Counselor Says Violent Acts Not Always Predictable

Cheyenne Licensed Professional Counselor Renee Hansen says that while sometimes people planning murderous acts such as the recent Aurora movie theater shootings will give clues they are planning to do something violent, that is by no means always the case.

Hansen says there are basically two types of people who commit such acts. She says one type of perpetrator will typically plan the acts well in advance and will often drop hints as to their intentions, or at least show signs that that they are disturbed in some way. But she says a second type of perpetrator in such cases will often seem perfectly normal before impulsively committing a violent act. She says substance abuse is often a factor in the acts of the impulsive-type perpetrator, or on the other hand they may suddenly stop taking medications that have been prescribed for various mental health issues. Hansen says predicting violent acts by the impulsive type of perpetrator is in many cases virtually impossible.