It was just three days ago that 20-year-old Wess Roley inexplicably ambushed and murdered two Idaho firefighters and left one in critical condition. Sniper Roley reportedly took his own life during the rampage. As with each of these random murderous shootings, one can only wonder why. To get to that answer serious questions need to be answered, beginning with the shooter’s mental health records.

The information that has been provided to the public so far mentions Roley had only recently moved to the Coeur d’Alene area and apparently was living in his van at the time of the shooting. Roley also is reported to have been expelled from High School in Arizona during his sophomore year over “some trouble with a girl.” 

Roley’s grandfather explained that his grandson was “nervous, high strung and kind of a loner.” Roley, however, did dream of becoming a firefighter and according to his grandfather, “actually really respected law enforcement.” Roley’s grandfather further explained that his grandson “loved firefighters and it didn’t make sense that he was shooting firefighters.” It has been confirmed that Roley had been in contact with representatives about joining the fire service.

Roley did not leave any known manifest and his family, like law enforcement, had no idea what precipitated the attack. The family said in a written statement that “we would like to offer our most heartfelt condolences to the families of those whose lives were taken…there are no words that can suffice for this tragedy…we do not understand why this happened or how this came about.” 

What is clear is that Roley, in order to draw the firefighters to the Canfield Mountain Range, set a brush fire and systematically went about the business of shooting three arriving firefighters. Premeditation is not questioned. So, what made Roley tick or, more to the point, what ticked off Roley to the point of committing murder?

Having all the information is necessary. To be specific, was Wess Roley ever the recipient of mental health care? Was Roley ever examined by any mental health providers during his school years?  Was Roley ever prescribed psychiatric mind-altering drugs? Finally, will an autopsy be carried out on Roley to find out what drugs may have been in his system at the time of the attack?

AbleChild sponsored landmark legislation in Tennessee last summer and the Tennessee legislature passed HB 1349/SB 1146 requiring autopsies of suspected mass shooters to include toxicology screenings for prescription psychotropic drugs. 

While the Tennessee law requires that four or more individuals must be killed in the shooting event, AbleChild would argue that one victim should trigger the autopsy drug screening and this kind of legislation needs to be enacted nationally.

Under Tennessee law, the results of such drug screenings are released to the public. The Tennessee law was groundbreaking legislation, and the information gleaned from the law will help law enforcement understand what may be driving these senseless killings.

Aware that too many of these shooters are the recipients of mental health drug “treatments” during their lives, it is time for states to take the necessary steps to determine if the drug “treatments” are playing a role in these random tragedies.

If Roley had been drugged at any time in his young life, it is important that his family share that information. There is no doubt that many of the psychiatric drugs prescribed as “treatment” can cause violent, deadly behavior. Roley may have been a victim of these “treatments.” At a minimum, having this mental health treatment information would, at least, eliminate it as a possible mitigator.

AbleChild is a 501(3) C nonprofit organization has recently co-written landmark legislation in Tennessee, setting a national precedent for transparency and accountability in the intersection of mental health, pharmaceutical practices, and public safety.

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