New details: Loughner cried at traffic stop hours before mass shooting

[alp227]

Source: CNN

Jared Loughner broke down and cried to an Arizona Game and Fish officer when he was pulled over for running a red light just hours before his 2011 shooting rampage, according to investigative documents released Wednesday.

"It's bad for your health, you're gonna kill somebody, you're gonna kill yourself," Game and Fish Officer Alen Edward Forney told Loughner, according to a transcript of Forney's statements to investigators.

"I said, 'I'm not gonna write you a citation for this.' And when I said that to him, his face got kinda screwed up and, and he started to cry.

Read more: http://www.cnn.com/2013/03/27/justice/arizona-loughner-details/index.html

[mbperrin]

1. Cascading failures and no follow-up.

Parents, college, law enforcement continued to just let him run around without treatment or even examination, yet all of them knew he was in trouble.

Cost him his freedom and a little girl her life.

[wordpix]

6. exactly, but they'd say they tried to get him help, he just wouldn't go for it

My friend's son who's schizophrenic is the same---he won't go for help---everyone close to my friend knows he's unstable but there's no place to commit him except jail, he hasn't done a crime, and when he's examined, the professionals do not deem him mentally ill.

So what do you do with a scenario like that? Not much to do.

[mbperrin]

7. We simply need to make involuntary commitment an alternative.

And we need to stop doing drive-by analysis. It's a cottage industry here - whole exams are done in an hour.

MMPI administration ought to be the absolute minimum.

[antigone382]

2. To be honest, I think it's a failure of our justice system that he is in prison.

I grieve very much for the six people who were killed, and Gabby Giffords and the dozens of others who were injured. I just think there is no question that Loughner is tragically schizophrenic--and I don't at all mean that to imply that most schizophrenics are dangerous, as I know they are not. In his case, his mental illness led to tragic and violent results. The fact that the death penalty was held over his head to compel a guilty plea when he was clearly not in a lucid state of mind in the months leading up to the crime is a travesty. He should be getting mental healthcare.

And yes, I am also aware that state mental health facilities are often at least as horrific as prison. I don't find that acceptable either. I maintain, however, that a textbook case of "not guilty by reason of insanity" which results in a "guilty" plea is a subversion of justice.

[wordpix]

5. what "mental health facilities?" There are very few now

My friend has a schizophrenic son and the only facility in our region is a hospital that might let him spend the night IF they find him not of sound mind. Usually when he's examined he convinces the prof's that he's fine but he is not fine and I'm afraid he will kill my friend and her husband if he gets hold of a gun.

[amandabeech]

9. Some prison systems have special mental health facilities because

people like Loughner don't belong in the general prison population, and there are more like him.

It is really a very difficult situation, and I don't have any answers to propose.

[graham4anything]

3. If this happened in NYC,

there is a good chance the shooting would have been stopped before it started.

(I know there are some here who don't want to hear that, but it is true).

[VanillaRhapsody]

4. uh no.....

You don't seem to understand the gun laws in THAT state!

[Tumbulu]

8. Good point nt