Let the excuses for Charles Carl Roberts' mass murder begin!

Again, his "motive" does not matter. Nor does his state of mind.

Roto-Reuters: Gunman chose Amish school because it was easy target

The 32-year-old dairy truck driver who stormed a one-room school and killed five girls apparently chose the schoolhouse because it was an easy target rather than because he had a grudge against the Amish, police said.

Pennsylvania police said the man lost a child of his own three years ago, and they were investigating suicide notes that he left as well as statements he made to his wife that he was seeking revenge for something that occurred 20 years ago.

Two girls died overnight, bringing to five the number of students killed, police said on Tuesday.

The two girls who died overnight were aged 7 and 8, said Commissioner Jeffrey Miller of the Pennsylvania state police. One other girl remained in critical condition and another four were described as stable, state police said.

Commenting on Roberts' motive, Miller said the death of a child three years ago may have affected his state of mind.

"He may have been angry with God for having lost a child," Miller said at a news briefing.

The third deadly U.S. school shooting in a week shattered the calm of an Amish farm community where there is little crime and where the sight of horse-drawn buggies, men in simple black coats and hats, and women in bonnets conjures up a bygone age.

"We don't believe that he had ... some animus toward the Amish community. We believe that this was a target of opportunity," Miller said.
"He believed he could get in there pretty easily and secure it from a defensive posture."