...aside from the fact that he attempts to cut his own hair Franciscan style...
I don't what you'd call this dipsh*t's hair style, but it's not Franciscan.
Posted on 08/24/2006 1:56:20 PM PDT by staytrue
Teens throughout Worthington had heard the stories about the home by the cemetery, hidden in a tangle of trees, bushes and weeds, with trails snaking out from the door and around the house. "It’s haunted," some said. "Crazy people live there." And one of the favorites: "They’re witches."
Police learned only yesterday of those stories and the youthful dares of teens driving to the house at 141 Sharon Springs Dr.
But none of those tales involved a man with a gun.
Late Tuesday night, the homegrown scary tale turned to real horror. Five thrill-seeking girls set to begin their senior year at Thomas Worthington High School on Friday ran afoul of an armed resident of the home, leaving 17-year-old Rachel Barezinsky critically injured by gunfire, police said.
Allen S. Davis, a 40-year-old man who lives at the house with his mother, said during a jailhouse interview that he was defending his home.
He admitted opening fire from his first-floor bedroom window after hearing the girls outside around 10 p.m. He said he repeatedly fired shots from a .22-caliber rifle.
"Did they threaten me?" he said. "No.
"I didn’t know what their weaponry was, what their intentions were," he said. "In a situation like that, you assume the worst-case scenario if you’re going to protect your family from a possible home invasion and murder."
Police said the girls were mischievous, but they weren’t even close to the house and hadn’t harassed Davis or his mother, Sondra, when he opened fire.
"It’s just a kid thing," said Worthington Police Lt. J. Douglas Francis. "Unfortunately, this time it had some bad ramifications."
Barezinsky was struck twice, in the upper body and head, police said. She remained in critical condition at Ohio State University Medical Center, where she had surgery yesterday to reduce brain swelling.
The other girls with her, Margaret Hester, Tessa Acker, Rachel Breen and Una Hrnjak, weren’t hurt.
Davis, who police said had no criminal record, is charged with five counts of felonious assault. He was being held in the Franklin County jail pending an appearance in Municipal Court this morning.
Last night, several hundred of Barezinsky’s friends and family filled the football field of the high school, where they signed posters wishing her well and lighted candles.
Barezinsky’s mother, Amy Barezinsky, came directly from the hospital to talk to the crowd.
"She’s doing really well for someone who had that kind of trauma," said her mom, who is a nurse. "I’m going to have to get on my knees and pray. Maybe you guys could do that, too."
Doctors have told the family that they are "cautiously optimistic" about Rachel’s recovery. She has squeezed her aunt’s hand and responded to doctors’ requests to wiggle her toes.
"It’s just so senseless," said her aunt, Tina Wedebrook, who attended the vigil. "We need to focus our energy on healing Rachel. She is such a fighter, so full of energy."
Some of the girls who were in the car with Barezinsky also attended. Una Hrnjak broke down in tears after talking to the assembled crowd. "This is so hard to do," Hrnjak said. "She’s fighting so hard for all of us and for herself."
Lt. Francis gave this account of what happened Tuesday night:
The girls had gone to the Walnut Grove Cemetery for "ghosting," which amounts to teens trying to scare one another. The girls told police that the Davis house, right across the street, is known among local kids as the "spooky house."
"They dare each other to walk into the property," Francis said, saying this week was the first police had heard of the practice because the Davises had never filed a complaint.
Two of the girls stayed in the car while the other three started up the concrete walk to the Davis home. They didn’t get far before turning around.
"One of the girls honked the horn to scare them," Francis said.
After they all were back in the car, the girls heard what they thought were firecrackers, but was gunfire instead. They made the mistake of circling the block, Francis said.
Davis said he fired again as they returned.
"To the best of my knowledge, that did the trick," he said. His mother, he said, was asleep upstairs, and he didn’t learn he’d hit someone until police arrived later.
Police said no one got out of the car the second time the girls drove past. They discovered that Barezinsky, in the front passenger seat, was shot as they drove off. The panicked girls headed for N. High Street, where they found police.
When Rachel Breen called saying, "Mom, I’m all right but ..." Kathy Breen assumed she had wrecked the car.
"Instead, she said Rachel got shot," said Mrs. Breen, of Worthington. "I thought, ‘This can’t be. This is Worthington. Those things don’t happen here.’
"All the kids talked about an old lady — a witch — living there," she said. "They’re good kids. They didn’t ring the doorbell or knock on the window. They had just taken a few steps on the property when they ran back to the car."
Sam Steiner, a friend, called Barezinsky the "typical, upbeat, lots of fun, always-smiling cheerleader-type." Indeed, she’s a member of the Cardinals cheerleading squad.
Davis, who said he is a selfemployed writer, said he and his mother had put up with mischief for months. Teens would bang on their windows and doors, shout and cause a ruckus, he said.
"The main goal was to drive these people off and to teach them to stop coming and harassing and trespassing," he said of shooting out of his window.
"I regret that (Barezinsky was shot)," he said. "However, I would ask, why was that teenage girl engaging in delinquent behavior?"
He said he and his mother didn’t notify police of the ongoing harassment because of their poor relationship with the city.
Worthington officials have responded repeatedly to complaints about the property over the years, most recently when a picket fence collapsed and neighbors complained of overgrown shrubs. "They did the absolute minimum," said Don Phillips, the city’s chief building inspector.
Diana Gilmore and her husband lived next door to the Davises for 18 years, until moving in April.
She said the few times Allen Davis came out to tend to the mass of vegetation growing around the house, "He’d swing that sickle like he was killing it."
Her 33-year-old daughter, Melissa, said that even when she was a teen, she joked with her siblings that the grayhaired Sondra Davis was a witch. The large black caldron Davis used as a planter in the front yard, made the story perfect, she said.
The caldron is still on the property, obscured by brush but visible to anyone who heads up the winding dirt trail that leads to Davis’ front door.
One sign on the trail warns, "Enter at your own risk. Falling walnuts." Posted on the front door is another that reads, "Armed response." But the door, along with most of the house, can’t be seen from the street.
Sondra Davis remained in her home yesterday but would not comment.
From jail, her son laughed at the legend that had brought five girls to his home.
"Wow, a haunted house, huh?
"Wow."
You create a somewhat viable scenario, but if the shooter
was watching the car, and no one got out, he probably shouldn't
have shot. If someone got out and trespassed on the property
and was heading towards the house on other than the
walkway, or trail, I would be highly suspicious of their action.
I probably wouldn't have shot until I saw some crime being
committed, but if I was constantly being tested by teenagers
who believe a lie about the house, I might have my fingers
on the trigger, ready to go...
...and it is true, that nowadays, all types of different
people commit crimes, you never really know what peoples
(especially strangers) intent is...
No, he fired warning shots at the ground near the girls when they trespassed the first time. They then left, and that should have been the end of it.
When they *came back* is when the problems really started. By returning, they essentially declared they wanted to do something about the warning shots, so the homeowner was justified in shooting to prevent the imminent commission of a crime. (Again, as I've said, this is per the rules of engagement and the culture here in Texas - I personally think this should be the case everywhere, but it's not.)
When I was in college several of us had rented this old house that was down the street from the Frat houses. One night several frat guys were walking by and decided to throw beer bottles at our house. My roommate hung out the seond story window firing his .45 into the ground as a warning. If the frat guys had come back I am pretty sure he would have shot them.
Shooting a person for throwing rocks at a house in the middle of the night is "out of proportion" in your view too, not so?
Well, down here in Texas, the citizens got tired of this sort of stupidity, and it's LEGAL to do so. We like sleeping, we don't like teen vandals running around and damaging our property.
By the way, you do realize that "proportionate response" is what the liberals think the plan should be for dealing with terrorists is, right? This is the same dynamic, writ smaller.
See my signature - instilling fear of massive, disproportionate response is the only way some of the idiots in the world will leave others alone.
Interesting related thread... - http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1689488/posts
"Ahem. I believe the article said the girl was hit while in the car. Unless they were driving across his lawn they were on a street."
from the article: "Police said the girls were mischievous, but they weren’t even close to the house and hadn’t harassed Davis or his mother, Sondra, when he opened fire."
and a look at the entrance to the property clears up where the car COULD and COULD NOT have been:
http://columbusdispatch.com/news-story.php?story=dispatch/2006/08/24/20060824-A1-02.html
Looks like in order for him to have even *seen* them, the car had to be sitting stationary in front of his house.
So, yeah, the car was sitting there and it looked like the occupants were planning on doing something. Given their prior actvities, here in Texas, he would have been perfectly justified in opening fire again.
Speaking of reading the article, try it. They didn't know he was firing warning shots. They were giggly teenagers, with horns honking, etc. They thought they were hearing firecrackers.
When they *came back* is when the problems really started. By returning, they essentially declared they wanted to do something about the warning shots, so the homeowner was justified in shooting to prevent the imminent commission of a crime.
Horse crap!
They came back because they were curious what the popping was that they heard! Read the article. They thought it was firecrackers!
They "essentially declared" diddly squat. They were typical teenage girls goofing off. The only "crime" that was imminent was ticking off the wacko with the rifle by setting foot on his property.
Two of the girls stayed in the car while the other three started up the concrete walk to the Davis home. They didn’t get far before turning around.The girls were still in the car, AFAICT. They weren't threatening anyone or anything"One of the girls honked the horn to scare them," Francis said.
After they all were back in the car, the girls heard what they thought were firecrackers, but was gunfire instead. They made the mistake of circling the block, Francis said.
Davis said he fired again as they returned.
A friend of mine, after his door chime was activated, came
out to answer the person at the door. He found a small bag
on fire on his porch. He stamped out the fire, and found out
the bag had been filled with dog excrement...<Ha! Ha!.
He called the cops, and later found out the kids who
perped this event, were hiding across the street and
videotaped the whole escapade.
So really, you don't know who is out there. The girls
were stupid enough, to act potentially threatening,
and the guy was scared.
Like the cops have told me about a home invasion, or
waking up to find a burglar in the house..."if you
have any fear for your life, even if incorrect, it is
probably OK to use deadly force. A small woman might fear
for her life, if a small man is in her house, but a large
,and ablebodied man might not. But she would be justified
in using deadly force. And it's better to have
12 try you, then 6 carry you."
Bottom line, don't act in a threatening way to anyone,
teenagers, adults notwithstanding.
shooting someone in a car not on your property is lawful in Texas?
I don't think so.
Anywho shows a phone number for a Marion A. Davis at that address.
I'm pretty sure the girls are lying about a number of things. That said, did you go read the article at the original link? Look at the pictures. The foliage in front of his house makes it impossible for him to have shot them as they were driving by. They had to have parked in front of his gate for him to have seen them.
"Did they threaten me?" he said. "No. "
"I didn’t know what their weaponry was, what their intentions were," he said. "In a situation like that, you assume the worst-case scenario if you’re going to protect your family from a possible home invasion and murder."
Police said the girls were mischievous, but they weren’t even close to the house and hadn’t harassed Davis or his mother, Sondra, when he opened fire. "
So, he didn't feel threatened, didn't see any weapons, but assumed a worst-case scenario and shot to kill when they weren't even on his property. By those standards, you'd be fine with me killing half my neighborhood.
Which doesn't seem to be any of the individuals at that address (relative that moved out?) per the story.
Alternately, one of the earlier thuggery attempts listed in the story might have cut the line.
Would not surprise me.
I have never understood the desire to torment my fellow humans just because. They have to do something to really annoy me first.
Repeated picking at someone will make them unbalanced.
In a public school? That will land the mother in hotter water than the shooter.
...aside from the fact that he attempts to cut his own hair Franciscan style...
I don't what you'd call this dipsh*t's hair style, but it's not Franciscan.
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