tECH PANEL REBUFFS FAMILIES of Victims

Jun 12, 07:57 AM

Current Headlines: By CHRISTINA NUCKOLS

By Christina Nuckols

The Virginian-Pilot

fairfax

Families of the shooting victims at Virginia Tech demanded a greater role Monday in the panel studying the massacre and questioned the group's willingness to criticize the university's actions.

Gerald Massengill, chairman of the eight-member panel, met privately for two hours with families Monday evening but did not offer them a seat on the investigating body. The families want permission to select a professional investigator who would serve on the panel or its staff and be a liaison for them .

Earlier Monday during a public meeting at George Mason University, Massengill said the panel must be "totally objective and not driven by emotions."

The comment riled family members, including Peter Read, whose 19- year-old daughter, Mary Karen Read of Annandale, was killed in her French classroom April 16 by Seung-Hui Cho.

"We don't believe we should be penalized for having that passion," he told the panel. "We bring a qualification to the table that we don't feel any of you can match - which is an intimate knowledge of what Seung-Hui Cho took from us."

Read and members of 12 other victims' families issued a statement before the meeting that said, "We are angry about being ostracized from a government-chartered panel investigating a government- sponsored university."

Their concern is that the panel will not ask tough questions of Tech officials about flaws in the university's mental health system and events leading to the massacre.

Among the parents at the meeting were Mike and Tricia White of Smithfield, who held a framed photograph of their daughter, Nicole Regina White, a Smithfield High School graduate who was killed by Cho.

The parents at the meeting said Monday that not all of the 32 victims' families were involved in making their statement.

Gov. Timothy M. Kaine, who appointed the panel, indicated through a spokesman that he has no plans to add more members .

"The governor appointed individuals with national credentials and specific expertise to conduct an objective and comprehensive review," said Kevin Hall, Kaine's press secretary.

Massengill, a retired superintendent of the State Police, said he will present to Kaine their proposal for assigning a liaison. Larry Roberts, counsel to the governor, attended the meeting between Massengill and parents but declined to discuss it.

Hall said family members will be briefed on the panel's final recommendations before it is made public but won't be allowed to make changes, as some have requested.

The families also criticized Tech officials for failing to consult with them on fundraising efforts that have used victims' names and pictures. The Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund has attracted about $7 million in donations, and university officials have said they plan to use the money to help with the financial and counseling needs of the victims' families.

The panel has no oversight of the fund and did not discuss that issue Monday.

Holly Sherman, whose daughter, 20-year-old Leslie Sherman, was killed by Cho, said families want the Tech panel to issue subpoenas for Cho's mental health records, an action that will require the help of the State Crime Commission.

"The fact that he's a criminal, excuse me, this is a no- brainer," Sherman said in an interview.

The panel also heard Monday from Virginia's chief mental health watchdog, who said court officials relied on incomplete psychological evaluations when they released Cho from detention in December 2005. It was the gunman's only confirmed encounter with mental health experts.

James Stewart, solicitor general of mental health, said Cho was held for 14 hours and 45 minutes at a mental hospital - far less than the 48 hours allowed by law.

Cho was released after a hearing in which court officials concluded he was a danger to himself. The officials ordered Cho to seek outpatient treatment rather than committing him to a longer hospital stay.

Stewart said the order was based on a recommendation by an independent examiner who had not seen Cho's psychological evaluation or treatment plan. The documents weren't available because a hospital psychiatrist had not had time to complete them.

Cho made an appointment at Tech's student counseling center with help from a hospital staff member. His appointment was scheduled for one hour after his release from the mental hospital, but it is unclear whether Cho ever went. Stewart said no one is accountable under state law for making sure people obey orders to seek outpatient treatment.

Stewart said the hospital, a local mental health agency, court officials and university counselors followed state laws .

Dr. Marcus Martin, a panel member and assistant dean at the University of Virginia's medical school, said a Virginia Tech official or an acquaintance of Cho's should have been at the commitment hearing to ensure that he understood the treatment requirements and that he complied.

"There was really, truly no follow-up here," Martin said.

He said the commitment hearing should have more carefully considered signs that Cho was delusional, including reports that he referred to himself as "?" and told other students he had an imaginary twin brother.

Panel members expressed increasing frustration that they have been blocked from viewing Cho's mental records themselves and said they will continue to push for access.

"We're really operating with our hands tied, blindfolded, maybe even gag-ordered," said retired Judge Diane Strickland of Roanoke, a member of the panel .

" Has the pendulum swung too far in terms of student confidentiality and public safety concerns?"

Christina Nuckols, (804) 697-1565, christina.nuckols@pilotonline.com

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