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Police Piece Together Shooter's Trail

Kazmierczak spent two days in motel room before shooting

By Wesley Oliver,  Newser Staff

Posted Feb 16, 2008 10:43 AM CST
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(Newser) – Before his shooting rampage at NIU, Steven Kazmierczak spent two days in a motel, taking cold medicine and drinking Red Bull, the Chicago Tribune reports. He left behind no note, only a sealed duffel bag filled with gun ammo. Kazmierczak, who had stopped taking medication for anxiety, also sent his ex-girlfriend packages loaded with gun accessories. He instructed her not to open them until Valentine’s Day.

Acquaintances continued to struggle to square the Kazmierczak they knew—a gifted, gentle sociology student—with the one who killed 5 students. The AP reports that he spent a year in a psychiatric hospital in the '90s after becoming unruly at home, but medication seemed to conquer that behavior. Last month, Kazmierczak wrote to a mentor that “everything is going well” at his new school and that he planned to attend law school.

A tearful Robert Kazmierczak, father of suspected NIU gunman Stephen Kazmierczak, yells out his front door to media as a Sheriffs deputy guards his property Friday, Feb. 15, 2008, in Lakeland, Fla. (AP Photo/Joe Ranze)
A tearful Robert Kazmierczak, father of suspected NIU gunman Stephen Kazmierczak, yells out his front door to media as a Sheriffs deputy guards his property Friday, Feb. 15, 2008, in Lakeland, Fla. (AP...   (Associated Press)
In this photo released Feb. 15, 2008, by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is Steven Kazmierczak who was identified by Florida authorities and a university official familiar with the investigation as the gunman who killed five people at Northern Illinois University. Kazmierczak was currently enrolled as a graduate student...
In this photo released Feb. 15, 2008, by the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is Steven Kazmierczak who was identified by Florida authorities and a university official familiar with the investigation...   (Associated Press)
This undated image obtained from a MySpace webpage shows Steven Kazmierczak who was identified by Florida authorities and a university official familiar with the investigation as the gunman who killed five people at Northern Illinois University. Kazmierczak was currently enrolled as a graduate student at the University of Illinois. (AP...
This undated image obtained from a MySpace webpage shows Steven Kazmierczak who was identified by Florida authorities and a university official familiar with the investigation as the gunman who killed...   (Associated Press)
Robert Kazmierczak, father of Stephen Kazmierczak, suspected gunman in Thursday's Northern Illinois University shootings, peaks through his blinds at a Sheriff's deputy, Friday, Feb. 15, 2008, in Lakeland, Fla.(AP Photo/Joe Ranze)
Robert Kazmierczak, father of Stephen Kazmierczak, suspected gunman in Thursday's Northern Illinois University shootings, peaks through his blinds at a Sheriff's deputy, Friday, Feb. 15, 2008, in Lakeland,...   (Associated Press)
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University of Illinois • school shooting • Illinois • scholar • DeKalb • sociology • Northern Illinois University • Steven Kazmierczak • criminal justice • anxiety disorder • psychiatric treatment center • guns

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