Isla Vista grapples with mass killing spree
ISLA VISTA, Calif. (KABC) -- Friends and family of the victims in a mass killing spree in Isla Vista mourned, as more details emerged about the alleged gunman and his plot.
Elliot Rodger, 22, is accused of fatally shooting three people, fatally stabbing three men in his apartment and injuring 13 others in a murderous rampage before shooting himself.
As of Monday afternoon, three victims remained hospitalized. Of those, two were listed in good condition and one was listed in fair condition. Two patients were released Monday.
Nick Pasichuke, 19, said he was long-boarding down the street when he was struck by Rodger's car. Pasichuke's father says his son has suffered one broken leg, a broken ankle and fractures to his face.
The six killed included: Cheng Yuan Hong, 20, of San Jose; George Chen, 19, of San Jose; Weihan Wang, 20, of Fremont; Christopher Michaels-Martinez, 20, of Los Osos; Katherine Cooper, 22, of Chino Hills; and Veronika Weiss, 19, of Westlake Village.
UCSB canceled classes Tuesday for a memorial service that was expected to be held at 4 p.m. at Harder Stadium on the 21,685-student campus.
A vigil was held for Weiss at 8 p.m. Monday at the Westlake High School swimming pool. Weiss was a freshman at the University of California, Santa Barbara and was a former member of Westlake High School girls water polo team.
From shock to heartbreak to the haunting memories that just won't stop or go away, community members remain heartbroken. Memorials have sprung up across the community, outside the Alpha Phi sorority house where Cooper and Weiss were shot and a deli where Michaels-Martinez was gunned down.
Student Carolina Feria can't stop thinking about the cries for help she heard coming from the group of Delta Delta Delta girls shot near Alpha Phi.
"I heard a female who was screaming, 'Help me! I got shot. Help me, I'm dying. Somebody help me,' and she sounded so helpless," Feria said.
The victims were helpless in the face of Rodger, who was armed with knives, three semiautomatic handguns and his car, which he used to kill innocent victims and ram pedestrians.
New details about the gunman
Rodger left behind several videos and a 137-page manifesto that revealed his plan to exact revenge on the women he perceived to have rejected him and the men who they chose over him.
He uploaded his last video to YouTube shortly before the rampage. In it, he lamented his lack of a sex life and said he was a lonely and frustrated virgin.
"I'll give you exactly what you deserve, all of you, all you girls who rejected me, looked down upon me, you know, treated me like scum," he said in the video.
On Sunday, officials with the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco Firearms and Explosives executed search warrants at the homes of his divorced parents in Woodland Hills and West Hills.
Rodger's parents say the troubled 22-year-old had several therapists. Eyewitness News has learned that more than one of those therapists viewed Rodger's online threats and contacted Santa Barbara police.
Upon receiving a statement Rodger sent Friday night, his parents also immediately contacted authorities and raced to see their son, a family friend told ABC News. They were on the 101 Freeway headed to Santa Barbara when they heard news of the violence.
Before the killings, Rodger's mother became alarmed about bizarre videos he posted online and alerted authorities in April. But Rodger was able to convince deputies that he was not a risk to himself or others - conditions that would have allowed them to take him into custody under California law.
A neighbor who did not want to be identified described Rodger as strange and quiet.
"When they pulled three bodies out of that room, I was in complete shock," he said. "He's a tiny guy. I never, ever thought he could take three guys down with a knife."
Rodger had registered at Santa Barbara Community College at various times in the past three years, but either stopped attending or withdrew from his classes, SBCC President Lori Gaskin said in a statement. He completed three courses in 2011.
Lucky Radley, a childhood friend, said he was surprised to be named in Rodger's manifesto and was shocked at the events. Rodger had written that Radley was initially nice, but later became the subject of his "extreme jealousy and hatred."
Radley allegedly got the attention Rodger craved, but Radley says it was Rodger who was withdrawn and incapable of socializing.
"He was really soft spoken, and he would say one-word answers, just to answer your question, but he would never start a conversation or anything," Radley said.
The attorney for Rodger's father says Rodger was diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome. Dr. Leslie Seppinni, a clinical psychologist, says though Asperger's may have heightened his feelings of isolation, the syndrome has no correlation to killing. She says Rodger's alleged actions point more to a spree killing.
And though Rodger was articulate in his videos and writings, Seppinni says he likely missed social cues when trying to communicate one-on-one with people.
