and we're taking a lesson from the people of aurora themselves, the governor of aurora and the president of the united states. >> i had a chance to visit with each family. and most of the conversation was filled with memory. it was an opportunity for families to describe how wonderful their brother or their son or daughter was. and the lives that they have touched. and the dreams that they held for the future. i confessed to them that words are always inadequate in these kinds of conversations. i also tried to assure them that although the perpetrator of this evil act has received a lot of attention over the last couple of days, that attention will fade away, and in the end, after he has felt the full force of our justice system, what will be remembered are the good people. who were impacted by this tragedy 37 >> you saw there on your screen the pictures we have of the 12 who died in theater nine just after midnight thursday night. the youngest, veronica moser-sullivan, was just 6 years old. they said her name at a vigil here last night, her name and the names of 11 others. >> john blunk. >> we will remember. >> a.j. boik. >> we will remember. >> jesse childress. >> we will remember. >> gordon cowden. >> we will remember. >> jessica ghawi. >> we will remember. >> john larimer. >> we will remember. >> matt mcquinn. >> we will remember. >> micayla medek. >> we will remember. >> veronica moser-sullivan. >> we will remember. >> alex sullivan. >> we will remember. >> alexander teves. >> we will remember. >> and rebecca wingo. >> we will remember. >> we will remember you. [ applause ] >> and we, too, will remember them tonight and in the weeks and months and years ahead. and we will speak tonight with the people who knew them and who loved them. we begin with all the latest developments, starting with what we saw occurred outside the suspect's apartment, packed with explosives rigged to kill. for that, here's randi kaye. >> reporter: members of the atf, fbi, aurora police bomb experts, even chemists, gather at the suspected shooter's apartment. they devise a plan to get inside. they call it a controlled detonation. >> first and foremost is we need to render the area safe. the most immediate threat is the trip wire. >> reporter: it's just after 8:00 a.m. and this team has already been at it for more than 24 hours. trying to figure out a way to defuse or detonate explosives the suspect set inside. through the window of his third floor apartment, they can see a web of trip wires. and a living room full of about 30 homemade ieds strung together with firecracker shells. there are also jars of black powder and liquid accelerant. cans of gasoline too. at 10:33 a.m., progress. >> we have been successful in defeating the first threat, which includes defeating the trip wire. >> reporter: a robot driven by a bomb technician does the dangerous work humans can't. spraying water on the control box in the kitchen wired to the ieds, disabling explosives while preserving evidence. >> this apartment was designed, i say, based on everything i have seen, to kill whoever entered it. if you think we're angry, we sure as hell are angry. >> reporter: a couple hours later, just before noon, firemen shout "fire in the hole." and then -- at 12:08 p.m., confirmation the most serious threat is over. >> we have been successful in detonating the second triggering device. we are confident we have eliminated all major threats at this point. however, there are many hazards that remain inside this apartment. >> reporter: hazards like improvised napalm and other flammables and accelerants. designed to intensify the fire after an explosion. by 6:00 p.m., much of the dangerous material is hauled away to this open field outside the city limits and detonated. back here at the suspect's apartment, investigators try to perverse what they can as preserve whatever they can as evidence. whatever explosives and ammunition are left go to an fbi lab in quantico, virginia. they also take with them a batman poster, a batman mask and a computer, hoping it contains clues to a motive. saturday evening, residents from the evacuated buildings nearby are allowed to return home. many still jittery about what might have been. >> i didn't know if they were going to be okay, if that place was going to blow up while i was work. it was really scary. >> reporter: with the apartment secure, the focus turns to where the suspected shooter got all his materials. investigators say in the last 60 days, he bought more than 6,000 rounds of ammunition online. including a 100-round magazine for the assault rifle. they track a large number of deliveries to his apartment. >> we also think it begins to explain some of the materials he had in his apartment. >> reporter: police saturday also do a sweep of the university of colorado medical school where the suspect was enrolled. they have to be sure he didn't booby trap the campus. they also do a thorough search of all bio hazard and radioactive material he may have had access to and confirm it is all secure. now, investigators know the suspected shooter wanted to extend the carnage beyond the movie theater. and while they've learned so much more about what he alleged planned, they just don't know why. >> now, sunday, new information came out regarding what happened with one of the suspect's guns in the theater. randi, what have you learned? >> reporter: yesterday, anderson, we got some new information about these guns. as you know there were three guns. we're told by sources close to the investigation that the assault rifle actually jammed. as we know it had that extended magazine on it which carried 100 rounds of ammunition. it was capable of firing 50 to 60 rounds of ammunition per minute and so that jammed, which really, luckily, limit the number of shots that the suspect could get off. i'm told by our source the after-market extended magazines, like he was using in this case, do have a tendency to jam. thank goodness, anderson, it did. >> randi, thanks very much for that. one of the people who lost their lives inside that theater, alex teves. his father, tom, is with me now. his mom karen is also here in aurora. alex was mortally wounded while shielding his girlfriend from gunfire. alex died a hero. his father faced his suspect in court. he saw, in his own words, a coward. he joins us now. i'm so sorry for your loss. it sounds like such a hollow thing to say. how are you holding up? >> you've got to move forward. alex would have expected us to live. we're going to live. alex was all about life. i can talk about being -- i didn't really dress up but there's a reason for this. alex was the type of kid who brought people together. when he was in high school, for no reason whatsoever, well, alex used to wear blue jeans and a white t-shirt every day to school. and my wife, being the anal retentive woman she is. there would be 16 laundry shirts on laundry day, all hung up and ironed. he would wear them every day. through all of high school. halfway through senior year, they decided for no reason to have alex teves day. 400 or 500 kids came to school in blue jeans and a white t-shirt and there were girls that said i love teves and, you know, it was pretty cool. >> how did you guys meet? >> we met in school. we went to grad school together at du. we started as friends. immediately, it was more than that. >> ryan, how long have you guys been best friends? >> i've known alex for about ten years. he was my best friend but, you know, saying "friend" almost doesn't even do it justice. i mean, he really was like the other part of me. i knew alex for ten year. we went to high school together. we lived all four years in college together. we were extremely close. >> what do you think it was about him that drew you to him? >> i don't know. it's not even what drew me to him. it's about the what drew everybody to h. tom's story about everybody that dressed up as alex that one day. in high school. it just shows that everybody was drawn to him. and he was so funny. like, that's what i'm trying to tell everybody who doesn't know him, is he was just the most hilarious person wherever he would go. his jokes and he was extremely caring. we went to the university of arizona together. we loved going to football and basketball games together. as much as he loved that, he would take time and miss those games to mentor kids in the community who, you know, didn't have dads and were just really hurting. >> he wanted to be a counselor, he wanted to be a psychiatrist? >> he got his masters degree in psychology. he decided he was going to do more impact and go back and get his degree in physical therapy. he wanted to help people. alex was one of those kids. you know, you guys do investigative journalism. i would challenge you to find someone who will say a bad word about him. that's serious. i'll come back and eat crow if you find it. >> i'm obviously not going to pester you with questions about what happened that night but you feel alex did save your life? >> i don't -- i mean, with every ounce of my being, he did. i wouldn't be here without him. >> you were in the courtroom today. a lot -- i talked to a lot of family members who don't want to even look at that person. why did you want to be there? >> because it's -- i wanted to see what he looks like, first off. second off, he doesn't look like much. third off, it's not about him. it's about this poor girl who was a victim as well. it's about my son who -- this individual dressed in riot gear, whatever it is, with guns. literally blew his head off because he was protecting her. it's not about him. i just wanted to see him and i wanted to see there's people who care and aren't afraid of him. >> what is it like being here in aurora? >> awful. >> awful? >> it's the worst day of my life every day. alex was my first-born son. i love him with all my heart. just like i like those two. i like them, i don't really love them. you know what i mean. it's awful. and it's senseless. and if we don't stop talking about the gunman -- so somebody took a gun and went in and shot a 6-year-old girl. why are we talking about that person? i would love to see -- i'll give you a challenge. i'd like to see cnn come out with a policy that said moving forward, we're not going to talk about the gunman. what we're going to say is, a coward walked into a movie theater and started shooting people. he's apprehended. the coward's in jail. he will never see the light of day again. let's move on to the victims. never talk to him again. i'll tell you, the analysis, the analogy -- i'm not great with words right now. it's not been my best week. is if you think about it, you used to see people jump on the fields a the time. everybody would cover it and everybody would laugh, right? the networks said we're not going to cover that anymore. when was the last time you saw somebody jump on the field? now, that's a completely different level, right. but there's a lot of reasons. we always say why, why. and we never know why. but we got enough data. let's figure out why. i guarantee one of them is because they want to be on television. they want to be infamous. we can stop it. we can't stop it. we can only get shot. cnn, fox news, the major networks. why don't you guys all come out with a policy that says, we're not going to show this again, we realize we made a mistake, but just so this never happens again, here's what we're going to do. that would be my challenge to you and to every network. and let's see who comes out with it first. >> i also think -- i mean, a stt also is not using this person's name. >> i don't know what it is. >> which we're not doing, very consciously. sadly, not everybody's following that policy. >> i read "usa today" all the time because i travel and they drop it at my door. i can't read it because i got to rip the guy's face out every time i look at the paper so, you know -- >> how do you -- what is the next step for you, i mean, what -- >> for me, it's to make sure this little girl gets taken care of, and she heals. it's to make sure those two little -- those little guys, they're going to kill me, they're 16 and 17, they heal, make sure my wife heals, and make sure the thousands and thousands people who are sending me e-mails because they knew alex, at least know we appreciate their prayers 37 and then i don't know. some of the -- a lot of the victims feel the same way as i. maybe it's time for us to rise up. if you guys don't do it, maybe we use the internet. we say, you show that, okay, whoever advertises next, we will never buy your product. that would do it. i think we will be pro active. look at yourselves. say, we need to take ownership. it's not just us. we're not the only reason. but let's fix our own house before we blame the gun lobby or whatever. i'm not saying they're right either. i'm not making any political comments. >> use the time obviously to focus on the survivors, the victims. >> exactly. it should always be on the victims. stop making them infamous. what else are they going to do? i saw the guy today. >> it's also one of those horrible things that even years from now people sometimes remember the name of the killer did -- >> give me one person who died in tucson besides gabby gifford. nobody can give me an answer. there was a girl from 9/11 who died. nobody can remember that name. but you can still remember the face of that coward. that's the only word i'm going to use on television. >> right. i appreciate you all being on and talking about alex and helping people to get to know him. because i think that's the most important thing what we're trying to do right now. >> i appreciate it. thanks. thanks for your time. >> i wish you strength. all right. thank you very much. i'm so sorry. >> thanks for your time. >> we -- there's a lot more to talk about. you're going to meet other family members of people whose lives were lost. we're on facebook. follow me on twitter right now. @andersoncooper. as we continue tonight from aurora, more stories of heroes who died saving others, just like alex. and the fallen and how this community is trying to come together. we'll be right back. 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saving his girlfriend's life. matt mcquinn was just 27 years old. we're in aurora, colorado. when we arrived on friday, people were not only dealing with the trauma of the mass shooting, some were in agony not knowing where their loved ones were 37 bodies of 10 of the 12 people killed were still inside the movie theater till late in the day on friday. notification of next of kin did not happen till late that night. as you just heard from alex's father tom, in the previous segment, there's a whole range of emotions. there's a lot of anger even at some of the coverage. about the attention that the suspect has been getting. not only seeing his picture but it's really the repeating of his name that bothers many people here. that's why we're choosing not to use it tonight. i would certainly echo a lot of what tom's -- what alex's father said. and hope other people in the weeks ahead try not to focus as much on the name of the suspected killer and more on those whose lives were lost. for a time, people simply did not know whether a family member or friend was dead or alive on friday. i spoke on friday night with a young man named marcus weaver. >> my friend, she's still missing, her name is rebecca wingo. there was a report on goodwill where they're looking on the internet. her friends and family, her dad has called me. they've been searching the hospitals. she's yet to be found. there was a moment where he stopped shooting. and so i picked her up and she had blood all over her face. and her body was bloodied. anshe was unconscious. i tried to pick her up with my left hand and get her through the row. there were people trampling over the seating coming down. there were people in my aisle who were, like, lying down, injured, dead, crying. i mean, it was awful. i ended up tripping and then had to set her down. >> well, hours later, the sad news came out. rebecca wingo did die in that movie theater. so did nine others. two more died later at area hospitals. i want to tell you about some of of what we know about the 12 whose lives were lost. not far from the century theater, 12 white crosses honor those whose lives have been cut short. kevin came to mourn his friend, staff sergeant jesse childress. a 29-year-old cyber systems operator stationed at buckley air force base. >> when i think of jesse, i think of a big nerd, someone who was always humorous, someone who always made the office brighter. >> reporter: a.j. boik is being remembered for his laughter as well. only 18 years old, he'd recently graduated high school. his friends have made a facebook page in his honor, posting videos of him dancing and smiling. you can't find someone with a brighter smile and more positive outlook, one friend wrote. gordon cowden was the oldest of those who lost their lives. the 51-year-old father, devoted to his kids. he owned his own business and loved the outdoors. he'd taken his two teens to see batman. the kids survived. 26-year-old jonathan blunk was also a father. he had two young children. a navy vet. he died shielding his girlfriend. his ex-wife says their 4-year-old daughter now takes comfort listening to him speak on his voice mail message 37 >> johnny was the type who wants to help anybody. he always wanted to make people smile and laugh. he was very optimistic and outgoing. >> reporter: matt mcquinn also died protecting his girlfriend. they both recently moved to colorado. his friends and family want to remember his great heart and his big personality. >> i'm very proud of him. we're going to miss him. >> you're nailing it, i'm telling you. >> i know, i'm doing such a great job. >> reporter: jessica ghawi was a 24-year-old aspiring sports reporter. she'd moved to denver to start her career. she was the first victim to be publicly identified by her brother jordan on friday. >> her dreams cut short and how we're going to be able to sustain those dreams and push them forward. she was an asset to her family, an asset to her friends. an asset to her community. >> reporter: john larimer is also being remembered as an asset to his community. like his dad and grandfather before him. he joined his navy. he was just 27 years old. >> john had that calming personality. that everybody seemed to gravitate too. everything he did either on the job or off the job, he was a true gentleman in every way, shape and form. >> reporter: alex sullivan was also 27. he was celebrating his birthday. sunday would have also been his first anniversary with his wife casey. every