Crime Solvers Central
Crime Solvers Central
302 Cases Solved. Advancing justice for missing persons, unsolved homicides, unidentified and unclaimed remains.

Forum Posts for Diane Marie Collins:
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On Wednesday morning, November 15, 1995, Richland High School in Lynnville, Tennessee, was the scene of a school shooting that left 14-year-old freshman Diane Marie Collins dead. A senior student, 17-year-old James Ellison Rouse (also reported as Jamie Rouse), entered through a north entrance armed with a .22-caliber Remington Viper semi-automatic rifle and opened fire in a hallway crowded with more than fifty students.

Rouse shot two teachers, Carolyn Yancey and Carolyn Foster, in the head; Foster died of her wounds while Yancey was critically injured but survived. Rouse then fired at football coach Ron Shirey; that shot missed Shirey but struck Diane Collins in the throat, killing her. A male student and an agriculture teacher tackled and disarmed Rouse, and law enforcement took him into custody.

Investigators reported the motive as revenge for poor grades and identified an accomplice, Stephen Abbott, who reportedly drove Rouse to the school knowing of his intentions. Questions remain about how a firearm was brought into the building and what warnings, if any, were missed before the attack. Does anyone have information about Diane Collins, her family, or memories from Richland High School that could add to the record?