JC-001-000181-192
11k page report – witness testimony
Witness Location:
LIBRARY, INJURED
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Table of Contents
JC-001-000181
Anderson, Brian
JC-001-000182
CONTINUATION [O]
SUPPLEMENT [X]
Reporting Agency: JSCO
Reporting Officer: BROOKS
Case Report No: 99-7625-P
Date This Report: 05-08-99
Classification [X]
Reclassification [O]
1/MURDER
Offense Status: Open [X]
Exceptionally Cleared [O]
Cleared by Arrest [O]
Unfounded [O]
INVESTIGATION
On 4-21-99 at about 3:10 PM, I was informed by Westminster Police Officer W.T. Read that he had been approached by Columbine High School student Brian Victor Anderson, DOB-04-06-82, and told that he had not yet been formerly interviewed. Brian Anderson was with Officer Read at that time, so I arranged to interview Brian in the gazebo area in the park, Southeast of intersection of South Pierce Street and West Faire Avenue. Brian said his address is [REDACTED].
The interview with Brian was conducted by Jefferson County Sheriff’s Investigator, Diane Obemma, and myself at about 3:15 PM. Brian identified himself as a student at Columbine High School and said he had been inside the school during the shooting. Brian said that he had, in fact, been shot. Brian said that on 4-20-99, at about 11:20 AM, he was walking toward the West double door exit of the school, en route to the student parking lot. At that time, Brian said he was with fellow students Jenny Matthews, who he identified as his friend’s girlfriend. Also with him was another white male student, unidentified, wearing a green ballcap-type hat.
Brian said that as he approached the double glass doors, he exited through the first set (interior doors) and immediately noticed two white males standing outside the building near the Northwest comer of the library. Brian said that the first subject, whom he identified as Eric Harris, was wearing a white shirt, black BDU’s, black baseball cap with white letters “KDMF” or something similar. Brian said that the cap had “buttons” in the back. Brian said this subject was holding what looked like a “machine gun,” which he later described as a long gun in the subject’s right hand. Brian said this subject was leaning over the chain link fence located at the Northwest comer of the library’s exterior, next to a stairway which leads down. Brian said that this subject was shooting down at people and was wearing some type of “black vest with black straps” in the back.
Brian said a second white male, whom he identified as Dylan Klebold, was standing to the left and few feet further away from the first subject. Brian said the second subject was wearing a black trench coat and a “backwards” Avalanche cap, which he described as black with a red letter “8” on it. Brian said this subject had long blond hair and was holding a shotgun. Brian said that the second subject was not wearing a mask, and he was unable to describe the second subject’s pants or footwear. Brian said that the second subject was facing away from him, toward the student parking lot. Brian said that the second subject
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appeared to be reloading a shotgun. Brian said that he was familiar with shotguns and is “certain” that the second subject was holding a shotgun.
Brian said that after exiting the interior double doors, but before exiting the second (exterior) double doors, the first subject, whom he identified as Eric Harris, turned toward him and fired at the glass door. Brian could not recall how many rounds were fired but said that one of the rounds went through the glass door and that the fragments of said round hit him on the upper left portion of his chest. Brian said that he then fell backwards and that he and the other students with him quickly retreated through the interior double doors, back into the school. Brian then drew a map of the school’s interior to indicate where he, and the students he had been with, then went.
Brian said that upon reentering the school, he and the other students ran to their right, down a hallway and into the school library. Brian said that as he and the others entered the library, he saw a female teacher, whom he could not identify, enter the library with them. Brian said this teacher then crawled under a desk located across from the “storage room” to use the phone. Brian said that this teacher told everyone in the library to “get down.” Brian said that this teacher remained under the desk as he, the aforementioned students, and Teacher Peggy Dodd entered the “storage room.”
Brian said that once inside the storage room, they dosed and locked the door and turned the lights off. Brian said that the door to the storage room had a small window, through which he could partially see into the library. Brian said that shortly after entering the storage room, he heard numerous shots of gunfire and between 10 and 15 explosions. Brian said that while inside the storage room, he observed Dylan Klebold run past its door “several times,” and Eric Harris run by “a few times.” Brian said that he could only see these two individuals and assumed that there were only two shooters inside the library.
Brian said that in between bursts of gunfire and explosions, he heard one or both of the subjects announce that they had to reload. Brian estimated that he and the others remained inside the storage room for about “ten minutes,” and that the explosions that were occurring, eventually caused the lights and ceiling tiles outside of the storage room to fall down.
Brian said that the library area outside the storage room eventually filled with smoke and that the fire alarm was activated. Brian said that while inside the storage room, teacher Peggy Dodd said, “I have to get out of here Brian, they hate me, they’re going to kill me;” whereupon, said she left the storage room. Brian said that he does not know where Peggy Dodd went. Brian said that it eventually became quieter and that he and those with him were able to exit the storage room from an interior door. Brian said that he and the others
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were eventually escorted out of the building to safety.
Brian said that at no time did he observe more than two shooters, nor was there anything to indicate that there had been more than two shooters inside the library.
During the interview, Brian lifted his shirt to show us where he had been shot. Brian said that the bullet fragments did not penetrate his skin but dissipated within his clothing which caused several distinct burns on the skin across his upper chest. Brian said that he believes a necklace he was wearing at the time may have helped to deflect the bullet and/or fragments.
Brian said that after exiting the school, he eventually spoke to a friend he identified as [REDACTED]. According to Brian, [REDACTED] told him that later in the afternoon, on 04-04-99, he had seen an ex-student, unidentified, driving in the area of Caley Avenue in a red Geo Metro. According to Brian, [REDACTED] told him that said ex-student was holding a gun in his hand. Brian said that [REDACTED] told him that after seeing this, he went to notify State Patrol. Investigator Diane Obbema subsequently interviewed [REDACTED] reference this incident.
The interview with Brian concluded at about 4:20 P.M. Lead sheets for student Jenny Matthews and teacher Peggy Dodd were prepared and submitted by Investigator Dave Brooks. Brian’s hand-drawn map of the school was collected by Investigator Brooks and attached to this report.
DISPOSITION: OPEN
JC-001-000185
JC-001-000186
SUPPLEMENT
JSCO
M. Russell
99-7625
4-30-99
Narrative:
Re: Control #1791
On 04-29-1999, witness Brian Anderson was interviewed at his residence, [REDACTED]. He acknowledged being a Junior at CHS and present at the school on 04-20-1999. His 4th hour class had been language arts, and following this class, he had met another classmate, Jenny Matthews, and accompanied her to the attendance office where she worked as a student assistant.
They exited the attendance office and began walking down the hall towards the library, when he heard what he thought to be shots and explosions. They met an unknown female teacher who had been seated in the hallway near the library, and she told them to get out of the hallway. They soon heard yelling in the school, and he and Jenny ran to the West door in an attempt to exit the school.
They went through the first set of double doors, and as they approached the outside double doors, Dylan Klebold and Eric Harris were seen 30-40 feet outside the exterior double doors, and Harris turned toward him, holding a rifle. Anderson related that Harris looked directly at him, then fired a single shot through the windows of the doors. The window exploded, and he was struck in the chest by what was later determined to be bullet fragments. He describes Harris as wearing black pants, combat boots and white tee shirt with some type of vest with straps on it and a black hat with the letters “KDMFM.” Klebold was wearing a long black trench coat. He was sure of his identification of the two suspects, based upon knowing them from school activities.
He remembers falling down, but getting up quickly, and he and Jenny went back through the double doors and turned to their right and went towards the library. He noted falling again in the hall and checking himself for blood. Finding only a small amount, he got up again, and he and Jenny entered the library where they met Peggy Dodd and an unknown student wearing a green hat, who Anderson believed to be a sophomore.
They together ran to a library storage room where he and the others hid. He reports seeing Harris and Klebold running back and forth in the library and hearing 10-15 explosions. On one occasion he describes 1 clip of ammunition being expended in the library at this time attempting to get other students out.
He was later transported to Lutheran Hospital where he was treated.
When asked why Harris had shot him, he replied “because I was wearing a white hat.” He provided a white hat with a red “N” which he was wearing at the time of the shooting. He explained many athletes at the school wear white hats to school.
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In addition to the white hat, he was wearing a blue shirt and brown cargo shorts. His navy-blue Tommy Hilfiger backpack was left in the hallway near the library entrance.
He also noted having knowledge of a video the suspects had produced 2-3 weeks before the shooting. They had asked him with assistance in finding a web site at which they could obtain sound effects for the video which involved a house being under siege by gunmen. He was unable to assist them.
He identified other TCM members as being Brian Sargent, Chris Morris, Pauline Colby and Alejandra Marsh.
Anderson utilizes email and provides his email address as: [REDACTED]
He noted that last semester a number of exterior doors were left open after school hours to allow students to access their lockers in the main hallways. The school proper was secured by locked interior steel accordion gated. He did not know if this was still in practice.
JC-001-000188
Arvada Police/Court System
Arvada Police Department
NARRATIVE
Ref #99-12067
Reported Date 04-20-1999
Time 12:39:32
Type ASSTOA
Status RTF
Location 6201 S Pierce St
DET62 05-12-1999
051099/EATON/MO
JEFFERSON COUNTY SHERIFF’S DEPARTMENT
99-7625
Control #1311
On April 27, 1999, Investigator Eaton was assigned to investigative lead control #1311. The source listed on the information control sheet for this lead is Brian Crooks of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department. The narrative portion of the information control sheet has information that a caller to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department advised hat a Columbine High School student called into KOA radio at approximately 1030 hours on April 21, 1999, and stated he had received minor injury from a bullet.
The caller also advised that this student claimed that the three males apprehended in Clement Park near the high school were [REDACTED]. Supposedly, this Columbine High School student was talking with Mike Rosen at KOA Radio. Investigator Eaton was assigned to the task of contacting Mike Rosen at KOA radio in order to determine if the Columbine High School student could be identified and more information gleaned from him.
On this same date Investigator Eaton was able to contact personnel at KOA radio and asked to be put through to Mike Rosen so that Investigator Eaton could follow up on this information. Investigator Eaton was put through to Mike Rosen’s voice mail. Mike Rosen’s voice mail asked the caller to leave a telephone number and the information requested and advised that Mike Rosen would call the person back as soon as possible but to be advised that any information left on the recording could possibly be used on the radio show at a later date.
Investigator Eaton did not feel that it was appropriate to be leaving that type of information on Mike Rosen’s voice mail when there was a chance it could be on the radio and compromise this investigation. Investigator Eaton therefore contacted the Arvada Police Department’s Press Information Officer, Susan Rossi and requested she attempt to contact Mike Rosen or KOA radio personnel and obtain the information.
On April 28, 1999, Investigator Eaton received a telephone call from Susan Rossi. Rossi advised Investigator Eaton she had made contact with KOA radio production staff and was advised that the producers believed the subject in question was a young male student known only by the name of Brian. They advised that Brian had in fact called in on April 21, 1999, at approximately 1030 hours during the Mike Rosen show. Rossi advised Investigator Eaton that a copy of the conversation with Brian would be available for Investigator Eaton to pick up on a cassette tape at KOA radio.
Investigator Eaton later retrieved said cassette tape from KOA radio in Denver, CO. It should be noted that Side A of the tape has a white sticker affixed to it with the words “85 KOA News Radio” in blue in the upper left-hand corner. In the upper right-hand corner written in black ink is Brian, Columbine H.S. 4-21-99 10:30 a.m. Mike Rosen Show. Along the lower portion of the sticker is the address 1380
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Lawrence Street, Suite 1300 Denver, CO 80204 Jacor Broadcasting of Colorado, Inc.
On Monday, May 10, 1999, Investigator Eaton prepared to listen to the tape in an attempt to identify the caller. Also in the room with Investigator Eaton was Federal Bureau of Investigation Special Agent (SA) Mike Barnett who overheard Investigator Eaton discussing said cassette tape and investigative lead. SA Barnett advised Investigator Eaton that he believed the Brian on tape might in fact be Brian Anderson, a student at Columbine High School, who had been shot in the chest twice. SA Barnett advised Investigator Eaton that Brian Anderson had been supposedly shot by Eric Harris or Dylan Klebold through a set of glass doors so that they bullets did not enter his skin but ripped through his clothing and burned is chest.
Investigator Eaton listened to the conversation between Brian and Mike Rosen and near the end, Mike Rosen brings up the subject of the three males arrested in Clement Park near the school following the incident. Rosen begins this portion of the conversation with Brian stating, “There were three other kids who were arrested in Clement Park later in the morning. A photograph of them was later reproduced in the newspaper this morning. They were taken into custody, and these were identified as former students. Do you know anything about them?”
The caller identified as Brian replied, “I, I don’t know who, I didn’t see the photo, the Denver Post, I didn’t see any pictures in there. Other than the ones of Dylan and Eric and the people that were taken to the hospital.”
Mike Rosen stated, “They were wearing shorter leather jackets. Apparently with emblems on the jacks that International Prohibition sign, with the circle with a diagonal slash through it and a cross in the middle seemingly indicated that they were opposed to Christianity, and have you seen that logo before? That symbol?”
The caller identified as Brian replied, “I haven’t seen it at school. I’ve, I’ve seen a kid walking around the school, he has an anarchy on his jacket. And that’s it. I never saw the cross in the circle with the slash through it.”
Mike Rosen next stated, “Do you know anything about that group?”
The caller identified as Brian replied, “Uh, no. I heard something that the three people that were arrested were [REDACTED]. But that’s it. I didn’t know that they were there.”
Rosen only asked one more question of the caller identified as
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Brian, and this question did not pertain to the investigative lead assigned to Investigator Eaton. Said tape will be turned over to the Jefferson County investigators as evidence in this investigation.
On Tuesday, May 11, 1999, at approximately 1230 hours, Investigator Eaton received a telephone call from Brian Anderson. Investigator Eaton questioned Anderson as to where he had received the information that the three males contacted and arrested in Clement Park had been [REDACTED]. Investigator Eaten reminded Anderson that Investigator Eaton had received his information from Anderson’s discussion with Mike Rosen on the radio talk show.
Anderson advised Investigator Eaton that he recalled making the statement on the radio show. Anderson advised Investigator Eaton that he could not recall where he had heard the rumor about [REDACTED]. Immediately following the evacuation of the school, he heard other students discussing the fact that there were [REDACTED]. Anderson advised Investigator Eaton that it was just a rumor that he had hard, and he could not recall who he had heard it from.
Anderson advised Investigator Eaton that he had been on the Sally Jesse Raphael show on April 20, 1999, with the three males that had been contacted/arrested in Clement Park. He advised he met them and talked with them at the show and believes they are not involved in any way with the incident at Columbine High School. Anderson advised Investigator Eaton that the three males whom Investigator Eaton has identified as Matthew Akard, James Brunetti, and Matthew Nalty do not dress anything like the Trench Coat Mafia members.
Investigator Eaton had occasion to view a video cope of the Sally Jesse Raphael show in which both Brian Anderson and the other three subjects appeared. Investigator Eaton paid particular attention to the three subjects and their statements to Sally Jesse Raphael about their reasons for being in Clement Park near Columbine High School on the date of the incident. Investigator Eaton noted that during the show, Akard, Brunetti, and Nalty’s statements given to the police during earlier interviews.
Investigator Eaton also noted that when Anderson was interviewed by Sally Jesse Raphael, he mentioned what had occurred to him but did not mention the information he had spoken of on the Mike Rosen show in reference to the three subjects [REDACTED]. A copy of the video from the Sally Jesse Raphael show in question is also being turned over to the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Department detectives in charge of this investigation. Said video cassette is referred to in reports concerning information control numbers 1049, 1050, and 1107.
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It should be noted that during the interview of Brian Anderson by Mike Rosen, Mike Rosen brought up the issue that one of the subjects contacted in the park had a crucifix on the back of his jacket which had a circle around it and crossed out. Investigator Eaton believes that Rosen was referring to [REDACTED] as [REDACTED] has this symbol sewn on the back of his black flight jacket. Investigator Eaton has had a chance to view [REDACTED] jacket and observe the symbol with the words “Bad Religion” above it. Investigator Eaton is aware through interviews with [REDACTED] and others that “Bad Religion” is a punk band and that is their symbol.
JC-001-000192
Call Number: 19
Date of Call: 04-21-1999
Time of Call: 13:45
Date Received: 04-21-1999
Time Received: 13:45
Caller Name: Anonymous
Contact Number:
Tape Recorded? –
Reference: Columbine Shootings
Subject(s) of Call:
Subject Address(es):
Details: Caller advised that he was listening to Mike Rosen on KOA radio this morning around 10:30 when a Columbine student called in. The student stated he received a minor injury from a bullet that grazed him as it came through a window. The student seemed to know the two suspects and told Rosen that he thought that the three males apprehended in the park [REDACTED]
Received By: Denison
Forwarded To: Capt. Harris
Method: Report
Forwarded Date: 04-21-1999
*Handwritten:
Caller identified as Brian Anderson.
