Posted on 09/28/2006 10:14:09 AM PDT by SkyPilot
DENVER, United States (AFP) - The gunman at the center of a Colorado school siege sexually assaulted his hostages before fatally wounding one of the captives and killing himself, police said.
The gunman, identified for the first time as 54-year-old Duane Morrison, took six female hostages at Platte Canyon High School in Bailey, around 35 miles (56 kilometers) south of Denver, after entering the building around lunchtime on Wednesday.
Four hostages were released before the bloody end to the siege, which took place after police SWAT teams decided to storm the second-floor classroom where Morrison was barricaded inside.
Park County Sheriff Fred Wegener said police were still looking at possible motives but revealed that Morrison had sexually assaulted an unspecified number of his captives.
"We have confirmed that he did traumatize and assault our children," Wegener told reporters. "The assaults were sexual," he added.
Local media reported that a backpack in which Morrison had claimed to have been holding a bomb contained various sex toys. Wegener would not confirm those reports but said the bag's contents "were sexual in nature."
Wegener, who had been close to tears while speaking to reporters on Wednesday, said that he had taken the decision to storm the school after learning that hostages were being assaulted from captives who had been freed.
"This is why I made the decision I did," he said.
Morrison, armed with a semi-automatic pistol and a revolver, fired at police before shooting his victim and turning his gun on himself, Wegener said.
"The sequence was awful fast," he said. "As they burst through the door he fired at the SWAT team, shot the female hostage and then shot himself."
The shot schoolgirl was airlifted to St Anthony Central Hospital in Denver but died of her injuries late Wednesday.
Wegener said Morrison had a "very minor" criminal history but did not say if he had any previous convictions for sexual offences.
Wednesday's shooting immediately evoked memories of the 1999 Columbine high school massacre in neighbouring Jefferson County, when 13 students were gunned down by two teenage pupils who then killed themselves.
Wegener, a 36-year police veteran whose son had been in the school when the drama unfolded on Wednesday, said the rural community had been shattered by the tragic events.
"This is something that has changed my school, changed my community," Wegener said. "Our small community is gone."
But, is HE dead?
Arm the teachers.
The teachers and a boy named Cassidy were made to leave. I say they need security patrols, like banks.
>>>But, is HE dead?>>>
Yes.
Yep, he guarandamnteed that for himself.
Yes.
How did he get in the building. Schools around here have security.
YEP....ARM the TEACHERS in EVERY SCHOOL....or at least give them the RIGHT TO BE ARMED!!!!
What we need toask is what we did to make him act the way he did./sarc.
Any non-liberal knows that arming the teachers is only one part. I think that we need to make the consequences so severe that death would be a positive outcome for the perp.
This may get compared to the Columbine shootings but it has more in common with Richard Speck's murder spree.
He asked the student where he was going, and he said "English" - and the murderer replied "Good thing you aren't going to College Prep English."
Somebody needs to be armed. Schools are seen by educators as being an oasis from violence. Criminals and terrorists see them as an easy target.
instead of securing the school, looks like someone had their thumb up their fundament instead.
Arm the teachers AND the students.
Yet another school shooting. Wonder what would have happened if somebody like this monster had tried to pull a similar stunt at the ROTC firing range back in the days when schools had such?
Some guy on Fox now saying he must have been abused as a child.
Thank goodness. I only saw 'he turned the gun on himself.' [/speedreading]
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