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Sean Taylor Dies in Miami
Washington Post ^ | Tuesday, November 27, 2007; 8:51 AM | By Amy Shipley and Jason La Canfora

Posted on 11/27/2007 6:29:31 AM PST by WL-law

MIAMI, Nov. 27 -- Washington Redskins safety Sean Taylor died early Tuesday from the gunshot wound he suffered a day earlier in his Miami home. ... Police are investigating the incident as a possible home invasion. ... The bullet severed Taylor's femoral artery, causing massive blood loss. He underwent seven hours of surgery ...

Taylor confronted one or more intruders early Monday morning at the bedroom door of the house he shares with his fiancee and 18-month-old daughter, and was shot in the upper thigh near the femoral artery, Sharpstein said. ...

No arrests were made. In a statement, Miami-Dade police said a preliminary investigation indicated that Taylor had been shot by an intruder, but that the investigation was not complete.

... Just before Monday's shooting, Taylor was awakened by a noise in his living room, Sharpstein said. As the shooter or shooters approached Taylor's bedroom, he reached for a machete or other form of knife he keeps nearby in case of emergency, and two shots were fired, one striking his leg in the groin area.

Cerrato said Taylor's fiancee tried to call police from the house line, only to discover that the line had been cut. She had to use her cellphone to call 911, which delayed the response time.

"This was a deliberate attack," Cerrato said without elaborating.

...

The shooting came eight days after another incident was reported at Taylor's home. An intruder pried open a front window, went through drawers and a safe and left a kitchen knife on a bed, according to the police report of the Nov. 18 incident.

Despite the break-in a week ago, there was no security system at Taylor's house, according to Emory Williams, a cousin of Taylor's.

...

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events; US: Florida
KEYWORDS: redskins; seantaylor; threadnumber3
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A tragedy. But the story raises a number of issues which will undoubtedly unfold over the next few days. The story mentions repeated break-ins, with threatening behavior that seems to have been personally directed at Taylor.

It's powerfully ironic that Taylor was arrested for "brandishing a gun", and in this case he defended himself only with a knife.

The shooter shot him in the groin, presumably at close range.

1 posted on 11/27/2007 6:29:32 AM PST by WL-law
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To: WL-law

Agree it seems like he was targeted.


2 posted on 11/27/2007 6:32:48 AM PST by driftdiver
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To: WL-law
Posted it this morning.
3 posted on 11/27/2007 6:33:25 AM PST by Terpfen (It's your fault, not Pelosi's.)
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To: WL-law

Lessons:
Never take a mere machete to a gun fight, and if you’re a famous young millionaire who runs with thugs, put a security system in your house.


4 posted on 11/27/2007 6:33:38 AM PST by ChuteTheMall (Tagline: If you're reading this, I'm influencing your mind.)
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To: WL-law

Well, they don’t call gun control “Victim Disarmament” for nothing.


5 posted on 11/27/2007 6:35:57 AM PST by ClearCase_guy (The broken wall, the burning roof and tower. And Agamemnon dead.)
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To: WL-law
No doubt that a right to own a gun should be given to all, no matter what there prior convictions. After all, its a right, not a privilege. At least it would have given him a chance.
6 posted on 11/27/2007 6:37:03 AM PST by BGHater (Lead. The MSG for the 21st Century.)
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To: WL-law
This was a hit, pure and simple. He crossed the wrong person at some point in the past, and it came back to bite him. I hope they catch who's responsible for his murder.

RIP, Sean.
7 posted on 11/27/2007 6:40:44 AM PST by reagan_fanatic (Ron Paul put the cuckoo in my Cocoa Puffs)
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To: ChuteTheMall

A radio station in Miami said this morning that he lived in a gated community and had a security system in his house. It was unclear whether the security system was armed, but in any case, someone had cut the phone line to his house, so while the alarm may have going off, the notification system would not have worked.


8 posted on 11/27/2007 6:42:27 AM PST by 3AngelaD (They screwed up their own countries so bad they had to leave, and now they're here screwing up ours)
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To: WL-law

Sleeping with a couple of big dogs is a good idea, given the consequences of Taylor’s failure to.


9 posted on 11/27/2007 6:44:27 AM PST by libstripper
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To: 3AngelaD

Depends on the notification system and how advanced it was. Your normal run of the mill home security system won’t do much, but the more advanced ones have battery backup power and the capability to, essentially, use a cell phone to call for help. Granted, if the system isn’t armed, it doesn’t matter. And unless he paid to have it installed after the fact, I doubt the alarm would be any better than a standard alarm.


10 posted on 11/27/2007 6:46:34 AM PST by faloi
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To: WL-law; All
"Cerrato said Taylor's fiancee tried to call police from the house line, only to discover that the line had been cut. She had to use her cellphone to call 911, which delayed the response time."

Surely she knew her address, regardless of what device she used to call 911. Why would the response have been significantly delayed just because she didn't use the landline?

11 posted on 11/27/2007 6:48:34 AM PST by JustaDumbBlonde
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To: 3AngelaD

For a good alarm, that wouldn’t matter. There is a cellphone backup system that immediately calls when the phones lines go dead.


12 posted on 11/27/2007 6:49:30 AM PST by Azeem (Only thing worse than war is peace at all costs.)
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To: 3AngelaD
More sophisticated alarm systems have wireless cellular backup. I’ve never understood why the phone company usually demands that the phone termination box be on the outside house where it is easy to tamper with. You can get them located inside or at another location that isn’t obvious. That’s what I did. There’s no easy access to my telephone wires and very few could find where the termination box is to disconnect it.
13 posted on 11/27/2007 6:51:21 AM PST by DB
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To: reagan_fanatic

They would have shot him in the head or heart if it was a “hit”. That or it was a really bad hit...


14 posted on 11/27/2007 6:53:22 AM PST by DB
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To: DB

“They would have shot him in the head or heart if it was a “hit”. That or it was a really bad hit...”

That was my thought. A groin shot may have been meant to send a different message.


15 posted on 11/27/2007 6:56:17 AM PST by tips up
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To: BGHater

The guy was probably no angel but his prior gun charge was for “brandishing” a weapon at someone who was stealing his vehicle. Sounds to me like he needed a chance to brandish a gun this time.


16 posted on 11/27/2007 6:56:47 AM PST by cripplecreek (Only one consistent conservative in this race and his name is Hunter.)
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To: All

Maybe an angry husband of an unfaithful wife?


17 posted on 11/27/2007 6:59:31 AM PST by 4yearlurker (Thanks Vets!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
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To: BGHater
No doubt that a right to own a gun should be given to all, no matter what there prior convictions. After all, its a right, not a privilege.

Cant sign on to that one. Even with rights comes responsibilities. We have the right to vote, yet convicted felons cant.

18 posted on 11/27/2007 7:02:15 AM PST by Long Island Pete
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To: DB

I’m leaning towards a bungled hit. Sean may have surprised whoever it was when he went to check out the noise and surprised them. And just because it was a hit doesn’t mean that it was done by a professional hitman either. Could have just been a gang-banger with a score to settle.


19 posted on 11/27/2007 7:05:23 AM PST by reagan_fanatic (Ron Paul put the cuckoo in my Cocoa Puffs)
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To: Long Island Pete
Yes, they can. Tax felons can, as protected by the constitution.
20 posted on 11/27/2007 7:05:57 AM PST by BGHater (Lead. The MSG for the 21st Century.)
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To: WL-law

Now whose going to do those annoying Easterns Motors commercials??


21 posted on 11/27/2007 7:06:11 AM PST by YourAdHere (Buy My Book, Bradypalooza, from Amazon.Com)
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To: Long Island Pete

I’m a convicted felon and I legally vote. I’m a convicted drunk driver, thank God I can’t defend myself. You never know when I might go on a shooting spree.


22 posted on 11/27/2007 7:06:47 AM PST by cripplecreek (Only one consistent conservative in this race and his name is Hunter.)
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To: WL-law

I just heard on Fox that his girl friend found the phone lines had been cut.


23 posted on 11/27/2007 7:06:56 AM PST by Rick.Donaldson (http://www.transasianaxis.com - Visit for lastest on DPRK/Russia/China/Etc --Fred Thompson for Prez.)
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To: Long Island Pete

My view is that if somebody commits a crime that is so heinous, that even when released, they are not trusted to have the rights enumerated in the Constitution, that maybe they shouldn’t be released in the first place.


24 posted on 11/27/2007 7:07:28 AM PST by dfwgator
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To: Long Island Pete
We have the right to vote, yet convicted felons cant.

Questionable, but certainly not a Constitutional right to vote. Until the Voting Rights Act, which isn't at the Constitutional level, it wasn't even in federal question--States decided who could and could not vote.

In no way does some "right to vote" rise to the level of the 2nd Amendment.

25 posted on 11/27/2007 7:09:10 AM PST by jammer
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To: tips up
That was my thought. A groin shot may have been meant to send a different message.

Considering how difficult it is to deliberatly shoot someone in the leg, much less someone who doesn't want to be shot in what was likely an poorly lit room, the message is more likely someone just pointed a gun and fired two shots, one of which hit.

26 posted on 11/27/2007 7:09:27 AM PST by VirginiaConstitutionalist (Scary thought: Half of all people are dumber than the average person.)
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To: JustaDumbBlonde
"Why would the response have been significantly delayed just because she didn't use the landline?"

With a landline, the address comes up automatically on the computer screen. For a cell phone, the address has to be typed in.

911: "What? I couldn't hear that."
Caller: "I said 1936 Greentree Court"
911: "What? Ninety 36 Green what?"
Caller: "No. Nineteen 36!"
911: "OK. 1936. No need to get all huffy and all. 1936 what."
Caller: "1936 GREENTREE COURT!"
911: "Donchu be yellin' at me! OK now. 1936 Greenpeace Drive. Correct?"
Caller: "NO! 1936 Greentree. Green. Tree."
911: "OK. Got it. 1936 Greentree. How do you spell that?"
Caller: "G-R-E-E-N-T-R-E-E"
911: "Oh. Just like it sounds. Is that one word?"
Caller: "YES!"
911: "I told you about your yellin' and carryin' on. OK. 1936 Greentree Street."
Caller: "Never mind. He's dead."

27 posted on 11/27/2007 7:11:56 AM PST by robertpaulsen
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To: reagan_fanatic

I don’t think a professional hit would shoot his target in the leg.


28 posted on 11/27/2007 7:15:21 AM PST by edhawk
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To: cripplecreek; BGHater; WL-law
The guy was probably no angel but his prior gun charge was for “brandishing” a weapon at someone who was stealing his vehicle.

Where was he charged? I thought Florida had a "stand your ground" law.

29 posted on 11/27/2007 7:23:24 AM PST by Paleo Conservative
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To: cripplecreek

All I know is in NY felons cant vote. Wasnt sure about all the other states.


30 posted on 11/27/2007 7:24:04 AM PST by Long Island Pete
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To: WL-law
It's powerfully ironic that Taylor was arrested for "brandishing a gun", and in this case he defended himself only with a knife.

"Ironic" may not be the right word. He's probably been prohibited from owning a gun due to his past brushes with the law, and observed the prohibition to avoid a criminal conviction that could end his NFL career. I don't know enough about his past to have an opinion on whether or not he SHOULD have been barred from owning a gun, but suspect not.

31 posted on 11/27/2007 7:26:50 AM PST by GovernmentShrinker
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To: WL-law

May he rest in peace. He was a great player at the U and a great player for the Redskins. It is a shame that he could not defend himself because he chose to brandish a gun when he car was stolen. This is the result. Thank God that his child and girlfriend were both unharmed.


32 posted on 11/27/2007 7:27:19 AM PST by goodwithagun (My gun has killed less people than Ted Kennedy's car.)
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To: BGHater

All states are different. In Michigan I can vote because I’m not incarcerated, on parole or probation. In Maine prison inmates can vote inside the prisons. (bad idea)

Personally I can’t help but wonder where the fantasy of the felon waiting for his chance to vote came from. Prison inmates don’t sit around pining for the day when they can get out and run to the polls. If you do find one, its because he wants to clean up his life and be a usefull contributor to society.

Here in Michigan I’ve hear John Conyers repeat the lie that convicted felons can’t vote here. He knows it’s a lie but his real goal is to get prison inmates to vote. Voting in prison is a whole different animal. Prison inmates will do anything to break up the routine. Give them a chance to do something different (voting) and add democrats making promises and you’ve got a pretty firm voting block.


33 posted on 11/27/2007 7:31:50 AM PST by cripplecreek (Only one consistent conservative in this race and his name is Hunter.)
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To: goodwithagun
It is a shame that he could not defend himself because he chose to brandish a gun when he car was stolen. This is the result.

Why shouldn't one be able to brandish a gun when one's property is being stolen?

34 posted on 11/27/2007 7:33:01 AM PST by Paleo Conservative
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To: BGHater; Long Island Pete

Nonsense. Any and all rights may be taken away as punishment for a criminal conviction. However, that should be individually adjudicated, and not the subject of blanket “convicted felons can’t possess firearms” laws. The framers of the Constitution clearly believed the death penalty was allowable as punishment for crimes. It would be preposterous to suggest that they didn’t also envision prohibition on firearms possession as an allowable punishment.


35 posted on 11/27/2007 7:34:19 AM PST by GovernmentShrinker
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To: Long Island Pete
We have the right to vote, yet convicted felons cant.

The 14th Amendment explicitly allows states to deny felons the right to vote; there is no such corresponding provision for the right to bear arms.

36 posted on 11/27/2007 7:35:32 AM PST by Publius Valerius
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To: Paleo Conservative

I don’t know. Ask the lawyer who prosecuted him.


37 posted on 11/27/2007 7:37:01 AM PST by goodwithagun (My gun has killed less people than Ted Kennedy's car.)
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To: GovernmentShrinker
Once the Gov’t defines ‘criminal’ and then is allowed to bar you from owning a gun, well you get the picture.
38 posted on 11/27/2007 7:37:39 AM PST by BGHater (Lead. The MSG for the 21st Century.)
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To: GovernmentShrinker
Any and all rights may be taken away as punishment for a criminal conviction.

If this is the case, why was it necessary to include, in the text of the 14th Amendment, that states could deny felons the right to vote? If you're right, isn't that clause unnecessary? And don't we presume, at least as a starting point, that no clause is unnecessary?

39 posted on 11/27/2007 7:39:58 AM PST by Publius Valerius
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To: WL-law

“Despite the break-in a week ago, there was no security system at Taylor’s house...”

He didn’t move, either.


40 posted on 11/27/2007 7:43:22 AM PST by Old Professer (The critic writes with rapier pen, dips it twice, and writes again.)
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To: Publius Valerius
there is no such corresponding provision for the right to bear arms.

I dont think I would be able to get a gun permit here in NY if I was convicted of a crime. Then again, I have to jump through hoops in order to get a target permit. Also, I dont want convicted felons owning guns. Not a good thing. I might be wrong on that though.

41 posted on 11/27/2007 7:43:53 AM PST by Long Island Pete
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To: Long Island Pete

I agree that you probably couldn’t, but my question is simply why does it require a constitutional amendment to allow a state to disenfranchise a felon, but no such amendment is required to allow a state to prevent a felon from owning a firearm?


42 posted on 11/27/2007 7:49:12 AM PST by Publius Valerius
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To: cripplecreek

That is one of the two or three huge problems I see with our judicial “system”. Haven’t you paid your penalty? Rational people would say yes. But our “system” says no—whatever time period you served is extended to a life sentence in many areas. Despicable and against the fundamental tenor of the Constitution, IMO.


43 posted on 11/27/2007 7:50:54 AM PST by jammer
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To: edhawk
I don’t think a professional hit would shoot his target in the leg.

If it was an attempt to cripple him and end his football career you would.

Could be a missed knee shot? - tom

44 posted on 11/27/2007 7:56:21 AM PST by Capt. Tom (Don't confuse the Bushies with the dumb Republicans - Capt. Tom)
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To: JustaDumbBlonde

Cell 911 usually delays response for several reasons. First, all the calls are routed to to a central dispatching center (often the county sheriff) rather than the local municipality. The dispatcher then has to determine which community should respond and then transfer the caller to the correct municipal dispatch center, where the caller must again explain what happened and request assistance.

Additionally, a call from a landline shows the address, so emergency responders can be dispatched without getting accurate information from a distraught victim.


45 posted on 11/27/2007 7:58:34 AM PST by MediaMole
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To: WL-law

A knife was all Taylor was allowed to have and the perop may have known that.

More proof of the foolishness of some gun laws and restrictions.

Poor guy.....bet he fought back and showed some nuts.

Rest in Peace partner.


46 posted on 11/27/2007 7:59:25 AM PST by wardaddy (I'm praying for Fred......our only decent hope......)
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To: wardaddy
If he had a gun, he might be still alive.

Strange, sad story. Since he never regained consciousness, apparently the cops are basing the investigation on the word of a girlfriend.

47 posted on 11/27/2007 8:01:59 AM PST by Dante3
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To: Dante3

yep....he dies maybe because the State took away his right to protect himself.....before conviction.....by a law probably supported by the GOP and NRA

he might shoulda had a Rottie or two


48 posted on 11/27/2007 8:06:31 AM PST by wardaddy (I'm praying for Fred......our only decent hope......)
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To: robertpaulsen

In reading the context of the 911 call, it wasn’t significiantly delayed. That whole conversation was probably less than one minute. From the sounds of this man’s injury, even a doc on scene the minute it happened probably wouldn’t have helped in the long run.


49 posted on 11/27/2007 8:10:10 AM PST by Cate (Thank God for the USA and our troops!)
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To: robertpaulsen

Is that the real 911 call???


50 posted on 11/27/2007 8:11:09 AM PST by rintense (Thompson/Hunter 2008!)
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