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KILLED 12 PEOPLE INSIDE
WASHINGTON'S NAVY YARD, AND WE
SEEM NO CLOSER TO UNDERSTANDING
THE MOTIVES OF THE KILLER, AARON
ALEXIS.
HE WAS A CONTRACTOR AT THE YARD
WHO USED A VALID I.D. TO BRING
IN A SHOTGUN AND BLAST AWAY
INSIDE BUILDING 197 FOR A FULL
HALF HOUR.
QUESTIONS REMAIN HOW DID A MAN
WITH SO MANY PERSONAL DEMONS GET
CLEARANCE, HOW DID HE GET INSIDE
THE NAVY YARD.
I WANT TO WELCOME REAR ADMIRAL
JOHN KIRBY, CHIEF OF INFORMATION
FOR THE U.S. NAVY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR COMING IN.
WE APPRECIATE IT.
SO THE "NEW YORK TIMES" IS
REPORTING THAT ALEXIS WORKED FOR
THIS HEWLETT-PACKARD
SUBCONTRACTOR CALLED THE EXPERTS
AND THAT THE SEVERITIES EXPERTS
HOTEL AND SAID HE WAS UNSTABLE
AND THEY WERE BRINGING HIM HOME.
DID THE EXPERTS EVER LET THE
NAVY KNOW THAT?
>> WE ARE ASKING THAT SAME
QUESTION RIGHT NOW.
I DON'T HAVE ANY INDICATION THAT
THEY DID.
MATTER OF FACT, WE WOULD LIKE TO
UNDERSTAND THAT A LITTLE BETTER,
TOO.
IF THEY BROUGHT HIM BACK FROM
NEWPORT SAYING HE WAS UNSTABLE,
WHAT'S HE BEEN DOING SINCE THEN.
LOOKS LIKE HE HAD ACCESS TO
OTHER NAVAL INSTALLATIONS
INCLUDING THE NAVY YARD, OF
COURSE, SO WE WOULD LIKE TO
BETTER UNDERSTAND EXACTLY WHAT
HAPPENED BETWEEN THEN AND
MONDAY'S SHOOTING.
>> IT'S ALSO BEEN REPORTED THAT
POLICE IN NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND,
TOLD THE NAVY ABOUT THAT
INCIDENT IN AUGUST 7th WHEN HE
WAS HEARING VOICES, SAYING
PEOPLE WERE USING A MICROWAVE,
CLEAR DELUSIONS, CLEAR PARANOIA.
THE POLICE SAY THEY TOTAL THE
NAVY YARD IN RHODE ISLAND.
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THAT?
DID THE NAVY IN RHODE ISLAND
EVER LET ANYONE ELSE KNOW?
>> RIGHT NOW, WE'RE LOOKING AT
THIS, TOO, BUT RIGHT NOW IT
DOESN'T APPEAR AS IF THE
SECURITY OFFICERS THERE AT THE
NEWPORT NAVAL STATION DID
ANYTHING IN TERMS OF RAISING IT
UP TO THE CHAIN OF COMMAND.
WE'RE ASKING THOSE VERY TOUGH
QUESTIONS, TOO, ABOUT WHY THAT
DIDN'T OCCUR AND WHETHER IT
SHOULD HAVE OCCURRED.
HE WAS ONLY IN NEWPORT FOR A
COUPLE DAYS, BEST WE CAN TELL.
A SHORT SLICE OF THAT TIME, HE
ACTUALLY DID STAY AT THE NAVAL
STATION IN ONE OF OUR ON-BASE
HOTELS AS WELL.
>> USIS DID THE BACKGROUND CHECK
ON AARON ALEXIS.
THEY ALSO DID THE BACKGROUND
CHECK ON EDWARD SNOWDEN WHO
WHILE WHAT HE DID CAN'T BE
COMPARED TO WHAT AARON ALEXIS
DID, I THINK WE CAN AGREE HE
SHOULD HAVE HAD NO ACCESS TO
CLASSIFIED INFORMATION.
WHY DOES THE GOVERNMENT STILL
USE USIS?
IT SEEMS TO ME LIKE THEY ARE NOT
DOING A VERY GOOD JOB.
>> AS YOU KNOW, THEY ARE BEING
INVESTIGATED FOR EXACTLY THAT
RIGHT NOW.
I'M NOT -- I DON'T KNOW HOW THE
CONTRACTING SYSTEM WORKS BETWEEN
THE GOVERNMENT AND USIS BUT
CLEARLY WE HAVE GRAVE CONCERNS.
THIS IS AS YOU POINTED OUT, THE
SECOND ONE SO IT DOES RAISE SOME
SERIOUS QUESTIONS AND THOSE
QUESTIONS ARE BEING ASKED.
>> THE "WASHINGTON POST" REPORTS
THAT INVESTIGATORS ARE LOOKING
INTO WHETHER SOME SORT OF
WORKPLACE DISPUTE HAD ANYTHING
TO DO WITH THIS SHOOTING.
DO YOU KNOW IF ANY OF THE
INDIVIDUALS THAT ALEXIS KILLED
WERE TARGETED SPECIFICALLY OR IS
IT THOUGHT THAT THEY WERE ALL
RANDOM?
>> I DON'T HAVE ANY SENSE OF THE
MOTIVE OR HOW HE WENT ABOUT
KILLING WHO HE WENT ABOUT
KILLING.
I THINK THE FBI SAID YESTERDAY
THAT IT APPEARED TO BE THAT HE
WAS ALMOST ON A HUNTING SPREE,
BUT THE DEGREE TO WHICH -- I
JUST DON'T KNOW WHO HE WAS GOING
AFTER OR WHY.
THAT'S ALL MOTIVE AND THAT'S ALL
WHAT THE INVESTIGATION WILL TRY
TO TURN UP.
>> ARE ALL OF THE 12 VICTIMS WHO
WERE KILLED AND THE THREE WHO
WERE WOUNDED, WERE ALL OF THEM
SHOT ONLY BY AARON ALEXIS, OR IS
IT POSSIBLE THAT THERE WAS
FRIENDLY FIRE AS WELL?
>> I SEE NO INDICATION OF ANY
FRIENDLY FIRE.
EVERYTHING I'VE SEEN AND AGAIN,
I'M NOT PARTY TO THE
INVESTIGATION, TELLS ME THAT
AARON ALEXIS WAS THE SHOOTER.
>> THE LAST QUESTION, AS YOU
KNOW I REPORTED A COUPLE DAYS
AGO THAT THE NAVY IN 2007 KNEW
ABOUT ALEXIS' INCIDENT IN 2004,
WHEN HE SHOT OUT THE CAR TIRES
AND CLAIMED THAT HE HAD HAD AN
ANGER-FUELED BLACKOUT.
WHY WOULD THE NAVY LET HIM IN?
THAT WOULD SEEM TO BE THE FIRST
RED FLAG, THIS GUY SHOULD NOT BE
TRAINED BY THE U.S. MILITARY,
SHOULD NOT BE GIVEN ACCESS TO
WEAPONS, HE SHOULD NOT BE
REPRESENTING THE UNITED STATES
IN THE WORLD.
>> IT'S A GREAT QUESTION.
AGAIN, WE HAVE BEEN LOOKING
VERY, VERY HARD.
SECRETARY MABUS ORDERED A DEEP
DIVE INTO AARON ALEXIS' WHOLE
SERVICE RECORD.
WE'RE ABOUT READY TO WRAP THAT
UP SO NO FINAL CONCLUSIONS.
WHAT I CAN TELL YOU, IT'S
UNCLEAR RIGHT NOW THE DEGREE TO
WHICH WE HAD ALL THE DETAILS
ABOUT THAT THE SHOOTING.
AS YOU POINTED OUT, THE POLICE
REPORT MADE IT CLEAR THAT HE HAD
SHOT USING A HAND GUN, SHOT THE
TIRES OUT OF THAT CAR.
I'M NOT SURE, WE DON'T KNOW
RIGHT NOW HOW MUCH OF THE
DETAILS, THE SPECIFICS OF THAT
SHOOTING INCIDENT, THE NAVY WAS
AWARE OF WHEN THEY GRANTED HIM
THE SECURITY CLEARANCE.
>> I KNOW IT'S ONLY BEEN FOUR
DAYS AND YOU DON'T HAVE A LOT OF
ANSWERS TO MY QUESTIONS TODAY.
I APPRECIATE YOU COMING HERE.
ARE YOU FRUSTRATED AT ALL THAT
SOME OF THESE ANSWERS HAVEN'T
COME TO YOU AND THEREFORE, TO ME
AND THE VIEWERS?
>> NO.
ACTUALLY NOT.
AS YOU SAID, ONLY FOUR DAYS.
THIS IS A VERY COMPLEX
SITUATION.
WE OBVIOUSLY HAVE A DISTURBED
INDIVIDUAL AT BEST, A BELOW
AVERAGE SAILOR.
CLEARLY THERE'S INCIDENTS IN HIS
SERVICE THAT ARE QUESTIONABLE.
WE'RE TRYING TO GET THE ANSWERS
TO THIS AND I THINK IT'S
IMPORTANT THAT WE DON'T RUSH TO
JUDGMENT HERE.
IT'S IMPORTANT THAT WE TAKE THE
TIME AND REALLY DO THE HOME WORK
TO FIGURE OUT WHAT HAPPENED AND
MORE IMPORTANTLY, TO YOUR
QUESTIONS, WHAT DIDN'T HAPPEN