Columbine conspiracy theories

Columbine conspiracy theories are any of several conspiracy theories which argue that the mainstream account of the Columbine High School massacre, which occurred on Littleton, Colorado on Tuesday, April 20, 1999, is inadequate or inconsistent in explaining the events, and/or that evidence in the case has been suppressed.

The mainstream account of the massacre, derived from press reports and extensive investigations by local, state and Federal officials, is that between about 11:19 am and 12:10 pm on the above noted date, Columbine High School students Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold killed 12 students and one teacher and injured 24 other students before killing themselves. They also planted several bombs on and near the campus, several of which exploded.

Perhaps the most prominent conspiracies include claims that additional suspects were involved and that police accidentally killed students during the chaos of the massacre.

Additional suspects

• Conspiracy theorists note that in official police interview transcripts,^[1][2] dozens of Columbine students asserted that there were additional shooters other than Harris and Klebold.
  • Names of alleged shooters other than Harris and Klebold are usually redacted in official documents. In some instances, however, the suspect names were not redacted; e.g. former Columbine student Robert Perry was identified as a shooter by several students who claimed to know him by sight due to his severe acne, pronounced overbite and great height of 6'6" to 6'8".
  • Columbine student Johnathan Vandermark claimed to have seen a person who was probably Harris accompanied by an armed older male, about 30 years old, who did not fit Klebold's description; the unknown man was "about one foot shorter than Dylan, with dark hair that was spiked on top with blonde tips."^[2] Similarly, student Jennifer Smull was paraphrased by police about what she observed outside her classroom before taking cover: "[she] saw an adult (blonde, short, spiky hair, thought he was in 30′s). [She] thought he was a cop until he held up a sawed off shotgun."^[2]

• Conspiracy theorists also note that police interviews indicate that shortly before 11:19 am, when Harris and Klebold began shooting near the school's west entrance, numerous witnesses claimed that other suspects were throwing bombs at other locations.
  • According to interview notes by FBI Special Agent Matthew S. Harris, student Jake Apodaca mistook Harris and Klebold's first shooting as firecrackers. Moments later, Apodaca claimed to have seen two men, one of whom wore a black mask, near the soccer field: "Apodaca saw the person in the white tee shirt throw an object about the size of a soda can on top of the library. This object appeared metallic, since it looked silver in the sunlight. One or two seconds after landing on the roof, it exploded with a loud boom, a flash of fire and puff of smoke.”^[2] Apodaca's account was corroborated by testimony of two students. Chris Wisher: "Wisher saw this person [i.e., a man wearing jeans and white t-shirt] throw an object one-handed on top of the cafeteria/library roof. It appeared metallic [...] and [...] it exploded with a loud bang, a flash of fire and a pall of smoke."^[2] And Donald Arnold: “[Arnold] looked towards the school and [seen] a short, pudgy male, wearing a white T-shirt, and throwing something onto the roof of the school near the electrical transformers. Arnold heard [an] explosion and saw dust on the roof soon after.”^[2]

• On April 21, a press conference was held by Jefferson County District Attorney David Thomas and Sheriff John Stone, saying that they suspected that other people helped plan the shooting. This disclosure, coupled with suggestions that Harris and Klebold could not have brought so many explosives into the building by themselves, fueled speculation.

• A man on the roof was assumed to be a possible third shooter by the police. It was later discovered to have been a roofing repairman who was scheduled to do maintenance on the library's roof and had remained hidden there after hearing shots fired by Harris and Klebold. It was never properly explained why witnesses said that the man on the roof was armed with a gun. It also has never been properly explained why some witnesses saw three men on the roof in different areas, all with firearms. One of them was reported to be wearing a South Park shirt. Chris Morris, the leader of the Trenchcoat Mafia and a close friend of both Harris and Klebold, was arrested by police during the day and news footage showed that he was wearing a South Park shirt.

• In a video clip of the school cafeteria it is alleged a dark figure is in the back holding what some say may be a gun. This was possibly Dylan Klebold briefly entering the cafeteria when the shooting began.

Other conspiracies

• Much debate have discussed the link between the shootings and Luvox, a prescription medication which Harris was taking. Debaters have stated that Klebold was on anti-depressants also. Others say that anti-depressants used by adolescents risk the chances of murder and or suicide.

• The intended and actual dates of the massacre have been extensively commented upon by those with a numerological bent, with links noted to the Oklahoma City bombing, the Waco siege, Adolf Hitler's birthday, the Apollo 16 Moon landing and the assassination of Martin Luther King, Jr.

• Much debate has been initiated on Rachel Scott's death. The first casualty, Rachel Scott was shot and killed by Eric Harris. Richard Castaldo, a student who was sitting next to Scott and was injured by Harris, said that Rachel was only injured when the first shots were fired, then the gunmen approached Scott, grabbed her by the hair and asked her if she still believed in God. Supposedly, after saying "You know I do", one of the killers said "Go be with him" then shot and killed Scott. Other theorists have supported this, while others claim that Scott was killed instantly.

• One debate was speculated that Rachel Scott, the first victim, enlisted Harris and Klebold into committing the massacre, making sure she was killed first, in order to make her writings famous. The day she died, she told a teacher she would have an impact on the world.

• It has been speculated, especially by Donna Taylor, mother of injured survivor Mark Taylor, that Harris and Klebold were sexually assaulted by the police officer, Tim Walsh, that arrested them for breaking into a van. This would explain Klebold writing in Harris's 1998 yearbook, "killing cops!!! My wrath for January's incident will be God like!" One of Harris's friends was videotaped teasing him, saying "Eric just got jacked up the ass!".

• Articles from the Associated Press state that ballistics from Columbine show that six of the thirteen victims were possibly shot and killed by Jefferson County SWAT.^[3] In 2002, an independent investigation disproved accusations against the Jefferson County sheriff's department to the satisfaction of Daniel Rohrbough's parents, the chief proponents of this theory. Brian Rohrbough, Daniel Rohrbough's father, went on to be Alan Keyes' running mate in the 2008 Presidential election.^[4]

• Another theory is that Klebold did not commit suicide, but was murdered by Harris. In some crime scene photographs, Klebold's shotgun is allegedly too far out of his reach for him to have shot himself. He was shot through the left temple, and the TEC-DC9 was found in his right hand and his parents reported that he was left handed. However, these photos were taken after police had moved and disarmed the weapons, as the magazines are visible on the ground. Some believe this theory as in the last basement video (which has yet to be released to the public), Klebold mentions to Harris that he is Jewish.^{[citation needed]} Harris, who in his diary entries drew several swastikas, was allegedly shocked by this information. As Klebold then attempted to explain he was only half Jewish, Harris simply said "Well, that's too bad." Klebold reportedly sat there for a moment, as though he was afraid of being attacked by Harris. Had Klebold's shotgun been out of reach, it would not have mattered. Klebold's suicide was a shot to the left temple with his TEC-DC9. Harris shot himself through the mouth with his shotgun.

References

1. ^ Columbine High School Massacre--7 shooters, not 2 28 Jan 2004, URL accessed 25 June 2011.
2. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Long, Evan (2007). "The Columbine Cause: An Examination of the April 20, 1999 Attack on Columbine High School", URL accessed 25 June 2011.
3. ^ (AP, December 7, 2001, "Columbine Student Killed by Cop"; AP, December 8, 2001, "Rohrbough, Ballistics show police killed Daniel")
4. ^ Catherine Tsai (18 April 2002), Cop Cleared In Columbine Death, CBS News, http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/04/19/columbine/main506693.shtml, retrieved 2007-07-25 

See also

• 9/11 conspiracy theories
• Oklahoma City bombing conspiracy theories

References