Posted on 03/24/2006 12:04:47 PM PST by Supernatural
A worker at a Downtown steam plant who brought a pellet rifle to work to shoot pigeons was mistaken for a sniper Wednesday afternoon, prompting police to shut down part of the city for about two hours.
Richard Wills, of Dawson, Fayette County, a maintenance worker in the Pittsburgh Allegheny County Thermal building, brought the weapon to work to chase pigeons away from broken windows on the building's roof, said PACT President Robert Fazio. Someone apparently spotted him - and his rifle - when he stepped out onto the roof for a few seconds, Fazio said.
At least three witnesses called police, claiming they saw a sniper atop a Penn Avenue building, sparking a two-hour shutdown of several city blocks and a brief manhunt by the city Police Bureau's most heavily armed officers. Police arrived on the scene shortly after 1 p.m., stunning lunchtime crowds as they set up a command center in Fifth Avenue Place and blocked off parts of Penn Avenue, Stanwix Street, Liberty Avenue and highway ramps into the Golden Triangle.
A police officer standing guard outside the door of a Penn Avenue restaurant gave bar manager Carie Wakinekona a terse and troubling answer when she asked him about the massive police presence. "Guy with a rifle," he said. The news traveled fast.
For rest of article: http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/search/s_435980.html
(Excerpt) Read more at pittsburghlive.com ...
He is really going to be in trouble when PETA and ELF get after his sorry butt.
and the Mayor donned a bullet-proof vest.
He should have gone with the lighter and cooler BB-proof vest.
Pigeons = Rats with wings.
Makes me wanna puke.
It's Pudge!
"Who was the stool pigeon who turned this guy in"?
At least three witnesses (stool pigeons) called police.
I like your choice of words. Very appropriate!
"...Richard Wills, a maintenance worker in the building, brought the weapon to work to chase pigeons away from broken windows on the building's roof, said PACT President Robert Fazio..."
Now that police and the media know it's a dang pellet gun, they could similarly tone down their rhetoric. Let's be truthful here, it is essentially a toy used to plink empty soda cans or possibly to get rid of pests. Depending on the distance, it might not even be capable of permanently hurting the pigeons.
~ Blue Jays ~
Oh man, I have no idea why but I can't stop giggling over this one.
You obviously don't know the Mayor of Pittsburgh. A head shot would just pass right through and not do any damage.
Its a real hoot, that's for sure.
I think pigeons are tasty... at least country pigeons. You never know what those city pigeons have eaten...
Depends on what type of pellet gun it is. If it's a Daisy or low-end Crossman, sure. OTOH, my Beeman Kodiak has no problem blowing a .25 cal pellet through 1/4 inch ply or a 55 gallon drum at 40 yards.
Yes, there will always be enthusiasts with high-performance models, and I'm guessing this was probably a common BB or pellet gun. Interesting to hear about your Beeman as I'm currently in the market for either a GAMO, Beeman, or RWS model myself. Mostly to frighten feral cats from the property to protect songbirds without making too much noise in the neighborhood.
~ Blue Jays ~
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Man, where's Tom Lehrer when you need him???
Move ahead 5-10 years when I was in high school one of the "new" neighbors (a.k.a. city slicker transplant) in the neighborhood saw me and some friends with a bb gun and she called the cops. When the officer responded and realized it was only a bb gun he apologized for the misunderstanding and left.
That was about 10-15 years ago. If that had happened now, a swat team would of showed up and I'd have made the ten o'clock news as well as the papers.
We also use to love fireworks and I think of some of the stuff we did with m-80's and I thank god that I'm not a kid nowadays.
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