Colorado School Shooter Purchased Gun Legally, Also Had Machete And Molotov Cocktails
Karl Pierson's target was reportedly a faculty member at Arapahoe High School in Centennial, Colo., but the number of weapons he had on him suggested that he intended to harm more people.
"His intent was evil and his evil intent was to harm multiple individuals," Arapahoe County Sheriff Grayson Robinson said during a press conference Saturday.
Anyone over the age of 18 can legally buy a shotgun in Colorado, according to the Associated Press.
Pierson carried a pump-action shotgun, a bandolier of shotgun rounds, a machete, and three Molotov Cocktails, a type of explosive device.
The entire incident took about one minutes and 20 seconds.
It's been previously reported that Pierson was targeting the debate team coach because he was kicked off the team, but that is inaccurate, Robinson said.
Pierson hadn't been removed from the team, but the threat toward the teacher might have been motivated by "verbal disciplinary action."
Law enforcement initially thought that more than one student was injured, but it turns out that 17-year-old Claire Davis was the only person Pierson shot. Davis is suffering from severe head trauma and is in critical condition.
"[Pierson] is someone who victimized an innocent young lady by an act of evil, and in my opinion deserves no notoriety and certainly no celebrity," Robinson said. "He deserves no recognition."