News Junkie: Elderly woman shoots bully, no charges!

[Harrowdown]

What? That's stupid! If I went around shooting everyone who did that I would've shot hundreds, possibly thousands of people. This is unjustifiable, especially seen as though it was a kid. And newsflash, kids do stupid things without thinking about it. She should of called the police and have him sent to juvie.

It wasn't a "stupid thing", it had been happening for a year!

As far as i'm concerned, her aim was off.

Someone terrorises an old lady for a year, they deserve what they get, as they clearly have no sense of compassion or understanding. Prissy little "humans shouldn't be hurt, everyone is speshul" space cadets need a few lessons in real life.

There is a difference between hurt and killed. He's 12 years old. Not saying he shouldn't be hurt, but being shot is overkill.

Some people shouldn't be allowed to live. This kid is one of those people.

Ugh, you are one of those people. Everyone has a right to live, taking that away or saying someone doesn't deserve it puts you in the same catagory as Nazis to me. And he was a kid, a stupid kid who would of wised up after time in juvie. Shooting him was unnessisary, Granny should of gone to the cops. If it had been happening for a year then why didn't she go earlier? Violance is never needed and should always be avioded. For only weak minds turn to violance in times of need. There is always another way.

She did go to them. They hit her with a brick. They could have killed her. And not everyone deserves to live.

Then the police should be serverly punished or even fired, disregard of duty caused this.
And everyone has the right to a life, the opposite thought is what caused WW2 and countless other wars.

Do you think they could afford to fire a bunch of cops? New ones have to be tested and trained for a while. Also, if everyone has the right to life, does that mean that if someone were to say, drop a nuke on NYC you'd say they should live? What if someone shot you in the gut and raped your entire family in front of you and then killed them all and left you alive? Would you campaign for his right to life? Would you support a man who tortured you and everyone you love? We have a name for that. Stockholm Syndrome.

Those examples are retarded and overexaggerated, with absolutely nothing to do with the topic on hand. 12 year old punks aren't psychopathic supervillains. Also, that's not stockholm syndrome. Look in the dictionary. Despite the cost, incompetent or negligent police officers should never be kept on. The point of the police department is to enforce the law and protect society. It's stupid to neglect those purposes to save money.

 

[ultrachicken]

Good on the woman. I'd be pissed if the kid died and the woman wasn't arrested, but that didn't happen.

If she happened to be standing next to a window when the kid threw bricks, she could easily have died.

 

[JWAN]

Well if shes an old lady the bricks could have killed her, and the little puke deserved it.

"I was terrified," the South Shore resident tells the Chicago Tribune. "The young man hit me in the chest with a brick. After a year of harassment, that was the straw that broke the camel's back."

 

[JWAN]

.. Why am i not suprised?

Its just wrong.

(this is just my opinion from the article here, im not in anyway trying to demean or stir up shit)
The kid hit an elderly lady with a brick:
"I was terrified," the South Shore resident tells the Chicago Tribune. "The young man hit me in the chest with a brick. After a year of harassment, that was the straw that broke the camel's back."
he came back, she probably was not looking forward to another brick in the chest so she shot the little fuck stick. The kid will be fine and probably gained a healthy respect of the elderly.

 

[JWAN]

So verbal abuse is enough justification to shoot children?

Does freedom of speech not apply to children, who can be shot for being mouthy?

I know it's not quite as simple as that, but it does seem a bit extreme to shoot a child, even if he was being a bastard.

I hope she was a crack shot and was aiming for his shoulder, because if not she's extremely lucky. Six inches out and she could have hit him in the head or chest.

"I was terrified," the South Shore resident tells the Chicago Tribune. "The young man hit me in the chest with a brick. After a year of harassment, that was the straw that broke the camel's back."

 

[Lim3]

Good thing there were no charges, serves that bastard right.

I just wish we'd finally get around to not going so easy on such people. I still think we should send such people to hard labor camps, preferrably in Siberia or some other harsh environment. That would teach people like that guy or those retards who molested a 14 year old girl in a train station and then beat up a guy who was trying to help. Or the guys who had a race going 160km/h in a 50 or 60 zone with their cars and hit a young girl who was just crossing the road. Or the ones who killed a man trying to help two young boys who were being threatened by a group of something around 18 year olds. And that's just the cases that have been in the media the past month or so.

Shooting a human is shooting a human. If a thief breaks into your house, slips on a toy, and breaks their leg, they can probably sue you and win.

Not where I live, that'd be ridiculous. Also, are you seriously using that as an argument for your opinion?

If someone attacks you and you kill them in self defense, it's still murder

No, it's not. It's self-defense and you get no punishment for that.

So if someone smashes your window with bricks and insults you, suddenly you can gravely injure a 12 year old boy through a bullet wound and you get off scott free? What the fuck?

Yep, if you can't defend yourself any other way, sure. What, is she supposed to sit there and hope that he won't do anything to her in the 30 minutes or so it takes the cops to actually get there?

Assault is assault, whether self defense or not. Shotting another human is just plain and simple shooting them. It's bull shit.

Again, self defense is not the same thing as assaulting someone, and for a good reason.

And, tell me, would you honestly not do anything if someone attacked you? You'd just sit there and let them do whatever they want, maybe murder you, and not fight back? Are you the reincarnation of Ghandi (not the CIV one) or something?

Thanks for saving me the pain of poking holes in Celtic_Kerr's arguments. I'm in full agreement with what you wrote. +1.

 

[Zef Otter]

Good for the old lady. If she did not stop them then whats next? Rape her then kill her? since they would be bold enough to do that. Im surprised that no one stopped them for so long..

 

[Acidwell]

Lets be completely objective here: a grown woman with full understanding of what she was doing, shot a minor who was not even close to being an adult. Fair enough the charges against the kid are justified but she deserves prison time as well.

Man, by 12 my youngest brother already had juvie time for arson, assault, drug charges, been expelled from 2 schools and had gotten himself kicked out of our house three times. Never assume that young means innocent, kids are having sex by 12 nowadays, adult is a relative term anymore, this kid knew full well what he was doing.

I'm not saying it means innocent but at the same time if you have laws they have to be applied the same to everyone in each case, i dont care if that 12 year old kid was convicted of anything else, in this case he did not deserve to be shot. He threw a brick a someones house which is definately deserving of something but NOT being shot.

 

[Lim3]

I can't believe how many people 1) believe that you should be charged with a crime for self-defense, and 2) don't recognize that this is self defense. You only have the rights you're willing to fight for, if you don't know what those rights are, you can't fight for them. Fight for the right to defend yourselves from unprovoked assault people. If a 17 year old was chucking bricks at old ladies you would all want to see him crucified, but because he's only 12, you grant him moral liscene? because he is 12 years old that gives him the right to assault and potentially seriously injur or even kill an old lady? because he is 12 his actions are somehow more holy, more right, and more justifyable? think about the situation and what you are saying, just because he isn't an adult doesn't mean he shouldn't be held accountable for his actions, especially his actions which endanger the wellbeing, potentially even the lives of other individuals. I do have 2 questions though, are his parents facing any charges for allowing thier 12 year old to chuck bricks at people, and what previous charges might this child have on his record?

We're not saying he shouldn't be punished. But shooting a twelve year old seems kind of over-the-top.

She already got hit in the chest with a brick once. She already called the cops. It had been going on for a year. Was she to wait around till he graduated (yeah right) high school and moved away?

I think its also self defence. She may have acquired to the firearm with the purpose to use it against these brtats, but the fact is she acquired it to keep her safe when people came to TERRORISE her; when they came to assault her, to smash her windows, etc. She didn't buy it and go after the kid.

 

[Sunstrike]

So verbal abuse is enough justification to shoot children?

No. But the bricks the kid was throwing are potentially lethal. Probably the key reason no charges are being filed against granny.

In America the precedent for self defense is the use of any amount of force required to safeguard your life (or similar to that). The only time shooting someone would count as self defense would be if they were trying to kill you at the same time.

Shooting a kid after he threw the brick, and was taunting her means she wasn't in immediate danger and thus, used excessive force.

Yea, the kid is a douchebag who should have been taken to court (and probably still should) but there is no justification for the use of potential lethal force against him.

Regardless, using lethal force by any civilian is always a morally questionable occurrence, and this woman is probably going to get tied up in legal battles (civil, if not criminal) for some time to come.

I know there everybody loves to see dicks getting what they deserve, but this woman would have been better by far to call the police, and get him charged with attempted murder and/or assault and/or vandalism.

 

[ilspooner]

I think granny is in the right here. That little fucker got what he deserved. Sure, from our view shooting him looks like overkill, even to me. But you must remember that she had been tormented for a year. She might have died from a brick to the chest.

 

[Irridium]

If I shot someone in self defense, I would get tried as an adult and thrown in jail. Regardless of what the bully did to me.

Your profile says you live in Vermont. Is that accurate? If so, your state law guarantees you the right to use lethal force in defense of both your person and your property. You should try actually knowing what you're talking about before saying things like this. It usually helps.

It's regrettable that a young kid was shot. I don't know all the details so I can't say whether or not the lady was in the right. It's entirely possible she and her neighbors have overstated the continuing crimes of the kid and it's entirely possible there were several less violent options she had yet to try. It's also entirely possible there weren't any other options besides ignore the person chucking bricks at you. The only things I know for sure is that everyone instantly demonizing the lady for defending herself without all the information is naive at best. People needs to learn that things in the real world don't always have a perfect solution that leaves everyone happy and unharmed.

I moved to Vermont recently from Chicago. I'm not completely 100% on all its laws.

 

[Littlee300]

Shooting a child can never be justified, no matter how must of a bastard the child might be.

Pfft I would totally be OK if someone shot baby Hitler

 

[NoNameMcgee]

As much as I'm glad the little fucker got wounded... She could have easily missed and shot him in the head or the torso, likely killing him. Especially since she is elderly and I highly doubt her shots are particularly accurate.

Risky, risky... Not sure what I think of this.

 

[RobCoxxy]

"Shit, Granny's packing!"

"Everyone and their mum is packin' round here!"

<3 Hot Fuzz.

 

[Rednog]

I'm sorry but am I the only one who smells shenanigans in this whole incident?
The story just doesn't add up/ really isn't explained that well.

Garbage cans on fire on vandalism and she doesn`t call the cops. I`m sorry but I live in Chicago and if someone sets a garbage can on fire it gets reported by someone, even if it isn`t the victim.
And they hit her in the chest with a brick? Hell I don`t care how old you are if someone hits you in the fucking chest with a brick you`re going to be knocked flat on your ass and in the hospital with a bruised rib, at 68 probably a couple of broken ribs. You aren't going into your house and getting your gun, coming out and shooting the person who threw the brick.
Also there is no logical steps in her reaction. So she takes all this bullying and does absolutely nothing about it and just decides on this day to shoot the kid. I`m sorry but the first/second step in solving a situation isn`t pulling out a gun. Confront the parents or hell even wait for the cops to come (she went outside to confront the kids where she supposedly got hit, they were up on a shed, if you stay inside and wait for the cops odds are a 12 and 13 year old can't/won't bust down the door and take you out. And the neighborhood loves her so much and wouldn`t do a damn thing to help the old lady over the period of a year? BS. Send the kid to fucking juvie and not to the fucking morgue, seriously what a lucky fucking shot, an inch or two in another direction the kid is dead, and since the kid is on top of a shed, easily could have gotten shot, fallen off, cracked his skull.
I know the Chicago cops aren`t the best of the best, but anyone reporting an old lady being hit by a brick from a kid would have the cops speeding down there.

I have a feeling it was more of, fuck these kids I`m going to scare them with my gun. Gun goes off, oh shit I hit the kid, uhh yes officers they hit me with a brick...and they`ve been terrorizing me for a year. Right....

Also on the related article it's even questioned whether or not the kids were bullying her. They don't have any concrete witnesses to the kids ever bullying her, they just think they could have because they knew she lived alone and was easy to pick on. This is also an odd thing because you'd think that anyone who is pissed enough to shoot someone over all this would have complained to someone at some point or another.

 

[FaceFaceFace]

We don't know if granny was hit. Stop being such a fucking troll trying to escalate things.

If you read the actual article, we do know if Granny was hit. She was. In the chest. The night she shot him. Strong application of force (like a thrown brick) to the chest can kill a person. If someone is doing something that can kill you, you can do something that can kill them.