The Columbine High School Tragedy Quiz

Answer: Littleton, Colorado

The other locations listed were also sites of school shootings. Barry Loukaitis killed three students in Moses Lake, Washington. Luke Woodham killed two in Pearl, Mississippi. Andy Williams killed two in Santee, California.

Columbine High School is not actually located in Littleton, Colorado, but in an unincorporated area of Jefferson County known as Columbine. Littleton is actually in Arapahoe County, but is the closest incorporated city to Columbine, so Columbine is considered to be a Littleton address. Both areas are on the outskirts of Southern Denver. While there was lots of discussion of Columbine as an upper-class suburb, in fact it is primarily middle class and there is little to differentiate it from any other suburb of a major city.

Answer: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold

Seung-Hui Cho was the perpetrator of the Virginia Tech University Massacre, where he killed 33 people before killing himself. Jeff Weise killed his grandfather and grandfather's girlfriend before going to Red Lake High School in Red Lake, Minnesota and killing five students, a teacher, and a security guard before killing himself. Mitchell Johnson and Andrew Golden killed four students and a teacher at Westside Middle School in Jonesboro, Arkansas before being arrested.

Eric Harris, 18, was born in Wichita, Kansas, the son of an Air Force Transport pilot. Like many military children, he moved frequently until his father retired in 1993 and settled in Littleton. His writings and actions have led investigators to describe him as a psychopath.

Dylan Klebold, 17, was born in Lakewood, Colorado and spent his entire life living in the area between Lakewood and Littleton where Columbine is located. He was raised in both the Lutheran and Jewish religions, as his father was Lutheran and his mother Jewish. His writings and actions have led investigators to describe him as severely depressed.

Though there is lots of evidence to suggest that both were heavy drinkers, they had no alcohol or drugs in their system when they committed the murders.

Answer: 13

Six people were killed in the Amish school shootings in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in 2006, and 33 were killed in the Virginia Tech shooting in 2007. 24 people were injured in the Columbine shooting.

The dead were: Rachel Scott, 17 and Daniel Rohrbaugh, 15, both killed outside the school, teacher Dave Sanders, 47, shot in a hallway and died inside a Science classroom, and Kyle Velazquez, 16; Steven Curnow, 14; Cassie Bernall, 17; Isaiah Shoels, 18; Matthew Kechter, 16; Lauren Townsend, 18; John Tomlin, 16; Kelly Fleming, 16; Daniel Mauser, 15; and Corey DePooter, 17, all killed in the Library.

Answer: "This is Your Time" by Michael W. Smith

"I Don't Like Mondays" was written in response to a quote by Brenda Ann Spencer, 16, who killed two and injured nine at Cleveland Elementary School in San Diego in 1979. "Youth of the Nation" was inspired by Columbine and the 2001 shooting at Santana High School in Santee, California. "Friend of Mine" was a tribute song about Columbine in general, but did not focus on any one person.

"This is Your Time" was written in response to the initial news reports that Cassie Bernall had been asked if she believed in God and answered "Yes". Her mother also wrote a bestselling book called "She Said Yes".

Did she say yes? Evidence has shown that while someone was asked and answered "Yes", it was not Cassie Bernall. Valeen Schnurr, who survived several gunshot wounds in the library was the actual one who was asked. Craig Scott had heard the question and misidentified the voice when talking to investigators. He identified the voice as coming from where Schnurr, Lauren Townsend, and Jeanna Park were, and was shocked to find out that Bernall was in a totally different section of the library. Witnesses to Bernall's death state that Eric Harris actually slapped the table and said "Peek-a-Boo" before shooting Bernall.

Still, there is no denying the rest of the story--Cassie Bernall had made a profound personal transformation in the year prior to the shooting.

Answer: Lauren Townsend

Anne-Marie Hochhalter, Nicole Nowlen, and Kacey Ruegsegger were all seriously injured in the shootings and have made remarkable recoveries.

Anne-Marie Hochhalter, paralyzed by a shot to the back, lost her mother to suicide shortly thereafter, but after a long period of depression and isolation eventually became a retail manager.

Nicole Nowlen survived several shots to the abdomen, and became a public speaker for Rachel's Challenge, a ministry started by the family of deceased student Rachel Scott (see www.nicolenowlen.com and www.rachelschallenge.org for more information).

Kacey Ruegsegger was shot through the shoulder, shattering both it and her thumb. Two weeks in the hospital inspired her to become a nurse.

Lauren Townsend was due to be the valedictorian at graduation in a couple weeks. At graduation, she was announced as the valedictorian posthumously. Her mother, Dawn Anna (Anna is her last name), was a teacher and volleyball coach when she developed a major brain disease that needed surgery. She survived the very risky procedure and eventually returned to the classroom. Shortly afterward, her daughter was murdered at Columbine. Debra Winger received an Emmy Nomination for the film.

Answer: Rachel

Kelly Fleming was a 16-year old who died in the library. Lisa Kreutz was shot in the library and spent 2-1/2 hours on the floor of the library before she was rescued. The image of her wheeling up to the podium in a wheelchair to take her diploma is one of my favorite Columbine pictures. Jennifer Doyle was lying under the table with Corey DePooter when she was shot several times. Her hand was shattered and she now has several pins and screws, resulting in her ring finger being permanently bent.

Rachel Scott was described as a very deeply religious girl who was known for being spiritual without being judgmental. She kept very detailed journals, which have since been published in four volumes ("Rachel's Tears", "Rachel Smiles", "Chain Reaction", and "The Journals of Rachel Scott"). Her car, left in the Columbine parking lot and covered with flowers and cards is one of the more dramatic photos associated with Columbine, and after the incident, a local disc jockey told of how she pulled over on the freeway and helped him change a tire in the rain.

Answer: Brooks Brown

All four people listed here have written books that are definitely worth reading:

Liz Carlston wrote "Surviving Columbine", a collection of stories about how Mormon students who were at Columbine that day relied on their faith to help them in their recovery from the tragedy. Even if you are not of the Mormon faith, the stories of the struggles and the psychological impact and how they were overcome are definitely worth reading.

Marjorie Lindholm wrote "A Columbine Survivor's Story". She was in the science room with teacher Dave Sanders as he bled to death. She gives great detail the impact of the event as someone who witnessed it and was not physically injured, but had deep psychological scars to contend with. I read through its 112 pages in less than an hour and was almost shaking, as she expresses so well her difficulties, pain, and eventual recovery.

Dave Cullen was a reporter from the Rocky Mountain News who wrote the book I tried to write. While I got too bogged down in the research and found it difficult to write an actual book, as opposed to a jumbled collection of chapters, he tells the story of the lives and motives of Harris and Klebold, the actual events, the investigation, the return of students to the school, and the controversies. His book, simply titled "Columbine", could be considered required reading for anyone wanting to learn about the event.

Brooks Brown's book is another piece of required reading. "No Easy Answers: The Truth Behind Death at Columbine" is his first-hand account of life at Columbine. He was a lifelong friend of Dylan Klebold's who had a very tumultuous relationship with Eric Harris, who posted death threats against Brown on a website. On the morning of April 20, 1999, Brown saw Harris walking into the school and was told by Harris to go home. Not really understanding why, he did go home, and because he had left prior to the killings, the Colorado Bureau of Investigation targeted him as a suspect. He fought hard to clear his name and his family did its own research, particularly after the media jumped to many conclusions.

He was also a friend of Rachel Scott's, and has a chapter in which he confirms much of what is written in the four books about her.

Answer: A pipe bomb

Eric Harris was an expert pipe bomb maker and had tested several of them prior to the killings. He wrote about his pipe bombs in his journal and on his website, and one of them he was particularly proud of was called "Atlanta". It was found at Dylan Klebold's house when police searched it. It may have been named after the site of the Olympic Centennial Park bombings in 1996, but I do not know this for certain.

Harris and Klebold's mission was a total failure. They did not want to kill only 13, and they did not want to commit suicide in the library. They had brought several pipe bombs with them and laid them around the cafeteria, which was on the first floor directly underneath the library. The killings happened during one of the lunch periods, and the plan was for the library to implode onto the cafeteria, killing 500 or more. However, the bombs did not go off, shocking considering how many Harris had made previously (one detonated 12 hours late because the time had been set for PM instead of AM, and others failed altogether). They intended to shoot people as they ran out of the school, and even wrote about wanting to hijack a plane and crash it into New York City, committing suicide that way. Only when it was clear the bombs weren't working did Harris and Klebold enter the school, and there is footage of them trying to get bombs in the cafeteria to explode after the killings have ended. They succeed with one small bomb, causing a fire in the cafeteria.

Answer: At Chapel Hill Cemetery

The crosses were built by Illinois carpenter Greg Zanis. 15 were originally built, including those for Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold. Those crosses were repeatedly vandalized by many and eventually removed by Brian Rohrbaugh, the father of the deceased Daniel Rohrbaugh, who, like many others, vehemently opposed memorializing the killers along with the dead.

They were eventually moved to Chapel Hill Cemetery, where Rachel Scott, Corey DePooter, and teacher Dave Sanders are buried. People regularly leave gifts, writings, and other tributes at the memorial.

I have a series of videos on Youtube showing the crosses and reading some of the things written on and around them (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7X8SEUKW3c, or search at Youtube for "Crosses of Columbine").

Answer: The shooter(s) committed suicide

One of the greatest controversies of Columbine surrounds the inaction of the responding SWAT and police agencies. Arguments over jurisdiction and a fear of an officer killing an innocent student kept all officers outside of the school for over two hours even though they initially responded very quickly. Dave Sanders bled to death over three hours while waiting for assistance (with a sign stating "One bleeding to death" hung in the classroom window by a student). Patrick Ireland, seriously incapacitated by a gunshot wound to the head and drifting in and out of consciousness, climbed out a second story library window and was helped to the ground by officers because he was too disoriented to find the door.

It was known that the killers were in the library, and for a brief time, gunfire was exchanged through library windows, Klebold and Harris shooting out, and officers shooting in.

Would a faster response had changed anything? Hard to say. Rachel Scott was the first person shot, at about 11:20am. By 11:23, two police officers were on the scene and one of them exchanged gunfire with Harris at 11:24. Teacher Dave Sanders is shot at about 11:27, and the library shooting begins at 11:29. There is some shooting outside towards officers, then Klebold and Harris spend the next seven minutes shooting students in the library--10 killed, 12 injured, 34 escape without being injured.

A mutual aid call is made, and Denver police arrive at about 11:32. The last victim, Corey DePooter, is killed in the library at about 11:35. Harris and Klebold begin wandering around the school, returning to the cafeteria about 11:40. A full police perimeter, covering all exits, is established at 11:44. SWAT makes an initial attempt to enter at 11:46 but a pipe bomb explosion in the cafeteria causes them to retreat.

By this time, they still do not have a full identification of the killers, though they have some reports of one of them being named "Harris". His identity as one of the killers is confirmed at about 11:55. After wandering around the school some more, Harris and Klebold commit suicide in the library at about 12:00. SWAT actually enters the school at 12:06 and move slowly, room by room, over the next couple hours.

If the initial gunfire would have killed Harris, it is possible only a couple fatalities would have resulted (Klebold was a depressive who appeared submissive to Harris, and it's debatable whether he would have continued the spree alone). If police entered the library when they knew Harris and Klebold were there, there would have been a close-range shootout, with likely casualties for police and students. If SWAT succeeded on entering the school earlier or had responded quickly to the science room, teacher Dave Sanders probably would have survived, but no other lives would have been saved.