(07-17-2024, 08:53 PM)BIAD Wrote: It seems Mr Crooks had distractions in mind too.
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Archived Guardian Article:
Yup. What I'm hearing is that his car had two IED devices with remote detonator receivers. It also contained a ballistic vest and 3 more fully loaded 30 round magazines. That would indicate to me that he intended for the party to continue past what actually became his expiration date. Whom else or where else he meant to attack is a mystery that will probably never be solved, since he went and got his gray matter all scrambled, and that's probably the only place his plan resided.
It may be that he intended to set off the IEDs as a distraction, and that's why they were in the car with the remote detonator in his pocket at the scene, but that doesn't explain the ballistic vests or spare magazines he left in the car - why would he leave those behind if he intended the rooftop shooting to be his last stand?
If he intended to escape, why would he blow up his escape vehicle? If he didn't intend to escape, why would he leave critical equipment behind that would allow him to maximize his rampage before he was eventually killed?
On the other hand, I can tell you that the ballistic vest would be hot to wear on a hot day (which is why we so often left them in our cars rather than wore them on our bodies on hot days, where they would be more useful), so maybe that's why it was left behind. The spare magazines he may have considered to be too heavy and bulky - might draw attention - after he arrived at the scene, and so that may be why they were left behind. It also may be that he got rushed after he was aware of his discovery by the police, and either forgot to set off the charges, decided the jig was up and there was no longer any use to set them off, or just panicked and started twitching the trigger trying to get as many rounds downrange as possible before being stopped.
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ETA: I'm seeing interviews with former high school classmates of the shooter... but those observations are necessarily two or more years old. A lot can happen to a person in two years. He graduated a local community college two MONTHS ago - why am I not finding interviews with people who encountered him there, much more recently?
For example, his high school guidance counselor said he "was not a danger to society", but recent events would indicate otherwise. What happened in the two plus years between those conversations and the instant he started sending rounds into a presidential candidate and the crowd of innocent civilians around him?
I feel bad for his parents. They can't turn on a TV or scan the internet without seeing the final disposition of that squalling little bundle of promise they can recall ushering on to the Earth 20 years ago.
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