Parents of a Virginia Tech student expressed outrage Monday at what they call an inadequate response by college brass to the worst mass-murder shooting in American history.
John and Jennifer Shourds of Lovettsville, Va. demanded the immediate firings of University President Charles Steger and Virginia Tech Campus Police Chief W.R. Flinchum who he said "screwed up" the handling of separate shooting incidents that left 33 students dead, including the shooter.
“My God, if someone shoots somebody there should be an immediate lockdown of the campus,” said John Shourds. “They totally blew it. The president blew it, campus police blew it.”
The Shourds said they received a phone call from their daughter, Alexandra, a freshman at the college in Blacksburg, who was unsure of how to handle a vague university e-mail received around 9:20 a.m. regarding the first shooting incident that happened at the West Ambler Johnston Hall around 7:15 a.m. Later, it was learned that a lone gunman entered that hall, two buildings away from Alexandra’s dorm, and opened fire, killing two people.
His daughter told him she received an e-mail warning while in class of a lockdown of all academic buildings that day. Each Virginia Tech student carries a laptop. “There are also loudspeaker systems attached to poles along the campus,” said Shourds. “The warning system worked.” However, John Shourds said he had doubts about the effectiveness of Virginia Tech’s campus police from the start. He called the force, “an Andy Griffith and Barney Fife” operation. "They are really small police force for 20,000 students and they are not the best and the brightest,” said Shourds..." Batten down the hatches as Andy, Barney, and Steger try their level best to blame it on the evil guns and not their own incompetence. The very first thing that went through my mind was how in all hells this maniac was allowed to wander the campus at will, for hours, without being stopped by someone, ANYONE.
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