Have heard nothing-zip-nada about any forensic investigation of the Las Vegas shooter.

[marked50]

I have found it strange that in all the discussions about motives about the shooter I have heard nothing about any drug testing or autopsies being performed. Nothing. It has been nearly a week and nothing has been reported or even said about this in anything of regular reporting. They all keep up the lack of motive thing. Why?

The closest I have seen is something (I think I read on CNN) about the Texas Tower shooter having a brain tumor that was putting pressure on his amygdala that may have contributed to the event and an oblique comment that the reporter wondered if the shooters brain was damaged with his "suicide". That's it.

Can anyone point me towards something that may explain this lack of focus on something so basic in forensic's ?

[guillaumeb]

1. Speaking of a lack of focus:

All of the media obsession with the minutiae of the crime ignores the fact that it is so easy to amass guns and ammunition and large capacity clips. The why of the crime does not really matter, it is the how that matters and the how is generally ignored by the corporate media.

[HopeAgain]

2. I think figuring out a motive or cause

Has yet to stop another mass murder. Why should any civilian be able to own anything that looks like an AK, AR, or other military weapon? Let's ask that insread.

[Xipe Totec]

3. Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.

Just because the media is not talking about any forensic investigation, doesn't mean there is no forensic investigation ongoing.

Did you really think that the police would somehow forget or not consider performing a forensic investigation on the largest mass shooting in the history of the United States?

[marked50]

6. We have always heard of such efforts in the past within days of these things- not this time- please

explain or call me mistaken with my memory.

[Nitram]

4. Of course they will test the shooter"s corpse fir drugs and look for issues with his brain.

It is good policy not to speculate until test results are in.

[marked50]

7. Nobody is talking speculation of results-just when we can expect information

[jberryhill]

17. Weeks

[Igel]

22. We usually get the information.

But nothing requires that we get the information. It gets released to the public, but ultimately if there's no interest or if we miss it when it splats across the media then we miss it.

This is a want on our part, not a need.

[Not Ruth]

27. Going to guess that he had marijuana in his system and thus may have bought the guns illegally

Via hair test. Nevada has a nice recreational marijuana industry.

Examining the brain after he put a bullet into it, let's see about that.

[Nitram]

28. Very small amounts of tissue can be examined and/or tested for signs of a tumor.

Doesn't really matter if you have to scrape it of the ceiling.

[Doreen]

5. I will point you to the explanation.

The shooter is male, white, and rich. All of trumpies and his administrations favorite things.

[JoeStuckInOH]

8. What do you expect them to find?

He was found in the room... with the guns. Dead.
With cameras set up having recorded his actions.
I'm not sure forensics is needed in this one.

Although I'm sure the FBI/ATF are looking at all the forensic evidence they can gather. The fact that the media is not talking about it pretty much communicates the fact that any evidence disclosed is not shocking or headline worthy in any way. The news isn't in the business of putting mundane information we already knew in the headlines.

[marked50]

11. I can only say that we don't all the facts here and if we think that "the news" will always

give us "the fact" is really naive. It is beyond my ability to understand why this guy did what he did without the best effort to analyze this with the facts as we can know them. This is not to justify his actions in any way. It is to see what we may be able to do to prevent something like this in the future. An intervention of some sorts? Who knows? Without this information how can we even try?

[Laffy Kat]

15. I haven't ruled-out a brain tumor.

Although I understand it is ninety-nine percent likely to be Angry White Man syndrome. I just keep remembering the 1966 UT tower shooting where even the perpetrator knew there was something wrong with his mind. Everyone who knew the LV shooter keeps saying it was out of character. It's a long shot but would like to see it ruled out and the sooner the better.

Edited to add: It wouldn't make any difference. The dead will still be dead. I have a clinically curious mind and I want to know.

[fescuerescue]

9. Maybe you could give the Vegas PD a call

and give them a few pointers?

They probably forgot about doing those things and would appreciate your reminder.

[marked50]

12. Sarcasm doesn't answer the basic question-Why isn't anyone talking about this?

[fescuerescue]

14. Because it's not prudent to talk about it yet

Those sort of testing and results takes quite a bit of time and god help them if they get it wrong with early speculation.

I can't see an upside for the medical examiners to rush out a premature result.

[marked50]

19. I am not asking the medical examiners to rush out any results. Just that the activity is under way.

I don't think that asking that question in imprudent.

[fescuerescue]

20. Well....

I don't think anyone here can answer that for certain, other than to assume that second most visible shooting in history behind the Kennedy murder , probably has some folks on it.

Otherwise - well I guess we are back to give'n the Vegas PD a call to lend a hand.

[Nitram]

25. marked, we re talking about it, but there is really nothing to talk about until test results are

released. It's the CSI Las Vegas Phenomenon. We expect to get a toxic screen, an autopsy and a DNA analysis within minutes. It' not a big conspiracy. It's the pace of real science.

[cwydro]

10. I'm quite sure they're investigating.

Time will tell.

[Nevernose]

13. 2 points: 1, there are 58 autopsies more important

Anyone murdered or dying outside of a doctor’s care has to have an autopsy per NV law.

2: It takes about six weeks for the final coroner’s report. The drug and tox screen is pretty thorough, but can take weeks. There are also tests that involve bacterial growths, which take the longest. If they do think this guy had cancer, they’ll have to reassemble his brain as best they can before biopsying every section.

It really doesn’t matter, though. We already KNOW why he did it. He wanted to kill people and had fifty machine guns. If we’d eliminated either one of those two pieces of the equation, there would be about 600 fewer gunshot victims right now.

[marked50]

18. Point 1 and 2 are the best reasons I have gotten so far- so Thanks, but

I would still want to consider all factors that would have contributed to this horror, not just that he had 50 machine guns. Yes, we have a gun culture that is out of control, yes, we have people who may just want to kill as many people as they can, and the best approach is to do something about all the guns and addiction that many have with them, but we also need to understand the things that may drive people to such terrible things.

That can be from many various sources- mental, physical, societal, familial, etc. When we really can figure these things out then maybe we can do something about those. Let's say we eliminate all guns- which is a great first step- then we need to eliminate all sources of explosives- then eliminate those who deliberately spread diseases. And on and on it goes.

It is incumbent upon us to understand and work on all avenues to prevent this stuff in the future. It is Dark Ages thinking that leads us to relying upon not doing this and just seeking one solution- let's create an inquisition for example.

I am all for gun control. I am also for things beyond.

[jberryhill]

16. That will take time

CSI is done in an hour. Reality not so much.

[ucrdem]

21. The ISIS conversion didn't fly

and now it's yesterday's news. So it goes.

[Skittles]

23. nothing about the financial forensics either

[kcr]

24. The fact that it's only been a week?

It takes a lot longer than that before you start seeing any results.

[Not Ruth]

26. Blew his brains out