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Purveyor

(29,876 posts)
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 11:05 AM Sep 2014

Police In Three States Hunt For Gunman After Trooper Shot Dead At Pennsylvania Barracks

Source: REUTERS

By Reuters
Saturday, September 13, 2014 8:19 EDT

Police in three states were searching on Saturday for a gunman who shot and killed a state trooper in a police barracks in Pennsylvania, a police official said.

The shooting, in which a second soldier was wounded, occurred at the Blooming Grove barracks around 11 p.m. EDT on Friday, said Pennsylvania police spokeswoman Connie Devens.

The shooter remained on the loose on Saturday morning, Devens said, prompting a manhunt by police from Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey.

Footage on local television station WNEP showed police cruisers and SWAT vehicles rushing to the scene while a helicopter hovered overhead.

Read more: http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2014/09/13/police-in-three-states-hunt-for-gunman-after-trooper-shot-dead-at-pennsylvania-barracks/

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Police In Three States Hunt For Gunman After Trooper Shot Dead At Pennsylvania Barracks (Original Post) Purveyor Sep 2014 OP
Do state troopers refer to themselves as soldiers? I don't. TeamPooka Sep 2014 #1
The term, soldier, may be in consideration of the militarization of police departments. Hoppy Sep 2014 #2
I think the reporter just got excited in the moment. Cops aren't soldiers, we all agree. Shrike47 Sep 2014 #5
And the editor (ha! ? !) was asleep at the wheel.... nt MADem Sep 2014 #7
Never in my life have I heard such a thing--state TROOPER, yes. Soldier? NEVER. nt MADem Sep 2014 #6
I'm new to the word "barracks" when refering to the police, as well—I've always heard "station." C Moon Sep 2014 #14
In PA, they call state trooper stations "barracks". It may be just a PA thing. TwilightGardener Sep 2014 #16
Do the cops sleep or live there? TransitJohn Sep 2014 #21
When first formed yes they did. happyslug Sep 2014 #24
State police stations have been called barracks for decades. NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #18
Never heard the term used for police stations in California, though. C Moon Sep 2014 #20
In most states that use the term "trooper" for state police-officers... Chan790 Sep 2014 #26
Ah. Thanks for making that very clear! I understand now. C Moon Sep 2014 #27
Pa State Trooper was formed in 1903 happyslug Sep 2014 #28
CT State Police also formed in 1903. NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #30
Freudian slip Man from Pickens Sep 2014 #29
Some of Reuters has been outsourced to India, I've heard. grahamhgreen Sep 2014 #56
No wonder they think they need all that military equipment. Live and Learn Sep 2014 #63
Be Prepared father founding Sep 2014 #3
I live about 15 minutes from the barracks... madamvlb Sep 2014 #4
Isn't there a sheriff's patrol? Shemp Howard Sep 2014 #11
I don't remember Sheriff's patrols in PA. rickford66 Sep 2014 #13
No Sheriff patrols in PA happyslug Sep 2014 #22
Hi, I live in Milford. rug Sep 2014 #51
Two Troopers were ambushed in the parking lot of the barracks... Historic NY Sep 2014 #8
Thanks -- I was about to ask rocktivity Sep 2014 #37
This is the barracks. rug Sep 2014 #52
Shot the wrong guys dog? n/t PorridgeGun Sep 2014 #9
Don't give up your day job. ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #10
They blew away a guys dog in Courd d'Alene the other day, black lab sleeping in his jtuck004 Sep 2014 #23
Well thats not Blooming Grove Pennsylvania... Historic NY Sep 2014 #34
WTF does that have to do with the price of tea in China? ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #36
Cops have been doing everything in their power... beevul Sep 2014 #54
"...I don't blame posters for sentiments such as the one you objected to so strenuously...." ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #55
"I never thought I would see the day when such a sentiment was expressed on a progressive website." SkyDaddy7 Sep 2014 #58
What absurd 'logic'! ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #59
Spin it how you choose... SkyDaddy7 Sep 2014 #64
What a juvenile reply. ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #65
Less than a dog? SkyDaddy7 Sep 2014 #66
Read post #23. ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #67
NO NO NO... SkyDaddy7 Sep 2014 #68
YES, YES, YES. ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #69
You will get over it... SkyDaddy7 Sep 2014 #70
Why not take your own advice? ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #71
How utterly convenient.... Oktober Sep 2014 #61
My standards aren't so low that I can distinguish the difference. Bye. n/t jtuck004 Sep 2014 #60
They obviously are, to have written such a disgusting post. n/t ColesCountyDem Sep 2014 #62
They pull out all of the fancy equipment when a God falls 951-Riverside Sep 2014 #12
That's really unfortunate bluestateguy Sep 2014 #15
"The shooting, in which a second soldier was wounded" NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #17
*shrug* I am still not sure why some people are obsessing about that cstanleytech Sep 2014 #19
Because local cops aren't soldiers. christx30 Sep 2014 #25
Yes, I know all that but again why focus on a word stumble like that when the bigger story is the cstanleytech Sep 2014 #32
Because it's a stupid, very telling christx30 Sep 2014 #46
First word stumbles happen all the time, you cannot stop it. cstanleytech Sep 2014 #47
But it wasn't misspoken. christx30 Sep 2014 #49
Even editors make mistakes. cstanleytech Sep 2014 #50
Uh Ferguson, MO? nt NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #31
And its relevant to Blooming Grove, PA ? cstanleytech Sep 2014 #33
Concern about police militarization is nationwide. NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #38
I think you might be reaching at trying to compare the two. nt cstanleytech Sep 2014 #40
Nope. NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #41
Not offense rather it just doesnt make any sense to me to compare a shooting cstanleytech Sep 2014 #42
Part of the Ferguson story was the repression of protest by the militarized police. NutmegYankee Sep 2014 #43
the guy on the turret has his rifle pointed square at the photographer. uncle ray Sep 2014 #57
What kind of nut shoots a trooper at the police barracks? NaturalHigh Sep 2014 #35
Maybe someone out for revenge or to send a message? n/t A Simple Game Sep 2014 #39
A disgruntled former employee? rocktivity Sep 2014 #44
It sounds personal AwareOne Sep 2014 #45
probably one of their own. 3 states of police? remember the last time police went on their 'hunt' Sunlei Sep 2014 #48
original reuters link + local news story alp227 Sep 2014 #53
 

Hoppy

(3,595 posts)
2. The term, soldier, may be in consideration of the militarization of police departments.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 11:17 AM
Sep 2014

Being a soldier is better for the ego than just being a cop.

C Moon

(12,188 posts)
14. I'm new to the word "barracks" when refering to the police, as well—I've always heard "station."
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 01:10 PM
Sep 2014

The lines sure are blurring.

 

happyslug

(14,779 posts)
24. When first formed yes they did.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 04:10 PM
Sep 2014

The PA State police were called Cossacks by many miners for they were formed to put down strikes.

The reputation of the PA State Police was so bad that in 1926 Pennslyvania form a separate police force called the PA Highway Patrol. The Highway Patrol ended up the Larger Force for it did not beat up union members. In the late 1930s they were merged. In the late 1940s they resume the name State Police.

Now the original State Police had policies that were reintroduced in the 1940s. One was no badges. The uniform as a whole is viewed as their "badge". Military ranks and a military style dress uniform including the "Campaign" hat that was popular with troops in 1903 when the PA State Police were formed. The name barracks for their stations is another.

NutmegYankee

(16,177 posts)
18. State police stations have been called barracks for decades.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 02:59 PM
Sep 2014

They were formed with heavily militaristic organization.

C Moon

(12,188 posts)
20. Never heard the term used for police stations in California, though.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 03:26 PM
Sep 2014

Stations and sub-stations is what I'm familiar with.

 

Chan790

(20,176 posts)
26. In most states that use the term "trooper" for state police-officers...
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 04:18 PM
Sep 2014

such as CT, MA and PA; the station is typically called a barracks. They also tend to be sub-state regional, rather than municipal, police forces. It's because in most cases, and I know this for certain about CT where I live, the state police troop is the actually the modern-day evolution of a standing state-militia tasked with law enforcement which predates the founding of the United States of America. It was originally called a barracks because the state had an obligation to quarter and feed this standing militia.

Today, they maintain quarters at barracks (for use during training and states of emergency) but virtually all troopers reside in their own homes under normal circumstance.

None of this is a new state of affairs...it's actually a very old state of affairs.

C Moon

(12,188 posts)
27. Ah. Thanks for making that very clear! I understand now.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 04:22 PM
Sep 2014

In California, we have California Highway Patrol, local police and county sheriffs.
All of who carry guns.
I think I read someone above say the state troopers don't carry weapons? Maybe I'm mistaken.

Thanks!

 

happyslug

(14,779 posts)
28. Pa State Trooper was formed in 1903
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 04:41 PM
Sep 2014

It is the oldest state police force in the country. It was formed as a pseudo military force to "Control Crime" mostly strikers. They had a bad reputation from 1903 to the 1930s. The reputation was so bad that when the concept of having police patrol highways became popular in the 1920s Pennslyvania formed the PA Highway Patrol to perform that function. The two state police forces were merged in the late 1930s when the highway patrol was the larger of the two. In the late 1940s the name Pennsylvania State Police was adopted.

 

Man from Pickens

(1,713 posts)
29. Freudian slip
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 05:04 PM
Sep 2014

becoming more and more obvious to everybody that police are the standing army we were warned about

madamvlb

(495 posts)
4. I live about 15 minutes from the barracks...
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 11:20 AM
Sep 2014

My son was in a car accident last year and it took the trooper about an hour to reach us. His response to my anger was that he was the only trooper on duty for 150 square miles that night and he was on the other side of Pike County. I love living here, it's only about 1 1/2 hrs to the city, yet we have bears, turkeys, deer and fresh air. It's when there is an emergency that I worry

Shemp Howard

(889 posts)
11. Isn't there a sheriff's patrol?
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 12:38 PM
Sep 2014

I know that in many rural counties the state police are stretched quite thin. But isn't there a sheriff's patrol that could have assisted? Just curious.

And I sure hope your son made it out of the accident okay.

rickford66

(5,498 posts)
13. I don't remember Sheriff's patrols in PA.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 01:04 PM
Sep 2014

I grew up in NEPA and moved to NY age 34. NY has regular Sheriff Depts outside cities. In PA we depended upon State Police outside city limits. People are going to correct me but that's what I remember from back before 1980. The Sheriffs essentially served summons etc and didn't patrol to prevent or investigate crime.

rocktivity

(44,555 posts)
37. Thanks -- I was about to ask
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 06:29 PM
Sep 2014

how a civilian could simply walk into a state police barracks. Bad journalism, Raw Story.


rocktivity

 

rug

(82,333 posts)
52. This is the barracks.
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 12:01 AM
Sep 2014


It's surrounded by state game lands.

The road in front is a two lane state road.

The nearest highway is I84 about 5 miles north which heads west into Scranton and east into Orange County, New York.
 

jtuck004

(15,882 posts)
23. They blew away a guys dog in Courd d'Alene the other day, black lab sleeping in his
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 04:05 PM
Sep 2014

van while the owner ate lunch. Windows down a couple inches. Cop said the 50 lb black lab might might have jumped through the hole, so he shot and killed him. Second innocent dog shooting in a month.

I've learned what both are capable of over the years, and in most cases I feel more for the dogs now.

Historic NY

(37,449 posts)
34. Well thats not Blooming Grove Pennsylvania...
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 05:36 PM
Sep 2014

is it. These guys are more likely to put down a deer or shoot a bear.

ColesCountyDem

(6,943 posts)
36. WTF does that have to do with the price of tea in China?
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 06:15 PM
Sep 2014

We're talking about the murder of a human being here! The fact that you can feel more for a dog in Idaho than a human being in Pennsylvania speaks for itself, and it's disgusting.

 

beevul

(12,194 posts)
54. Cops have been doing everything in their power...
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 01:45 AM
Sep 2014

Cops have been doing everything in their power to show society, through thuggish behavior, just how different they are from mere "human beings".

Dogs, not so much. Dogs don't generally go around shooting unarmed people in the back, or tazing 8 year olds, bloodying the faces of teenage girls, threatening to invent crimes to arrest people that know their rights, smashing/stealing peoples camera/phones because they think they're above being recorded, or shooting peoples pets in a backyard they have no business investigating in the first place.

I don't blame posters for sentiments such as the one you objected to so strenuously.

Maybe police wouldn't have such sentiments to deal with, if the "good apples" didn't man the thin blue line for the "bad apples" at a 99.9 percent rate.

I'm no "cop hater", my grandfather was military police, then a police officer, then a detective. He retired after a career of law enforcement...but then...those words "law enforcement" mean something very different now, than they did then, which leads right back to the sentiments that law enforcement has earned for itself.

ColesCountyDem

(6,943 posts)
55. "...I don't blame posters for sentiments such as the one you objected to so strenuously...."
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 06:33 AM
Sep 2014

You don't blame people for being more upset over the death of a dog than over the premeditated murder of a human being?

I never thought I would see the day when such a sentiment was expressed on a progressive website.

SkyDaddy7

(6,045 posts)
58. "I never thought I would see the day when such a sentiment was expressed on a progressive website."
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 12:30 PM
Sep 2014

Well, I agree, but the reason behind the "sentiment" is due to the collective behavior of the cops across America having little to no respect for civilian life & especially for people's pets!

The cops are to blame for so many people no longer being able to feel compassion for them...We know they have no compassion for civilians. Even the so-called "good cops" keep quiet for self preservation purposes so nothing changes & the anger toward the police will continue to grow.

So, you should not be so surprised...The cops have become an occupying force rather than a force to "protect & serve" civilians...Which is really SAD!

ColesCountyDem

(6,943 posts)
59. What absurd 'logic'!
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 02:05 PM
Sep 2014

There is no evidence whatsoever that this state trooper was anything other than an honest and honorable law-enforcement officer, and to fail to extend compassion to him and his family-- nay, to extend MORE to a dead dog-- is reprehensible and has NO place on a progressive website.

I am absolutely gobsmacked at your defense of that post!

SkyDaddy7

(6,045 posts)
64. Spin it how you choose...
Mon Sep 15, 2014, 05:33 PM
Sep 2014

If the Police treat every incident the same across the board unless they are forced to do otherwise then they can't be shocked if others begin to treat them the same way...NO SYMPATHY. When they get back to protecting & serving the public instead of being the OCCUPYING FORCE that they are then the sympathy will return.

This trooper would NEVER have testified against other cops, he more than likely LIED on police reports & probably in court as well...If not, he knows others who have & has not turned them in...Here you are trying to make a hero out of him.


I am absolutely gobsmacked at your defense of the occupying force in America that literally (proper use) murders many Americans every day & who knows how many we don't even find out about because the cops cover it up...What kind of person are you to act as if this is not happening in this country?

Two can play at the same game!!

oh yeah...

ColesCountyDem

(6,943 posts)
65. What a juvenile reply.
Mon Sep 15, 2014, 05:41 PM
Sep 2014

Without any evidence whatsoever that this murder victim was anything but an honest and honorable professional, you support posts impugning him, and saying that his death is less deserving of sympathy than a dog's death.

I'd expect better from an adult posting on a progressive website, but in this instance, it appears my expectation is erroneous.

SkyDaddy7

(6,045 posts)
66. Less than a dog?
Mon Sep 15, 2014, 05:46 PM
Sep 2014

I would expect an "adult on a Progressive forum" not to make shit up & LIE like a spoiled brat just because they don't agree with someone's POV. Grow up!!

SkyDaddy7

(6,045 posts)
68. NO NO NO...
Tue Sep 16, 2014, 05:38 AM
Sep 2014

I know what that person said...I have not been "defending" anything or anyone...I have been saying there should be no shock or surprise why people feel the way they do about the cops...Whether they feel more compassion for a dead dog or like me feel little compassion at all, the point is the cops are forcing more & more people like myself who once fully supported the cops to no longer support them. To think of all the money I wasted donating to the FOP. Live & learn.


What are all the innocent good cops doing in St. Louis/Ferguson, MO.? How many have shown "compassion" for Michael Brown? HELL, worse than not showing compassion they are all actively trying to trash the murder victim while hiding the killer & doing everything they can to cover for him.

And that is just the latest high profile case but there are thousands like it each years & who knows how many that the cops are successful hiding or get away with.

Expect me to feel "compassion"?!?!...It is SAD that I feel NOTHING...It is SAD that in America I am forced to feel NOTHING because the cops are more of an OCCUPYING FORCE out to "protect & serve" themselves & no one else unless it benefits them politically.


ColesCountyDem

(6,943 posts)
69. YES, YES, YES.
Tue Sep 16, 2014, 07:52 AM
Sep 2014

If you weren't defending what he posted, you should never have interjected yourself into the sub-thread. My replies have consistently dealt with those remarks, and nothing but those remarks. I do not swallow the thread jacking bait many here seem to prefer posting, rather than addressing the post to which I replied.

Again, the fact that you are unable to show compassion for the victim of a premeditated murder is both shocking and reprehensible.

 

Oktober

(1,488 posts)
61. How utterly convenient....
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 04:57 PM
Sep 2014

... that someone else is the cause and reason behind those statements.

 

951-Riverside

(7,234 posts)
12. They pull out all of the fancy equipment when a God falls
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 12:58 PM
Sep 2014

but when a mere mortal gets shot they stand around and have a chat while you bleed to death

http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Cops-sued-for-stopping-car-with-gunshot-victim-5734684.php

With that said, its sad when anyone gets gunned down and my thoughts are with this individual's family.

bluestateguy

(44,173 posts)
15. That's really unfortunate
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 01:17 PM
Sep 2014

It is. I hope the killer is caught.

But don't expect me or any other citizen to give up our freedoms and civil liberties to make it happen.

cstanleytech

(26,080 posts)
19. *shrug* I am still not sure why some people are obsessing about that
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 03:23 PM
Sep 2014

rather than say on something important like is this just the beginning and will the shooter start killing other people like say children on a playground for example.

christx30

(6,241 posts)
25. Because local cops aren't soldiers.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 04:13 PM
Sep 2014

A cop's job is to keep the peace and protect the innocent. A soldier's job is to kill the enemy. With cops in our midst, we are the ones to be protected. With soldiers, we are regarded as the enemy.
And there is no reason to believe this is a psycho that is going to go after kids on playgrounds. Maybe he or they just hate cops. It's not that hard to imagine.

cstanleytech

(26,080 posts)
32. Yes, I know all that but again why focus on a word stumble like that when the bigger story is the
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 05:21 PM
Sep 2014

shooting and that someone out there with a gun and is willing to use it even against police?

christx30

(6,241 posts)
46. Because it's a stupid, very telling
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 09:33 PM
Sep 2014

"word stumble". And it needs to stop. Cops aren't soldiers. And there needs to be a solid, neon lit line between the two. With the militarization of the police going on at a breakneck (sometimes literally) speed, cops need to be reminded that they aren't soldiers, and they need to calm the hell down. They are not in a war. They are not soldiers. We are not the enemy.
And the guy with the gun is willing to use it against cops. He is probably mad about a DWI citation or something. I don't know. We may find out or we may not.

cstanleytech

(26,080 posts)
47. First word stumbles happen all the time, you cannot stop it.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 09:37 PM
Sep 2014

2nd I never said they were soldiers just that I find it odd that some people seem to be obsessed far more over making a mountain over a mole hill of a stupid misspoken word rather than the shooting itself.

christx30

(6,241 posts)
49. But it wasn't misspoken.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 10:43 PM
Sep 2014

It was typed, went through an editor, and published. People put thought into it.

It's not like saying "I take you Rachel" when you're marrying Emily.

cstanleytech

(26,080 posts)
50. Even editors make mistakes.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 10:53 PM
Sep 2014

I have a personal library of over 3000 books (30+ year collection) and you would be surprised at some of the things I have run across over the years that even editors miss.
Heck one author even had the gall to plagiarize himself in a chapter in one of his series with the only change being the names of the characters and the editor failed to catch it.

cstanleytech

(26,080 posts)
42. Not offense rather it just doesnt make any sense to me to compare a shooting
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 08:13 PM
Sep 2014

of a police officer by an unknown suspect to the shooting of a young kid by a police officer especially when the two incidents are almost 1000 miles apart.

NutmegYankee

(16,177 posts)
43. Part of the Ferguson story was the repression of protest by the militarized police.
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 08:25 PM
Sep 2014

And it highlighted an ongoing problem all across the country. Should we the people even tolerate scum who do things like below?



The actions of police who think they are soldiers and treat people like insurgents for just looking out the window of their own freaking home are very much a national concern. I was pointing out the obvious Freudian slip in the article.

uncle ray

(3,153 posts)
57. the guy on the turret has his rifle pointed square at the photographer.
Sun Sep 14, 2014, 09:08 AM
Sep 2014

while on a moving vehicle, no less.

 

AwareOne

(404 posts)
45. It sounds personal
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 09:05 PM
Sep 2014

May turn out to be a love triangle or something like that rather than a random shooting of a cop. Another work place shooting that just happens to be a police station.

Sunlei

(22,651 posts)
48. probably one of their own. 3 states of police? remember the last time police went on their 'hunt'
Sat Sep 13, 2014, 10:05 PM
Sep 2014

A lot of innocents were hurt.

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