TUCSON, Ariz. (KGUN) — He is charged with bringing a gun to an elementary school and telling police he wanted to use it on children. Now we have seen and heard from 31 year old Daniel Hollander for the first time.
For his initial court appearance Daniel Hollander sat in front of a video camera and next to an attorney from the Public Defender’s Office.
He said to the judge: “Good morning. My name is Daniel Hollander.”
Most defendants sit quietly in their first court appearance but Daniel Hollander did not. His face and body language showed a strong reaction as the prosecutor outlined the allegations against him.
A prosecutor told the judge: “The defendant allegedly said, ‘I’m here to cause a school shooting with children. The state is abjectly terrified by these allegations. The defendant brought a weapon into a school, during the day. He had no business at the school and this could have ended with mass casualties, your honor.”
Hollander’s bond was set at $250,000.
A court charging document says Hollander showed up on school photo day, approached the photographer and said he wanted his picture taken too.
In his news conference Thursday, Tucson Police Chief Chad Kasmar suggested mental health may figure into this case but it does not excuse putting children in danger. He urged families to get help for troubled loved ones before there is serious trouble.
We found no criminal record for Hollander in background checks that should have found anything from a felony to a parking ticket.
Some of his neighbors said Hollander normally keeps to himself but Danielle Pain says the day before the school incident he came to their house and something wasn’t quite right.
“Very fidgety, finicky. He just looked distressed. He looked panicked. You can tell that he was on something.”
KGUN reporter Craig Smith asked: “Why did why did he say he had even come over?
Danielle Pain: “He said that somebody had broken into his home and stole his cell phone and laptop, and he needed me to call the cops for him.”
She says during the call the 911 operator asked Hollander if he had a weapon and he reached behind his back as if he had one.
Court documents say Hollander had a loaded nine millimeter with him at the school.
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Craig Smith is a reporter for KGUN 9. With more than 40 years of reporting in cities like Tampa, Houston and Austin, Craig has covered more than 40 Space Shuttle launches and covered historic hurricanes like Katrina, Ivan, Andrew and Hugo. Share your story ideas and important issues with Craig by emailing craig.smith@kgun9.com or by connecting on Facebook and Twitter.
