𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟐 𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒅𝒐𝒏 𝑯𝒊𝒈𝒉 𝑺𝒄𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒍 𝑺𝒉𝒐𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒏𝒈
On the morning of February 27th, 2012, at 7:30am, students were waiting for morning busses, just a few minutes before classes started. Gunman TJ Lane entered Chardon High School wearing a gray sweatshirt, carrying a .22 caliber Ruger MK III pistol, and a knife. Immediately after he entered the cafeteria, near the entrance of the school, he shot 10 rounds at a group of students sat at a table. There seemed to be no stalking period, delay, or even movement through the building before the shooting began. The first three students hit were Daniel Parmertor (16), Russell King Jr. (17), and Demetrius Hewlin (16). Three other students; Nick Walczak (18), Nate Mueller (17), and Joy Rickers (19) were struck during the rapid sequence of gunfire. All students wers shot during this sequence, there was no second phase or prolonged attack. Walczak suffered severe injuries resulting in permanent paralysis. Students fled as shots rang out, staff members evacuating nearby classrooms. Football coach Frank Hall toward the gunfire, alerting to the students that they need to LEAVE. He confronted Lane, chasing him out of the cafeteria and toward the parking lot. Minutes later, Lane exited the school and ran towards his car. Police arrived quickly and arrested him near the vehicle outside the school. Three students; Parmertor, King, and Hewlin died from their injuries, while three others were left wounded, one severely.
TJ Lane, born Thomas Michael Lane III, was born on September 19th, 1994, in Ohio. His early years were immediately shaped by domestic violence and parental criminality, his father being repeatedly arrested for violent crimes including attempted murder (2002) and multiple assaults against women, and both of his parents being arrested for domestic violence between 1995 and 1997. Courts at times warned his father to stay away from TJ and his mother due to the severity of the violence. Because of this instability, Lane's parents eventually lost custody, and he was raised primarily by his grandparents. This environment, marked by fear, unpredictability, and trauma, likely contributed to long-term emotional and behavioral issues. Lane's school years weren't any better. He was described as a "reluctant learner", leading to his transfer to Lake Academy, an alternative school for troubled students. He had run-ins with the law, including two arrests in 2009 for violent incidents, spending time in a juvenile detention center. His peers described him in conflicting ways, some seeing him as quiet, reserved, and often sad, while others saw him as kind, interacting with students who were otherwise ignored. This duality of descriptions, kindness and inner turmoil, is common within adolescents experiencing chronic trauma. One of the few documented "signs" was a post that Lane made 2 months before the shooting, a poem on his Facebook account. The actual post has obviously been deleted, but two known chunks of it are;
"In a quaint lonely town, sits a man with a frown. No job. No family. No crown. His luck had run out. Lost and alone. His only company to confide in was the vermin at his feet. He longed for only one thing, the world to bow at his feet... He was better than the rest, all those ones he detests, within their castles, so vain... So, to the castle he proceeds, like an ominous breeze through the trees. 'Stay back!' The Guards screamed as they were thrown to their knees. 'Oh God, have mercy, please!'"
"I am Death. And you have always been the sod. Now! Feel death, not just mocking you. Not just stalking you but inside of you. Wriggle and writhe. Feel smaller beneath my might. Seizure in the Pestilence that is my scythe. Die, all of you."
(ʟᴀɴᴇ sʜᴏʀᴛʟʏ ᴀғᴛᴇʀ ʙᴇɪɴɢ ᴀʀʀᴇsᴛᴇᴅ)
In 2013, he wore the infamous "KILLER" shirt to court, but he also re-created the exact shirt for his hearing.
On September 14th, 2014, he broke out of prison, but was only on the run for about 6 hours, and was found hiding in a ditch only 100 yards from the prison, but there was an entire manhunt for him, statewide.
He had been considered a loud kid in middle school, but as he progressed into high school, he had become quiet and withdrawn.
He had a personal rivalry with one of his victims, Russell King Jr, over a girl who dumped TJ, and got with Russell.
TJ had started weightlifting, as he was planning on fighting Russell, but he just decided to shoot up the school instead.
(ᴛʜᴇ ᴍᴏsᴛ ʀᴇᴄᴇɴᴛʟʏ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ɪᴍᴀɢᴇ ᴏғ ʜɪᴍ, ᴄɪʀᴄᴀ 2016)
𝑯𝒊𝒔 𝒍𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔 (𝒘𝒊𝒕𝒉 𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒇𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒔𝒊𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒃𝒓𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓)
(ɴᴏᴛᴇ: ʙᴇᴅʀᴏᴏᴍ ᴅᴏᴏʀs ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴘᴀᴅʟᴏᴄᴋᴇᴅ ғʀᴏᴍ ᴛʜᴇ ᴏᴜᴛsɪᴅᴇ.)
