This article examines five school shooters and five perpetrators of other types of mass violence. The five school shooters are Eric Houston, Eric Harris, Seung Hui Cho, Adam Lanza, and Elliot Rodger. The other perpetrators are Timothy McVeigh, Clay Shrout, Anders Breivik, James Holmes, and Dylann Roof. The article was originally published in Criminology and Public Policy and is posted here with permission. 

This is a fascinating window into the perpetrator’s mind. It includes musings about life and death, self-diagnosis and description of mental and physical problems, preoccupation with killing, and plans for his attack.

This document includes diagrams of the theatre where the attack occurred, as well as records of Holmes’s transactions on PayPal and eBay.

This document contains ten search warrants, including those for Holmes’s residence, vehicle, computer, and cell phone.

This describes the circumstances of the arrest of Holmes.

Post-attack evaluation by Dr. William Reid.

Post-attack evaluation by Dr. Jeffrey Metzner.

Pre-attack records of psychiatric treatment.