Shortly after midnight on July 20, a gunman wearing a gas mask and body armor entered a cinema in Aurora, Colo., and began firing. Twelve people were killed. Fifty-eight were wounded, some gravely.
After a few days of intense media coverage, this horrific event, similar to previous massacres, has sunk from public attention. Families of those killed and survivors and their loved ones will forever bear the pain and sorrow of that day.
The alleged gunman had recently dropped out of a graduate program at the University of Colorado. Acquaintances report worrisome behavior. A student health physician reported her concerns to a threat assessment team at the university. This investigation stopped when the man ended his program of study.
Defense attorneys have blocked the release of further information, arguing that this would prejudice subsequent legal actions. So society may have to wait years to piece together the events leading up to this disaster to determine if it could have been prevented. By that time, additional mass shootings may have occurred.
Columbine, Virginia Tech, Tucson, Wisconsin’s Sikh Temple — the sites of civilian massacres by sociopathic or demented gunmen multiply.