Friend says Halloween gunman was shamed, force-fed religion

A Colorado Springs man who knew the gunman in Saturday’s shooting said Noah Harpham struggled with addiction and shame.

Ray Soucie met Harpham outside of a support group. Although Soucie didn’t think Harpham was sincere about recovery, he offered him help and the two met for coffee on occasion.

Soucie never imagined that Harpham would go on a shooting spree, but he said he did talk about how he felt shamed by his mother’s book.

“It kind of put him in the spotlight, writing about her son. And, I’m sure that made him feel out of place ’cause he was uneasy about it,” Soucie said.

Harpham’s mother, Heather Kopp wrote about her son’s battle with alcohol addiction in a book published in 2013.

Harpham also told Soucie that he was “force-fed” religion. In a video blog created just days before the shooting, Harpham mentioned the sermon of a California pastor.