Sue Klebold
Sue Klebold | |
---|---|
Born | Susan Francis Yassenoff March 25, 1949 Dylan Klebold |
Notable work | A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy |
Spouse |
Thomas Klebold
(m. 1971; div. 2014)Dylan Klebold |
Part of a series of articles on the |
Columbine High School massacre |
---|
Location: Perpetrators: Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold |
Susan Francis Klebold (née Yassenoff; born March 25, 1949) is an American activist and author whose son, American mass murderer Dylan Klebold, was one of the perpetrators of the Columbine High School shooting in 1999. After the massacre, she wrote A Mother's Reckoning, a book about the signs and possible motives she missed of Dylan's mental state.[3]
Early life
Klebold was born on March 25, 1949, in Columbus, Ohio, to Charlotte (née Haugh) and Milton Yassenoff and grew up in Bexley, Ohio, along with her older sister Diane and younger brother Philip.[4] She was the granddaughter of philanthropist Leo Yassenoff.[5]
She studied at Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois, and went on to go to Ohio State University in 1969,[4] where she met Thomas Ernest Klebold, who she would go on to marry two years later in 1971, at the age of 22.[6][1]
On October 23, 1978, Klebold's first child was born; Byron Jacob.
In 1975 she earned a master's degree in educational sciences at
In September 1981, Klebold had her second son,
Columbine High School massacre
On April 20, 1999, Klebold's second son Dylan, would go on to murder 13 people and injure 21 others at the Columbine High School in Columbine, Colorado, United States alongside Eric Harris before committing suicide in the school library.
After the massacre, the Klebold family issued a statement through their attorney, expressing condolences to the victim's families, and in May 1999, she wrote personal letters to both the families of those killed and survivors who were injured, expressing similar sentiments.[9][10]
The Klebold family initially refused to believe Dylan's involvement in the massacre, but in an interview with Andrew Solomon, Klebold stated that "seeing those videos was as traumatic as the original event. Everything I had refused to believe was true. Dylan was a willing participant and the massacre was not a spontaneous impulse."[11] Investigators later concluded that Dylan had had depression and suicidal ideation for about two years,[12] although his parents did not find these details until one year after the killings.[13]
In April 2001, the Klebold parents, along with those of Dylan's accomplice Eric Harris, settled a lawsuit with the families of the victims for $1.6 million.[14][15] After the lawsuits, Sue and Tom Klebold met with several of the victims' families.[16] In July 2003, both the Klebold and Harris families testified under oath; their testimonies are sealed until the year 2027 under the National Archives and Records Administration.[17]
On the advice of their attorney, the Klebold parents avoided the press for the five years that followed the massacre,[18] saying they feared they would be misinterpreted, and that they had received death threats.[19] They broke their silence in 2004, speaking to The New York Times and later on for Andrew Solomon's book Far From The Tree. In the latter, she was quoted as saying, "I know it would have been better for the world if Dylan had never been born. But I believe it would not have been better for me."[20]
In 2009, Klebold wrote for
In an interview with British newspaper
Career
In 2016, she published A Mother's Reckoning: Living in the Aftermath of Tragedy, against the advice of her former husband and son Byron who both objected to the book.
In 2016, Sue Klebold granted her first televised interview, to
In 2017, Klebold held a
In July 2021, Klebold appeared on BBC's Storyville, along with other American parents whose children had committed school shootings.[40]
Personal life
In 2001, Sue Klebold was diagnosed with
References
- ^ Denver Post. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
They married in 1971. Their first child, Byron, came along in 1978
- New Zealand Herald. Retrieved March 20, 2020.
- ^ Dominus, Susan (February 15, 2016). "'A Mother's Reckoning,' by Sue Klebold". The New York Times. Retrieved July 31, 2020.
- ^ a b Belluck, Pam; Wilgoren, Jodi (June 29, 1999). "SHATTERED LIVES -- A special report.; Caring Parents, No Answers, In Columbine Killers' Pasts". The New York Times. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-938633-26-3. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Belluck, Pam; Wilgoren, Jodi (April 1999). "DID COLUMBINE KILLERS' PARENTS IGNORE CLUES?". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved September 12, 2021.
- ISBN 978-0-446-55221-9. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- Denver Post. Associated Press. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Cullen 2009, p. 230,530.
- ISBN 978-0-7432-3671-3. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Solomon 2012, p. 593.
- ISBN 978-1-59213-490-8. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Solomon 2012, p. 590.
- ^ Kass 2014, p. 277.
- ^ Cullen 2009, p. 660.
- ^ New Zealand Herald. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- Denver Post. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Solomon 2012, p. 589.
- ^ Dominus, Susan (February 15, 2016). "'A Mother's Reckoning,' by Sue Klebold". The New York Times. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Solomon 2012, p. 598.
- ^ Martinez, Edecio (October 14, 2009). "Susan Klebold Essay in O Magazine: Columbine Killer's Mom "Haunted by the Horror" Son Caused". CBS News. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- Denver Post. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Dukakis, Andrea (February 16, 2016). "'I'll Never Know If I Could Have Prevented It,' Says Mother Of Columbine Shooter". CPR.org. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- Washington Post. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Brockes, Emma (February 14, 2016). "My son, the Columbine high school shooter: 'a mother is supposed to know'". The Guardian. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Dawson, Margaret; Scott, Tess; Ng, Christina; Effron, Lauren (February 13, 2016). "Columbine killer's mother Sue Klebold on relationship with her son, warning signs she missed, what she went through after the tragedy". ABC News. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ "The New York Times Best Sellers". The New York Times. 2016. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Freeman, Brittany (April 19, 2020). "How Much Has the Book By the Mother of a Columbine Killer Raised for Charity?". Rocky Mountain PBS. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Benjamin, Jimmy (September 11, 2018). "Columbine shooter's mother tells students to be aware of signs of suicide, struggle of others". The Chronicle. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- Denver Post. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Dawson, Margaret; Effron, Lauren (February 13, 2016). "Healing After Columbine: Survivors, Victims' Families Talk About Moving Forward". ABC News. Retrieved October 7, 2020.
- ^ Bahadur, Nina (February 17, 2016). "In A Powerful Letter, A Survivor Of The Columbine Massacre Forgave A Shooter's Parents". Self. Retrieved August 30, 2021.
- Colorado Independent.
- ^ "My son was a Columbine shooter. This is my story | Sue Klebold" – via www.youtube.com.
- ^ My son was a Columbine shooter. This is my story | Sue Klebold, retrieved October 30, 2023
- ^ Klebold, Sue (February 2, 2017), My son was a Columbine shooter. This is my story, retrieved October 30, 2023
- ^ "Anyone seen this excellent Ted talk by Sue Klebold, mom of Dylan Klebold, Columbine shooter? - Democratic Underground". upload.democraticunderground.com. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ a b "'A Mother's Reckoning,' by Sue Klebold".
- ^ "Columbine Mother Sue Klebold's First TV Interview Was Startling and Captivating". Vanity Fair. February 13, 2016. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
- ^ Kalia, Ammar; Verdier, Hannah; Virtue, Graeme; Harrison, Phil; Wardell, Simon (July 7, 2021). "Tonight's TV: the parents of high-school killers share their experiences". The Guardian. Retrieved August 28, 2021.
- ^ Woodard, Teresa (November 1, 2018). "Mother of Columbine shooter speaks in Dallas: 'I hated what he did, but I never hated him'". WFAA. Retrieved October 7, 2020.