19-year-old Paul Steber of Boston was arrested for allegedly plotting to shoot up High Point University in High Point, North Carolina. Steber was said to be in possession of a semi-automatic handgun and a double-barreled shotgun while living on campus. North Carolina law prohibits firearms from being kept on university grounds. Steber was turned in by another student.
Steber reportedly admitted to police that he planned a shooting at the school although he seems to have given multiple reasons as to why. In one instance he is said to have told police that he’s been planning a shooting since Christmas of last year claiming he didn’t want to be ‘an outcast’ anymore. In another instance, he claimed that he would have killed his roommate and himself if his roommate got into a fraternity and he didn’t.
As far as being an outcast goes, there may have been good reason for that. According to a former high school classmate, Steber would constantly look up guns, the NRA, and politicians while at school. Steber is even said to have admitted to police that the reason he chose to attend High Point University was that it’s easier to obtain firearms in North Carolina that it is in Massachusetts. It’s also alleged that Steber researched mass shootings like the Charleston, South Carolina church shooting by watching videos and studying what to do and what not to do as a mass shooter. He’s currently being held on $2 million bond.
So as usual, it seems like he’s just another selfish and emotionally stunted coward who can’t handle any degree of failure without resorting to violence. It’s situations like this that make me reiterate that the gun is a coward’s weapon.
I’ll post more details as time allows and as they become available.
(Sources)
CBS Boston
WCNC
Newsweek
Real Crime with Trench Reynolds 