The Red Lake Massacre

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School shootings have become more prevalent over the past few years in the United States. After the Columbine High School shooting that left 15 dead; another tragedy happened just 1,000 miles away six years later. This tragedy was soon to be known as the Red Lake Massacre that would later become one of the most deadly school shootings since the Columbine shooting. The shooting received major amounts of media coverage due to the findings that the tragedy was pre-planned, and the offender suffered from a lack social bonds. When I examined the findings from the Red Lake Massacre, I came to a conclusion that the offender lacked major social bonds in his life. Social bonds that included family attachment, community commitment, and even school involvement. It is hard for one to figure out an offender’s motive when he/or she is not present or alive to give explanations, but one can give explanations as to why the violent event may have occurred. In this paper, I will discuss in details the shooting of Red Lake Senior High School, discuss how Travis Hirschi’s social control theory explains the massacre, and the media and societal outlook of the tragedy. On Monday, March 21, 2005, a 16-year old boy by the name Jeffrey Weise, opened fire on his grandfather, grandfather’s girlfriend, Red Lake Senior High School students and staff, and eventually killed himself. Weise’s rampage began with the killing of his grandfather, Daryl Lussier, 52, and grandfather’s companion, Michelle Signa, 32, early Monday morning before heading to Red Lake Senior High School. Lussier was “a veteran sergeant with the Red Lake police department” (Maag 2005: 4), who had a “.40-cal. handgun and 12-gauge shotgun” (Magg 2005: 4) located within the home. From previous e... ... middle of paper ... ...n such an event like this occurs, it is very hard to figure out what to do next. As a society in general, after the massacure The Red Lake Massacre became national news due to the simple fact that it occurred in a small town and, Weise was a teenager who faced many issues growing up. Weise’s actions drew major media coverage because he was a teenager that had been diagnosed with depression and suffered with suicidal thoughts. After intensive investigation, and interviewing, media reporters found evidence that the shooting was pre-planned. Works Cited CNN. 2005. Newspaper. March 23, p. 1-3. Maag, Chris. 2005. “The Devil in Red Lake.” Time 165 (14):35-37. Weatherby, Georgie Ann., Sara Strachila and Bridget McMaho. 2010. “School Shootings: The Deadly Result of Teasing and Ostracism?” Journal of Criminology and Criminal Justice Research and Education 2 (1) :1-15.

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