According to research by the National Institute of Justice, most school shooters exhibit outward signs of crisis, whether it be through social media or other means.
The government's research indicates shooters "often publicly broadcast a high degree of personal instability and an inability to cope in their current mental state."
The report is particularly noteworthy after the Federal Bureau of Investigation revealed on Wednesday that the alleged 14-year-old shooter in the Winder, Georgia, high school shooting that left two students and two teachers dead had been interviewed in 2023 by local law enforcement about potential threats.
Ultimately, authorities did not find probable cause to make an arrest at the time.
RELATED STORY | The FBI says authorities interviewed the Georgia school shooting suspect about threats in 2023
Katherine Schweit, who led the FBI's active shooter initiative, said it is important for people to speak out when there are signs a person may be in crisis.
"The most important thing that I've learned from working on this for a decade or more is that it starts in the home, it starts with your friends and your family," Schweit said. "FBI research tells us that in the case of school shooters, where we looked at actual shootings and the shooters, 92% of the student shooters conveyed that information. They spoke words and they did actions that their classmates saw."
While in the case of Wednesday's school shooting, speaking out was not enough, Schweit suggested that people should not be discouraged from reporting potential school shooters to authorities. According to the National Institute of Justice, two-thirds of foiled plots in all mass shootings, including school mass shootings, are detected through public reporting.
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"We have to convince them that they must report," Schweit said. "They must tell somebody to get them help. Telling is getting somebody help. Snitching is when you're trying to get somebody in trouble. The people on the gaming site in May of 2023 who relayed in anonymous tips to the FBI saying, 'hey, this person is talking about a school shooting,' they were trying to get help for people."
The National Institute of Justice said that 80% of those who conduct mass school shootings stole their weapon from a family member. The government's report suggests that there is a need for more secure firearm storage practices.
In the case of Wednesday's school shooting, the FBI said the suspect's father stated he had hunting guns in the house, but the suspect did not have unsupervised access to them.
