Psychologist Dr. Robi Ludwig has
apologized for comments she made suggesting mass shooter Elliot
Rodger might have been fighting “homosexual impulses.”
In a now deleted YouTube video titled
Elliot Rodger's Retribution posted before the 22-year-old
gunned down six people near the University of California Santa
Barbara, Rodger, dubbed by the media the “virgin killer,” ranted
against the women who had rejected him and the men they gave
themselves to.
During an appearance on Fox News'
Justice with Judge Jeanine, Ludwig questioned Rodger's sexual
orientation as a possible motive.
“When I was first listening to him, I
was like, 'Oh, he's angry with women for rejecting him,'” Ludwig
said. “And then I started to have a different idea: Is this
somebody who is trying to fight against his homosexual impulses?”
“Was he angry with women because they
were taking away men from him?” she added.
Later she added, “Was he angry at the
men for not choosing him? This was a kid who was just angry in
general. He probably felt rejected. He couldn't connect. He
couldn't feel loved. He couldn't feel successful. Maybe he couldn't
even feel like a real man?”
The comments gained wide traction on
social media, where Ludwig faced a backlash.
She explained in a Facebook post that
her comments had been misunderstood.
“I was misunderstood on @FoxNews this
weekend, when I was asked to hypothesize several factors which could
have triggered ?#?ElliotRoger?'s spree killing,” Ludwig
wrote. “I in NO way meant to indicate being a homosexual or
having homosexual impulses is a cause for spree killing. My job on
@judgejeanine was to asses several possible triggers for #ElliotRoger
and his behavior ?#?peace? ?#?forequalrights. ? However,
I apologize to all those who felt offended. That was never my
intention.”