All this laying the blame elsewhere is stupid.

The blame lies on the shooter.

He chose this act of violence. He chose to procure a gun. He chose this path. End of story.

Millions of people come from terrible childhoods - raised with only 1 parent or no parent - and turn out fine. Your past only determines your present and future if you let it.

The father was involved. Please stop making stuff up and stereotyping black men as uninvolved fathers who abandon their children.

https://www.nbc12.com/2022/11/15/i-still-cant-believe-it-father-uva-shooting-suspect-speaks/

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Oh, I’m not blaming the dad for not detecting mental illness and realizing the situation was grave; I get that. I’m talking about not following up his son, whom he knew was struggling, and then acting like his paranoid son should have had the wherewithal to reach out to him for help. That doesn’t sit right with me.

Agree. Other sources say dad left the family and the son struggled with that. Now, he wants to come and act like he was around to support the son but he didn’t take advantage. And as usual, the mother will get all the blame for how the kid turned out. Not excusing the son whatsoever but the father’s response also didn’t sit well with me.

NP here. Y’all need to read some Richmond news. Parents divorced when shooter was a kid and initially he lived with his mother in Mosby Court. But he kept getting in trouble. For high school be moved to his father’s house and lived with him in Petersburg and that is when he matured, joined the football team, got good grades, etc. From all accounts his father was involved. I don’t think anyone is blaming his mother. Reports suggest he was trying to get to his mother’s house when he was captured. She did not know what he had done. When the police were interviewing her she was seen sobbing in her front yard. It’s all over RVA news sources.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Father also left the family when shooter was a kid, so I don't believe this is a very involved parent.

definitely not defending this father, but want to offer a different perspective. Dead beat dads have priority issues where they sacrifice relationship with their kids to spite the other parent - visitation, child support, co-parenting issues; but are more open to having a relationship with their kids later -- after they don't have to go thru the mother or after they have matured, etc. I agree, that this dad likely isn't as involved as a more healthy father-son relationship

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Oh, I’m not blaming the dad for not detecting mental illness and realizing the situation was grave; I get that. I’m talking about not following up his son, whom he knew was struggling, and then acting like his paranoid son should have had the wherewithal to reach out to him for help. That doesn’t sit right with me.

Agree. Other sources say dad left the family and the son struggled with that. Now, he wants to come and act like he was around to support the son but he didn’t take advantage. And as usual, the mother will get all the blame for how the kid turned out. Not excusing the son whatsoever but the father’s response also didn’t sit well with me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Oh, I’m not blaming the dad for not detecting mental illness and realizing the situation was grave; I get that. I’m talking about not following up his son, whom he knew was struggling, and then acting like his paranoid son should have had the wherewithal to reach out to him for help. That doesn’t sit right with me.

Keep in mind his son is 23. Yes, he could urge his son to get help, even offer to pay for and take him there but he can't force him to go. Even if the father were to beg and plead it doesn't mean his son would have listened.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Oh, I’m not blaming the dad for not detecting mental illness and realizing the situation was grave; I get that. I’m talking about not following up his son, whom he knew was struggling, and then acting like his paranoid son should have had the wherewithal to reach out to him for help. That doesn’t sit right with me.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paranoid typically means you think something is happening to you that actually isn’t.

What a horrible incident and I really feel for the families of lost loved ones.

It's seen in schizophrenia and some forms of bipolar.

Male adults usually onset in college---ages 18-22 is often first onset.

When a kid is away at college, it goes unnoticed because family isn't around to note it. And, times of stress exacerbate it, are triggers.

Mental health is one of the biggest problems our country faces and is the reason for the vast majority of mass shootings.

Stop perpetuating NRA talking points. People like you are the reason we have such a violent society.

It's not a NRA talking point - schizophrenia and bipolar do appear in college age, mostly males. And kids away at college can easily isolate themselves and go unnoticed. I've got first hand knowledge of just how bad this can be (and side note, it happened at UVa but years ago.) Pair that with easy access to guns and you have what we have in this country.

NP here. While I do not believe the majority of mass shootings are committed by paranoid schizophrenics the one that occurred when I was in college was. Google Wendell Williamson.

In that case, the shooter was a law student who had been involuntarily committed twice and was diagnosed, prescribed medication and had been seeing a doctor. His parents knew. His parents also kept a semi automatic weapon in their house, unlocked. His therapist was retiring and Williamson was instructed to start with a new one, was given the name and number and he himself had to set up the appointment. But he never did. And he stopped taking his meds. And when he went home for Christmas break, he started taking his father’s gun out to the woods for target practice against trees, with his parents’ knowledge.

He goes back to school in January and takes his father’s gun with him. A few weeks later he dresses in camo, paints his face, brings the gun and a backpack full of hundreds of rounds of ammunition and hundreds of condoms. He calculates what time of day and day of the week would have the most students on campus, drives down there, parks his car 2 blocks from campus, gets out of his car and starts shooting. He was aiming for men, because they were reading his mind and preventing him from scoring with women. So his objective: kill all men and have sex with all the women (hence the condoms). He shot 4 people and killed 2 (including a boy from Annapolis). The police couldn’t stop him, it took a bystander who had served in Desert Storm to tackle him and stop him. His father never knew the gun was missing until a reporter called and asked him if he kept guns in the house.

Williamson was found innocent by reason of insanity. He sued his therapist who retired, and won. Laws in NC and training of police for active shooters were changed because of this case. Williamson is still alive, living in NC.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Father also left the family when shooter was a kid, so I don't believe this is a very involved parent.

It's not legal for my kid to drink in College but he can buy a gun and use it!

Anonymous wrote:While mental illness isn’t the cause of most violence in the US, it is true that serious mental illness often presents in college age kids. It often doesn’t get detected early because kids are away from home

Schizophrenia tends to show up earlier in males than females. For males, it's typically between ages 18 and 25 and for females, between ages 25 and 35.

Although schizophrenia can occur at any age, the average age of onset tends to be in the late teens to the early 20s for men (college age).

Most people are diagnosed with bipolar disorder in adolescence or adulthood, but the symptoms can appear earlier in childhood. Bipolar disorder is often episodic, but it usually lasts a lifetime.

Bipolar disorder usually develops inadolescence or early adulthood — the mean age of onset is 18, and between 15 and 19 is the most common period of onset. But the disorder’s first signs are very often overlooked or mischaracterized. At the outset, bipolar symptoms are commonly mistaken forADHD, depression, anxiety, borderline personality disorder and, in its more severe manifestations, asschizophrenia.

That’s because the first symptoms of this disorder are unusually varied. Only over time does the pattern of alternating high and low moods become clear, meaning that in many cases people withbipolar disorder are left waiting months, or even years, for an accurate diagnosis.

Plus being known to police and, presumably, the University. He didn’t report possession to UJC. Lots of holes that could have been plugged. I wouldn’t be surprised if lawsuits were forthcoming.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:The Daily Mail is a British tabloid. They’re notorious for incorrect and misleading articles. Please reconsider using them as a news source.

The article directly quotes father’s interview with NBC12 — is that legitimate enough for you?


“Jones Jr. also told his father that some people had been 'giving him a hard time', but that he was still 'upbeat'. 'I don't know what happened between then and now to cause this to happen,' he said.

'He had some problems the last time I talked to him. He said some people were picking on him or whatever, he didn't know how to handle it and I told him just go to school, don't pay it any mind' the distraught father said.

'He was really paranoid when I talked to him about something, but he wouldn't tell me everything. He was a very sensitive young man.'

The last time the father and son spoke was a month ago. Jones Sr. expressed regret that his son did not call him. If he did, Jones Sr. said, maybe he could have done something to prevent the tragedy.

'What happened? Why did it have to get this far? He could've called me,' he told NBC12. 'I don't know why he didn't call me Saturday. If he had called me Saturday, I think maybe I could have talked him out of some things, maybe, hopefully.'

It bothers me that the suspect’s dad says his son revealed that he was being bullied and seemed paranoid, but was reluctant to disclose what he was paranoid about, they didn’t speak again for a month, and now, after his son shot 5 people and killed 3 of them, he’s saying his son could’ve called him instead? I feel like most parents would be doing some soul searching about all the things they should have done differently if their child was a mass shooter.

Father is not informed about mental illness warning signs. Most parents aren't. First episodes come on rapidly and include a change in character. Not being around the son daily and being far away, he was not there to see how bad he was. Also, they tend to mask it to relatives.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paranoid typically means you think something is happening to you that actually isn’t.

What a horrible incident and I really feel for the families of lost loved ones.

It's seen in schizophrenia and some forms of bipolar.

Male adults usually onset in college---ages 18-22 is often first onset.

When a kid is away at college, it goes unnoticed because family isn't around to note it. And, times of stress exacerbate it, are triggers.

Mental health is one of the biggest problems our country faces and is the reason for the vast majority of mass shootings.

Stop perpetuating NRA talking points. People like you are the reason we have such a violent society.

It's not a NRA talking point - schizophrenia and bipolar do appear in college age, mostly males. And kids away at college can easily isolate themselves and go unnoticed. I've got first hand knowledge of just how bad this can be (and side note, it happened at UVa but years ago.) Pair that with easy access to guns and you have what we have in this country.

+100

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Paranoid typically means you think something is happening to you that actually isn’t.

What a horrible incident and I really feel for the families of lost loved ones.

It's seen in schizophrenia and some forms of bipolar.

Male adults usually onset in college---ages 18-22 is often first onset.

When a kid is away at college, it goes unnoticed because family isn't around to note it. And, times of stress exacerbate it, are triggers.

Mental health is one of the biggest problems our country faces and is the reason for the vast majority of mass shootings.

Stop perpetuating NRA talking points. People like you are the reason we have such a violent society.

It's not a NRA talking point - schizophrenia and bipolar do appear in college age, mostly males. And kids away at college can easily isolate themselves and go unnoticed. I've got first hand knowledge of just how bad this can be (and side note, it happened at UVa but years ago.) Pair that with easy access to guns and you have what we have in this country.