Connecticut school district on lockdown after shooting report at a Newtown elemen #11

[jjenny]

I don't have the link to 2005 report. What I linked is reported in msm-and it has always been good enough per rules of this site.
What was written in "big book of granny" is also reported by msm.
I don't see what relevance it has if he handed it to the school or not. He wrote it, regardless of whether school knew about it.

 

[bourne]

I don't have the link to 2005 report. What I linked is reported in msm-and it has always been good enough per rules of this site.
What was written in "big book of granny" is also reported by msm.
I don't see what relevance it has if he handed it to the school or not. He wrote it, regardless of whether school knew about it.

I'm not blaming you for lack of sourcing. I'm just asking if you know the link for the 2005 report so I can read the fine details.

The relevance is that I am questioning the book's existence. If in fact AL wrote it, where is this book and how did authorities know about it if it wasn't handed into school?

Again, was the book hidden in AL's basement somewhere? Or is this book just a rumor by someone with an ax to grind?

 

[jjenny]

I'm not blaming you for lack of sourcing. I'm just asking if you know the link for the 2005 report so I can read the fine details.

The relevance is that I am questioning the book's existence. If in fact AL wrote it, where is this book and how did authorities know about it if it wasn't handed into school?

Again, was the book hidden in AL's basement somewhere? Or is this book just a rumor by someone with an ax to grind?

It is not a rumor if it's in official report released by authorities. This was an 11 months investigation.
I really don't think they are going to put rumors in there.

 

[bourne]

I missed that too .. big red flag .. huge! Evil little s*** that he was. I really think he was planning this whole thing for 10 years or more, maybe since Columbine.

Agreed. Very disturbing if AL wrote this book as a young child between ages 5-10. That would have been a clear sign something was drastically wrong and he should have been evaluated and treated early on by mental health professionals.

I find it hard to believe that if his mom was made aware of this book that she then willy-nilly ignored it and decided to handle him on her own without seeking professional help.

 

[bourne]

It is not a rumor if it's in official report released by authorities. This was an 11 months investigation.
I really don't think they are going to put rumors in there.

Hmm, I've seen unsubstantiated rumors inserted in official medical reports before and accepted at face-value in the aftermath of tragedies -- I worked in hospitals prior to retirement. So I like to see the primary source for information rather than read them unsourced/unlinked within even official reports.

Anyhow, I'll see if we can get more info via FOIA. In the meantime, it's time for me to go. Too much going on IRL. lol So good nite.

 

[jjenny]

Hmm, I've seen unsubstantiated rumors inserted in official medical reports before and accepted at face-value in the aftermath of tragedies -- I worked in hospitals prior to retirement. So I like to see the primary source for information rather than read them unsourced/unlinked within even official reports.

Anyhow, I'll see if we can get more info via FOIA. In the meantime, it's time for me to go. Too much going on IRL. lol So good nite.

There is even a copy of the book cover inserted into the report showing a drawing of granny with her cane. It says on the cover that "Adam Lanza holds all rights to all of the following content."
I really don't think police made it all up and then drew this picture pretending to be Adam Lanza.

 

[savagewatch]

I think there will be more that comes out about Lanza. I get the feeling that someone was warned about him (on the state level) and did not take the proper steps to institutionalize him. The reason for he delay in the reports is because feelings are still raw when it comes to this mass shooting.

 

[Mrs G Norris]

I found this in the official report ..

Various witnesses made the following observations about the shooter through his school years:

2. The fifth grade was also the year that, related to a class project, the shooter produced the “Big Book of Granny” in which the main character has a gun in her cane and shoots people. The story includes violence against children. There is no indication this was ever handed in to the school.48

9. In seventh grade, a teacher described the shooter as intelligent but not normal, with anti- social issues. He was quiet, barely spoke and did not want to participate in anything. His writing assignments obsessed about battles, destruction and war, far more than others his age. The level of violence in the writing was disturbing. At the same time, when asked to write a poem, he was able to write a beautiful one and presented it in public.

http://www.ct.gov/csao/lib/csao/Sandy_Hook_Final_Report.pdf

In the footnote for point 2, it says to look at the appendix at A220, but I cannot access that document at the moment: http://www.ct.gov/csao/lib/csao/compressed-sandy-hook-report.pdf

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Adam Lanza 'Book of Granny' http://www.scribd.com/doc/187281023/Adam-Lanza-Book-of-Granny

 

[michmi]

Wow...the report says he was 6 feet tall and 112 pounds. That gives him a body mass index of 15.2, and for a man his height, less than 18.5 is considered underweight.

I wonder what NL thought about his appearance? That weight is indicative of an eating disorder, did she ignore that also?

 

[IzzyBlanche]

Just catching up on the thread, so a couple random comments:

Asperger's is on the autism spectrum. A hallmark of autism disorder across the spectrum is lack of empathy for others. That alone is no red flag for future violent behavior.

In fact, in news report after news report about this case I've seen it stated--not that I needed it pointed out to me due to my own knowledge--that Asperger's/autism is not normally linked with violent behavior toward others.

Second.

Yeah, Adam was quite underweight. I think I recall reading way back, too lazy to find a link, that he had become a vegan and extremely picky about what he would eat. I'm sure his mom didn't ignore this any more than millions of other parents whose children acquire an eating disorder ignore theirs.

But what options did she have beyond trying to persuade him to eat more and get professional help, the latter of which she did?

Particularly since he was legally an adult.

 

[Mrs G Norris]

His weight to me also points to some deep disturbance .. he looked downright terrifying to me, more so as he got older, and those eyes.

 

[jjenny]

Wow...the report says he was 6 feet tall and 112 pounds. That gives him a body mass index of 15.2, and for a man his height, less than 18.5 is considered underweight.

I wonder what NL thought about his appearance? That weight is indicative of an eating disorder, did she ignore that also?

Report says he was very particular about his food. It had to be just so.
Clearly he had very severe OCD issues (in addition to whatever else was going in his head). Sometimes people with OCD are so afraid of germs, they are too afraid to eat.

 

[jjenny]

I think there will be more that comes out about Lanza. I get the feeling that someone was warned about him (on the state level) and did not take the proper steps to institutionalize him. The reason for he delay in the reports is because feelings are still raw when it comes to this mass shooting.

Nobody gets institutionalized nowdays. Especially before committing any crimes.
You have to actually commit a crime before somebody considers to lock you up.

 

[Mrs G Norris]

Remember Richard Chase? He got extremely thin while in the throws of paranoia before becoming a murderer, believing that he had a blood disorder.

 

[colette]

Adam Lanza 'Book of Granny' http://www.scribd.com/doc/187281023/Adam-Lanza-Book-of-Granny

Deeply disturbing.

 

[bourne]

I think there will be more that comes out about Lanza. I get the feeling that someone was warned about him (on the state level) and did not take the proper steps to institutionalize him. The reason for he delay in the reports is because feelings are still raw when it comes to this mass shooting.

That is the crux of the problem. In the 1960's there was a civil rights movement to de-institutionalize the severely mentally ill so that the mentally ill's rights as private citizens would not be violated; i.e., they would not be held against their will in psychiatric facilities. It would appear that since these deinstitutionalization policies were enacted, there has been a sharp rise in murders committed by the mentally ill such as AL.

Some argue that it is because of the increase in medications such as SSRI's that the mentally ill have been taking as outpatients and that they have not been carefully monitored and that it is the change in brain chemistry that causes the uptick in violent eruptive behaviors. Others say that the increase in the mentally ill associated murders are related to other factors such as easy access to guns, etc.

There are severely mentally ill people who need constant, around-the-clock supervision and institutionalization for those people should be mandated. The problem is that, as with anything, there are those bad apples who would abuse the "commitment of mentally ill to psych facilities" and take advantage of a mentally ill victim with the institutionalization measures by exaggerating a person's psychiatric issues, and over-institutionalization of *non-dangerous* people then results. E.g., scorned lovers/spouses trying to get back at their exes.

There definitely needs be a better and more accurate, comprehensive screening system in place for institutionalizing mentally ill people who present a danger to themselves and others.

 

[bourne]

Just catching up on the thread, so a couple random comments:

Asperger's is on the autism spectrum. A hallmark of autism disorder across the spectrum is lack of empathy for others. That alone is no red flag for future violent behavior.

In fact, in news report after news report about this case I've seen it stated--not that I needed it pointed out to me due to my own knowledge--that Asperger's/autism is not normally linked with violent behavior toward others.

Second.

Yeah, Adam was quite underweight. I think I recall reading way back, too lazy to find a link, that he had become a vegan and extremely picky about what he would eat. I'm sure his mom didn't ignore this any more than millions of other parents whose children acquire an eating disorder ignore theirs.

But what options did she have beyond trying to persuade him to eat more and get professional help, the latter of which she did?

Particularly since he was legally an adult.

Totally agree with the first part of your post. Majority of Autistic/Asperger's are not violent people. Just because AL had Asperger's and was violent does not automatically mean everyone with autism/Asperger's are/will become violent. Correlation does not equal causation.

Are there any medical studies wherein being anorexic and/or lack of nutrition causes violence against innocent people? If so, someone provide link. TIA

 

[bourne]

Adam Lanza 'Book of Granny' http://www.scribd.com/doc/187281023/Adam-Lanza-Book-of-Granny

THANK YOU VERY MUCH Mrs. G Norris! Finally I get to see/read what is reported to be AL's authored Book of Granny!

I have to ask, after reviewing the "Public Safety" document which describes the Book of Granny book, why the second co-author/creator to the book was *blackened out* in the official document? Why is the second co-author's identity being protected? Could it possibly be AL's *mom, NL* who's the coauthor to AL's seeming violent book?

E.g. 1, the following is a preface about the Book of Granny, " On 08/16/13, I was assigned to review documents returned from the FBI-Behavioral Analysis Unit. A review of box #3 of 5 boxes revealed a spiral bound booklet called "The Big Book of Granny" , which appeared to be created by the shooter and [words blackened out by LE]...

E.g. 2, page A222 there is a drawing (which I assume is the cover of the Granny book) of Granny with her arm extended pointing her cane in a horizontal direction (as if she's using cane to shoot/arm herself against someone) and the words "Granny is a trademark symbol of [blacked out words by LE]...the creator, Adam Lanza holds all rights to all of the following content, [blacked out words by LE] is the creator of the Granny Picture and holds all right to it."

My questions are:
1) Why is the second co-author/creator to the Big Book of Granny blackened out by LE?
2) Why are they protecting this second author?
3) Could the second co-author to the book be AL's mom, NL?

On the other hand, when I read the so-called jokes about Granny and the descriptions of the stories written about Granny by AL and some other co-author whose name was blackened out by LE, the book sounded like cartoons with characters such as Loony Tunes Elmer Fudd trying to shoot Bugs Bunny, or Wiley Coyote getting squashed by boulders but the "victims" of the shooting/dropped boulders would get up unharmed and be able to carry on as if nothing happened...Violent yet silly fantastical, improbable stories. I suppose in elementary school, watching such cartoons might have given rise to AL's Book of Granny and might not have necessarily appear to be morbid or violent to a parent of such a child...except for the fact that this child was specifically AL and he had mental issues (for which I have no idea whether or not by that age he was diagnosed or being treated).

Essentially, what I'm saying is that writing and/or drawing cartoon characters about violence and murder and mayhem does not necessarily translate to violent, gruesome, heinous, criminal behaviors *in real life*. Just take a look at Stephen King and other fiction writers of murder mysteries. Stephen King even stated in an interview that he thought of gruesome things all his life. Writing about morbid stuff could simply be a creative outlet to help authors release their inner demons -- frustrations/anger/negative emotions. So writing about morbid horrific things don't necessarily equal a violent murderer in the making.

What I do find disturbing is that *if* an adult such as NL was the co-author to AL's Granny book AND this adult was made aware by medical professionals that AL "lacked empathy" and "took everything literally", then the adult had encouraged the wrong behaviors/cognitions in AL and such encouragement could potentially have galvanized AL to act out his violent thoughts.

Nonetheless I still believe that the mom NL underestimated the degree of mental deficiencies in AL and wanted to believe, despite AL's social problems, that her son was "normal". She also overestimated her own abilities to help her son...

So yes, again, I believe NL was in serious denial. And I still don't hold her accountable to AL's violence because AL was 20 years old, an adult who apparently understood the moral implications of right and wrong and nonetheless AL made the singular choice to kill not only innocent schoolchildren/staff but also his own mother who tried real hard to bond with him and help break him out of his shell.

 

[jjenny]

The second author was a minor child of 10 years old (or so, since they were in fifth grade) during the time of book creation. Who apparently haven't committed any crimes. As such it would be irresponsible to release his name and link him to Adam Lanza.