Asa Hailey Coon (September 22, 1993 – October 10, 2007) was born in
New York. He had been placed on a three-day suspension two days prior to the shooting for an altercation with another student regarding the existence of
God. The day he was suspended was the same day his brother, 19-year-old Stephen Coon, was arrested in connection with an
armed robbery. According to Coon's uncle, Larry Looney, Coon said he was upset because the teachers would not listen to what he had to say regarding the fight. According to fellow students and teachers, Coon had apparently been the target of
bullying by students at the school for his
Gothic appearance and eccentric behavior, and had made threats of violence in front of students and teachers the week before the shooting. Joseph Fletcher, a friend of Coon, said he had been "pushed too far" and that teachers were unable to help with his problems. Michael Grassie, who was one of Coon's teachers, said that Coon was frustrated because he was given a failing grade in his World History class, and had made attempts to goad him into a fight. Coon was suspended from school for 10 days in 2006 for attempting to harm a student. In 1997, a social worker in
Cortland County, New York, reported that three-year-old Coon was living with his family in a garbage-shrewn house, and his older brother threatened neighbors with
knives, rocks, and a fake bomb. When Coon was four, his mother, Lori Looney, was convicted of neglect by the county juvenile court. Social workers got involved again later. In 1999, Coon shot himself in the arm with his brother's
BB gun, which was then turned over to the police by their mother, who did not know where the toy came from. It turned out that the toy was a gift from the boys father, Thomas Coon, who was largely not involved in the boys lives. In 2000, Coon had burn and scratch marks on him. He scratched himself because of flea bites, but he refused to say where the burn marks came from. Someone allegedly said that his brother had burned him.
Juvenile Court records show that Coon had a criminal history and mental health problems since 2005, and threatened to commit suicide while in a
mental health facility in summer 2006. For striking his mother in 2005, Coon was forced to undergo probation, counseling, and community service. ==Aftermath==