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Yahoo...
Mass Shooting
at Colo. Movie Theater, 12 People Dead
By Anthony Castellano
Good Morning America
Notes from Boehner, and on Obama and Romney at the end of the story.
A lone gunman dressed in riot gear burst into a movie theater in
Aurora, Colo., at a midnight showing of the Batman film “The Dark
Knight Rises” and methodically began shooting patrons, killing at least
12 people and injuring at least 50.
The suspect, James Holmes, 24, of Aurora, was caught by police in the
parking lot of the Century 16 Movie Theaters, nine miles outside
Denver, after police began receiving dozens of 911 calls at 12:39 a.m.
MT. Police said the man appeared to have acted alone.
Witnesses in the movie theater said Holmes crashed into the auditorium
through an emergency exit about 30 minutes into the film, set off a
smoke bomb, and began shooting. Holmes stalked the aisles of the
theater, shooting people at random, as panicked movie-watchers in the
packed auditorium tried to escape, witnesses said.
“You just smelled smoke and you just kept hearing it, you just heard
bam bam bam, non-stop. The gunman never had to reload. Shots just kept
going, kept going, kept going,” one witness told ABC News.
“I’m with coworkers and we’re on the floor praying to God we don’t get
shot, and the gunshots continue on and on, and when the sound finally
stopped, we started to get up and people were just bleeding,” another
theatergoer said.
Photos: Shooting at ‘Dark Knight’ Screening at Colorado Movie Theater
Police said 10 victims died inside the theater, while dozens of others
were taken to local hospitals, including a child as young as 6 years
old.
A San Diego woman identifying herself as James Holmes’s mother spoke
briefly with ABC News this morning.
She had awoken unaware of the news of the shooting and had not been
contacted by authorities. She immediately expressed concern that her
son may have been involved.
“You have the right person,” she said.
“I need to call the police,” she added. “I need to fly out to Colorado.”
Holmes was wearing a bullet-proof vest and riot helmet and carrying a
gas mask, rifle, and handgun, when he was apprehended, according to
police. Holmes mentioned having explosives stored, leading police to
evacuate his entire North Aurora apartment complex and search the
buildings early this morning.
The highly-anticipated third installment of the Batman triology opened
to packed auditoriums around the country at midnight showings on Friday
morning, and features a villain named Bane who wears a bulletproof vest
and gas mask. Trailers for the movie show explosions at public events
including a football game. Though many moviegoers dressed in costume to
attend the opening night screening, police have made no statements
about any connection between the gunman’s motives and the movie.
Police in New York have intensified security around showings of the
film throughout the five boroughs today, with police commissioner Ray
Kelley saying that “as a precaution against copycats and to raise the
comfort levels among movie patrons in the wake of the horrendous
shooting in Colorado, the New York City Police Department is providing
coverage at theaters where the ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ is playing.”
The Paris premiere of the movie has been cancelled in the wake of the
shootings. “Warner Bros. is deeply saddened to learn about this
shocking incident. We extend our sincere sympathies to the families and
loved ones of the victims at this tragic time,” the movie’s producers,
said in a statement.
Witnesses watching movies in theaters next to the one where the
shooting took place said bullets tore through the theater walls and
they heard screaming.
“The suspect throws tear gas in the air, and as the tear gas appears he
started shooting,” said Lamar Lane, who was watching the midnight
showing of the movie with his brother. “It was very hard to breathe. I
told my brother to take cover. It took awhile. I started seeing flashes
and screaming, I just saw blood and people yelling and a quick glimpse
of the guy who had a gas mask on. I was pushed out. There was chaos, we
started running.”
One witness said she saw people dropping to the ground after the
gunshots began.
“We were maybe 20 or 30 minutes into the movie and all you hear, first
you smell smoke, everybody thought it was fireworks or something like
that, and then you just see people dropping and the gunshots are
constant,” witness Christ Jones told ABC’s Denver affiliate KMGH. “I
heard at least 20 to 30 rounds within that minute or two.”
A man who talked to a couple who was inside the theater told ABC News,
“They got up and they started to run through the emergency exit, and
that when she turned around, she said all she saw was the guy slowly
making his way up the stairs and just firing at people, just picking
random people,” he said. “The gunshots continued to go on and on and
then after we didn’t hear anything...we finally got up and there was
people bleeding, there was people obviously may have been actually dead
or anything, and we just ran up out of there, there was chaos
everywhere.”
Witnesses and victims were taken to Gateway High School for questioning.
Hundreds of police and FBI agents are involved in the investigation. A
senior official who is monitoring the situation in Washington said that
early guidance based on the early snapshot of this man’s background
indicated that this act does not appear to be linked to radical
terrorism or anything related to Islamic terrorism.
Though police have said that they believe the shooter was acting alone,
they checked all cars in the parking lot and cleared the area near the
theater.
Dr. Comilla Sasson, at the University of Colorado Hospital where many
of the victims were taken, said they are currently operating on nine
critical patients and have treated 22 in all. She called the hospital
“an absolutely terrifying scene all night.”
“The good news is that the 3-month-old has actually been discharged
home and is in the care of their parents
In a statement, President Obama said, “Michelle and I are shocked and
saddened by the horrific and tragic shooting in Colorado. Federal and
local law enforcement are still responding, and my administration will
do everything that we can to support the people of Aurora in this
extraordinarily difficult time. We are committed to bringing whoever
was responsible to justice, ensuring the safety of our people, and
caring for those who have been wounded.”
A man who was in the adjacent theater with his son, said that the
commotion began as one of the action scenes was starting up.
“These guys came through, and they say someone’s shooting,” he said. “I
thought, ‘Oh, they must have heard the fireworks, you know ... I had no
idea. And then the alarms started to go off in the theater.’”
An explosive device was also found inside the movie house. Police are
not sure whether the device, which investigators are calling a bomb,
was already in place or whether it was thrown into the crowd.
Ambulances rushed to the scene as audience members fled the theater.
Investigators are now interviewing friends and associates of the
suspect to get a sense of the man’s background.
Matthew Mosk contributed to this report.
See videos, read this and other articles at Yahoo
U.S. Representative John Boehner...
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congressman John Boehner (R-West Chester) today
released the following statement:
“Confronted with incomprehensible evil, Americans pull together and
embrace our national family more tightly. I join President Obama,
and every American, in sending my thoughts and prayers to the victims
of this awful tragedy. We will all stand with them, as one
nation, in the days ahead.”
Editor’s
Note: President Obama reportedly cancelled campaign plans and
returned to Washington; Romney spoke as scheduled but addressed his
comments on the tragedy in Colorado, then cancelled other events. Obama
ordered flags at half mast. Both men expressed their condolences and
concern over the tragedy.
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