CHARLOTTESVILLE -- The chairman of a state panel investigating the Virginia Tech shootings said today that the group will discuss its preliminary findings in a public meeting next month before delivering a final report to Gov. Tim Kaine.

Chairman Gerald Massengill made the announcement shortly after the Virginia Tech Incident Review Panel wrapped up a closed-door session with attorneys in Charlottesville to discuss how it will handle information protected by federal privacy laws. He said the panel members and staff consultants will discuss findings from their investigation during an open meeting in late-August before finalizing its report, but will not take comments from the public during that session.

"There will be some type of airing of this report preliminarily before it goes to final form," Massengill said.

The panel held its last information-gathering meeting on Wednesday. It will hold another closed session with attorneys on July 24 in Charlottesville.

The April 16 shootings left 33 students and faculty dead, including student gunman Seung-Hui Cho.

Kaine appointed the eight-member panel shortly after the shootings. He asked the group to examine all aspects of the shootings, including Cho's mental health history. Kaine said he wanted the panel's work to be "as public and transparent as possible."

Families of the some shooting victims urged the panel Wednesday to find fault for the shootings and issue recommendations for preventing similar tragedies in the future.

Massengill insisted that the panel's report will be comprehensive.

"If we don't take the time to learn from what happened, all this experience is just wasted," he said. "To not look at ways that things could be done differently and should be done differently, I think would be remiss on our part."

-- Michael Sluss