The teenage gunman who entered Arapahoe High School Friday afternoon and shot two fellow students with a shotgun was outspoken about politics, a gifted debater and may have been bullied for his beliefs, according to students who knew him.
"He had very strong beliefs about gun laws and stuff," said junior Abbey Skoda, who was in a class with the alleged shooter her freshman year.
Friends and family members were in shock as word spread that
the shooter was a dedicated, bright student from a religious family who attends Bible study meetings.
"They're just a normal middle-class family, like many of the families around here," said neighbor Diane Shea.
Neighbors and students remembered the gunman as
a track athlete and a member of the Arapahoe speech and debate team whose mother worked for the Douglas County School District. Jo VanDeWege, who has lived across the street from the family for five years, described the mother as outgoing and said the family was "very nice, very kind."
The gunman's parents divorced in late 2011, according to court records. The divorce was finalized in August 2012.
Thomas Conrad, who had an economics class with the gunman, described him as
a very opinionated Socialist. "He was exuberant I guess," Conrad said. "A lot of people picked on him, but it didn't seem to bother him."
Carl Schmidt and Brendon Mendelson, both seniors at Arapahoe High, knew the gunman. They said he had political views that were "outside the mainstream," but they did not elaborate.
Schmidt said the shooter "was an outspoken kid about what he believed and a good political thinker."
Mendelson added:
"He had a lot of friends. He was popular with the people he knew."
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AGAIN.
Originally Posted by bowieluva
OMG. Get kicked off debate team --> go after teacher with shotgun --> kill yourself??
I'm confused.
Priceless.
