Eric Harris and the 1999 Columbine High School Massacre
Background
Eric David Harris was born on April 9, 1981, in Wichita, Kansas. His father served in the United States Air Force, and the family moved repeatedly before settling in Colorado. Harris attended Columbine High School in Jefferson County, near Littleton, Colorado, where he became friends with fellow student Dylan Bennet Klebold.
Harris and Klebold worked together at a Blackjack Pizza restaurant and shared an interest in computers, weapons and violent entertainment. Harris maintained a website on which he posted angry writings, threats and descriptions of vandalism. In 1997, information about some of those threats was reported to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, but no criminal charges resulted from the complaint.
On January 30, 1998, Harris and Klebold broke into a parked van and stole electronic equipment. They were arrested and entered a juvenile diversion program. Harris wrote an apology to the vehicle's owner and presented himself to officials as remorseful. Both teenagers completed the program early, but evidence discovered after the Columbine massacre showed that they had continued planning violence while participating in diversion.
Planning the Attack
Harris and Klebold spent months collecting firearms, ammunition and materials for homemade explosives. They recorded videos and produced writings describing their plans, resentment and desire to carry out an attack that would cause enormous destruction. Harris frequently expressed contempt for other people and imagined himself as superior to those around him. Klebold's private writings contained anger, loneliness and repeated thoughts of suicide.
Their plan was not originally intended to be only a school shooting. They placed large propane bombs inside the Columbine High School cafeteria, intending for the explosions to kill students during lunch and cause part of the building to collapse. Harris and Klebold planned to shoot survivors as they fled. Additional explosive devices were left in their vehicles and at another location as diversions. The main cafeteria bombs failed to detonate, forcing the attackers to abandon the central part of their plan.
The exact motive for the massacre remains disputed. Early reports frequently described Harris and Klebold as bullied social outcasts seeking revenge against athletes or members of particular school groups. Later investigations showed that the attack was not limited to specific students, social groups or personal enemies. Most of the victims were selected randomly. Harris and Klebold were also incorrectly portrayed as members of a school group known as the Trench Coat Mafia, although neither was considered a regular member of that group.
The Columbine High School Massacre
On Tuesday, April 20, 1999, Harris, age 18, and Klebold, age 17, arrived separately at Columbine High School. The school was located at 6201 South Pierce Street in unincorporated Jefferson County, Colorado, near Littleton. They placed duffel bags containing propane bombs in the cafeteria and returned to their vehicles to wait for the explosions.
When the cafeteria bombs failed to explode, Harris and Klebold armed themselves and approached the school shortly after 11:19 a.m. Harris carried a Hi-Point 995 carbine and a sawed-off pump-action shotgun. Klebold carried a TEC-DC9 semiautomatic pistol and a sawed-off double-barreled shotgun. Both carried ammunition and homemade explosive devices.
The attack began outside the school's west entrance. Rachel Scott was killed while eating lunch near the building, and her friend Richard Castaldo was seriously wounded. Daniel Rohrbough was killed near the exterior staircase as students attempted to escape. Several other students were wounded in the same area, including Anne Marie Hochhalter, Sean Graves, Lance Kirklin and Michael Johnson.
Harris exchanged gunfire with Jefferson County sheriff's deputy Neil Gardner near the west entrance, but neither man was struck. Harris and Klebold then entered the school, firing through hallways and throwing explosive devices. Teacher and coach William David Sanders directed students away from danger and helped evacuate the cafeteria. He was shot while running through a hallway and was taken into a science classroom, where students and teachers attempted to keep him alive.
The Library Attack
At approximately 11:29 a.m., Harris and Klebold entered the school library. More than 50 students, teachers and staff members were inside. Most had hidden under tables after librarian Patti Nielson called 911 and warned them that armed attackers were approaching.
During approximately seven minutes in the library, Harris and Klebold killed 10 students and wounded 12 others. They fired beneath tables, mocked students, shouted threats and repeatedly reloaded their weapons. The victims were not chosen according to one consistent pattern. Some students were attacked after speaking to the gunmen, while others were shot without warning.
Harris and Klebold left the library at approximately 11:36 a.m. They wandered through other areas of the school, fired additional shots and returned to the cafeteria, where they attempted to ignite one of the failed propane bombs. A partial fire occurred, but the device did not produce the massive explosion they had planned.
The attackers eventually returned to the library. At approximately 12:08 p.m., Harris and Klebold died by suicide near the library's west windows. Their bodies were found close to the remains of several victims. Law enforcement officers did not reach the library until several hours after the shooting began.
Victims Killed on April 20, 1999
- Rachel Joy Scott, 17 – Killed on April 20, 1999, outside Columbine High School near the west entrance in Jefferson County, Colorado. She was eating lunch with Richard Castaldo when the shooting began.
- Daniel Lee Rohrbough, 15 – Killed on April 20, 1999, outside the school near the west staircase and sidewalk. He was attempting to leave the area when he was shot.
- William David “Dave” Sanders, 47 – A teacher and coach who was shot in a second-floor hallway while helping students escape. He died on April 20, 1999, in a science classroom despite prolonged efforts by students and staff members to save him.
- Kyle Albert Velasquez, 16 – Killed on April 20, 1999, inside the Columbine High School library. He was seated near the library's computer tables when the attackers entered.
- Steven Robert Curnow, 14 – Killed on April 20, 1999, while hiding beneath a computer table in the school library. He was the youngest person killed during the attack.
- Cassie René Bernall, 17 – Killed on April 20, 1999, while hiding beneath a table in the school library.
- Isaiah Eamon Shoels, 18 – Killed on April 20, 1999, beneath a table in the school library. Witnesses reported that the attackers directed racist abuse toward him before he was killed.
- Matthew Joseph Kechter, 16 – Killed on April 20, 1999, while hiding beneath the same library table as Isaiah Shoels and survivor Craig Scott.
- Lauren Dawn Townsend, 18 – Killed on April 20, 1999, while hiding with other students beneath a table in the library.
- John Robert Tomlin, 16 – Killed on April 20, 1999, inside the school library after initially being wounded beneath a table.
- Kelly Ann Fleming, 16 – Killed on April 20, 1999, while hiding beside a table in the Columbine High School library.
- Daniel Conner Mauser, 15 – Killed on April 20, 1999, beneath a table in the school library after attempting to resist or push away his attacker.
- Corey Tyler DePooter, 17 – Killed on April 20, 1999, beneath a table in the school library. He was the final victim fatally shot during the attack.
Anne Marie Hochhalter
- Anne Marie Hochhalter, 43 – Hochhalter was 17 when Eric Harris shot her outside Columbine High School on April 20, 1999. The attack left her paralyzed. She died on February 16, 2025, in Colorado, and a coroner later determined that complications associated with her Columbine gunshot injuries contributed to her death. Her death was classified as a homicide, making her an additional fatal victim of the massacre under the later medical ruling.
Injured Survivors
More than 20 people suffered gunshot wounds or other injuries during the massacre. The wounded included Richard Castaldo, Anne Marie Hochhalter, Lance Kirklin, Michael Johnson, Sean Graves, Mark Taylor, Patrick Ireland, Lisa Kreutz, Valeen Schnurr, Kacey Ruegsegger, Nicole Nowlen, John Tomlin before his death, Jennifer Doyle, Austin Eubanks, Jeanna Park, Daniel Steepleton and several others.
Patrick Ireland suffered serious head injuries in the library and remained trapped for hours. Television cameras recorded him escaping through a library window and falling into the arms of emergency personnel. Teacher Patti Nielson and injured student Lisa Kreutz remained hidden inside the library until tactical officers entered the room.
Law-Enforcement Response
Police officers surrounded Columbine High School soon after the first emergency calls, but the response followed the containment procedures commonly used at the time. Officers initially secured the perimeter rather than immediately moving through the building to confront the attackers. Dave Sanders remained in the science classroom for approximately three hours before emergency personnel reached him.
The response generated extensive criticism from victims' families, survivors and law-enforcement experts. Columbine contributed to the widespread adoption of rapid-deployment procedures requiring the first available officers to enter an active-shooter location and move toward the source of gunfire rather than waiting for a specialized tactical team.
Investigation and Warning Signs
The investigation uncovered Harris's website, journals, school assignments, videos and recorded statements. These materials demonstrated that the attack had been carefully planned rather than committed during a sudden emotional outburst. Investigators also found extensive evidence of bomb construction, target practice and efforts to acquire weapons through older friends and private sellers.
Harris had previously threatened fellow student Brooks Brown on his website. Brown's parents reported the threats and provided law enforcement with information about Harris's online writings. An investigator prepared material for a possible search warrant, but the warrant was never presented to a judge. The handling of those warnings became a major source of controversy after the massacre.
Harris had been prescribed the antidepressant Luvox, and toxicology testing found the medication in his body. However, no medical finding established that the drug caused the attack. Attempts to explain the massacre through medication, bullying, music, video games or one particular social influence have generally failed to account for the extensive planning and the different psychological conditions of the two attackers.
Deaths of the Perpetrators
Eric Harris died by suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in the Columbine High School library on April 20, 1999. He was 18 years old. Dylan Klebold also died by suicide in the library and was 17. Because both perpetrators died at the scene, neither was arrested, prosecuted or placed on trial.
Aftermath and Legacy
The Columbine massacre shocked the United States and received worldwide news coverage. It changed how schools, police departments and emergency agencies prepared for armed attacks. Schools expanded lockdown procedures, threat-assessment programs, security systems and emergency communication plans. The tragedy also intensified national debates about firearms, youth violence, school culture, mental health and the role of the internet in spreading threats.
The original library, where most of the victims were killed, was removed. A new library was constructed and dedicated as the HOPE Columbine Memorial Library. The Columbine Memorial was later established in Clement Park behind the school and formally dedicated on September 21, 2007. It honors those killed, those injured, the survivors and the emergency personnel who responded.
Columbine also produced a dangerous copycat effect. Later attackers repeatedly referred to Harris and Klebold, studied their writings or attempted to imitate aspects of the massacre. This influence has led many researchers, journalists and victims' advocates to discourage sensationalized portrayals of the perpetrators and to place greater attention on the victims, survivors and warning signs of planned violence.
Eric Harris remains one of the most notorious mass murderers in American history. His actions with Dylan Klebold on April 20, 1999, killed students and a teacher, permanently injured numerous survivors and inflicted lasting trauma on families and the Columbine community. The massacre continues to be studied as an example of planned mass violence, institutional warning failures and the lasting harm caused when perpetrators receive more attention than the people whose lives they destroyed.
