Red Lake families meet in private with Heffelfinger


A private meeting between the families of the victims of the March 21, 2005, shootings on the Red Lake Reservation and U.S. Attorney Tom Heffelfinger stirred up strong emotions among attendees, according to news reports.

Family members said they were told that as many as 39 people of the attacks planned by Jeff Weise, the 16-year-old shooter who turned the gun on himself after killing nine people. They were also told that Weise carried out the shootings in a manner similar to the 1999 Columbine school shooting in Colorado.

"It's horrid. I just got a headache," Barbara Brun, whose son, Derrick, died in the shooting, was quoted as saying. "I wasn't this angry before I came. I haven't been this angry since March 21st."

The families have been angered by what they say is lack of information about the incident. They protested when they were excluded from the court case involving Louis Jourdain, the only person charged in connection with the shootings. Jourdain, 17, pleaded guilty and was sentenced to juvenile rehabilitation for non-violent crimes.

Some of the families are planning to sue the public school district on the reservation. The Red Lake High School, where the shootings took place, is not part of the Bureau of Indian Affairs system.

Get the Story:
Hurt remains as Red Lake case closes (The Minneapolis Star Tribune 1/31)
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At least 39 knew of shooter's plan to attack Red Lake school (The St. Paul Pioneer Press 1/31)
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Meeting provides details to families (The Fargo Forum 1/31)
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Kin of Shooting Victims, Prosecutor Meet (AP 1/31)
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Relevant Links:
Red Lake Net News - http://www.rlnn.com
Red Lake Nation - http://www.redlakenation.org
Red Lake High School - http://www.paulbunyan.net/rlschools/hs.htm

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