Shoot first, mourn your dead relative later

A Colorado Springs father fatally shot his teenage step-daughter Monday, saying he thought she was a burglar. Prior to the incident, police received a call about a burglary in progress. But when they got there, they found the 14-year-old with a gunshot wound. She was taken to the hospital and died soon after, according to CBS Denver.

The incident is the latest tragedy involving the use of deadly force to protect the home. And it is one of several incidents in which a parent has killed their own child after they mistook them for a burglar. Last September a Connecticut teacher shot and killed his 15-year-old son after his neighbor called to say she thought she saw a robber in the front yard. Just a few weeks after that, a retired Chicago police officer shot and killed his 48-year-old son after he came in the back door late one night. And an off-duty police officer killed his son last July while the two were on vacation in upstate New York, after he told police he believed him to be an intruder. In that case, shooter Michael Leach was charged with second-degree manslaughter and is facing prison time.

http://thinkprogress.org/justice/2013/12/24/3102541/father-shoots-kills-14-year-daughter-saying-mistook-burglar/

The stupidest Americans own guns. Too bad they are not forced to take an IQ test before they can buy one. But they would just get it illegally.


http://www.wrcbtv.com/story/24267190/help-requested-for-road-rage-shooting-victims-family

  

THIS everyday occurrence of another shooting in suburban Colorado isn't a genuine "tragedy", yet rather another gross misapplication of the English language that we see in the modern 'mass media' everyday ~ along with other words like hero (especially where sports stars, cancer sufferers or cats fighting to escape burning houses are mislabelled as "heroes"), disaster (some celebrity breaks a fingernail!), fantastic/awesome/wonderful, logical/"common sense"/"proven" (used in cases where the truth is just the opposite..), theory, entrepreneur, investments (versus "gambling" and "pork-barelling", as more correct terms).

WHAT this shooting is, in fact, is simply another average day in passing in those redneck states like Colorado, Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Kansas and Kentucky, where not only can 17 year olds buy tank busters, AK-47s and machine-pistols "on a lick and promise" with their non-existent State gun licensing laws, while thumbing their nose at Federal regulators ~ but average citizens are actually encouraged to carry loaded guns 24/7, while sleeping with them under their pillows..

WHERE in most jurisdictions in the civilised world that murdering father would be cooling his heels in jail over Christmas, Colorado is one of those misbegotten cesspits where the authorities and local communities are more likely to give their local "heroes" a medal, and honour them in their Thanksgiving day parades !    

Never mind America's stupidity with guns, how can you say a father shooting his daughter by mistake is NOT a tragedy? Think of the impact on the rest of the family for a start.

I think Bee's point is well taken: the misuse of words in the media.  Take war on terrorism.  Terrorism is a tactic, not a population.  Misuse of language leads to redefining mere criminal acts (regardless of magnitude) into whole wars...with, say, ten years of tragedies.

Maybe I stray from the point.  If guys are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns...which leads to the conclusion that this Colorado Springs man did nothing wrong because he was entitled to shoot family members within one's own home.  I disagree. It's totally insane...how many actual, premeditated murders were covered up by I thought it was an intruder?

I think Bee saying the word tragedy is misused in this case is patently wrong.

Of course it is a tragedy, Sass. But Bee is saying, and I agree, it is more than that. Calling it only a tragedy is to evade the point of what more it is.

No he is not. 'isn't a genuine "tragedy'

Figure of speech...what he is trying to say is it is more than that.

Bee wrote:WHAT this shooting is, in fact, is simply another average day in passing in those redneck states like Colorado, Texas, Florida, Tennessee, Kansas and Kentucky, where not only can 17 year olds buy tank busters, AK-47s and machine-pistols "on a lick and promise" with their non-existent State gun licensing laws, while thumbing their nose at Federal regulators ~ but average citizens are actually encouraged to carry loaded guns 24/7, while sleeping with them under their pillows..

WHERE in most jurisdictions in the civilised world that murdering father would be cooling his heels in jail over Christmas, Colorado is one of those misbegotten cesspits where the authorities and local communities are more likely to give their local "heroes" a medal, and honour them in their Thanksgiving day parades !

What I think he is saying is the term "tragedy" doesn't begin to describe the malevolence in the situation. It is that sense that it is not a genuine tragedy.

I think it is tragic but not a true tragedy because it is was bound to happen. The community decided it was acceptable collateral damage, for them to be allowed to keep load guns around. It is tragic for the girl and her family but it is stupidity on behalf of the community that caused this, not some random unavoidable chain of events that make a true tragedy.

For those that don't know I strongly disagree with the opinions of the community where this murder happened. you don't accidentally 'manslaughter' with a weapon. The guy shot to kill, it was premeditated to cause death, that he found out that he didn't want to shot that specific girl is irrelevant, he did want to kill the person he was pointing the gun at when he pulled the trigger at the time even if he regrets it now.

It also shows how little he did to identify the threat before discharging (which doesn't seem to be a thing for Americans) Even police officers here have to be very sure that there is a legitimate threat before discharging a firearm.


@sassy
my point is that if you went speeding down the wrong side of the freeway you wouldn't say it was a tragedy when you hit something, because it is the very probable outcome of the situation. Just like Colorado gun laws.

I agree with that 100%, but I still say, for the relatives of the girl, however it happened, it is a tragedy.

veya_victaous wrote:I think it is tragic but not a true tragedy because it is was bound to happen. The community decided it was acceptable collateral damage, for them to be allowed to keep load guns around. It is tragic for the girl and her family but it is stupidity on behalf of the community that caused this, not some random unavoidable chain of events that make a true tragedy.

For those that don't know I strongly disagree with the opinions of the community where this murder happened. you don't accidentally 'manslaughter' with a weapon. The guy shot to kill, it was premeditated to cause death, that he found out that he didn't want to shot that specific girl is irrelevant, he did want to kill the person he was pointing the gun at when he pulled the trigger at the time even if he regrets it now.

It also shows how little he did to identify the threat before discharging (which doesn't seem to be a thing for Americans) Even police officers here  have to be very sure that there is a legitimate threat before discharging a firearm.


@sassy
my point is that if you went speeding down the wrong side of the freeway you wouldn't say it was a tragedy when you hit something, because it is the very probable outcome of the situation. Just like Colorado gun laws.

Hits the nail on the head.  There are things that could be done...the community deliberately has not done those things.  Tragedy involves a degree of chance; chance was not a factor in the death of that girl.  The killer intended to kill someone and the laws of the community invited it to happen.

In a sense it is rather like the murder of Trayvon Martin.