Posted on 12/20/2004 7:48:37 AM PST by Ellesu
BOISE, Idaho - Police shot a teenager Saturday after the boy allegedly punctured the uniform of an officer with a bayonet mounted on a World War II-era rifle. Officer Andrew S. Johnson killed Mathew Jones, 16, near the teen's home in a suburban Boise neighborhood north of the city's downtown. According to police, Jones' father called officers at 5 p.m. Saturday to report his 16-year-old son was out of control and was using the 15-inch bayonet to put holes in the walls of his house. Johnson arrived first and was talking to the father in the family's driveway about 5 p.m. when the teen jumped out of the bushes, repeatedly charging the officer with a bayonet and rifle, Boise police said. Johnson says he ordered Jones to drop his weapon. He told investigators that he felt ''contact,'' which police said was confirmed by at least one puncture hole in his uniform that went into Johnson's body armor. Johnson fired four shots, hitting Jones four times. ''The situation was urgent,'' said Boise Police Chief Jim Tibbs. ''The officer had to get involved. It's a risk of being a police officer, you can't always wait for backup.'' Police who searched the residence after the shooting said they found a water pipe and empty alcohol bottles, as well as a sword, a second bayonet and another rifle. ''There was evidence of drug use, including drug paraphernalia,'' said police spokeswoman Lynn Hightower, adding that while the father told dispatchers he believed his son's weapons were unloaded, police are still investigating that. Hightower also said the boy didn't appear to have a juvenile criminal record. Jones, a sophomore at Boise High School, was pronounced dead shortly after he arrived at Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center. An autopsy will be performed today, police said. The boy's father described his son as distraught and irrational and said he seemed to be under the influence of drugs or alcohol, police said. Police blocked off roads near the shooting for most of Saturday night. A task force made up of five law enforcement agencies is investigating the incident. Johnson has begun a paid, three-day administrative leave - the department's standard policy. He has the option of taking a longer leave of absence if he needs more time away from work, Tibbs said. ''Officers are trained to stop an imminent threat,'' Tibbs said. ''In this case, it looks like the officer responded as he was trained.'' Johnson has been with the department for four and a half years. This was the first time he has been involved in a shooting, police said.
Hey! It could have been this WWII era rifle!
The Sturmgewehr 44:
And. yeah, I know, what would a kid be doing with a $20,000 historical rifle...
http://www2.kbcitv.com/x5154.xml?ParentPageID=x5157&ContentID=x60621&Layout=KBCI.xsl&AdGroupID=x5154
another link
This is actually the first crime in 10 years that could have been affected by the now expired "clinton assault weapons ban" - it banned some rifles if they did not remove the bayonet lug...
Actually, the real factor deciding if this incident could have been prevented by the ban is whether the father?/owner would have turned in his legally registered firearm when it became illegal.
died of natural causes, its only natural to die from several bullet holes.
I practiced reloading (stripper clips) quickly.
I have a stock of WWII armor piercing (laid down in 1944, and unlike the US ammunition, does not have a black tip), but I try to use Federal hunting ammunition at the range. The local steel target provider doesnt want me to use armor piercing rounds on his targets.
Bump.
Old surplus stuff I have found in the past was headspaced for machineguns and blew the necks. Norma 150's worked perfect.
As will the father for calling the cops in the first place. Tragic story all around and during the holiday season as well.
I went to highschool with a kid who lost his only sibling, a brother, in a skiing accident. About two years later he was killed by police after walking around the neighborhood with a loaded Uzi during a drug/alcohol induced bender. In a matter of less than three years his parents had lost both of their children.
This kid may have been shot dead by the police, but he was really killed by his use of drugs, probably meth.
Very sad.
you reload...this is the process of putting more ammo into the gun when you exhaust the magazine's supply.
Even if it was, guns manufactured before 1994 didn't have to meet the provision of the ban. It is "pre-Ban".
And it was manufactured pre-1994, therefore like every AR-15 manufactured before 1994, it can have a pistol grip, bayonet lug and detachable magazine and be perfectly legal. Unaffacted by the ban.
"Aint No Way,"
I don't disagree at all Mark17. It just seems that a trained, experienced police officer should be able to apprehend an inebriated 16 yo without killing him, imo. Maybe he did try to do that. I'm not a cop basher at all but it seems this kind of thing happens frequently. Could he have withdrawn and observed the kid from a distance? You can't tell from the article. It's just disappointing, that's all.
Points taken Montana.
Regards to you and yours.
Thanks Mark.
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