Mom: Movie attack plot suspect 'born different'
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) - The mother who reported her son to police after he amassed what she feared were weapons to attack a southwest Missouri movie theater during a "Twilight" showing said he had recently asked her if he was a failure.
Tricia Lammers made her first public statements Tuesday since the arrest last week of her 20-year-old son, Blaec. Authorities said he admitted that he was planning to attack the theater in Bolivar and then a nearby Wal-Mart store, where he'd been arrested in 2009 after following around a clerk while armed with a knife.
Investigators determined he recently purchased two assault rifles and 400 rounds of ammunition.
During a news conference at the National Alliance for Mental Illness in Springfield, Tricia Lammers said her son had undergone inpatient treatment. She said her son has shown signs of Asperger's syndrome, borderline personality disorder and other conditions.
"He didn't ask to be born different. He grew up his whole life in (his sister) Kristyn's shadow. He wanted to be successful and be somebody," she said, KOLR-TV reported. "Just two weeks ago he asked me - both my kids still call me mommy - he said, 'Mommy, do you think I'm a failure?' I said, 'No, Blaec, I don't.'"
She added that she loves her son, but that she loves her community just as much.
According to the arrest report from the 2009 incident, which was released earlier Tuesday, Blaec Lammers went to the Wal-Mart store with a knife and a rubber mask looking for an "easy victim" after watching the horror film "Halloween." Lammers, then 17, said watching the main character killing people "got him to thinking," the arrest report said.
Lammers told authorities he watched a store clerk for more than two hours. He said he was planning to follow the clerk into a storage room and kill him when he heard his name over the public address system and his father calling out to him, according to the report.
No charges were filed in that case. Instead, Lammers was committed for 96 hours for a mental health examination, Polk County prosecutor Ken Ashlock said Tuesday. Ashlock, who was not the county's prosecutor in 2009, said he didn't know what happened after the commitment.
As in the recent case, Lammers' parents tipped off authorities about the 2009 incident.
The police report said Lammers' mother called authorities after finding a suicide note from her son and a missing knife in October 2009. An officer was en route when the mother said her son's vehicle had been found in the parking lot of the Wal-Mart store in Bolivar, a town about 130 miles southeast of Kansas City.
The parents said in 2009 that their son had been diagnosed with depression, and Lammers' mother said he had an appointment that day with his psychologist and "he has been acting different since then."
Lammers made his first court appearance Tuesday in the movie theater case and was ordered to undergo a mental health exam. He is charged with first-degree assault, making a terroristic threat and armed criminal action, and is being held on a $500,000 bail.
His attorney, DeWayne Franklin Perry, declined to comment Tuesday.
Lammers was arrested last Thursday after his mother contacted police, telling them she was concerned that her son "may have intentions of shooting people" during the opening weekend of the final installment of the popular "Twilight" series.
According to a police, Lammers' mother said she believed he had amassed weapons similar to those used by the gunman who attacked a theater in Aurora, Colo., in July during a showing of the latest Batman movie. That attack killed 12 people.
Lammers was questioned Thursday afternoon and authorities say he told them he bought tickets to a Sunday "Twilight" screening in Bolivar and planned to shoot people there.
Lammers also said he planned to "just start shooting people at random" at the Wal-Mart store less than a mile away. He said if he ran out of bullets, he could "just break the glass where the ammunition is being stored and get some more and keep shooting until police arrived," investigators wrote in a probable cause statement.
They said Lammers was "off of his medication," but his mother said Tuesday that to her knowledge, that wasn't true.
Tricia Lammers made her first public statements Tuesday since the arrest last week of her 20-year-old son, Blaec. Authorities said he admitted that he was planning to attack the theater in Bolivar and then a nearby Wal-Mart store, where he'd been arrested in 2009 after following around a clerk while armed with a knife.
Investigators determined he recently purchased two assault rifles and 400 rounds of ammunition.
During a news conference at the National Alliance for Mental Illness in Springfield, Tricia Lammers said her son had undergone inpatient treatment. She said her son has shown signs of Asperger's syndrome, borderline personality disorder and other conditions.
"He didn't ask to be born different. He grew up his whole life in (his sister) Kristyn's shadow. He wanted to be successful and be somebody," she said, KOLR-TV reported. "Just two weeks ago he asked me - both my kids still call me mommy - he said, 'Mommy, do you think I'm a failure?' I said, 'No, Blaec, I don't.'"
She added that she loves her son, but that she loves her community just as much.
According to the arrest report from the 2009 incident, which was released earlier Tuesday, Blaec Lammers went to the Wal-Mart store with a knife and a rubber mask looking for an "easy victim" after watching the horror film "Halloween." Lammers, then 17, said watching the main character killing people "got him to thinking," the arrest report said.
Lammers told authorities he watched a store clerk for more than two hours. He said he was planning to follow the clerk into a storage room and kill him when he heard his name over the public address system and his father calling out to him, according to the report.
No charges were filed in that case. Instead, Lammers was committed for 96 hours for a mental health examination, Polk County prosecutor Ken Ashlock said Tuesday. Ashlock, who was not the county's prosecutor in 2009, said he didn't know what happened after the commitment.
As in the recent case, Lammers' parents tipped off authorities about the 2009 incident.
The police report said Lammers' mother called authorities after finding a suicide note from her son and a missing knife in October 2009. An officer was en route when the mother said her son's vehicle had been found in the parking lot of the Wal-Mart store in Bolivar, a town about 130 miles southeast of Kansas City.
The parents said in 2009 that their son had been diagnosed with depression, and Lammers' mother said he had an appointment that day with his psychologist and "he has been acting different since then."
Lammers made his first court appearance Tuesday in the movie theater case and was ordered to undergo a mental health exam. He is charged with first-degree assault, making a terroristic threat and armed criminal action, and is being held on a $500,000 bail.
His attorney, DeWayne Franklin Perry, declined to comment Tuesday.
Lammers was arrested last Thursday after his mother contacted police, telling them she was concerned that her son "may have intentions of shooting people" during the opening weekend of the final installment of the popular "Twilight" series.
According to a police, Lammers' mother said she believed he had amassed weapons similar to those used by the gunman who attacked a theater in Aurora, Colo., in July during a showing of the latest Batman movie. That attack killed 12 people.
Lammers was questioned Thursday afternoon and authorities say he told them he bought tickets to a Sunday "Twilight" screening in Bolivar and planned to shoot people there.
Lammers also said he planned to "just start shooting people at random" at the Wal-Mart store less than a mile away. He said if he ran out of bullets, he could "just break the glass where the ammunition is being stored and get some more and keep shooting until police arrived," investigators wrote in a probable cause statement.
They said Lammers was "off of his medication," but his mother said Tuesday that to her knowledge, that wasn't true.
The mother did the right thing both times. Having attempted to navigate the system due to having a mentally ill family member myself, I can tell you that it is near impossible to get someone placed into a mental healthcare facility. They must prove beyond a doubt that they are a danger to themselves or others. Sounds easy enough when they are collecting weapons and making threats but they still make it hard.
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In this case when he was arrested for taking the knife and making threats, he should have been placed in a facility or assisted living type place with oversight. Funds have been cut for these programs since the 80's. Mentally ill people are ALL over the place. Look at the majority of transients...combination of mental illness and drug abuse.They aren't really being monitored either.
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The article doesn't really talk about other things the mother may have done or tried to do. I don't think that when she made the statement that he was "born different" was her way of making excuses. A lot of people are born a bit different these days and we are still learning a lot about some of these disorders. I'm just thankful that he was thwarted and no one was hurt.
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There are people who should be institutionalized forever. Period. Sorry if the PC crowd hates reading that. Â The man planned to kill a complete stranger in 2009, and no charges were filed. Â They left off sociopath in their description. He is incapable of showing any empathy, and will never be well enough to be out in the world. I don't care if the mental health system that has been left in shambles by funding cuts, thinks that giving him pills and hoping he takes them, will make him safe. Â America is being held hostage by a failed mental health system, that (due to the influx of pharmaceutical money) thinks that it's okay to have someone who is capable of murder while off their meds, be out in the community and trusted to take meds. Â If you HAVE to take pills to keep from killing people, you don't belong out in the community. Â There are people who, for whatever reason, are unable to live outside of an institution. Â And I don't care how many tax cutting fools, or PC idiots, or big Pharm people, tell us otherwise. Â Thank God that guy's mother tipped the police off both times.Â
that is the same excuse my neighbor uses for her 17 year old son every time he goes on a screaming, door pounding rampage.... which is nearly nightly. Cops were there again last night. Nothing done, again, because he was born different. So, we get to listen to his screaming day, after day, after day... or should I say night.
 @Bornhere Well that is pretty awful.  I'm not sure if it's because in the past people like that would have been living in an institutions of some type, or if humans have reached the point of inbreeding the species where we're turning out severe mental defects regularly, but I don't recall anyone like that out in the community when I was growing up.  They'd be hospitalized. Â
 @DT Now they just pump em full of meds and send em home.Problem is, later, at home, they don't want to take their meds... that is when the show begins.
Bravo to the mother. She is a hero! I know how tough it can be to turn in one's own son to law enforcement but this was absolutely the right thing to do.. It looks like he had full intentions of mimicking the Colorado shooting. I hope the young man can get full treatment for what he needs.
 @Koreanman012 Scary thing is that he HAS treatment. That is with treatment. Some people are not meant to live out in the community. Considering they stopped him a few minutes short of murdering a stranger at walmart a few years ago, I'd say that the treatment doesn't work.  Gotta feel for the parents, they're trying the best they can.  Sadly, they could be the next target.Â
This mans mom is a true hero and truly loves her son. With a mom like that and a strong support system in place, maybe he can get the help he needs. This country badly needs mental health reform of some kind. So many people walking around every day with terrible things going on in their heads. It doesn't need to be this way at all.
This country desperately needs mental health care reform.
Thank you for stopping your son. Even though I hate Twilight, I wouldn't wish anyone to die who wanted to see it. I am happy that his mother is very involved in her son's life, even if he thinks she's not. Keep it up, your son is going to need you now more than ever, and I hope he can get the help that he desperately needs.
Here is an example of a responsible parent. Thank you Tricia Lammers for your courage.
"Different, schmifferent;" if one thinks about it, we're ALL born different. No excuse.
Naming him "Blaec" probably didn't help much.
 @Ogglethorpe Wintermonger says 'Ogglethorpe Wintermonger' oh the irony
His mom did the right thing and is a hero in my book ... many times over.
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a few questions for discussion.
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Should anyone diagnosed with depression have access to guns?
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Should anyone who shows "signs of Asperger's syndrome, borderline personality disorder and other conditions." have access to guns?
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Are there any mental health professionals out there who can give me a better idea of what constitutes a clear diagnoses?
 @barkingmad As to your question about anyone with Asperger's its the only diagnosis that isn't caused by mental illness, its a form of Autism, and that is a developmental disability, not a mental disease. (My son has HFA/Aspergers and he is an accomplished archery student, who hopes to compete someday in the Olympics. I trust him explicitly with his bow and arrows, he is not a threat to anyone.)
@yentaleh That is great for you and yoru son. I wish him luck in his quest for the Olympics.
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How is Asperger's diagnosed?
 @barkingmad Thank you for your kind comments, we hope that someday he can be there too. Now back to your question about Aspergers. Its a bit of a long read:
Aspergers' is the hardest to diagnose with those with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) My son was first diagnosed back in 2008 with HFA (High Functioning Autism) and PDD-NOS (Pervasive Developmental Disorder Not Otherwise Specified) Earlier this year, his teachers at his school had us make an appointment at the UW Autism research centre for more testing, it looks like he will be reclassified as HFA/Aspergers, but they aren't 100% sure as of this moment. Aspergers can be very difficult to diagonse because he is very atypical on how he developed Autism in the first place. (He received too much anesthetic at birth.)Â He has hit several markers in speech, behaviour, and developmental delays that looks like Aspergers. So we shall see. Like I said people with Autism/Aspergers can handle weapons if taught how to do so correctly and they learn to be responsible about them. Those with a mental disease/defect, should not be around weapons period. For numerous reasons, Mr. Lammer is more mentally ill than developmentally disabled. He needs help and needs to be housed in a mental hospital where hopefully he can get the help that he desperately needs.
Way to go mom! Thanks for looking out for us. On a side note, with his obvious previous mental issues, how the he11 was he allowed to buy 2 assault rifles? I am a guns rights advocate but come on!
I feel for the mother. She has repeatedly saved lives because of her attentiveness to her son's actions. Maybe the best place for him is a mental hospital so he can get on some helpful medications and have the 24/7 observation he needs.
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And please, for the love of mankind, quit letting this man watch horror movies and news stories!
you know, that is a great example of parenting. yes, he sounds like he's trouble, but his parents show real concern and protection for their child and others. by reporting his actions early, they not only saved several families from a lot of heartache, but their child's safety was also protected. he's better off in custody. i feel for them, and respect them. that has to be a hard phone call to make.
i want to know, if he has a history of mental illness and a planned assault, how did he get the gun? sounds like he might have gotten it legally.
 @amr201 My dad has a history of mental illness(violent bipolar), domestic violence calls, and jail time but was still able to get a CCP and after they were all cataloged, around 50 guns (not sure on the exact counts between rifles and hand guns). The existing laws aren't tailored for mental illness at all.  All this took place in Tennessee.
I've been diagnosed with depression and taking meds for it every day. I have had thoughts about hurting myself but thankfully never wanted to hurt others
@Larry*X*K I hope and pray you have many happy thoughts. I am happy to hear there is medication that helps you and you are making the responsible choice to seek out help for your depression.
 @barkingmad thank you
@Larry*X*K  Hopefully you dont hurt yourself (or anyone else). Keep on the meds if they are working. Many people stop taking the meds because of the side effects and it seems that the sudden stopage makes it even worse.
 @scared_citizen I got used to the side effects, insomnia, nervousness, irritability etc and they are almost non existent after 2 years of taking them. Yes, you can never just stop because people who did got seriously messed up in the head. You have to gradually lower the dosage and still there will be some undesirable effects.
The scary part is, he will be out again, probably sooner than later.
Glad she reported him - but I think there is something to be said for parenting too. Not that she's a terrible parent, but I see a kid who was allowed to do pretty much as he wanted with no consequences. There had to be SOME responsibility on his part and the parents.
@Traveler    I don't know how you made your assumption about neglectful parenting. From the information given, (Asberger's/personality disorder) my assumption would be that this woman probably wore herself out his entire lifetime being hypervigilant about his actions towards others. I feel great sympathy for her.
@achoo2 I agree with you. The fact that his intentions were caught by his parents BEFORE he was able to act on them backs up your suggestion. I believe that the parents have done what they could for him but what they NEEDED to do to protect the rest of society.
 @Traveler I don't really see anything that implies that. Some kids are just stupid and do bad stupid things. My dad beat the ever living heck out of us (fiber glass rod beatings, choking, etc) if we even talked back but that didn't stop my brother from doing stupid stuff like building tiny firework bombs in our backyard and skipping school.Â
Not many parents would do this. I commend the mother for stepping in and alerting the authorities. She prevented a tragedy.
 @quidproquo It's amazing how many loose wing-nuts are running around........ loose canons each of them. :(
@funky-munky you should remember that these"loose wing-nuts,loose canons"are people 2 and im very sure that theydont choose to have mental illness.