Posted on 08/04/2004 5:58:49 PM PDT by KrisKrinkle
Less than a week after the Cleveland Plain Dealer published Bill
Singleton's name among a list of people who have chosen to obtain a license to
bear arms for self-defense, Mr. Singleton is dead.
When three robbers came to Singleton's business Tuesday morning - they
allegedly shot before Singleton had time to react to their demands.
In an exchange of gunfire, Singleton and a 17-year-old assailant were shot in the
parking lot outside the United Check Cashing store on Lake Shore Boulevard near
East 156th Street. Both later died at Huron Hospital.
“As I was outside I had seen a person stumbling,” Perry Roberts said. “He had his
pistol in his hand and he was saying ‘somebody help me, somebody help me’ and
he fell down on the ground.”
Cleveland police said Singleton was shot once in the chest, and he shot
17-year-old Rhyan Ikner once in the head. The two accomplices that witnesses
saw with Ikner have not been found, said police Lt. Wayne Drummond. It was
unclear Tuesday whether Singleton was shot by Ikner or one of the other robbers,
Drummond said.
Attacker Had Criminal Past
Ikner was arrested in March on aggravated robbery charges after police said he
held up two men with a handgun.
The victims failed to appear in court for trial, and the charges were dropped on
June 17. Ikner was released that day from the Cuyahoga County Jail.
Ikner also was found delinquent six times in Juvenile Court since 2001 on
charges of drug possession, drug trafficking and assault, court records show.
Victim Was Caring, Respected Citizen
Friends described Singleton, 59, of Solon, as a kind man who was active in the
neighborhood merchants association, and who sought to help lift up the nascent
retail district surrounding his business, which opened last year.
"He treated everybody so decently," said Ward 11 City Councilman Mike
Polensek, who was supposed to meet Singleton on Thursday to talk about the
neighborhood.
"[He was a] good man who cared about his family, who cared about his
neighborhood [and] made an investment in here," Councilman Mike Polensek said.
"Here's another, decent black businessman, an African-American businessman
gunned down, for what, because he made an investment in our city. We are being
preyed upon by predators and we have got to send a message to the predators
that it's over. You can't continue to do this.
It is not yet known Polensek has a history if support for the right of citizens to
bear arms for self-defense.
The Need to Bear Arms For Self-Defense
But Singleton also worried that his business would attract thieves. He said he was
robbed at least twice, and he was planning to buy surveillance cameras to mount
outside the store, said Brian Friedman, head of the Northeast Shores Development
Corp.
Records show Singleton received a permit to carry a concealed weapon.
"He was scared," Friedman said. "He had a sneaking suspicion this would
happen."
Ray Beverly, who manages the video store across the street, says he could have
easily been killed like Singleton because he was just robbed at gunpoint Monday
afternoon.
"He took me into the back room, wanted to know where the safe was, cracked me
with his gun, broke my fillings," said Beverly. "He took me back to the adult room
and told me to stay in there ... that if I came out, he was going to shoot me."
"It became a war zone in two days," said Beverly.
People in the neighborhood are scared and angry.
"It's not safe for any color, any race. It's not safe for nobody any more," said area
resident Carolyn Johnson. "I got robbed on East 156th myself."
This isn't the first time Singleton's life was in danger. One morning in June, Bill
Singleton was opening his Collinwood check-cashing store when he had to fend off
a would-be robber in a skeleton mask. Though the man had a gun, Singleton
managed to hold the door shut and lock it before calling police.
Questions Which Deserve Answers
It is not yet known if the Cleveland Plain Dealer's actions even remotely played
into this tragedy. But the harsh reality of the situation begs the question:
Why did editor Doug Clifton act to put people like Bill Singleton at so much risk by
revealing to potential attackers that they are armed, and why do they promise to
continue to do so?
Why did Doug Clifton decide that these innocent, law-abiding citizens, desperate
to protect themselves from violent criminals that no gun control law or background
check can stop, are the ones needing to be treated like persons of suspicion?
Initial accounts say the robbers shot first, ambush-style. Did they know Singleton
was armed? Did Bill Singleton die upon Doug Clifton's altar of open records? We
may never know. (Emphasis added.)
If they're really interested in public safety, why doesn't the Plain Dealer spend its
precious page space printing names of persons like these attackers, with violent
criminal histories?
The questions above may yield answers with time. But this one can never be
answered: How many other would-be victims of Rhyan Ikner will live out their lives
because of the heroic actions of Bill Singleton?
Just damn.
Obviously the morals do not improve as you move into the editorial suite.
Whatever, the best answer to give these jerks who think the crooks need to know who has the guns is that when they publish lists like this they are also informing the most dangerous professional crooks about who DOES NOT HAVE A GUN!
This is of vital importance if your business is home break-ins. The fact that "newsies" keep on doing it must mean they have a personal interest in burglary.
another reason for CCW.
Police unions and advocacy groups all over the country BEGGED NBC not to run the story, but trying to get guns and ammunition banned was more important to NBC.
And the number of police shooting fatalities increased, due to the fact that criminals now aimed for the cop's head!
Despicable!
Mark
Sounds to me like Mr. Doug Clifton needs to hear from the people. Anybody got info?
But if the press is allowed to publish lists of permit holders, you may just as well wear a t-shirt with a bulls-eye on it. As a permit holder, you must adhere to a fairly strict set of rules regarding when you can and cannot draw and fire in defense of your life, if you wish to stay out of legal trouble.
Bad guys have no such set of rules to abide by.
The press in this country is NOT ON YOUR SIDE.
YOU, are the bad guy.
The email address for Mr. Clifton is on the Plains dealer web site under contact us. I am not sure what the moderators feelings are about posting info out here so I would rather direct you to that.
Man if this Chifton character had done that in AZ he wouldn't be around long enough to write a rebuttal. Its a concealed weapon for a reason! We don't want the bad guys to know we can will ourselves! God if I wanted a gun fight I'd just wear the sidearm in the open and let the little jerks know I was ready.
need an Ohio ping
"I'd just wear the sidearm in the open and let the little jerks know I was ready."
Yep, a nice little strapless-style holster...
;-)
I am sure there were smiles all around the newsroom. They probably didn't have a party but they were smug.
And there were smiles all around in the NBC studios after that one. This sort of thing they regard as their duty, the results their reward.
time or mr singtons family to dish out some personal justice
Does this paper print he names of registered sex offenders? How about public officials who are in arrears on their property taxes? How about the names of criminals who use a gun in a crime but are under the official age in Ohio, maybe 16?
NO...... HE DOES NOT LOOK GOOD IN ANYTHING STRAPLESS!
Hope the family sues.
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