Late last night

[RSKY]

Kid did not get shot. After further communication I found out that he did not get hit in head. I misunderstood that. The lady telling the story did threaten to hit him. Others in the store joined in and clerk told him to leave and never come back.

College age kids sometime act like middle school.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

WTH? You guys live in a place where it would be normal or expected to shoot a kid because he yells a word? He's lucky he doesn't get shot for yelling? Really?
Are you people really that scared? .
Did he present a mortal threat?
Crime is the lowest it's been in forty plus years. Get a grip.

As Mace says, he probably has little to fear from law-abiding folks, but that doesn't change the fact that what he did was the act of an imbecile. I've seen guys get their plows cleaned for a lot less; not to mention that hold ups have been perpetrated by idiots who only pretended to have a gun. You can't always predict how people will interpret such an action and what the consequences will be. To me, that's the bottom line.

 

[CobyRupert]

I suppose yelling "Bomb", or "I'm a terrorist" on an airplane is OK too?

Not even close to being similar.
I don't buy the "I thought", or "I felt" he "might" be a criminal so I shot him in self defense argument. And neither should anyone else. My life should not dependent on your "feelings". Is the kid an idiot? Yes.
Was there ever any threat made? No. Yelling "freeze" is not a threat. No way around that. (At least not to anyone who isn't living in constant fear.)
So who do the heat packing want-to-be heroes whip out their iron and start shooting at (remember he's "lucky" to not get shot)? The person who shout it? (He may be a cop witnessing a crime no one else sees), or at the person the shouter is telling to freeze?
If you don't see that your life or someone else's is in danger, but have only heard words for which you DO NOT KNOW THEIR CONTEXT! and your first thought is shoot this person, you shouldn't be carrying a gun. When THE ONLY possibility that exists in you fearful scared little minds is: "It's a terrorist!!!" "Shoot them!!" you seriously need to get de-programmed. Turn off the Fear-Tube.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

Not even close to being similar.
Was there ever any threat made?

Yelling "freeze" is not a threat.

No way around that. (At least not to anyone who isn't living in constant fear.)
So who do the heat packing want-to-be heroes whip out their iron and start shooting at (remember he's "lucky" to not get shot)? The person who shout it? (He may be a cop witnessing a crime no one else sees), or at the person the shouter is telling to freeze?
If you don't see that your life or someone else's is in danger, but have only heard words for which you DO NOT KNOW THEIR CONTEXT! and your first thought is shoot this person, you shouldn't be carrying a gun. When THE ONLY possibility that exists in you fearful scared little minds is: "It's a terrorist!!!" "Shoot them!!" you seriously need to get de-programmed. Turn off the Fear-Tube.

Yelling "Freeze" is not a direct threat, I'll give you that...but there is the implication, inherent in yelling "Freeze", that there is a gun involved. You are left with the uncomfortable impression that something is going down in a public place that involves a gun...possibly a robbery, or even likely a robbery...not a situation that the outcome is always predictable, and not a situation that any intelligent person would knowingly create.

 

[ovrszd]

Yelling "Freeze" is not a direct threat, I'll give you that...but there is the implication, inherent in yelling "Freeze", that there is a gun involved. You are left with the uncomfortable impression that something is going down in a public place that involves a gun...possibly a robbery, or even likely a robbery...not a situation that the outcome is always predictable, and not a situation that any intelligent person would knowingly create.

Well stated.

And just for sake of clarity,,, where is the crime rate highest,,, Kentucky or New York???

 

[JDgreen227]

A friend of my wife walked in a convenience store around 10:30 last night. Some kid walked in and yelled "FREEZE" as loud as he could. This is Kentucky, everybody is packing,

What an idiot.

Agree 100%....that moron has been watching too much TV....sad to say that is a very frequent situation these days. People simply don't realize the possible consequences of their actions.

 

[CobyRupert]

Well stated.

And just for sake of clarity,,, where is the crime rate highest,,, Kentucky or New York???

New York

 

[CobyRupert]

Yelling "Freeze" is not a direct threat, I'll give you that...but there is the implication, inherent in yelling "Freeze", that there is a gun involved. You are left with the uncomfortable impression that something is going down in a public place that involves a gun....

..I'll grant you a "maybe"; Also maybe that someone is joking. As the testimony here confirms. Or maybe the customer and cashier are old friends, The point I'm making is you should be left with the uncomfortable impression of: "I don't know." And the first rule of gun handling/hunting is: " If you don't know what you're shooting at, then don't shoot." The mentality of shoot first, ask questions later is wrong. People projecting their scared view of the world that there's a terrorist around every corner is dangerous, they'll see what they want to see.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

..I'll grant you a "maybe"; Also maybe that someone is joking. As the testimony here confirms. Or maybe the customer and cashier are old friends, The point I'm making is you should be left with the uncomfortable impression of: "I don't know." And the first rule of gun handling/hunting is: "

If you don't know what you're shooting at, then don't shoot."

The mentality of shoot first, ask questions later is wrong. People projecting their scared view of the world that there's a terrorist around every corner is dangerous, they'll see what they want to see.

Accepting, arguendo, your statement at face value, one needs to factor in the possibility of mistakes. In such a situation, where there is a presumption that a gun is involved and that it has more than likely been drawn in a confrontational manner, one sets the stage for bad things to happen; e.g., a few years back, a late evening traffic stop resulted in the death of the driver of the stopped vehicle. It seems that the driver opened the door of his vehicle, and when he did, the window control arm (the window was broken out) popped up in the window. The officer, believing that the control arm was a firearm, fired his weapon, killing the driver. Mistake? Absolutely...but they do happen, and one should be a bit more discerning than to tempt fate by yelling "Freeze" in a convenience store.

 

[CobyRupert]

Maybe, it's just me, but before I kill someone I think (or is it feel?) is a danger , I would want to see a gun or some real threat. Not just words.
Did the officer see a gun or was he just startled? Obviously he didn't see a gun. Being startled, like the people in the store, is not a positive i.d. of a threat that justifies deadly force.

Let me repeat that: Being startled does Not justify deadly force.

Call it a mistake if you want, and yes as a society we do, especially to law enforcement because it's such a dangerous job.

Well, I'm going to get slack for bursting bubbles, but the polls say law enforcement is not even in the Top 10 of deadliest jobs.
You're garbage man is more of a hero, putting his life on the line more for you more. I know you've been programmed to think otherwise.

The 10 Deadliest Jobs:

1. Logging workers
2. Fishers and related fishing workers
3. Aircraft pilot and flight engineers
4. Roofers
5. Structural iron and steel workers
6. Refuse and recyclable material collectors
7. Electrical power-line installers and repairers
8. Drivers/sales workers and truck drivers
9. Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers
10. Construction laborers
(-Forbes)