DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Everything Else... Massacre at Dark Knight Premiere in Aurora, Colorado

At least 14 dead and 50 wounded. (updated number) Kids and even an infant among the dead. The infant was reportedly shot at point blank range.

The shooter supposedly wore a gas mask and set off tear gas inside the theater.

What kind of person does something like this? How does someone convince himself that this is a rational idea? Also, how did he manage to get all of this stuff inside the theater?

At least 20 wounded in shooting at Colorado movie theater, official says - CNN.com
http://www.cnn.com/2012/07/20/us/colorado-theater-shooting/index.html?hpt=hp_t1

(CNN) -- At least 20 people were wounded in a shooting early Friday morning at a movie theater in Aurora, Colorado, an area hospital official told CNN.

All of the wounded suffered from gunshot wounds, which ranged from minor to critical, said Jacque Montgomery, a spokeswoman at the University of Colorado Hospital.

"They're arriving by police, by ambulance. Some are walking in," she said.
Police were responding to a "shooting incident" at the theater, a dispatcher told CNN. The dispatcher did not provide any additional details.

The shooting incident reportedly occurred during an early morning screening of the new Batman movie, "The Dark Knight Rises," witnesses told CNN affiliate KUSA.

"We saw people running around and screaming," a man, who was not identified, told KUSA.
He said there was confusion in the theater when the shooting began because many believed the sound of gunfire was coming from the movie next door.

Unreal...thoughts and prayers.

15 are dead now

I guess the guy was wearing a gas mask threw some kind of gas canister in the crowd then opened fire..

Damn, I read that and thought Aurora, Ohio where I live.

What kinda nutjob does this kinda thing?

Quote:

---

What kinda nutjob does this kinda thing?

---

Daman...what motivates "anyone" to do such a thing...?

What kind of logic is there to someone who shoots unarmed, unsuspecting victims, yet wears a bullet proof vest to protect himself, as reported in this case.

Obviously the individual values his own life while putting no value on the lives of his victims. I heard that one individual injured was a 3 month old baby...

There are reports the individual's car has a Tennessee license plate...totally unconfirmed at this point.

It will be interesting to see if this individual confided in others as to what he was planning to do.

So many questions...why?

I still say parade them down their hometown streets and allow the people to throw small stones at them, until they reach the gallows in the center of town. Let all see what this "fame" really brings.

Crazy...so sad for the victims, and their family's.

Quote:

---

What kinda nutjob does this kinda thing?

---

I hope that is a question I can never answer. I don't even want to fathom what goes on in the head of somebody who could do something like this. Aurora is only 30 minutes from Columbine..... Prayers go out to the whole community.

Update from NBC...


14 shot dead at 'Dark Knight Rises' screening in Aurora, Colorado

By NBC News staff

Updated at 7:51 a.m. ET: Fourteen people were killed and at least 50 others wounded early Friday when a gunman opened fire at a midnight screening of the summer blockbuster "The Dark Knight Rises" near Denver, authorities and witnesses said.

Aurora Police Chief Dan Oates told reporters that 10 people died at the scene and four others died after being taken to local hospitals. A three-month-old and a six-year-old girl were among those treated, according to reports.

Police said the gunman had appeared at the front of the theater during the movie and released a canister which let out a hissing sound, which is believed to be tear gas. Witnesses told reporters that gunfire erupted during a shootout scene in the film.

"It was mass chaos," witness Jennifer Seeger told TODAY. "He was five feet away from me."

The gunman shot the ceiling and then "he threw in the gas can, and then I knew it was real," Seeger added.

"Everyone's going for the door and then everyone starts saying, 'no, he's going to shoot people going for the door, and he did," she recalled. "They're trying to escape, and he shot those people as well."

A 24-year-old male suspect was apprehended in the shopping center's parking lot, Oates said.
The incident occurred in the Century 16 Movie Theaters at the Aurora Town Center, police told NBC News. Aurora is a suburb less than 10 miles east of downtown Denver.

NBC station KUSA-Denver cited a witness as seeing a black-clad 6-foot-tall man wearing a riot helmet, goggles and bullet-proof vest.

However, many people attended the film dressed in Batman-related costumes.

Watch live video from KUSA

Witnesses said the gunman entered the theater through an emergency exit door.

The suspect was found in possession of a gas mask, Oates said. Ammunition was found in the suspect's car, police said.

Three firearms
Citing officials, NBC News' Pete Williams reported that the shooter had three weapons -- an assault-type rifle and two handguns. The suspect's car has Tennessee plates but authorities believe he was living locally.

Oates said there was no evidence of additional suspects.

The suspect's apartment building in north Aurora was evacuated after the suspect made a statement to police about possible explosives at his home, Oates said.

An FBI official told NBC News that the agency was working with local authorities on the investigation, but that there was no early indication of a link to terrorism. President Barack Obama had been notified by counterterrorism chief John Brennan and was aware of the incident, KUSA said.

In a statement, Obama said: "We are committed to bringing whoever was responsible to justice, ensuring the safety of our people, and caring for those who have been wounded. As we do when confronted by moments of darkness and challenge, we must now come together as one American family."

'Get us some damn gas masks'
Police raiding the theater in the hunt for the suspect had to ask for gas masks.

"Get us some damn gas masks for theater 9, we can't get in it," one officer radioed back to emergency dispatch during the operation, according to an excerpt aired on KUSA.

Brenda Stuart, of 850 KOA radio, told Sky News that bullets had passed from one theater into an adjoining one.

'50-60 gunshots'
One young man told KUSA that he was in front of the theater with friends when the shooting broke out.

"Next thing you know you hear 'boom' like tear gas, a bomb. ... Then you hear gunshots go off, like a fully automatic weapon. [There were] like 50-60 gunshots," he told KUSA.

"I was just worried about getting out of there," he told KUSA.

More on this story from breakingnews.com

The man, who did not give his name, said he heard gunfire continue for at least 20 minutes.

"People were coming out of there screaming, some of the people were coming out of there bleeding. ... People were coming out with their shirts covered in blood," he said.

As he left the theater, eyewitness Hayden Miller told KUSA said people ran up to him and said "there was a gunman setting off bombs and shooting people. ... He wasn't giving anyone a chance to get out ... It's insane that this can happen in a movie theater where people had gone to have fun."

Another eyewitness, Alex Milano, told KUSA that he "saw at least four, maybe five people limping, slightly wounded. ... I saw one girl covered in blood.

"I don't know whose little girl that was, but my heart goes out to them. ... A cop came walking through the front door ... holding a little girl in his arms and she wasn't moving, she wasn't moving," the young man, whose voiced cracked as he spoke, told KUSA.

Milano, who was in theater 8, told KUSA he spoke to a young woman who had been in theater 9 with the shooter.

The woman and her boyfriend crawled and then ran for an exit. “When she turned around, all she saw was the guy slowly making his way up the stairs, just firing. ... Just picking random people,” the witness told KUSA.

'I thought it was pretty much the end of the world'
Salina Jordan, 19, told the Denver Post she saw one girl struck in the cheek and others in the stomach, including a girl who looked to be around 9 years old.

Jordan told the newspaper she saw police carrying bodies out of the theater as well as officers opening fire.

Roland Jones, 28, said he first thought the smoke and sounds of gunshots were all part of the film's special effects.

"I thought it was pretty much the end of the world," Roberts told the Denver Post.

Tammi Stevens, who son was inside the cinema when the shooting started, told the Post he saw a man walk into the theater wearing body armor.

"You let your kids go to a late night movie ... you never think something like this would happen," Stevens told the newspaper.

Cathy Canzanora, a 911 dispatcher, told NBC News that emergency dispatchers were deluged with calls from "everybody who had cellphones in the theater" at 12:39 a.m. Friday local time (2:39 a.m. ET).

Police cars transport the wounded
The injured were being transported to several local hospitals, police told NBC.

KOA's Stuart said that police officers were taking victims to hospitals in their cars and not waiting for ambulances.

Natalie Goldstein, of Children's Hospital Colorado, said the facility was treating six patients from the shooting, ranging in age from 6 to 31.

PhotoBlog: More images from the scene of the shooting in Aurora

Justin Bentzinger, a house supervisor at the Swedish Medical Center, told NBC News they were treating three patients. Two were in critical condition, the third was in fair condition.

Kalena Wilkinson, a public information officer for Denver Health, said six patients were taken to that hospital, with one in critical condition and the other five in "fair" conditions.

Tracy Weise, of the public relations department at Aurora Medical Center, told NBC News they were treating 12 patients with a range of injuries from minor to critical.

Further local coverage from KUSA

Jacque Montgomery, a spokesperson for University of Colorado Hospital, told NBC News that they were treating 20 patients from the shooting.

At least three people had been treated for chemical exposure, KUSA reported.

Hundreds of witnesses who have not been injured have been taken to Gateway High School for a debriefing, local media reported.

"The Dark Knight Rises," starring Christian Bale and Anne Hathaway, is the latest in the popular Batman action movie franchise. Friday was its international premiere.

NBC News' David Wyllie, Daniel Strieff, Ian Johnston, F. Brinley Bruton, Pete Williams and NBC station KUSA contributed to this report.

This is breaking news story. Please check back for updates.

web page

j/c

this is unreal. one of the worst possible places to be stuck in as the audience has no way to escape and no way to attack their attacker.

i truly hope the man apprehended was the one responsible.

Honestly I am surprised that something like this hasn't happened sooner . People are batcrap crazy everywhere it seems . So many lives impacted because of this one insane man who will live the rest of his life being a ward of the state at our expense . My heart goes out to the families who lost loved ones.

On a side note what the hell is an infant doing at a midnight premiere ?

Yeah I'm not worried about the movie bugging the kid, I'm worried about the baby bugging everyone else who paid their 10.50 to get into the show.

I totally understand not wanting to leave your infant alone with someone else besides you, that's fine. Just wait to go to a show until you are ready to let someone else watch your kid.

Very sad. This is the town I was born in. Or at least it was on the army base that used to be there.

I swear, I wish I could say this stuff is shocking any more. It's just a matter of when the next incident will pop up out of nowhere.

Truly a sad day for Colorado and the human race. Ugh, freaking horrible.

I hope they caught the asshat that did this.

And what's up with Colorado? Seems like this happens there more than anywhere else.

It is very sad. It's still surprising when it happens, which is why there is the constant talk and news about the shootings. Considering the number of people in this country, thus the number of mentally disturbed people, it is actually a rare occurrence. If it wasn't, the news wouldn't cover the story 24/7 when it happens.

Such a tragedy for the people involved.

http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_21118947

Friday, July 20, 2012



Home > News > Breaking News



Print Email Font Resize
9 Comments
Story StatsAuthorities: Aurora theater shooting suspect's apartment "booby trapped"
Posted: 07/20/2012 06:48:59 AM MDT
July 20, 2012 4:5 PM GMTUpdated: 07/20/2012 10:05:34 AM MDTBy Jessica Fender, Sara Burnett, Kieran Nicholson and Jordan Steffen
The Denver Postdenverpost.com
This map shows the location of the shooting at the Century 16 Theater in Aurora as well as the location of hospitals where victims are being treated.



View Aurora Theater Shooting in a larger map
Extras: Aurora Theater Shooting

View more photos of the scene from the shooting in Aurora, Colo..
Live blog: Real time social media updates.
Map: Shooting scene, suspect's apartment, hospitals.
Video: Police, witness detail shooting.
More videos: Aurora shooting video roundup.
Raw video: Aurora theater shooting.

Related
Jul 20:
Video roundup: Aurora theater shooting
Aurora theater shooting: Aspiring sportscaster among victims
Media relates horror of Aurora movie theater slaughter
Red carpet premiere of "Dark Knight" canceled after shootings
Homeland security boss Napolitano saddened by shootings
NYC mayor: Obama, Romney should address gun issue
Map: Aurora theater shooting, suspect's apartment, hospitals
Aurora theater shooting: Mitt Romney "deeply saddened by the news of the senseless violence"
Aurora theater shooting: Gunman in black entered, opened fire
Aurora theater shooting: President Obama "shocked and saddened"
Raw video: Theatergoers flee the scene of Aurora shooting 12 killed, 50 wounded at Aurora movie theaterAURORA —Police say that the apartment of the suspect in an early morning movie theater shooting appears to be booby trapped.

Police Chief Dan Oates said the explosive devices were "pretty sophisticated."

"We could be here for days," he said.

Five buildings have been evacuated.

Jim Yacone, special agent in charge of the Denver FBI, said they were working on "how to disarm the flammable or explosive material."

The 24-year-old suspect in the shooting, which left 12 people dead, was arrested at the scene but is not expected to appear in court until Monday, a court official said.

He has been identified as James Holmes, 24, of the 1600 block of Paris Street in Aurora.

Holmes was a graduate

James Holmes (University of Colorado Denver Medical Campus)student in neurosciences at the University of Colorado but was in the process of withdrawing, university Spokeswoman Jacque Montgomery said. He enrolled at the university in June 2011.

In an apartment rental application he submitted early last year, Holmes described himself as a "quiet and easy-going" student. Other tenants in his building — which is reserved for students, faculty and staff of the medical campus — described him as a recluse.

A pharmacy student who also lives in the building told The Post he called 911 around 12:30 a.m. because there was a song blaring from the stereo inside apartment 10, where Holmes lived. The student, who wanted to be identified only as Ben, said he couldn't make out the song but that it seemed to be the same one playing on repeat.

He also said Holmes kept to himself and wouldn't acknowledge people when they passed in the hall and said hello.

"No one knew him. No one," Ben said.

According to public records searches, Holmes is from the San Diego area. He also has a prior addresses in Riverside, Calif., at least one of which is a University of California Riverside dormitory.

Holmes started living in the Aurora apartment building around May 2011,

Police investigate the Aurora theater shooting suspect's apartment near the intersection of 17th Street and Paris Street on Friday, July 20, 2012. (Stephen Mitchell, The Denver Post)according to the records.

His parents, who live in San Diego, could not be reached for comment Friday morning.

Police received several reports of the shooting at the Century 16 Movie Theaters at the Aurora Town Center around 12:39 a.m. Witnesses told police that a man entered the dark, packed theater and opened fire after throwing two smoke canisters.

A total of about 50 people were shot before police arrested the suspect in the parking lot outside the theater. He did not resist, police said.

Oates said the suspect made a statement to officers about possible explosives in his home. That prompted police to begin searching a third-floor apartment in north Aurora using a police robot and camera attached to a long pole.

The search began about 2 a.m. A resident of the building who didn't want to give his name said he answered his door to see police with assault rifles. An officer asked if he had seen a white guy with crazy hair, possibly dyed unnatural colors, the man said. It was unclear if the officer was referring to the suspect.

Wes Bradshaw and his mother Lavonne watched the search of the third-floor apartment from their apartment, they said. The two watched a police robot enter the building right before they heard a small explosion.

The two, along with the rest of the building's tenants, were ordered to evacuate shortly after that, they said.

Residents of the area were huddled on street corners waiting for news. Police at the scene told them it could be hours before they are allowed to return to their homes.

This morning, emergency crews are carefully trying to work their way into the suspect's third-floor apartment. About 6:30 a.m., three police officers on a fire truck bucket were looking through the window of the third-floor apartment and taking pictures.

Using a long pole, responders broke into the window from the basket atop of a hook and ladder truck.

Neighbors in a fourth-floor apartment one building away with a bird's eye view of the suspect's apartment said the curtains are usually closed and they never see any movement inside the apartment.

Even at night, there are no lights or anything in that apartment, said Yesenia Lujan,

24, who has lived in her apartment for seven months.

Using a camera with a zoom lens, Lujan's roommate said he could see into the suspect's kitchen, where a poster of Will Farrell in the movie "Anchorman" was hanging on the kitchen wall.

FBI are on still scene as well as local fire, police and Adams County Sheriff's deputies. Workers approached the window three at a time; they appear to be wearing helmets and flak vests while they peer into the apartment.

Copyright 2012 The Denver Post. All rights reserved.
Follow Jessica Fender on Twitter.

(Photo Credit: Bing.com aerial imagery | Graphic by Charles Minshew, The Denver Post) (Picasa)





Read more: Authorities: Aurora theater shooting suspect's apartment "booby trapped" - The Denver Post http://www.denverpost.com/breakingnews/ci_21118947#ixzz21BEaGhmS
Read The Denver Post's Terms of Use of its content: http://www.denverpost.com/termsofuse

24 hour news services itch for big stories that will fill plenty of time.

Terrible incident and am sad to be seeing it politicized! God bless those affected...

I'm seeing posts in places about people with a CCW stopping this one. I have my permit, I know my piece inside and out and I am extremely confident in my skills. Would I fire in a smoke filled, chaotic theatre? I'd have to say no...I will not kill an innocent by being a cowboy! If I thought I could get at him and take him out, maybe. We dont know how we would react let alone be the hero!

Some situations would most certainly be avoided by one or more carrying legal.
I dont see this as being safe to do that.

God help us.

I just don't have any idea how the hell he could have gotten that many weapons and that much ammo into a theater. He had to have planned it in advance, and had to have hidden weapons inside the theater.

Do we now have to start having metal detectors and pat downs at kids' matinées?

What the hell is this world coming to?

I find it odd that he was intent on doing as much bodily harm as he could yet told police his apartment was boobie trapped. Seems he'd have taken much joy in a few more deaths as sick as that sounds.

Disgusting that we can not have even leisure time without threat of death. People are being beaten, shot and robbed in broad daylight at malls and other places all the time.

What's happened to us?...

Gotta find the one story I read ..said he put the gas mask on outside but because of Bane they thought he was just nerding it up After I read this I went to get some bread and stuff and you think my god this could happen now..Crazy stuff but you cant just lock yourself in and call ity quits or these giant d -bags win

The reports I've read said he came through an emergency exit! How's that happen?!

I dont know guys, used to be a sock in the nose or just being rolled for your cash was the way. People kill now for nothing! Sure there's always been the ugly element but it extremely widespread now. Maybe it's just the media that is ever present in this age that we hear most of it.

seems to me that those doors usually dont open from the outside.

agree think he maybe hadf help..start checkin out the employees that had any relationship with this hell bound loser

Ya....think of the Wild West (which wasn't named "wild" because of the parties). You HAD to be prepared for anything. Three guys show up on a farm, kill the family all for a few meals and then move on.

Go further back and it gets worse*. No police, no enforcement, no laws....you were on your own. It was open season on what someone wanted. And when it did happen, nobody would hear of it. With today's media, if a guy in a no-name town freaks out, the whole world gets the update within 90 seconds.

Maybe we are more civilized now, but we're just more aware of every uncivilized act. Again, maybe.


*Point of clarification on random acts like this going further and further back in time. Maybe with the invention of the gun it's different. The savagery needed to commit crimes on lots of people would be impossible with a knife or whatever. A gun makes this happen with ease. Even with that being said, I would still think people are the same level of nuts (or evil), the way they carry out those urges is what's different.

agreed

I thought I heard the alarms were down but cant confirm.
Maybe he propped it open at whatever was shown earlier?

I do know, the last time I went to a movie I bought a ticket, looked at the 1 person behind the concession counter and saw NOBODY else! No ticket taker, no ushers, nothing! Places schedule fewer workers to boost profits. I'm not saying this could have prevented the incident but I remember a time when ushers checked emergency exits before each show!

look at the Bane costume ..you could pass through pretty easy unless you x-military working the door

He could have been there earlier and propped a door open. People used to do that to sneak in free. The door may not have been closed or working properly. It's all speculation at this point.

Odds are that he is the lone attacker, but you never know.

He watched 15 min of the movie, walked out the back door, propped it open, went to his nearby car, then brought his weapons in

j/c..showed a pic of this God what do call him?
Any of you anti-death penalty supporters ..explain NOW please..do it..give it to me...justify this