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As usual the media are telling only the parts of the story that fit the agenda. His parents had sent the boy to one psychiatrist, one psychologist, and at least two counselors, as well as calling the police for a "welfare check". They had known for years that he was seriously disturbed. He got past all those people and tipped his hand with the Youtube vids, which he removed when he realized that they drew too much attention.

This should have been a case of involuntary commitment a very long time ago. He had been supported by handouts from his parents, especially his birth mother, in conditions in which it sometimes wasn't all that easy for her to do. The kid had plenty of money, apartments paid for, a BMW, laptops whenever he whined enough, and the wherewithal to drive to Arizona for lottery tickets and purchase three handguns. With no supervision for any of that.

His friends, such as he had, slowly dropped away as he became more and more overt with his obsessions. He got drunk, started a fight, and ended up with a broken leg. He threw drinks on couples for the crime of being happy together. This kid was way, way out there and it wasn't hard to see. But he was smooth and articulate. That isn't the same as sane.

It may be that involuntary commitment laws would have saved a half dozen lives. I am aware they can be abused. But they, and parents determined to use them, could have prevented this.

there is nothing in this case history that would merit involuntary commitment

the standard of “being a danger to himself or others” was never met, this kid was smart enough to cover himself, and he was 22, way past parental control over his medical decisions or even being able to know his medical history without his consent

the so-called therapists engaged by his family really SHOULD be called out for malpractice. If they were doing due diligence to him, to his family and to the college and community, he should not have been able to fool them into believing he was merely eccentric

...could have prevented this

I wonder. By some accounts, the things that were done to check on him when there was warning might be what tipped him over the edge. This kid comes across as the same kind of nutty as the Newtown killer, only less isolated.

The real question that has to be answered is "why are so many young men so crazy?" They seem to be totally disassociated from any normal human emotion of those who suffer from their actions.

Until we figure out what's wrong, nothing's going to solve the problems. The ones who actually commit these crimes have to be only the tip of the iceberg of the numbers who seriously think in these ways.