Columbine families view killers' tapes, express outrage at media release

By Holly Kurtz
and Lynn Bartels
Denver Rocky Mountain News Staff Writers

Families of the Columbine High victims for the first time Monday watched the painful videotapes of Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris plotting to kill their loved ones.

"It was all very bad," said Brad Bernall, whose daughter Cassie died in the massacre.

The viewing came just hours after the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department apologized for showing the tapes to Time magazine before the families.

Outraged parents criticized Sheriff John Stone, saying their requests to see the tapes had been repeatedly refused.

"I don't know who to be more upset with, Time magazine or the Sheriff's Department," said Connie Michalik, mother of wounded Columbine student Richard Castaldo.

Investigators seized three homemade videotapes from Harris' home in the days after the April 20 shooting that left 13 dead and about two dozen wounded.

The tapes show the cold-blooded killers painstakingly planning the attack they hoped would produce a high body count, a cultlike fan club and famous film directors vying to tell their story.

They named who they planned to kill -- although investigators say all of their victims were random -- and showed off the arsenal of rifles and homemade bombs they had hidden in Harris' bedroom.

The seniors ranted and rambled about minorities, "white trash" and classmates who had picked on them since elementary school -- in short, everyone.

"I've narrowed it down," Klebold said on one tape. "It's humans I hate.

"God doesn't exist."

Said Harris: "We're going to die killing you."

Columbine parent Dale Todd, whose son Evan was injured in the library, said he doesn't blame the boys' parents because the teens had hidden what they were up to.

"They were the kids next door," he said. "They could be anybody's kid."

Time created a frenzy when it announced Sunday that it had seen the tapes and had made them their cover story. Because the magazine had seen the tapes, the sheriff's office agreed to the Denver Rocky Mountain News' request Sunday to also view the tapes.

All of the media were shown the tapes at noon Monday under the condition no audio or videotapes be made. Viewing for the families was later that afternoon.

Sheriff's officials apologized for causing the families pain. But they defended their actions by saying the Time reporter agreed to use the tapes as background, not as information in an article.

"The only thing we did wrong was trust Time," Deputy Wayne Holverson said.

Time denies having any such arrangement.

Brian Rohrbough, whose son was killed April 20, heaped blame on the sheriff's office.

"Jefferson County is lying through their teeth now," he said.

But Larry Nimmo, whose stepdaugher Rachel Scott was the first one killed, said he believes the Time reporter "snookered" the sheriff.

"There's no reason to believe they didn't lie," he said of Time.

Tom Mauser, whose son Daniel died in the attack, said he couldn't believe the tapes were released during the holiday season, and he called the sheriff's office.

He said Undersheriff John Dunaway called him back and apologized.

The Sheriff's Department administration approved showing the tapes to Time, Holverson said.

District Attorney Dave Thomas and Jefferson County Schools Superintendent Jane Hammond also said they had been caught off guard and that the families should have seen the tapes first.

Angela Sanders, whose father died while trying to save his students, was upset.

"We're the victims' families, and the first place we hear anything is in the paper. And it's been that way all along, and it's really frustrating," said Sanders, daughter of teacher Dave Sanders.

As the press showing was getting under way, Columbine parents Randy and Judy Brown showed up and demanded to be admitted.

A sheriff's official tried to keep them out.

"Are you going to arrest me if I go in that room?" Randy Brown angrily asked before storming into the showing.

Officers didn't stop him.

"Rather than have a knockdown drag out with them, we allowed them in," said Holverson.

"They wanted to watch the tapes, and we figured this was as good a time as any."

What the Browns saw on the tapes turned their stomachs.

"It's the end of innocence, isn't it?" Randy Brown said.

They had long held out hope that Klebold, the boy they had known since second grade, was somehow dragged into the shooting plot by Harris.

A year before the shootings, the Browns had warned the sheriff that Harris was extremely violent, but detectives did not follow up.

Judy Brown sat on the floor, watching the hateful, expletive-laced ramblings. At times, she covered her mouth in horror, especially when Klebold criticized his family.

The gunmen only filmed one video at Klebold's home, a dress rehearsal on April 17 for what they planned to wear during the attack four days later.

In a stunning image of evil vs. innocence, Klebold's tuxedo for the prom the next day hung on his closet door as he donned black pants, a skinning knife, two weapons, ammunition and a black trench coat.

They laughed about the poetry they had written in class that day, about stopping violence and hate.

In their one-minute, 20-second goodbye tape made the morning of the shootings, Harris mentioned two friends, Nate Dykeman and Chris Morris. He told them if they survived the attack, they could have his belongings.

"It's amazing, the anger they had. It's unbelievable," said Mark Taylor, who was severely injured in the attack. "It helps me understand why they did it."

On the tape, Klebold had said, "Everyone has to go through hell. Everyone has to suffer."

And everyone associated with Columbine has.

Contact Holly Kurtz at (303) 892-5082 or kurtzh@rockymountainnews.com. Lynn Bartels is at (303) 892-5327 or bartelsl@rockymountainnews.com. Additional reporing by Tillie Fong, Kevin Vaughan, Gary Massaro, Ann Carnahan and Bill Scanlon.