Aside from the Harris families continued silence i don't personally feel that in any way this suggests they have written Eric off and moved on, although i can see how them remaining quiet could be perceived this way. Unless they do actually speak publicly one day, which i feel is very unlikely, we will probably never know what their lives have been like since the massacre or how they feel about Eric.
Much has been speculated about the Harris family based on how they responded after the massacre and how they were perceived by officials.
There's limited information about what the Harris family has expressed since the massacre, but there are some interesting nuggets of information floating around out there.
The Harris family have not done any kind of sit down interviews with the media as far as i am aware, certainly nothing like Sue Klebold's Oprah magazine essay or the Klebold's section in Far from the Tree.
The Harris family issued the following statement the day after the massacre:
- Quote :
- We want to express our heartfelt sympathy to the families of all the victims and to all the community for this senseless tragedy. Please say prayers for everyone touched by these terrible events.
The Harries also wrote letters to the families of the victims and those injured in the shooting. According to Jeff Kass one such letter to injured victim Mark Taylor read:
- Quote :
Dear Mark,
Please accept our heartfelt wishes for a full and speedy recovery from your injuries. There are no words to express the tragic events of that day. We would have given our lives to prevent them.
May you have the strength and the support to continue your healing process.
The letter was signed Wayne, Kathy and Kevin.
Without going too much off topic i'm sure some members here are aware of the issues surrounding when the victims actually received their letters from the Harris family. The Harries had sent their letters via the school district who then forwarded the mail to the sheriff's office, who apparently felt too uneasy delivering them. The sheriff's office claimed they tried to return the letters to the Harrises via their attorney but could not establish contact with him. Therefore the letters were not delivered until several months later.
Reportedly Kathy Harris was "livid" and expressed how "extremely upset" her family was about this incident, even saying she would have delivered the letters herself.
The above information was taken from Columbine A True Crime Story by Jeff Kass and The Denver Post:
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]and
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]The Harris family attorney issued the following statement to the Denver Post:
- Quote :
- Wayne and Kathy Harris have been devastated by what their son, Eric, did. They continue to grieve for all of the victims and their families. Hopefully, there will come a time when they feel they are ready to speak publicly about their son and the horrible acts that he committed, but now is just not that time.
[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]There is also the meeting that Wayne and Kathy Harris had with the Mauser family where they spoke about Eric. As described by Mr Mauser Kathy Harris handed his wife a basket of flowers at the meeting and described how the Harrises expressed their condolences and regret for what Eric had done to Daniel.
As far as what the Harrises reportedly said about Eric:
(It was easier to just put this in a list format)
Mr Mauser says the Harrises seemed "mystified" by what had happened to Eric.
They appeared to readily accept that Eric was a psychopath but do not know how he became one.
That Eric "fooled them" and his psychologist.
The Harrises said they ate family meals with Eric and were never cruel to him.
Kathy insisted they were always "available" for Eric.
Interestingly Mr Mauser comments that the Harrises did not appear to think they had missed any red flags with Eric.
The Harrises said Eric did seem to have intense reactions to being slighted and at one time he had become so mad he slammed his fist into a brick wall badly scraping his knuckles.
Eric's parents suggested he may have been self conscious due to his chest abnormality. They said Eric had been upset about his operation as it had not seemed to help much.
The Harrises discussed how Eric was not interested in joining any clubs at school, had made no plans for for the fall of 1999 and had few friends.
Mr Harris apparently stated Eric was not overly found of weaponry but did subscribe to a gun magazine, saying he thought this was to help him understand the game Doom.
Mr Mauser states the Harris family had indicated they were too vulnerable to speak to the media.
The above information was summarized from Walking in Daniels Shoes by Tom Mauser.
Again i don't want to deviate too much away from the OP but thinking about the meeting the Harrises had with the Mausers i have often wondered if there has ever been any kind of communication between the Harris and Klebold families. It was just a thought i had while writing this post.
Subject: The Harisses? 
Tue May 06, 2014 4:35 pm
