Horror in the suburbs, once again

One student, a senior, is still in critical condition in a Littleton hospital, after being shot point blank in the face by Friday's 18-year-old gunman at Arapahoe High School. The two barely knew each other, if at all. She was sitting in the library with a friend, when the shooter came in with his shotgun, bandolier filled with ammunition across his chest, and three Molotov cocktails, one of which he ignited, burning down two stacks of books. He obviously knew what door to come in unimpeded during the lunch hour. He committed suicide when the school resource officer, a deputy sheriff, approached the library, responding to the gunfire and smoke within 80 seconds.

He had recently legally purchased the shotgun and ammunition. His mom was out of town Friday, so presumably he may have been by himself in their Highlands Ranch house in the suburbs, because the parents were divorced, and the father lives in Denver. Actually, his maternal grandmother may have been in the house, though no one has confirmed that in any of the reporting I have read.

He was looking for the librarian/debate coach, who had "disciplined" him in September. Why? Because the shooter told a group of students that he wanted to kill the coach! The coach informed school administrators about the threat, and administrators notified law enforcement. Although the shooter was "disciplined," he was not suspended from school or kicked off the debate team. No one is reporting what law enforcement did about the threat, and no one is reporting what was the nature of his "discipline."

To read about the victim, Claire Davis, is to invite a torrent of tears. Saturday evening a group of students organized a candlelight vigil near the school to honor and pray for her, and gather with others who had lived through this traumatic experience. There was singing and hugs, lots of hugs, reports Denver Post writer Anthony Cotton. Claire is described as "sweet," "humble," a horse lover, an excellent student who has already been accepted by numerous colleges, and "the best baby sitter on the block" in the various reports I have read. Please pray for her and her family.

We have had way too much of this in Colorado.