What We Know About the Suspected Discovery Channel Gunman

(Sept. 1) -- The Discovery Channel abruptly entered headlines Wednesday afternoon for an awful reason: a hostage crisis at the network's headquarters in Silver Spring, Md., involving an armed gunman, who the Web quickly identified as James Jay Lee or James Jae Lee, 43, of San Diego (hat tip: The Business Insider). After taking three hostages and negotiating with police for hours, Lee was shot and killed by officers.

Surge Desk lists what is known about Lee so far.

1. He Wrote A Lengthy, Rambling Manifesto

In the document, Lee accused humans of being the "most destructive, filthy, pollutive creatures around." It was posted at his website, www.savetheplanetprotest.com, which has crashed because of server overload. It can still be accessed via Google Cache.

2. He's Been Arrested Outside Discovery Channel HQ Before

In early 2008, Lee was arrested by Montgomery County Police on charges of littering and disorderly conduct for throwing money to attract a crowd outside the channel's headquarters, DCist reports. The blog also noted that "Lee appears to have spent thousands of dollars in advertising his protest plans in publications such as the Express," a free D.C.-area newspaper, "and hiring homeless people to beef up his presence."

DCist notes that a copy one of Lee's ads is available at The Silver Spring Singular. Here's another online promotion that Lee apparently put up at his own website.

3. He Went to Extraordinary Lengths to Protest the Channel

Elaborating on the DCist's claims that Lee spent significant money to stage bizarre protests in front of the network, the Maryland County Newspapers Online Gazette reported back in 2008 that:

Lee was arrested with about $21,000 in cash in the duffel bag he had with him at the protest, Meng testified. Johnson told Lee that he would get his bag of money back. Lee said he had sold several inherited properties in Maui, Hawaii, where he lived prior to moving to San Diego, to pay for the protest, including about $30,000 for full-page advertisements in newspapers. Lee said he had one property left, worth about $200,000, and had plans to give it away in a ''save the planet contest."

Here's video footage of Lee's "money toss" back in 2008, via the Village Voice:

4. He Was Allegedly Influenced by Al Gore's Film, 'An Inconvenient Truth'

Fox News anchor Shep Smith reported this afternoon that Lee experienced an "awakening" after seeing the former vice president's film about global warming.

5. He Was Allegedly Inspired by the Novel "My Ishmael"

A philosophical, eco-friendly novel about a talking ape from author Daniel Quinn.

6. He Was Sentenced to a Mental Institution

... For his previous Discovery Channel protest stunts, but never served time, instead being granted probation after 14 days in jail, TMZ reports.

7. He Has a MySpace

Under the username "Worldguardian," where he lists the following personal details:

Relationship status: Single
Here for: Networking, Friends
Orientation: Straight
Hometown: Hawaii
Body type: 5' 11" / Average
Ethnicity: Asian
Religion: Atheist
Zodiac Sign: Gemini
Children: I don't want kids
Occupation: Research
Read more: http://www.myspace.com/worldguardian#ixzz0yJSfuPfP

Screengrab:

8. He Has a YouTube Channel and TV Show Ambitions

...For his "Save The Planet Protest," which includes two different-sized versions of the same video, apparently Lee's pitch for a show that would address some of the problems he had with Discovery Channel's programming. He calls the video an "Experimental video title introduction for a TV Show idea about saving the planet." It is set to the tune of Berry McGuire's "Eve of Destruction." Here it is: