By KATY CRAIL
Sheridan High School Student
Editor’s Note: The Sheridan Student Column is brought to readers by Sheridan High School’s 10th grade English class, taught by Abigayle Williams.
There are many people who will argue mass shootings are happening because gun laws are not strict enough. Though that might be some of the issue, it does not justify the fact that people are going around killing innocent people for no apparent reason. I believe that gun laws are not the problem, mental illness is.
On Dec. 14, 2012, there was a school shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School that left 28 people dead and three injured. According to CBS News, after shooting and killing his own mother, Adam Lanza shot 20 kids and six adults. He then shot himself. According to the New York Times website, Lanza was untreated for psychiatric and physical illnesses, such as anxiety, OCD (obsessive-compulsive disorder) and anorexia.
Another case is James Holmes. On July 20, 2012, James Holmes walked into a crowded movie theater and shot and killed 12 people and injured 70 others. According to the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI), prior to the shooting, Holmes was seeing a psychiatrist specializing in schizophrenia.
Also, Jared Loughner was a shooter in Tucson, Ariz. He opened fire at a Safeway Supermarket on Jan. 8, 2011. He left six dead and 14 injured. Loughner attended Pima Community College in Tucson. Many of his fellow classmates said they felt uncomfortable or unsafe around him. Some said that he would laugh randomly and often very loudly during class.
A report from NCBI shows that 60 percent of mass shooters in the United States since 1970 have displayed symptoms including acute paranoia, delusions and depression before committing their crimes. Another problem is that most of the time people with mental illnesses have to seek help themselves. In the end, they have to admit they have a problem. Most people are not willing to admit they have a problem, let alone seek help. There are only a couple of cases where a mentally ill person would not have to seek help by themselves: The court can order a psychiatric evaluation, or if the person commits a crime and is arrested.
In conclusion, many people may argue that gun control laws are the reason mass shootings are happening; however, there are many cases where people who commit mass shootings have shown signs of mental illness, such as Adam Lanza, James Holmes and Jared Loughner. All of these people showed signs of mental illness prior to the shootings. Adam Lanza was untreated for OCD, anxiety and anorexia, James Holmes was seeing a psychiatrist specializing in schizophrenia and Jared Loughner made his peers uncomfortable and unsafe due to outbursts of laughing during class. I believe that gun laws are not the problem, mental illness is.