Louisiana shooting: Gunman had history of ‘mental health issues’

“It wasn’t to die in this theater”, said Col. Michael Edmonson, of the Louisiana State Police. One victim “played dead to stay alive”, according to Jindal.

“What happened is that the quick law enforcement response forced him back into the theater, at which time he shot himself”, Lafayette police chief Jim Craft told reporters. Inside his motel room near the theater, investigators found disguises including glasses and wigs, but no explanation for why two families are now planning funerals.

Authorities in Louisiana and Alabama cited these mental problems Friday as they bemoan the underfunding of mental health services in America.

Bone said Houser shouted profanities and threats, and told the family he wouldn’t leave.

Houser “has a history of mental health issues, i.e., manic depression and/or bi-polar disorder”, according to a request for a temporary protective order filed against him in 2008 by his wife and daughter, as well as his daughter’s then-fiance and the fiance’s parents.

Houser tried real estate in Phenix City. On Twitter, on anti-government discussion boards and on other forums online, a person using that name and the name Rusty Houser praised the Westboro Baptist Church, Timothy McVeigh and even Adolf Hitler.

Calvin Floyd, a former WLTZ-TV host in Georgia, said that Houser was a frequent caller who expressed radical views, an opposition to women in the workplace and advocated violence against abortion supporters.

Bobby Jindal on Friday deflected questions about whether Thursday night’s movie theater shooting should prompt a reevaluation of gun policies.

He seemed like just another patron as he entered Lafayette’s Grand 16 cinema, one of 25 people who bought tickets to the romantic comedy.

He began to flee after an initial deadly burst, but went back inside as police closed in.

“In this case, the explanation will be less than in other cases based on what they learned by talking to family members and processing that hotel room and vehicle”, Jindal said on CNN. He had switched its licence plates and stashed the keys on top of a tyre. “I didn’t hear anybody screaming either”, said Ms Domingue, who added that she heard about six shots before she and her fiance ran to the nearest exit, leaving behind her shoes and purse.

Among the chaos, Jeanerette High School English teacher Ali Martin and librarian Jena Meaux were credited with helping save lives.

His first two victims in the 100-strong audience were sitting right in front of him in the Grand Theatre in Lafayette, Louisiana. She saw “an older white man” standing up and shooting down, not in her direction.

“We just pray for them and we’re thinking about them”, he said.

The two fatalities were identified as Jillian Johnson, 33, an artist and boutique owner and Mayci Breaux, 21, a student at Louisiana State University-Eunice. St. Germain said Breaux was excited about becoming a radiologist and her future with her boyfriend of several years. Three patients had been stabilized, including one who remained in intensive care.

Emily Mann sat laughing at the movie “Trainwreck” in the Lafayette, La., theater Thursday, enjoying a typical night out with her friend. Norman Bone said, “We had a little trouble with him when we bought the house trying to get him out. Then he became your sworn enemy”, Hardin said.

Hardin said he once partnered with Houser on a real-estate project, but they had a falling out and hadn’t spoken since around 2007.

Houser lived in Phenix City, Alabama on and off from 2005 and 2014, and was known to both the city police department and the Russell County Sheriff’s Office due to complaints of domestic violence and vandalism during an eviction, Taylor said.

But Jindal reasserted his point and said the most important thing for him to do now is support the families of victims.

Instead, police said, Houser’s mother sent him $5,000.

About seven years ago, Chancey said, Houser put a “doomsday-type” flier in neighbors’ mailboxes warning that a global economic collapse was about to occur and everyone should pool their resources and work together.