Ministry of Justice, Finland

In September 2008, a 22-year old polytechnic student shot nine students of his own class, one teacher and eventually himself in his own school in Kauhajoki. He also started several fires in the building. The perpetrator used a self-loading, i.e. semi-automatic firearm, which was of small calibre but nevertheless enabled great damage.

The perpetrator of the school killings obtained his firearms permit easily, and he had been deemed suitable to possess a firearm also when later reprimanded by the police.

According to the Investigation Commission, the general safety cannot be built on the assumption that the possible criminal intentions of those applying for a firearms permit can for certain be detected during an interview conducted by the police or a physician. The Commission recommends that all such handguns, which enable firing a great number of shots within a short time, be collected up, for example in exchange for a payment, and any new acquisition permits for such firearms no longer be granted.

As for other firearms, the Commission recommends that the conditions for granting a permit be tightened through raising the age limit for the possession of a firearm to 20 years, granting the permits only for a fixed term, and requiring that an applicant have at least two years' experience in target shooting or practice.

A dissenting opinion concerning the availability of firearms has been submitted.

Development of mental health care services for young people

The perpetrator ended up as a school killer as a result of a long development and many different contributory factors. The perpetrator had suffered from bullying, he had mental problems and he idolised school killings. His friends knew that he owned a firearm, and some of them were worried about it. This information was, however, not passed on to any close adults or the student care nor did anyone have an overall picture of the perpetrator's situation.

To develop the mental health care services for adolescents, the Investigation Commission recommends that people under 23 years old will not be treated with psychopharmaceuticals without having being examined by a physician specialised in psychiatry or in psychopharmaceutical treatment of adolescents. The Commission recommends also that the resources of the student health care services be strengthened, especially in regard with mental health, and that compulsory physical examinations of all students be introduced.

Identification and treatment of students' problems would be promoted by making student care, student body activities and health care services more effective as well as by good interaction between adolescents and adults in schools.

Better safety through anticipation

In the school in Kauhajoki where the incident took place, a number of safety planning activities had been performed and preparedness for different accidents had been worked on. In general, instructions concerning safety plans in schools vary considerably, and that is what makes the situation confused. The functionality of safety planning in schools could be improved by gathering all the different instructions in a single document, which would be regularly updated. Operations models for different situations, which would be easy to learn and which could be delivered to students e.g. in pocket size, could come in useful.

Cooperation between authorities, for example in the event of a school killing, should be developed by creating common action plans for the police, rescue services and emergency medical services. Authorities should also cooperate when performing preventive safety work.

The school killings in Kauhajoki created a substantial amount of need for psychosocial support in many different places. The incident influenced a large number of people, who needed both mental support and help in taking care of practicalities. In case of corresponding major crises, adequate plans and resources must be in place so that everyone can get the support they need.

Further information:
Pekka Sauri, Chair of the Investigation Commission, tel. +358 500 433 464
Kai Valonen, Member of the Investigation Commission, Chief Accident Investigator, tel. 040 500 9992

School killings in Kauhajoki on 23 September 2008. Report of the Investigation Commission.
http://www.om.fi/Etusivu/Julkaisut/Selvityksiajaohjeita/Selvitystenjaohjeidenarkisto/Selvityksiajaohjeita2010/1247668612061