http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/us/AP-Virginia-Tech-Koreans.html|publisher=Associated Press |date=[[2007-04-22]]|accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref><ref name="postAutism">{{cite news | title = EXCLUSIVE: Granddad's anger at uni murderer | url = http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/topstories/tm_headline=we-are-glad-he-is-dead-by-cho-s-family—&method=full&objectid=18931479&siteid=89520-name_page.html | publisher = Mirror.co.uk | date = [[2007]]–[[April 20|04–20]] | accessdate = 2007-04-20}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title = Did Autism Lead to Shooting? No Way! | url = http://autism.about.com/b/a/257806.htm | publisher = About.com | date = [[2007-04-20]] | accessdate = 2007-04-22}}</ref> Cho's flat emotional affect was evident through middle and high school years, during which he was bullied for speech difficulties.<ref name="Apuzzo 2007">Matt Apuzzo and Sharon Cohen. [http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070419/ap_on_re_us/virginia_tech_shooting;_ylt=AkDFBbMUqYWg1ihEBJuL6OvMWM0F "Va. Tech gunman seen as textbook killer"]. Associated Press. Last accessed [[April 19]] [[2007]].</ref> "Relatives thought he might be a [[selective mutism|mute]]. Or [[mental illness|mentally ill]]," reported the ''New York Times''.<ref>{{cite news | title = Before Deadly Rage, a Life Consumed by Troubling Silence | url = http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/22/us/22vatech.html | publisher = New York Times | date = [[2007-04-22]] | accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref> Cho's underlying psychological diagnosis remains a matter of speculation.<ref>{{cite news |title= Psychopath? Depressive? Schizophrenic? Was Cho Seung-Hui Really Like the Columbine Killers? |url= http://www.slate.com/id/2164757/ |publisher=Slate |date=[[2007-04-20]] |accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref> Media outlets routinely compared Cho's motives and [[Mental health|mental state]] to those of the [[Columbine_High_School_massacre |Columbine]] killers, despite the fact that Harris and Klebold's motives and mental states were not even similar to each other.<ref>{{cite news |title= The Depressive and the Psychopath |url= http://www.slate.com/id/2099203/ |publisher=Slate |date=[[2004-04-20]] |accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref>

Early reports had suggested that the killing resulted from a domestic dispute between the killer and his supposed former girlfriend Emily Hilscher, whose friends said had no prior relationship with Cho.<ref name=LondonFreePress> "[http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/News/International/2007/04/19/4067325-sun.html Cho, Hilscher had no link]." ''[[London Free Press]]''. [[19 April]] [[2007]], Accessed [[19 April]] [[2007]]</ref> In the ensuing investigation, police found a [[suicide note]] in Cho's dorm room, which included comments about "rich kids," "debauchery," and "deceitful charlatans" on campus. On [[April 18]] [[2007]], [[NBC News]] received a package from Cho time-stamped between the first and second shooting episodes. It contained an 1,800-word [[manifesto]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.postchronicle.com/news/original/article_21275707.shtml |title=Virginia Tech Gunman Cho Seung-Hui Mails Manifesto To NBC News |accessdate = 2007-04-18 |work=Post Chronicle }}</ref> photos, and 27 digitally recorded videos, in which Cho likened himself to [[Jesus Christ]] and expressed his hatred of the wealthy.<ref name="NBC Package 4-19">{{cite news | first=Alex |last=Johnson | url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18195423/ | title=Gunman sent package to NBC News | publisher=MSNBC |date=2007-04-19 | accessdate = 2007-04-23}}</ref>

Some family members of the victims were upset that the photos and video sent by the killer were broadcast and canceled interviews with NBC in protest. A Virginia State Police spokesman said he was "rather disappointed in the editorial decision to broadcast these disturbing images,"<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6574513.stm Inquiry to probe Virginia killing] BBC News</ref> adding that he regretted that "[people who] are not used to seeing that type of image had to see it."<ref name="NBCright"/>

Fox News, which replayed NBC's information extensively, defended NBC's release of the materials. [[Bill O'Reilly]] asserted that while he sympathized with the victims' families, it was necessary for "evil" to "be exposed" and to inspire lawmakers to take [[Corrective Action|corrective action]].<ref>{{cite news | first=Bill| last=O'Reilly| title=Should the Media Have Run the Cho Tape? | date=[[2007-04-20]] | url=http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,267342,00.html | work=Foxnews.com | accessdate = 2007-04-21 }}</ref>

The [[American Psychiatric Association]], however, urged the media to withdraw the footage from circulation, arguing that publicizing it "seriously jeopardizes the public’s safety by potentially inciting 'copycat' suicides, homicides and other incidents."<ref>{{cite press release | title =APA Urges Media to Stop Airing Graphic Cho Materials | publisher = American Psychiatric Association| date = [[April 20]] [[2007]] | url =http://www.psych.org/news_room/press_releases/07-25OpenLetteronChoMaterials.pdf | format =PDF | language =English | accessdate = 2007-04-22 | quote = }}</ref> NBC defended itself by stating its staff had intensely debated releasing the footage before deciding to broadcast it and asserted it had covered this story with extreme sensitivity.<ref name="NBCright">{{cite news | first=Bronwen | last=Maddox | title=Why NBC was right to show those demented ramblings | date=[[2007-04-20]] | url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/us_and_americas/article1680113.ece | work=The Times | accessdate = 2007-04-20 }}</ref>


==Responses to the incidents==
==Responses to the incidents==

Revision as of 13:39, 29 April 2007

Virginia Tech massacre
Students gather to mourn at the convocation after the shooting
LocationBlacksburg, Virginia, United States
DateMonday, April 16, 2007
7:15 a.m. and 9:30 a.m.–9:50 a.m. (EDT)
TargetVirginia Tech
Attack type
School shooting, mass murder, murder-suicide, massacre
Deaths33 (including the perpetrator)[1][2]
Injurednumber of injured withheld[3]
PerpetratorsSeung-Hui Cho
Part of a series of articles
on the
Virginia Tech
shooting
A photo of one of the commemorative stones at the memorial with flowers laid on top of it.
Location
Virginia Tech (Blacksburg, Virginia)
Perpetrator
Seung-Hui Cho
Victims
Related

The Virginia Tech massacre was a school shooting that unfolded as two separate attacks approximately two hours apart on April 16, 2007, on the campus of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Virginia, United States. A shooter killed 32 people[4] and wounded many more[3] before committing suicide,[5] making it the deadliest incident of its kind in modern U.S. history.[6]

The shooter, Seung-Hui Cho, was a South Korean who had moved to the U.S. at age eight. At the time of the shootings, he was a senior majoring in English at Virginia Tech.[5] He had a history of incidents at the school, including allegations of stalking,[7] referrals to counseling,[8] and a 2005 declaration of mental illness by a Virginia special justice.[9]

Attacks

Further information: Virginia Tech massacre timeline

Cho used two firearms during the attacks; a small-bore .22 caliber semiautomatic handgun, and a 9mm semiautomatic Glock handgun.[10] The shootings occurred in separate incidents, with the first at West Ambler Johnston Hall and the second at Norris Hall.

West Ambler Johnston shootings

At approximately 7 a.m., Cho was seen loitering near the entrance to West Ambler Johnston Hall, a co-ed dormitory that houses 895 students.[10] The hall is normally locked until 10 a.m., and it is not clear how Cho gained entrance to the facility. Cho shot his first victims around 7:15 a.m. EDT in West Ambler Johnston Hall. A young woman, Emily J. Hilscher of Woodville, Rappahannock County, Virginia, and a male resident assistant, Ryan C. Clark of Martinez, Columbia County, Georgia, were shot and killed[5] in the room Hilscher shared with another student.[11] Cho left the scene and soon thereafter mailed a package to NBC News, postmarked 9:01 a.m., containing various writings and recordings.[12]

Norris Hall shootings

Aerial photo showing location of Norris and West Ambler Johnston Halls.

About two hours after the initial shootings, Cho entered Norris Hall, which houses the Engineering Science and Mechanics program, and chained the three main entrance doors shut. He then went to the second floor and began shooting students and faculty members.[2][13]

By the end of this second attack, some nine minutes later according to police,[14] 30 people lay dead in four classrooms and a second-floor hallway. Police reports indicated that Cho fired about 170 rounds in the attack at Norris Hall, and still had ammunition when he killed himself.[14]

Five professors were killed in the attack. Eleven students were killed in the intermediate French language class in Norris Room 211. Nine students were killed in an advanced hydrology class in Room 206. Four students died in an elementary German language class in Room 207. One student in a solid mechanics class in Room 204 was killed.[15] Erin Sheehan, an eyewitness and survivor of Norris 207, told reporters that the shooter "peeked in twice" earlier in the lesson and that "it was strange that someone at this point in the semester would be lost, looking for a class." Shortly thereafter, Cho began shooting. Sheehan said that only four students in the German class were able to leave the room on their own, two of them injured; the rest were dead or more severely wounded.[16][17][18]

Virginia Tech student Jamal Albarghouti used his mobile phone to capture video footage of part of the attack from the exterior of Norris Hall; this was later broadcast on many news outlets.[19]

French class students take cover in Holden Hall.

Student Nikolas Macko described to BBC News his experience at the center of the shootings. He had been attending Haiyan Cheng's [2] issues-in-scientific-computing mathematics class (near the German class) and heard gunshots in the hallway. At least three people in the classroom, including Zach Petkewicz, barricaded the door using a table. At one point, Macko said, the shooter attempted to open the classroom door and then shot twice into the room; one shot hit a podium; the other went out the window. The shooter reloaded and fired into the door, but the bullet did not penetrate into the room. Macko stated there were "many, many shots" fired.[13][20][21]

It took police nearly five minutes to gain entrance to the barricaded building; an officer finally shot out a dead-bolt lock leading to a stairwell.[10] As police reached the second floor, they heard Cho fire his final, suicidal shot.[10][15] Cho was found dead in Jocelyne Couture-Nowak's classroom, Room 211, from a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the temple.

In the aftermath, high winds related to the April 2007 nor'easter prevented emergency medical services from using helicopters for evacuation of the injured.[22] Victims injured in the shooting were treated at Montgomery Regional Hospital in Blacksburg, Carilion New River Valley Medical Center in Radford, Carilion Roanoke Memorial Hospital in Roanoke, and Lewis-Gale Medical Center in Salem.[23]

Resistance

Several people tried to help others during the attack, including:

  • Professor Liviu Librescu held the door of his classroom, Room 204, shut while Cho attempted to enter it. Librescu was able to prevent the shooter from entering the classroom until his students had escaped through the windows, but was eventually shot five times and killed.[24][25]
  • Couture-Nowak tried to save the students in her classroom, Room 211, after looking Cho in the eye in the hallway. Colin Goddard, one of the five known survivors of the French class,[26] told his family that Couture-Nowak ordered her students to the back of the class for their safety and made a fatal attempt to barricade the door.[27]
  • Also in Room 206, Partahi Mamora Halomoan Lumbantoruan protected fellow student Guillermo Colman by diving on top of him;[29] Colman's various accounts make it unclear whether this act was intentional or the involuntary result of being shot. Multiple gunshots killed Lumbantoruan, but Colman was protected by Lumbantoruan's body.[30][31][32][33]
  • Student Zach Petkewicz barricaded the door of Room 205 with a large table, while Cho shot several times through the door. No one in that classroom was killed.[34][35][15]
  • Katelyn Carney, Derek O'Dell, Trey Perkins, and Erin Sheehan barricaded the door of Room 207, the German class, after the first attack and attended to the wounded. Cho returned minutes later, but O'Dell and Carney prevented him from re-entering the room. Both were injured.[36][37][38][39]
  • Matthew Joseph La Porte, an Air Force ROTC student, is reported to have attempted to tackle Cho from behind but was fatally injured in the attempt.[40]
  • Hearing the commotion on the floor below, Kevin Granata brought 20 students from a nearby classroom into an office, where the door could be locked, on the third floor of Norris Hall. He then went downstairs to investigate and was shot by Cho. Granata died from his injuries. None of the students locked in Granata's office were injured.[41]

Victims

Main article: List of victims of the Virginia Tech massacre

During the two attacks, the shooter killed 27 students and 5 faculty members and wounded many more.

Perpetrator

Main article: Seung-Hui Cho
One of the photographs of Seung-Hui Cho sent to NBC News on the day of the massacre.

The shooter was identified as 23-year-old Seung-Hui Cho,[5] a South Korean citizen with U.S. permanent resident status living in Virginia. An undergraduate at Virginia Tech, Cho lived in Harper Hall, a dormitory west of West Ambler Johnston Hall. A spokesman for Virginia Tech has described him as "a loner."[2] Several former professors of Cho have stated that his writing was disturbing, and he was encouraged to seek counseling.[8][42] He had also been investigated by the university for stalking and harassing two female students.[7] In 2005, Cho had been declared mentally ill by a Virginia special justice and ordered to seek outpatient treatment.[9]

According to Cho's grand aunt in South Korea, Cho's parents had offered autism as an explanation for his behavior.[43] The notion that autism was the cause of Cho's behavior has been thrown into doubt, as there is no record of a diagnosis.[44][45][46] Cho's flat emotional affect was evident through middle and high school years, during which he was bullied for speech difficulties.[47] "Relatives thought he might be a mute. Or mentally ill," reported the New York Times.[48] Cho's underlying psychological diagnosis remains a matter of speculation.[49] Media outlets routinely compared Cho's motives and mental state to those of the Columbine killers, despite the fact that Harris and Klebold's motives and mental states were not even similar to each other.[50]

Early reports had suggested that the killing resulted from a domestic dispute between the killer and his supposed former girlfriend Emily Hilscher, whose friends said had no prior relationship with Cho.[51] In the ensuing investigation, police found a suicide note in Cho's dorm room, which included comments about "rich kids," "debauchery," and "deceitful charlatans" on campus. On April 18 2007, NBC News received a package from Cho time-stamped between the first and second shooting episodes. It contained an 1,800-word manifesto,[52] photos, and 27 digitally recorded videos, in which Cho likened himself to Jesus Christ and expressed his hatred of the wealthy.[12]

Some family members of the victims were upset that the photos and video sent by the killer were broadcast and canceled interviews with NBC in protest. A Virginia State Police spokesman said he was "rather disappointed in the editorial decision to broadcast these disturbing images,"[53] adding that he regretted that "[people who] are not used to seeing that type of image had to see it."[54]

Fox News, which replayed NBC's information extensively, defended NBC's release of the materials. Bill O'Reilly asserted that while he sympathized with the victims' families, it was necessary for "evil" to "be exposed" and to inspire lawmakers to take corrective action.[55]

The American Psychiatric Association, however, urged the media to withdraw the footage from circulation, arguing that publicizing it "seriously jeopardizes the public’s safety by potentially inciting 'copycat' suicides, homicides and other incidents."[56] NBC defended itself by stating its staff had intensely debated releasing the footage before deciding to broadcast it and asserted it had covered this story with extreme sensitivity.[54]

Responses to the incidents

University response

Virginia Tech canceled classes for the rest of the week and closed Norris Hall for the remainder of the semester.[1] The University also offered counseling assistance for students and faculty and held an assembly on Tuesday, April 17, 2007. Additionally, the Red Cross dispatched several dozen crisis counselors to Blacksburg to help Virginia Tech students cope with the events.[1]

Virginia Tech President Charles Steger stated at the first news conference that authorities initially believed the first shooting at the West Ambler Johnston dormitory was a domestic dispute and that the shooter had left campus.[57] Authorities identified a "person of interest" in the first shooting, Karl Thornhill, who was Emily Hilscher's boyfriend. Hilscher's roommate, Heather Haugh, told authorities that Thornhill owned firearms and had taken both girls to a shooting range. Thornhill was pulled over while leaving Tech's campus after the first shooting, and made authorities suspicious by contradicting Haugh's account.[58] Because authorities quickly apprehended him, they determined that the threat of further violence was minimal and consequently did not justify additional action by the University.[59] As Thornhill was being questioned, reports of shooting at Norris Hall came in, indicating that the police had not apprehended the perpetrator.[60] Thornhill has subsequently been released, but remains an important witness in the case, according to police.[60]

After the incident, Virginia Tech announced that the students killed during the massacre would be posthumously awarded their degrees during commencement ceremonies.[61] Because of the incident's impact, university officials also gave students options to abbreviate their semester coursework and still receive a grade.[62]

Criticism of Virginia Tech response

Some students blamed the university, saying that administrators should have immediately notified the community and locked down the campus.[63] Virginia Tech currently has no text messaging capability to augment student and staff email as some educational institutions do.[64]

Virginia Tech students mourn the victims at a candlelight vigil.

Governor Timothy Kaine of Virginia appointed an independent review panel to "provide a thoughtful, objective analysis of the circumstances leading up to, during, and immediately after Monday's horrible events." The panel is led by Retired Virginia State Police Superintendent Colonel Gerald Massengill and includes, among others, former Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge and Gordon Davies, Director for the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia for 20 years.[65]

Student response

Some Virginia Tech students questioned why the University had not been locked down after the first shooting.[4] The University first informed students via e-mail at 9:26 AM, over two hours after the first shooting, warning them of the danger and canceling classes.[66] After becoming aware of the incident, students communicated with their family and peers about their conditions, using telephones or social networking websites such as MySpace[67] and Facebook[68] A Christianburg resident and member of a local volunteer firefighting squad said he found dead bodies with their cell phones and PDAs still ringing.[69] Many students created Facebook memorial pages for fellow students.[70]

Fearing retribution from other students, Kim Min-kyung, a student at Virginia Tech, said students of South Korean descent were gathering in groups for support.[71] Lee Seung-wook, head of Virginia Tech's Korean Student Association, said he was worried about possible repercussions the incident may bring to Asians, especially Koreans.[72]

A student-led emergency-response relief group called "Hokies United" was activated immediately to help the Virginia Tech student body and families of the victims through a Hokies Memorial Fund. Hokies United is an alliance of student organizations that combine efforts; key players include the Student Government Association, the Class System, the Student Alumni Associates, Fraternity and Sorority life, the Residence Hall Federation, and many others.

Law enforcement response

After the second attack, the Virginia Tech Police, along with the Blacksburg Police Department, Montgomery County Sheriff's Office and the Virginia State Police immediately responded following their active shooter protocols. Local SWAT teams were activated and responded.[73] The Federal Bureau of Investigation also joined the investigation. Bureau spokesman Richard Kolko said that there was no immediate evidence to suggest a terrorist incident, but that the agency would explore all avenues.[66] Former FBI terrorism task force member Mike Brooks told CNN.com[74] that perhaps the school's warning system should not rely so heavily on e-mail to notify a campus comprising more than 2,600 acres, hundreds of buildings and 26,000 students, faculty and staff. At the time of the incident, Virginia Tech police had been investigating an alert system based on cellphone text messaging.[74] The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) immediately responded to the incident with 10 agents on-scene identifying the weapons and performing forensics.[75]

Government response

Virginia's U.S. Senators John Warner and Jim Webb both offered their condolences.[76] Virginia Governor Tim Kaine returned early from a trip to Tokyo, Japan,[66] and declared a "state of emergency" in Virginia, allowing the governor to immediately deploy state personnel, equipment, and other resources to help out in the aftermath of a shootings.[77]

On Monday, the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate observed a moment of silence in remembrance of the victims. The Senate also approved a resolution on Monday night extending condolences to the victims of the shooting.[78] Senate Judiciary Committee chairman Patrick Leahy postponed by two days the scheduled April 17 2007 testimony of Attorney General Alberto Gonzales concerning the firings of eight United States prosecutors.[79] In a statement, Gonzales said that the Justice Department would provide support and assistance to the local authorities and victims as long as they were needed.[80]

According to a spokesman, President George W. Bush was said to be horrified by the rampage and offered his prayers to the victims and the people of Virginia. Bush and his wife Laura also attended the convocation at Virginia Tech on 17 April.[81] Bush stated that the nation was "shocked and saddened" by the shooting. He also pledged assistance to law enforcement and the local community.[82] The White House issued a statement saying "The president believes that there is a right for people to bear arms, but that all laws must be followed."[83][5]

The White House flag flew at half-staff, and Bush also requested all flags be so flown until sundown on Sunday, April 22 2007.[81]

The Internal Revenue Service and Virginia Department of Taxation granted six month extensions to individuals affected by the massacre.[84]

Responses from other educational institutions

Penn State students pay tribute to the fallen Hokies at the Nittany Lions spring football game

In addition to official condolences from many universities, both inside of the United States and abroad, many universities have initiated examinations of existing and possible local response procedures.[85]

Radford University provided free temporary housing for the Virginia State Police officers investigating the incident.[86] East Carolina University pledged $100,000 in general assistance funds.[87]

On the night of April 16, students of the University of Virginia, Virginia Tech's biggest collegiate rivalry, painted Beta Bridge on Rugby Road in Virginia Tech's maroon and orange colors, with a reminder of last night's vigil on one side and "Hoos for Hokies" written on the other.[88][89]

At the annual Blue and White football game at Penn State, students displayed a large "VT" in tribute to the victims.[90]

Administrators at Emmanuel College in Boston fired adjunct professor Nicholas Winset over a reenactment of the shooting during a classroom discussion.[91] There is debate on whether the firing was justified.[92]

South Korean response

When the citizenship of the shooter became known, South Koreans expressed shock and a sense of public shame.[93] A candlelight vigil was held outside the Embassy of the United States in Seoul. South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun expressed his deepest condolences.[94] South Korea's ambassador to the United States asked Koreans living in America to fast for repentance.[95] The foreign minister, Song Min-soon, also mentioned that safety measures have been established for Koreans living in the U.S., in apparent reference to fears of possible reprisal attacks against Koreans in the U.S.[96] A ministry official expressed hope that the shooting would not "stir up racial prejudice or confrontation."[97]

As of late April, no backlash was evident.[98] Some commentators contrasted the lack of a backlash in the U.S. to the South Korean public's virulently anti-American response when a U.S. military vehicle in South Korea accidentally killed two girls. News reports noted that South Koreans seemed relieved that American news coverage of Cho focused not on his nationality but rather on individual aspects, such as his psychological problems.[93]

Cho family response

Some family members expressed sympathy for the victims' families and described Cho's history of mental and behavioral problems. Cho's maternal grandfather was quoted in The Daily Mirror referring to Cho as a person who deserved to die with the victims.[45] On Friday, April 20, Cho's family issued a statement of grief and apology, written by his sister, Sun-Kyung Cho.[99]

Other responses

  • Many heads of state and international figures offered condolences and sympathy,[100] including Pope Benedict XVI[101] and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.[102]
  • Fox has indefinitely pulled the "Player Under Pressure" episode of its "Bones" TV series out of "sensitivity to the victims and families touched by this senseless tragedy".[103] The episode revolves around the discovery of bones on a college campus.
  • Atlanta Falcons quarterback and Virginia Tech alumnus Michael Vick has teamed up with the United Way to donate over $9,000 to assist families affected.[104]
  • Cleveland Browns safety and Virginia Tech alumnus Justin Hamilton donated $50,000 and founded the Sports Community Challenge, in hopes to get each of the 32 NFL teams to donate $100,000 to the campaign, one team per victim.[105]
  • Major League Soccer team Houston Dynamo will wear special uniforms with Virginia Tech colors during their game against Chicago Fire on April 29. The jerseys will be auctioned off after the game, and all proceeds (as well as $8 for every ticket sold) will be donated to the university's Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund.[106] Also, D.C. United will wear special maroon uniforms (and the goalie, an orange uniform) during their game against the Columbus Crew on April 28. After the game, the uniforms will also be auctioned off with all proceeds going to the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund.[107]
  • AOL solicited donations from members and employees for the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund via Network for Good. Employee donations were matched one to one up to a total of $100,000.[108]
  • The Washington Nationals paid tribute to Virginia Tech by wearing Virginia Tech hats in their April 17 game against the Atlanta Braves.[109]

Gun control debate

See also: Gun politics in the United States

The massacre reignited the gun control debate in the United States, with proponents of gun control legislation arguing that guns are too accessible, citing that Cho, a mentally unsound individual, was able to purchase two semi-automatic pistols. Proponents of gun rights and the Second Amendment argued that Virginia Tech's gun-free "safe zone" policy ensured that none of the students or faculty would be armed, guaranteeing that no one could stop Cho's rampage. Others said that adequate communication between government entities could have prevented Cho from acquiring the weapons, without compromising Second Amendment rights.

Background

Law enforcement officials have described finding a purchase receipt for at least one of the guns used in the assault.[110] The shooter had apparently waited one month after buying his Walther P22 .22 caliber pistol before he bought his second pistol, a Glock 19.[111] Cho used a 15-round ammunition magazine in the Glock.[112] The serial numbers on the weapons were filed off, but the ATF National Laboratory was able to reveal them and performed a firearms trace.[112]

Virginia Tech has a blanket ban on possession or storage of firearms on campus, even by state licensed concealed weapons permit holders. However, this policy has been challenged in recent years: In April 2005, a student licensed in Virginia to carry concealed weapons was discovered possessing a concealed firearm in class. While no criminal charges were filed, a university spokesman said the University had "the right to adhere to and enforce that policy" as a common-sense protection of students, staff and faculty as well as guests and visitors."[113]

Virginia bill HB 1572, intended to prohibit public universities from making "rules or regulations limiting or abridging the ability of a student who possesses a valid concealed handgun permit … from lawfully carrying a concealed handgun" was introduced into the Virginia House of Representatives by delegate Todd Gilbert. The university opposed the bill, which died in subcommittee in January 2006.[114] Spokesman Larry Hincker responded, "I'm sure the university community is appreciative of the General Assembly's actions because this will help parents, students, faculty and visitors feel safe on our campus."[114]

The sale of firearms to permanent residents in Virginia is legal as long as the buyer shows proof of residency.[115] Additionally, though, Virginia has a law that limits purchases of handguns to one every 30 days.[116] Federal law requires a criminal background check for handgun purchases from licensed firearms dealers, and Virginia checks other databases in addition to the Federally-mandated NICS. Federal law also prohibits those "adjudicated as a mental defective" from buying guns, and Seung-Hui Cho should have been prohibited from buying a gun after a Virginia court declared him to be a danger to himself in late 2005 and sent him for psychiatric treatment.[117]

Virginia state law on mental health disqualifications to firearms purchases, however, is worded slightly differently from the federal statute. So the form that Virginia courts use to notify state police about a mental health disqualification addresses only the state criteria, which list two potential categories that would warrant notification to the state police: someone who was “involuntarily committed” or ruled mentally “incapacitated.”[117]

The federal law defines adjudication as a mental defective to include "determination by a court, board, commission or other lawful authority" that as a result of mental illness, the person is a "danger to himself or others."[117] Because of gaps between federal and Virginia state laws, the state failed to report Cho's legal status to the federal National Instant Criminal Background Check System, and thus failed to prevent Cho's purchases.[117] The week following the incident, Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell called for changes in state law to close those gaps.[118]

U.S. media response

The response to how gun control affected the massacre was divided.

The Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, an American gun control group, said that it was easy for an individual to get powerful weapons and called for "common-sense actions to prevent tragedies like this from continuing to occur" and also noted that the 15-bullet magazines were illegal to manufacture from 1994 to 2004 under the Federal Assault Weapons Ban.[119] The New York Times ran an editorial calling for more gun control, saying that it was a "horrifying reminder that some of the gravest dangers Americans face come from killers at home armed with guns that are frighteningly easy to obtain."[120]

Gun rights activist and National Rifle Association board member Ted Nugent, commenting on CNN, contrasted the Virginia Tech massacre with other school shooting incidents in which mass shootings have been ended by law-abiding gun owners. [121]

Virginia Governor Tim Kaine condemned this debate, saying it was "loathsome" that "People who want to take this within 24 hours of the event and use it as a political hobbyhorse." Kaine said on April 17 2007: "To those who want to make this into some sort of crusade, I say take this elsewhere."[122]

Inaccurate media reports

Early media reports incorrectly identified a Chinese American and a Chinese national as the suspected shooter.

International response

The Virginia Tech shootings sparked commentary and editorials critical of U.S. gun control laws and gun culture around the rest of the developed world. In the UK, an editorial in The Times asked, "Why ... do Americans continue to tolerate gun laws and a culture that seems to condemn thousands of innocents to death every year, when presumably, tougher restrictions, such as those in force in European countries, could at least reduce the number?"[123] The Swedish paper Göteborgs-Posten commented that "without access to weapons, the killings at Virginia Tech might have been prevented" because "the fundamental reason is often the perpetrator's psychological problems in combination with access to weapons."[124] In Japan, the Asahi Shimbun commented that "the mass shooting.... reminded us once again how disturbingly common gun fatalities are in the United States," and went on to note, "Humans become enraged and desperate, and a gun in the hands of an enraged or desperate individual could be a sure recipe of disaster or tragedy."[125]

Other international commentators predicted little chance of tougher gun laws or changes to the U.S. gun culture. BBC's Washington correspondent Matt Frei wrote "America is at its most impressive when it grieves and remembers. But will the soul-searching ever produce legislation and will it make schools safer?" He found that many students wished that the victims had been armed to stop the shooter, exerting "self defence in the face of a rampaging menace". He further predicted that "[d]espite this week's bloodbath there will be no overwhelming demand for gun control in this country."[126] Similarly, The Economist described both sides of the debate saying, "... Virginia Tech, like many schools and universities, is a gun-free zone. Gun advocates are daring to say that if Virginia Tech allowed concealed weapons, someone might have stopped the rampaging killer. To gun-control advocates, this is self-evident madness." The Economist also concluded: "The Columbine killings of 1999 failed to provoke any shift in Americans' attitudes to guns. There is no reason to believe that this massacre, or the next one, will do so either."[127]

In addition to the international media response, while many non-U.S. governmental officials refrained from commenting on gun control in connection with the incident, some governmental officials criticized the U.S. gun control policies. Most notably Australian Prime Minister John Howard said tough Australian legislation[128] introduced after a mass shooting in Tasmania in 1996 had prevented a problematic gun culture in Australia: "We took action to limit the availability of guns and we showed a national resolve that the gun culture that is such a negative in the United States would never become a negative in our country."[129]

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See also

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Virginia Tech massacre.

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