Posted on 12/17/2009 4:58:55 PM PST by Red in Blue PA
A southwestern Illinois man claims he shot in self defense when a 17-year-old gang-banger attempted to break into the home where he was staying Tuesday night.
Law officers, however, tell another story. They say the 38-year-old shooter fired at the teen from a distance of 75 to 100 feet away. And -- they say -- the teen wasn't trying to break into the house. He was shot while spray painting graffiti on the garage in the backyard.
The incident occurred unincorporated Collinsville just down the street from the Fairmount Park race track. The teen was found a few blocks away near the intersection of Collinsville Road and Black Lane and rushed to a St. Louis hospital with a wound to his chest and back.
According to the St. Clair County Sheriff's Department, the teen is a member of the Latin King street gang and a resident of St. Louis who's known to frequent St. Clair County. The sheriff's department says the teen purchased three cans of spray paint earlier that day in Collinsville. He's currently listed in stable condition at the hospital.
Sheriff deputies have arrested the 38-year-old man who fired the shot on charges of aggravated battery with a firearm. They say he is not the owner of the residence, but rather friend of the homeowner who was staying at the home.
(Excerpt) Read more at blogs.riverfronttimes.com ...
> If a cop had done this exact shoot, the story would be spun about him being a hero. Yhere would be no question of jail.
Which, of course, is Wrong, and evil. If cops can’t be trusted not to shoot teenage punks in the back from 30 yards, they shouldn’t be trusted to patrol with firearms.
Here in NZ they do not patrol with firearms. We like it that way.
Bingo!
Someone who gets it!
> Loved it...but want to go back.
If you do make it back to our side of the ditch, why not drop me a note and perhaps we can meet for coffee or a beer or something. I’m always interested in meeting my fellow FReepers.
I agree. I had to get my drivers license renewed yesterday. Haven't had to go to the DMV in about 9 years, it was COVERED with graffiti, filthy dirty, and I had to sit in that disgusting place for almost 2 hours. I think they should be shot on sight and it would probably stop pretty soon after that.
Gangs are as much a threat to this nation as foreign terrorists.
I do not think most people understand this simple fact.
> That’s absolutely insane.
>
> If the criminals have not taken advantage of that fact by now, make no mistake about it, they will at some point. Bank on it.
Surprisingly, it works really well. The Police themselves resist every effort to make them patrol armed (the question arises in Parliament from time to time).
They certainly have access to firearms — Glocks, Bushmasters, HK sub-machineguns, tactical shotguns — which are sometimes locked in the boot of their car, or back at the station.
For serious armed offender situations, the Armed Offenders Squad is called. They train alongside the NZ SAS and they are armed to the teeth.
But, for the most part, the average cop takes down crooks without using firearms. And they are very, very good at it.
It is probable that their fitness level would be higher than the average US cop: I can honestly say I haven’t seen an overweight or out-of-shape NZ cop.
If you’re caught.
But the same can be said of a great many things people do every day.
Yeah, so? I say nice shot.
Until it’s your kid or grandson who was walking by at the time.
Until it’s your relative who happened to walk across someone’s lawn.
Or made too much noise at night under someone’s window.
Well said.
I’d be willing to speculate that some of these Tagger Shooter folks would never *really* do it for real... outside the confines of a Conservative forum that is.
It’s quite a big step to draw down on somebody and shoot them dead. I’ve been told by somebody who has done it that it’s an experience that haunts for many years. On that basis Dirty Harry Callahan would be a very troubled soul indeed. Either that or he would be a sociopath that no police force would tolerate on staff.
“Nice Shot!” for shooting a kid for graffiti from 33 yards, probably in the back? We can evaluate that for what it’s worth.
No personal threat, so no plea of self defense. Not defending his own property. No apparent attempt at citizen’s arrest. No apparent attempt to hold the punk at gunpoint. Kid probably didn’t even know he was there. It’s God’s own mercy that the punk’s alive, both for his own sake and for the shooter’s, unfortunately.
Is that the sort of shooter that would make a good neighbor? If he were in my neighborhood I’d want the cops to take all his guns away, forever and then maybe lock him up for a while, for good measure. People like that make it really easy for Liberals to pass anti-gun measures.
The Law and Order movement need yahoos like that about as much as we need a hole in the head.
Ok, maybe the guy shouldn’t have been shot for tagging. But IMHO, gangs should be treated as domestic terrorists and treated in the same manner we would treat members of Al Qaeda.
If you tolerate this, your children will be next.
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