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Sheriff: Seven Dead In "Mass Murder"; Deadly Shooting Rampage Near UC Santa Barbara

Aired May 24, 2014 - 11:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Hello, everyone. I'm Fredricka Whitfield. Welcome to the CNN NEWSROOM.

Breaking news out of southern California. A gunman drives through a college town opening fire. There are multiple deaths and injuries. We have new information on this horrifying shooting spree -- the suspect and the possible motive, this hour.

It is a shocking act of violence in Santa Barbara County, California. It happened last night in Isla Vista, a college town north of Los Angeles, near the University of California, Santa Barbara. Police say a gunman opened fire as he drove through several neighborhoods. Seven people, including the gunman, are dead. Seven others are wounded.

Police gave a news conference earlier this morning detailing what happened after police caught up with the gunman last night.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SHERIFF BILL BROWN, SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: The suspect engaged a group of responding deputies with gunfire. The deputies returned fire and the suspect fled in his vehicle. Seconds later, the suspect was again spotted by another deputy, another exchange of gunfire occurred at that time. The suspect fled down Del Playa and eventually crashed into a parked vehicle. The deputies approached the crashed vehicle and determined that the suspect within that vehicle was dead from an apparent gunshot wound to the head.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: It is just past 8:00 a.m. this morning now in California. Our Kyung Lah is on the way to the scene -- actually, she's joining us by phone right now in that general vicinity. So Kyung, what are police saying about at this juncture, the suspect's motive?

KYUNG LAH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: We don't quite know what they're honing in on, but they are looking at the video evidence and some writing online that appears to show that this may have been premeditated. That's the extent of what the sheriff's department is telling us publicly.

I have actually, Fredricka, just arrived here. I'm standing at what I believe is the starting point of all of this. I'm about two blocks from where the initial 911 call came out. This is an apartment building. One of the windows has been shot out. We counted some 12 -- 12 casings at this juncture. There's a pizza place right at the corner. This looks like a corner where there would be on a 9:30, Friday night, it would be an area packed with college kids.

And then, as we walk around here, you can see that there's a definite path. There is police tape winding through all the streets here in this college area. It looks like that this -- that this BMW made a distinct path, going through some of the apartment buildings where there might have been students, firing again and another scene, another block away another scene. And you can see bullet casings all through this entire area just dotting the ground. This is a very, very large area that the sheriff's deputies, the police, it looks like a number of agencies are here, collecting all of the bullet casings, talking to people.

And again, this is 8:00 a.m. We can just see some people opening up their apartment -- apartment windows, poking their heads through. Some of the kids, I can see, are wearing their pajamas. And I call them kids, because if you look at their faces, they can't be more than 19, 20, 21 years old -- very definitely the heart of a college area. And that is -- the other thing I noticed, Fredricka, is that they look extremely shocked. This has certainly -- it's something they never could have expected -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And then, Kyung, you talk about bullet casings still on the ground, police officers still in the area collecting evidence. Do you see that they're also talking to a number of the young people who are now emerging, asking them what they saw last night, what they experienced, anything like that taking place still?

LAH: We're not seeing them actively talking to people, but there's a lot of confusion, because what we can hear over and over again is, "Hey, can I get out of here? Hey, can I get out of here?" These are kids who are waking up perhaps -- you know, last night they stayed in their apartments, and now they're trying to get out. But there's police tape everywhere. And I heard one officer yell at a resident saying that she's just going to have to stay inside, because it will take several, several hours.

WHITFIELD: And then, you know, a lot of the shopkeepers in that area -- while you mentioned the police tape is everywhere, clearly a lot of shops, early morning cafes that would ordinarily be open, none of that business taking place. Essentially this town, for business, is shut down during this investigation, right?

LAH: Well, you know, there's -- it looks like what police are trying to do is allow some of these businesses to stay open. For example, one of the convenience stores, they're allowing people to get to that for water, and it looks like that business is open. So they're trying to keep some of these businesses open. So I think they're trying to balance both things.

But, I mean, I counted just in this one area, where they have roped- off at least five different crime scenes -- I only have to walk one block. So you know, I think -- it looks like that they're trying to cordon off each specific block and keep the businesses open.

WHITFIELD: Ok. Kyung Lah, thanks so much. We're going to check back with you there in Santa Barbara County. Again, the investigation still in its infancy. The shooting taking place last night, shocking an entire community. And of course, seven people, as we understand from police authorities this morning, are dead, seven others still being hospitalized. There were many witnesses to these shootings taking place last night.

You heard Kyung say she sees five different crime scenes. In all, we understand, there are nine different crime scenes. Well, apparently one of the eyewitnesses to what unfolded last night simply broke down as she described that terrifying scene. Listen.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SIENNA SCHWARTZ, WITNESS: -- and then, he, like, lifted up a little black pistol. And -- and, like -- and, like, I thought it was an air soft gun or something, so I was, like, hey -- hey, what's up? And I turned around and I started walking the other way. He shot and I felt like -- I just felt the wind, like pass right by my face.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: All right. You're listening there to that young girl. She came very close to that gunman last night and still very shaken up as she describes exactly what happened, what she saw, what unfolded right before her eyes there in this college community.

We are following every angle of this investigation in these now very early stages of the investigation. Justice correspondent Evan Perez has been digging into the details from Washington, checking with your sources on the other coast.

So Evan, what is the latest on the investigation? How do they go about -- since there are possibly nine different crime scenes here, so many victims involved?

EVAN PEREZ, CNN JUSTICE REPORTER: That's right, Fred. This is going to be several days of trying to log the crime scenes. You said nine crime scenes right there, so they're going to have to gather evidence from all of those places. Now, the sheriff's office has said that among the things they're looking at is a video that they believe may be tied to this, the possible suspect that has been identified. We are not identifying that suspect yet, because we obviously are waiting for the police to definitively say, this is the person they believe did this.

But one of the things that's happening right now is the ATF is on the scene to try to help trace the handgun that was recovered. The sheriff's office also said that they're using the crime lab -- the California State Department of Justice crime lab is the one that is going to be assisting. The FBI has offered some assistance, as well. We don't know what exactly they're going to be doing, if their resources are needed. But obviously, federal law enforcement has a lot of experience with these types of shootings. Sadly, they've become all too common. And one of the things they do is they look at all the social media. They go through the computer of the suspect, for instance. They talk to family members. They talk to friends, to see if there's anything that the suspect might have indicated in the last few days of any intention to do this.

The sheriff's office said at a press conference overnight that they believe there was premeditation based on some of the evidence they're looking at, including stuff that the suspect -- the possible suspect may have left behind, written and of course, this video -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: And are investigators saying anything more about the written notes to indicate why they are convinced this was premeditation?

PEREZ: Right, they haven't said just yet. And obviously, it's going to take some time. This just happened overnight. And one of the first things they're trying to do is to talk to the family members of the suspect, any friends, to try to see -- you know, make sure that they gather anything and secure it. And this is something that's going to take a few days to figure out. Obviously, the suspect is dead.

So now the job of doing this is just simply to try to put it together and figure out what -- what may have led him to do this. Obviously, these things are never really easily explained, you know, after the fact. But we can simply just go back and look at everything that the suspect left behind. And in this case, it does appear that the suspect left behind a lot of -- a lot of things to try to explain what exactly was on his mind -- Fred.

WHITFIELD: All right, Evan Perez thanks so much. We'll check back with you as you get more information.

Meantime, coming up, as authorities are trying to piece together what happened, we'll be asking a former police detective about what might happen next in the investigation. What are all f the things that investigators are trying to uncover as they piece all of this together?

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back.

We're following this breaking story out of Isla Vista, California. Police say a gunman opened fire as he drove through several neighborhoods in this college town. Seven people, including the gunman, are dead this morning. Seven others wounded. Police are calling this a premeditated mass murder in Santa Barbara County.

Let's bring in HLN law enforcement analyst and former D.C. police detective Mike Brooks. So, you know, we have this situation here where the suspect is dead.

MIKE BROOKS, HLN LAW ENFORCEMENT ANALYST: Right.

WHITFIELD: Again, for those who are just now joining us, a shooting taking place last night right outside of the University of California, Santa Barbara County, in Isla Vista, which is a college town.

So now, as investigators try to figure out what happened, it's the motive that they are in large part investigating right now since the suspect is dead? Is that how it goes?

BROOKS: Yes they're looking for a motive and most likely they know by now what the motive is, I think. But there are also nine separate crime scenes, Fred that they are processing as we speak. And you heard Evan Perez, our CNN justice correspondent, talking about the federal assets that are there, the California crime lab. Because when you have nine crime scenes throughout a number of different neighborhoods, a number of blocks, that's -- that area is going to be shut down for quite some time. And it's -- and it's -- there's no hurry, you know. So they want to make sure they process the crime scene extremely well, because still, even though he's dead, they still have to go about their investigation.

WHITFIELD: And what are the things they are looking for -- we're talking about nine locations, because as we understand it, according to the sheriff who said in a press conference that this person was in their vehicle, and they went from various locations, unloading this handgun --

BROOKS: Right.

WHITFIELD: -- what's believed to be one handgun at this point, unloading this handgun in these various locations, unclear whether he was really targeting somebody, or whether it was random. But what is the evidence that they're looking for at all these crime scenes to try and keep those, you know, things together, get the answers?

BROOKS: Well, we heard the sheriff say, there is some videotaped evidence. You also had the statements from people who were there. Did he engage? Because the possibility we're hearing is that he may have engaged with some of his victims --

WHITFIELD: Was there yelling? Was there talking?

BROOKS: Right. Did he talk to them before that? Did he get out of the car? These kind of things --

WHITFIELD: Right.

BROOKS: -- as well, you know, we see a number of different stores there with four, five, six bullet holes in the windows. We hear from Kyung Lah at the apartment complex, there were some bullet holes in the windows, shell casings -- all of this is going to be processed because they want to put together a timeline, and then they're going to be able to map out that whole entire crime scene, because you have one area but nine different crime scenes.

WHITFIELD: We heard from our Kyung Lah, who is just now arriving in that community, talking about the bullet casings that she can see still on the ground right now this morning that police are collecting.

BROOKS: Yes. Because they don't know still how many rounds he actually shot, and if he had a handgun, most likely he had to reload that handgun a number of times. And we do know that he was engaged in a shoot-out with law enforcement at least twice, one six minutes into this -- into the whole incident, six minutes after they received that call at 9:27 p.m. And then, one three minutes later when they found him dead of a gunshot wound to the head. They don't know if it was from the sheriff's deputies who engaged him in the gun battle or if it was self-inflicted.

WHITFIELD: And is it clear whether this gunman used his vehicle as a weapon, because we do understand that a bicyclist impacted the windshield. But is it clear whether that was intentional or that was an accident or --

BROOKS: We don't know.

WHITFIELD: It doesn't matter?

BROOKS: But if you look at that picture of that BMW, and I call it pedestrian damage that we're seeing of that car, that -- apparently that person on that bicycle sustained some serious head trauma. But we also heard from a reporter with KEYT that there is a lot of bicycle traffic. You know, it's a college town.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

BROOKS: And everybody rides their bikes, and this was a busy Friday night on a, you know, memorial holiday weekend.

WHITFIELD: Right. And you mentioned the videotape that investigators are looking through as well as handwritten notes.

BROOKS: Right.

WHITFIELD: What are they looking for? How are they going about verifying or trying to, you know, confirm whether there's a connection between that kind of potential evidence and this crime?

BROOKS: Well, Sheriff Bill Brown, during the presser, said that they believe that this videotaped evidence is involving this -- this alleged gunman. And so they'll take a look at that. They'll take a look if there's anything inside of his vehicle, any kind of writings that he left, go back.

I'm sure they've been to his house. They're probably there right now where he lives, doing a search of his computer, phones, talking to any friends and associates that he may have had, to try to find out what was going on in his head, you know, in the months, weeks, maybe years before all of this happened, up until what happened last night.

WHITFIELD: All right. Mike Brooks thanks so much.

BROOKS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: We appreciate your perspective.

BROOKS: Sure.

WHITFIELD: I know you'll be touching base with us again. We'll be reaching out to you again soon. Thanks so much.

BROOKS: Yes.

WHITFIELD: So again, 18 minutes after the hour, 8:00 a.m. in Isla Vista, where several witnesses to the shootings are just waking up this morning some returning to the crime scenes still in disbelief as to what took place last night. And many of these witnesses are college students -- Isla Vista, a real college community outside of the University of California, Santa Barbara.

So how are many of these young people -- any of the eyewitnesses to the events last night -- coping? What are they feeling this morning? We're going to be talking to a clinical and forensic psychologist, Jeff Gardere, coming up next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: Welcome back. We're following breaking news this morning.

A deadly shooting spree taking place last night in southern California. Police say a gunman drove through a college town near the University of California, Santa Barbara shooting and killing six people. The gunman also dead, but it's not clear if his was a self- inflicted wound, or not. Authorities are still looking for a motive. They're looking for clues. They're trying to figure out what was in the mind of that gunman.

Also, this morning, many eyewitnesses and students who live in that community are just now waking up, just 23 minutes or so after 8:00 a.m., and many of them are still trying to piece together what exactly happened last night.

Jeff Gardere is in our New York bureau. You know him as a clinical and forensic psychologist. So, you know, Jeff, this is a shocking and traumatic experience for anyone, but especially for these college kids who are wrapping their semester there, you know, enjoying the holiday weekend, or at least getting ready to. What do they need this morning as they try to figure out, you know, how to move on, how to process all that took place last night?

JEFF GARDERE, CLINICAL AND FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGIST: Well, first and foremost, they have to figure out what happened. You're right. They are traumatized. They are in shock. Santa Barbara is not a very large place. It's a very sunny community, as we know. The schools there are about not just education, but partying, having a good time, enjoying the sun.

I think what they really need at this point is to get more information, be able to find out what was going on, what really happened, whether they're safe right now, whether they can walk the streets, whether they can go back to their campuses. So all of those things need to be stabilized, but most importantly, they need to talk about the experience; what it is they're going through right now, and they'll do that with one another -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And then I imagine a lot of parents, you know, whose kids attend that school, they're all calling their kids who are still in that area right now, and maybe even some of the parents are struggling with what to say to their kids, because they are in a state of shock, because they do need to express themselves.

GARDERE: Absolutely. And this is a form of debriefing that the parents will be doing with their children. A lot of social networking going on right now, people talking about that, and in many ways that's very, very healthy. But most importantly, the parents need to let these children know, or the guardians, that they are safe for now, from what we know. But more than anything, they have a place to go. They can come home. That they love them, they love them, and I think that's what any human being needs right now, to know that they are loved and that they are need.

WHITFIELD: Of course, all the questions that are going through people's minds, includes that of, who would do this? And why would something like this happen? We are still trying to learn more about the person responsible here.

But if there is a profile, you know, Jeff, if there is kind of a mindset, you know, what would that be of someone who would go on a rampage like this, carry out a shooting spree, if there would be a likelihood there would always be premeditation, or if this is a moment of someone just snapping?

GARDERE: Well, from what we know of the profiles of other mass shooters, there is premeditation. It's cold and calculating. This is something that an anger and a rage that has probably been building up over the last few years, few months, few weeks. Something has triggered the timing of this -- Memorial Day weekend, in the evening on a Friday night when there are a lot of people out, to get as much carnage as possible; someone who probably sees themselves as a victim, who feels that they've been wronged, who feels isolated.

And now that they have been such a small person in this society, this is their way of becoming a god, of being omnipotent by killing as many people as possible, and at the same time knowing that they're going to die, either suicide by cop, or self-inflicted wound.

WHITFIELD: All right, very fascinating. Thank you so much Jeff Gardere. We always appreciate your insight, thanks so much and very helpful to those who need to hear those comforting words indeed this morning in Santa Barbara.

Coming up, we'll hear directly from the sheriff.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This incident appears to be a mass murder situation.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: His deputies exchanged gunfire with the suspect to prevent the situation from getting even worse.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, back to our breaking story. It's 11:30 on the east coast, 8:30 a.m. out west. And in Santa Barbara County, it's an especially sober morning following a shocking and deadly shooting spree last night. Police say a gunman drove through a college town near the University of California, Santa Barbara, shooting and killing six people. The gunman was also killed, but it's not clear yet if it was a self-inflicted wound, or not. Earlier, the sheriff held a news conference to answer some of the questions.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SHERIFF BILL BROWN, SANTA BARBARA COUNTY, CALIFORNIA: This incident appears to be a mass murder situation. The timeline, as we've been able to put it together thus far, is as follows -- at 9:27 p.m., the Sheriff's Dispatch Center received calls of multiple gunshots being fired in the Isla Vista area. We had deputies in the area on foot who also heard a number of shots being fired.

The deputies began responding in the direction of the gunshots, and immediately found several victims who were suffering from gunshot wounds. As they were performing first aid on those victims, they were also receiving suspect information and a vehicle description. As this was occurring, additional shots were fired, and calls were received by the sheriff's dispatch from several areas in Isla Vista.

During this initial stage, both the suspect and suspect vehicle descriptions were broadcast to those law enforcement personnel who were in the area. At 9:33 p.m., six minutes after the initial call was received, the suspect engaged a group of responding deputies with gunf gunfire. The deputies returned fire, and the suspect fled in his vehicle.

Seconds later, the suspect was again spotted by another deputy. Another exchange of gunfire occurred at that time. The suspect fled down Del Playa and eventually crashed into a parked vehicle. The deputies approached the crashed vehicle and determined that the suspect within that vehicle was dead from an apparent gunshot wound to the head. A handgun was recovered from within that vehicle.

Although we have preliminarily identified the suspect, we are not releasing the suspect's name until a positive identification can be made. Currently, the sheriff's office is not looking for any additional suspects. We believe the suspect acted alone. This is still a very active investigation, and as you can imagine, a very chaotic series of crime scenes. It is still in the very early phases of the investigation.

We've identified nine separate crime scenes within the area and multiple victims who were either shot or injured as a result of -- apparently, as a result of the suspect's actions. Seven victims are in area hospitals being treated for gunshot wounds or for traumatic injuries. At least one of those victims has undergone surgery for life-threatening injuries.

We currently have seven confirmed dead. That includes the suspect and six victims. We are in the process of identifying those victims and notifying their next of kin. We have obtained and we are currently analyzing both written and videotaped evidence that suggests that this atrocity was a premeditated mass murder.

The sheriff's office is currently interviewing multiple witnesses to these crimes, and we are asking for the public's assistance. If there's anyone who has not yet been spoken to by law enforcement authorities, we would ask if you have information about this crime, or series of crimes, if you would contact the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office tip line at 805-681-4171.

And I would like to acknowledge and thank those allied agencies who are currently assisting us in this investigation, in addition to patrol and investigative personnel from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office. We are being assisted by the UC-Santa Barbara Police Department, by the California Highway Patrol, by the Santa Barbara Police Department, by the District Attorney investigators, by the California State Parks Law Enforcement personnel, and by criminalists from the Department of Justice Crime Lab.

I know that this information that I'm giving you at this point is somewhat preliminary. We are going to work diligently to get you more information in detail, including the identity of the suspect and victims. The next press conference is going to be scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Today at a location to be determined. We will notify you through our regular processes of where that press conference will be held.

Two things that I just want to say in closing. The first is, I want to commend the deputy sheriffs who engaged very resolutely who engaged in this accident. There's no question in my mind that their resolute actions and valor in doing so may have prevented further loss of life and injury.

I also want to let the families of the victims know that our hearts go out to them at this tragic time, and we will be doing all that we can in the near future to try to identify the actual circumstances, the complete background information, and so forth about this horrific series of events that occurred this evening.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

WHITFIELD: All right, again, that press conference taking place earlier. You heard the sheriff say another one is scheduled for later on, at 4:00 today. And you also heard the sheriff there call it a premeditated mass murder. It's an investigation now involving local and federal authorities. Could any critical warning signs have been missed? Our legal guys weigh in, next.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK) WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. We're following breaking news this morning of a deadly shooting spree in California. Police say a gunman drove through the college town of Isla Vista, shooting and killing six people. Investigators say it appears the attack was premeditated, and they are now looking at video and written evidence to figure out a motive.

I'm joined now by our legal guys, Avery Friedman, a civil rights attorney and law professor in Cleveland. Good to see you. And Richard Herman, a New York criminal defense attorney and law professor joining from Las Vegas. Good to see you as well, Gentlemen.

So, Avery, you know, you first. The sheriff is calling this a premeditated mass shooting. So many things are being examined like when and where the suspect may have gotten this gun. What is in these writings he left and possibly this video? This is now more of a search for motive. That's the concentrated effort?

AVERY FRIEDMAN, CIVIL RIGHTS ATTORNEY: Exactly right. If I'm the district attorney, Fredricka, I'm working with my officers. I'm working with the allied agencies. I'm looking at video. I'm looking at audio. I'm looking at notes. I'm talking to witnesses. And I think there's a fairly clear sense of who the suspect is.

So you need to connect what he has said, or what she has said, what he did, his behavior, and some sign that this was indeed premeditated, it was intentional. And the whole idea was to do exactly what happened in this extraordinary college town. Fredricka, there are 20,000 kids there. It was a Friday night after graduation. So for those disturbed people, this is exactly where they want to be, to create the most damage they possibly can.

WHITFIELD: And, Richard, the sheriff says it does appear as though he acted alone. It's not that, you know, there's a concentrated effort to find anyone else that may have been complicit. But investigators do want to know if there were any missed signs. What will they be looking for in order to determine whether there were some red flags earlier?

RICHARD HERMAN, CRIMINAL DEFENSE ATTORNEY: That's a great question, Fred. You know, in this day and age of social media and the different attempts to get online and publish your life history and what's going on with your life, they're going to examine all of his accounts that he may have had in the various different forms of social media. They're going to pull down his cell phone records, his text messages, his e-mails --

FRIEDMAN: Sure.

HERMAN: -- to see if he's given any hints or signs to anyone that he's on the verge of going on this kind of crime spree. That's what they're going to be investigating right now, to see if there's anything they could have done to prevent something like this. And sadly --

FRIEDMAN: Right. HERMAN: -- the answer in the end will probably be no, Fred.

WHITFIELD: And so, Avery, this is not an issue or a case in which evidence is collected because they're preparing for what may unfold in the courtroom.

FRIEDMAN: Right.

WHITFIELD: So the energy, you know, might be a little bit different. We heard Mike Brooks say earlier there is less urgency or concentrated effort to hurry up, because they're not looking for a suspect. They can take their time in this kind of investigation now, because they believe the suspect -- the only suspect, you know, here, is dead. How does all of this change the investigation?

FRIEDMAN: Well, there's no -- there's no duty at this point to expedite. If we looked at crimes where there were people still out there, you could lose witnesses. Here, we think we know who the suspect is. There's -- and I think what the evidence is going to be, Fredricka, is you're going to see substantial dis-affectation here.

We're going to see an individual who is angry about isolation, in this college environment, being rejected perhaps by others, and I think that's what we're going to see. We've seen it in Colorado. We've seen it in Connecticut. We've seen it here in Ohio. The sorrow that's been created is unspeakable, incomprehensible. That's exactly what the suspect wanted to do here.

WHITFIELD: And then, Richard, you see this as potentially reopening up dialogue, about gun responsibility or --

HERMAN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: -- or one's emotions and how that might, you know, provoke something like this?

HERMAN: It's the public discussion. You know, gun control against mental health treatment. It's going to rise again. We'll be talking about it. I don't believe, Fred, this guy had a licensed handgun. I think he had multiple handguns with him to fire off that many shots with a semiautomatic gun that, you know, you don't pull the trigger and it shoots a stream of bullets. You have to continue to pull it -- one, two, three, four. He had nine crime scenes. He had multiple shoot-outs with law enforcement.

FRIEDMAN: Right.

HERMAN: He had to change the clips on this. I think they may end up finding more than one handgun, and it's just an unbelievable tragedy to wake up on a Saturday morning and see this. It's unbelievable.

FRIEDMAN: Right.

WHITFIELD: It is unbelievable. And we are, of course, talking about a, you know, a college community and on a holiday weekend. We heard Jeff Gardere talking earlier about when someone carries out something like this, in his evaluation, it is someone who wants to make, you know, an imprint, wants to leave behind almost like a legacy, to go to a very populated area, to be disruptive in what you call it kind of a scene, and make a name for one self. Avery, you agree with that kind of assessment?

FRIEDMAN: I do. And I think what is so disheartening here is it would be a physical impossibility, Fredricka, for someone not to know about that dis-affectation, not to know about the isolation and the anger. Will the evidence establish that video or audio, or whatever else is out there, has been out there for sometime?

If I'm overseeing the investigation, I want to make sure that my officers are looking at those things, talking to witnesses, to make sure we understand how long the suspect has been acting like this, and whether or not this was likely to crescendo in exactly what we saw on Friday night.

WHITFIELD: All right --

FRIEDMAN: Fred, that's the problem.

WHITFIELD: Go ahead, Richard.

HERMAN: Yes, it's very hard to make that leap, to know that this person would take off on this crime spree, on this day. They may be depressed.

FRIEDMAN: That's true.

HERMAN: They may be suffering, but to know someone is depressed and suffering, and then predict they would open fire in nine different crime scenes in a crowded area --

FRIEDMAN: It depends on the evidence. Right.

WHITFIELD: All right, Richard, Avery, thanks so much. Always appreciate your insight. Appreciate it.

All right, the investigation into the deadly shootings is just the beginning. We'll get the latest from Isla Vista in just 1 minute from now.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

WHITFIELD: All right, welcome back. I am Fredricka Whitfield. We want to get you updated on this breaking news. A deadly shooting spree in Southern California, police say a gunman drove through a college town near UC Santa Barbara, shooting and killing six people.

John Palminteri is a reporter with CNN affiliate, KEYT, and he is following the story in Isla Vista. Joining us by phone right now. John, how are investigators going about identifying the gunman who is dead?

JOHN PALMINTERI, KEYT REPORTER (via telephone): Fredricka, they said in the press conference at 2:00 this morning when they gathered us together they had video and written evidence that was going to be directly linked to this terrible mass fatality shooting in the Isla Vista community here in Santa Barbara, California, and what they're going to do now is be very careful about analyzing this and identifying who the shooter is.

And of course as we know, he was found dead in his car, either by a self-inflicted wound or by this running gun battle with sheriff's deputies from Santa Barbara County who engaged him in gunfire as he drove through the streets of Isla Vista. As they verify his identification and do the background check they need to do, sometimes they hold back just a little longer while they get to the search warrant they need, electronically.

The search warrants for his residency and other residence along the way and get what they need in the way of computers and papers and documentation and anything that would connect them to the story line here to find out what was in his head, what mental state he was in that he would do such a tragic horrific thing to this college community and everyone that was wounded or killed last night.

WHITFIELD: So there was clear familiarity with this neighborhood and it seems like the location in which the unloading of the weapon was very deliberate, are we able to discern whether he was a student, with University of California Santa Barbara, or once a student? Are investigators willing to say anything about his relationship to this neighborhood or the people in this neighborhood?

PALMINTERI: Referencing that they are fairly certain they know who this is and there are many people in the college community there who have released a video, a YouTube video that seemed to speak to this, and the sheriff, Bill Brown, said yes, that is clearly something we're looking at, indicated that's the highest priority person they're looking at.

So taking that without revealing, using caution as they're trying to do very carefully on the front end here, but that person looking deeper into that name, it appears he may have had some time spent in school here, that he may have had some issues that were unresolved to the point where he wanted to settle this his way last night and this is the way he did it.

WHITFIELD: All right, John Palminteri, thank you so much. Again, infancy of the investigation. We understand the caution behind what is being revealed at this point about this gunman and the circumstances. Thanks so much, John.

All right, coming up next.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was standing at the street corner, and this black BMW drives through the intersection and moves down away from me, and maybe 2 seconds later, I heard pop.

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WHITFIELD: We will hear more from a witness to the shooting. He is shaken but very thankful to be alive.

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WHITFIELD: Following this breaking news out of California. Investigators are interviewing every witness they can, trying to uncover why a gunman went on a deadly shooting spree there. Earlier, a staff member of the student newspaper at the University of California Santa Barbara talked with us. He is still very shaken. Of course, he is happy to be alive after this gunman's car narrowly passed him moments before shots rang out.

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UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was standing on a street corner. I had heard I guess what sounded -- I now know to be I was standing on the street corner, and this black BMW turns through the intersection and goes down away from me, and maybe 2 seconds later I heard a pop. At first I remember looking at the car, thinking it backfired, which I thought was strange because it was such a new car, and it happened again.

By this time it reached outside of a restaurant convenience store, and there were maybe a group of six, seven, eight people eating in front of it, and it stopped in front of it and fired.

CHRISTI PAUL, CNN ANCHOR, "NEW DAY SATURDAY": Robert, did it seem to be targeting anybody or did it just seem very random, the shooting?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It all happened very quickly, but I think just happened to be the largest group on the street.