White...black....licensed....unlicensed......what does it matter. The fact remains that a gun's presence on a quiet neighborhood's basketball court led to a senseless....tragic death resulting from what should not have been a deadly confrontation and there is an 8 year old girl without a father because of it. Bizarre.... tragic.....and fueled by firearm possession and misinterpreted Florida law.
What does it matter??? Are you Hilary freeking Clinton now? Licensed or unlicensed: If he were not licensed to carry a gun, he was committing a felony just having the gun in public without a license. That makes him a criminal before any confrontation happened. Criminals are not going to follow any laws we make. If he was licensed, he passes that first test. Then it comes down to what started the confrontation. How can you be sure when the EYE WITNESSES on scene had such conflicting views that he was not arrested on the scene? Black or White: To me that doesn't matter. That is why I asked why you made a point of mentioning it.
Gabriel Nestande Trial in Austin Texas Travis County has just concluded. This woman was video taped in a bar (security cameras) buying a drinking 6 drinks over a 4 hour period. She appears to be about 5 ft 8" tall and weighs about 100 lbs. She was staggering on tape. She got into a car, drove down the road, hit a pedestrian knocking the pedestrian up onto the windshield busting out the windshield, and killed the pedestrian... a young girl named Courtney Griffin. This was a clear cut case of vehicular manslaughter that she was able to try to build up a defense because she chose to hit and run and didn't turn herself in until 12 hours later when the alcohol had worn off. The jusry found her guilty and the sentencing phase will be next. I expect it will be a wrist slap with society's tolerance of alcohol related killings.
I suppose this gent should have asked the intruder to leave, rather than shoot first?? It's always a good idea to let the bad guy know where you are so he can shoot you... :roll: Home Defense
Stu, I think he/they (not you or anybody here) have done a good job of that themselves with much of their rhetoric. They have alienated a decent subsection of right wing moderates - note Scarborough and Forbes views - and is at present pursuing a course contrary to the views of 90%+ of the public and and a majority of their membership. In addition, in my view, they are simply not interested in being a part of the solution. With that as a modus operandi, he surely don't need my help.....in truth right now I think they are being led quite poorly. Universal background checks are not without implementation hurdles to be sure but it seems as if it is doable politically and is a step in the right direction, albeit a modest one. Data I have seen would suggest that the numbers of weapons changing hands without a background check are larger than many in the gun lobby would have us believe (the truth is likely somewhere in the middle) and if it is truly our intent to keep weapons out of the hands of those unworthy, why do we provide them a ready vehicle to acquire them???? Either we do, or do not.....why would we not? I have no problem with a robust registration and licensing framework. Hell, I have to register my pets, land, children, vehicles, trailers and to vote. Why not license the user and register a tool that, if used inappropriately, is the source of a problem of massive proportions? Let's not minimize the burdens on our society with untold $billions$ in real economic expenditures, taxing an already stretched public healthcare system, aggravating very difficult social issues in our urban centers and immeasurable emotional costs nation-wide. If it can contribute, and I believe it can, to reducing the staggering cost of gun violence to our society, I believe it worthwhile but I understand that many disagree and it's unlikely to see the light of day which suggests to me that either a) we don't have the stomach to address the problem, or b) we don't believe that we have a problem...either way it's unfortunate.
Terry, In the past, I would probably be in line with you on this, but the current administration makes me VERY nervous with respect to tying down who has what. I've never been one to see black helicopters and spy satellites out to get me, but I begin to wonder. I'm still in favor of in-depth background checks, but I'm now resistant to a gov't inventory list of who has what.
This illustrates the problem. Somehow....the gun owner is exonerated because he was licensed and therefore used good judgement in killing an unarmed man in front of his daughter......over kids skateboarding on a basketball court? A gun never should have been part of that dispute.....the guy with the gun should never have threatened the other guy in any way and it's dead ass wrong to try and intimidate another in this circumstance by announcing that you have a gun or by showing that you have one. This isn't the G-damned wild wild west.
Dave, I guess I have to spell it out for you. Read this through an you will have a better understanding of my previous post. What part of "Past the FIRST test" made you think I was giving the "thumbs up"? That was only mentioned to say that if he wasn't licensed, he is guilty without question. If he is licensed, then you have to ask: "Was he the aggressor? If he was, then he is guilty without question. If he was not the aggressor, then you have to ask: "Was he escallating the situation before the gun was pulled (in other words, did he take over the aggressive role before the gun came out).? If he did, then he is guilty without question. If he did not escalate and was trying to walk away, and the "victim" maintained or escalated the threat, the shooter has a case for being in fear of his life and was justified for PULLING OUT THE GUN ONLY. Now there is one more issue: proximity of the threat: Was the person at least 15 feet away where he had time to determine if the sight of the gun was enough to stop the threat? If he was, then shooting in the first second of gun exposure was unjustified. If he was that far away and stopped at the sight of the gun, he is guilty without question. for shooting when the threat had ended. If the person kept coming closer, you never let them get within 10 feet without shooting if you are in fear of your life. If he kept coming, the shooting was justified. Was the person so close when the gun was pulled that time was of the essence (within 10 feet)? If so, the shooting was justified. Now Dave... Let's see you find something wrong with that. Non of us know the answer to any of the above questions, yet you are ready to convict this man without knowing the answers. He may be guilty as he can be. Without the facts, I will not convict him.
The shooter was convicted of manslaughter...... a senseless bizare killing that would absolutely not have happened as the result of such a mundane argument.....except for the presence of a gun.
Dave, I hope you are never in need of one. But I would laugh my a$$ off if I found out you did and didn't have one.
New NRA Ad Ridicules Biden’s Advice For Women On Guns…. He makes it way too easy. <iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/qq2FoGND6uw?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0"></iframe>
From Sid's link: They can expect no consequences when our liberal government makes it impossible to defend our homes.
Guess Who Got Suspended? ABC-7.com WZVN News for Fort Myers, Cape Coral http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/03/02/high-school-student-disarms-gunman-gets-suspended/ The Blaze A Florida high school student wrestled a loaded gun away from another teen on the bus ride home this week and was slapped with a suspension in return. The 16-year-old Cypress Lake High student in Fort Myers, Fla. told WFTX-TV there was “no doubt” he saved a life after grappling for the loaded .22 caliber revolver being aimed point-blank at another student on Tuesday. “I think he was really going to shoot him right then and there,” said the suspended student, not identified by WFTX because of safety concerns. “Not taking no pity.” The student said the suspect, a football player, threatened to shoot a teammate because he had been arguing with his friend. Authorities confirmed to WFTX the weapon was indeed loaded, and the arrest report stated the suspect, identified by WVZN-TV as Quadryle Davis, was “pointing the gun directly” at the other student and “threatening to shoot him.” That’s when, the teen told the station, he and two others tackled the suspect and wrestled the gun away. The next day, all three were suspended. “How they going to suspend me for doing the right thing?” he asked. The school’s referral slip said he was given an “emergency suspension” for being involved in an “incident” with a weapon.
Dough! Home - by BigFurHat - March 2, 2013 - 17:12 America/New_York - 21 Comments YouTube 7-Year-Old Joshua was suspended this morning from Park Elementary School in Brooklyn Park. Joshua says he was eating a pastry during snack time and trying to shape it into a mountain, the teacher said it looked like a gun and took him to the principal’s office. Joshua’s parents were called, he has been suspended for two days. Joshua’s father says it’s ridiculous since no one was threatened or harmed by the pastry. A letter will be going home to all students of Park Elementary School this afternoon. School officials declined to comment due to privacy issues. <iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EsVb2pIMAjE?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0"></iframe>