Dylan Butler had always been a quiet kid, according to those who knew him.
So when he unleashed terror through Perry High School on the morning of 4 January, killing one person and injuring five, it sent shockwaves through the community.
The 17-year-old had been the target of bullying since his very early years, and the bullying had recently engulfed his sister in the leadup to his violent rampage at his rural Iowa high school, according to his classmates.
The teenager, who was a former student at the school, was found dead on the scene. An Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation official said he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Police are now trying to establish his motive for the killings as they attempt to piece together the events leading up to the shooting.
Sisters Yesenia Roeder and Khamya Hall, both 17, said that Butler had been bullied relentlessly since elementary school.
They added that the bullying had escalated recently, when his younger sister started getting picked on, too. Officials at the school didn’t intervene, they said, and that was “the last straw” for the shooter.
“He was hurting. He got tired. He got tired of the bullying. He got tired of the harassment,” Yesenia Roeder Hall said.
“Was it a smart idea to shoot up the school? No. God, no,” she added.
Khamya described Butler as “the kindest person ever”.
“He was there for us when we needed him, and we tried to be there when he needed us, which clearly we weren’t there for him enough,” she added through tears.
A law enforcement official said federal and state investigators were interviewing Butler’s friends and analysing his online footprint, including posts on TikTok and Reddit.
Nothing will change until school officials including teachers are held criminally responsible, someone maybe multiple people need jail time.
This is just another example of how pathetic the failing Public School System is in Iowa.
So when he unleashed terror through Perry High School on the morning of 4 January, killing one person and injuring five, it sent shockwaves through the community.
The 17-year-old had been the target of bullying since his very early years, and the bullying had recently engulfed his sister in the leadup to his violent rampage at his rural Iowa high school, according to his classmates.
The teenager, who was a former student at the school, was found dead on the scene. An Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation official said he died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Police are now trying to establish his motive for the killings as they attempt to piece together the events leading up to the shooting.
The ‘bullied’ suspect
Butler, who authorities said acted alone, was described as a quiet person who had been bullied for years by his former classmates.Sisters Yesenia Roeder and Khamya Hall, both 17, said that Butler had been bullied relentlessly since elementary school.
They added that the bullying had escalated recently, when his younger sister started getting picked on, too. Officials at the school didn’t intervene, they said, and that was “the last straw” for the shooter.
“He was hurting. He got tired. He got tired of the bullying. He got tired of the harassment,” Yesenia Roeder Hall said.
“Was it a smart idea to shoot up the school? No. God, no,” she added.
Khamya described Butler as “the kindest person ever”.
“He was there for us when we needed him, and we tried to be there when he needed us, which clearly we weren’t there for him enough,” she added through tears.
A law enforcement official said federal and state investigators were interviewing Butler’s friends and analysing his online footprint, including posts on TikTok and Reddit.
Nothing will change until school officials including teachers are held criminally responsible, someone maybe multiple people need jail time.
This is just another example of how pathetic the failing Public School System is in Iowa.
