GUNS IN THE NEWS--August 25, 2004

[MrBenchley]

As CO Liberal sez:
Please try to adhere to the following voluntary guidelines, in order that we can have an orderly discussion of gun-related news topics:
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[MrBenchley]

1. Advocates urge tougher gun law (IN)

"The slaying of Indianapolis Police Department Officer Timothy "Jake" Laird by a man with an assault rifle has brought calls for Congress to renew and strengthen the federal assault weapons ban set to expire Sept. 13.
"What more will it take?" Kathy George, president of Hoosiers Concerned About Gun Violence, asked at a news conference in Indianapolis on Tuesday.
George and other advocates say weapons like the SKS assault rifle used to kill Laird should be off the streets. She said her organization has support from 49 Hoosier police departments, including Indianapolis', to renew the weapons ban. They also want other assault-style weapons, such as the SKS, to be included in the ban.
U.S. Rep. Julia Carson, D-Ind., said she supports a renewal of the ban. "I can't for the life of me figure out what you can do with an assault weapon other than to kill a person." "

http://www.indystar.com/articles/3/173070-4653-098.html

[MrBenchley]

2. Keyes rips Obama over opposition to gun bill

The lunatic fringe himself speaks....

"At a news conference, the Republican U.S. Senate nominee targeted Obama's vote in the Illinois Senate against legislation that have would allowed gun owners to claim self defense in court when arrested on illegal possession charges.
Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs retorted that the Democratic Senate candidate had a record of voting for gun safety while recognizing the legitimate needs of sportsmen.
"If Mr. Keyes is concerned about public safety, I would suggest he abandon his long-standing opposition to the federal ban on military-style assault weapons," Gibbs said in an e-mail issued by the Obama campaign office.
Keyes opposes the assault weapons ban, which expires next month; Obama supports the ban."

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/24keyes.html

[LibLabUK]

3. Keyes and Obama

Is this the race where the GOP couldn't find anyone to contest?

[MrBenchley]

5. Yup....they imported Keyes from Maryland

My pal Bob Boudelang tried to put his hat in the ring....

http://www.democraticunderground.com/bob/04/108.html

[Vladimir]

11. Alan Keyes, the GOP's answer to Ayatollah Khomeini n/t

[MrBenchley]

12. He IS a pip, isn't he?

And of course, he was one of the loudest voices condemning Hillary Clinton as a carpetbagger when she did what he is currently doing...the diffrence being that Hillary had enormous popularity within New York (she trounced her Republican opponent).

Keyes trails Obama among all voters by more than 40 points, and among black voters by NINETY POINTS.

[iverglas]

4. Police Shoot Gunman, Free Hostage (Toronto)

That's what was happening when I turned on the news this a.m. It's bigtime news in these parts.


http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1093428104801&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154

'Someone yelled, 'Someone has a gun''

A gunman has been shot dead by a police sniper and his hostage freed after a rush-hour standoff outside of Union Station on Front St. this morning.

Earlier, a woman was taken by ambulance to St. Michael's Hospital after being shot in the food court of the nearby TD Centre. That shooting reportedly sparked the sequence of events that led to the hostage taking.

Union Station is the Penn Station of Toronto -- hub for inter-city trains and commuter trains, and connection with subway line, located in the heart of the business district. The TD Centre is one of the giant bank towers built a couple of decades ago, with underground shopping malls all interconnecting.

... A constable on paid duty outside the Royal York Hotel heard the details over the police radio and spotted the suspect on Front St.

He confronted the man and tried to talk to him, but the man grabbed the hostage instead.

The Emergency Task Force (ETF) arrived soon after and also tried to talk to the man who continued to point the gun at the woman and police.

Fantino said the ETF made a decision to shoot the man fearing for the safety of the woman, police and passersby.

It appears that the woman taken to hospital was injured some other way than by gunshot, and that the hostage in the second part of the incident was a random victim.


http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1093428105415&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154

Stunned commuters witness killing

Bank employee Oroosh Sheikh had left Union Station and was walking across Front St. to attend a training seminar at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel. He was passing a hotdog stand on the south side of Front when he saw a man grab a woman who was walking by and put a gun to her head. Sheikh said the man appeared to be confused.

... Stunned commuters were standing as close as 20 feet from the scene as police tried to clear the area, she said.

Witness Liz Simic told the Star by e-mail that "when I came out of the subway and saw there was something going on I walked up to a cop and asked what was going on. He said 'See that guy? He's got a gun. See that woman? He's holding it to her head. You need to get out of here."

Another witness, J.P. Burlock, described the scene: "I was about 100 metres from the hostage guy and the interesting part that made me a bit nervous was the fact that directly across the street ... between myself and the hostage situation there were several police officers with their guns drawn and crouching behind their cars/vans. ...

Feet, metres ... you know you're in Canada when you hear people speaking in these tongues. ;)


http://toronto.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=to_shooting20040825


Gunman stands behind hostage on Front Street

You can listen to the contemporaneous CBC radio report there, too.

Sounds a bit like another loon-with-gun story. Shall we all discuss the make and characteristics of the firearm now?

[MrBenchley]

6. A Kind of Firefighting

registration required
"In "Private Guns," Mr. Hemenway, director of the Harvard Injury Control Research Center, treats gun violence as a consumer safety and public health problem, offering a detailed, sober account of the effect of guns on society.
He notes, for example, that gun injuries are the leading cause of uninsured hospital stays in the United States; that gunshot wounds are more likely than nonviolence-related traumatic spinal cord injuries to lead to paraplegia and complete spinal cord injury; that gun ownership is more prevalent among those with higher incomes; and that owners of semiautomatic weapons are more likely than other gun owners to report that they binge drink.
Mr. Hemenway takes issue with some claims about the benefits of gun ownership. For instance, he disputes the claims that guns are used more often in self-defense than in criminal activity, and that a gun in the home "reduces the likelihood of burglary, robbery, home invasion, abuse, or any other crime against women."
He compares the public health problems created by firearms with those of tobacco and alcohol, concluding: "In the United States, the social movement to reduce the harm caused by cigarettes is further along than the movement to lessen the harm caused by firearms. In most other high-income countries, the opposite is true." "

http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/24/health/24books.html

[Endangered Specie]

7. Id like to know how many innocent people have to be killed or permanently

injured before people in the pro gun nut crowd start to notice...

"How many people does it take, before it become wrong hmm? 1,000? 50,000?, a million? How many does it take?" - Picard

[MrBenchley]

8. You and me both...

[Vladimir]

10. If they didn't think like victims and packed heat,

they wouldn't be paralysed and dead now, right?

[MrBenchley]

13. That's the RKBA solution for everything...

[MrBenchley]

9. Ohio Gunman Kills Store Employee, Self

registration required
CINCINNATI - A man opened fire at a department store Tuesday evening, killing an employee and injuring a customer before fatally shooting himself, authorities said.
The shootings began after an altercation broke out in a K-Mart in suburban Cincinnati. The gunman shot the employee twice and fled.
Several people chased the gunman, and he fired at them, hitting a customer, Hamilton County Sheriff's spokesman Steve Barnett said.
The employee, a 22-year-old man, was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities did not immediately know the extent of the customer's injuries."

http://www.miami.com/mld/miamiherald/news/nation/9486666.htm

[MrBenchley]

14. Florida man shot to death in Buffalo

"The body of Derrick Larmon Martin of Tampa, Fla. was discovered around 11:40 a.m. in front of an abandoned house, police said.
Capt. Mark Morgan said officers found Martin's body between two abandoned houses after they responded to a 911 call.
Neighbors told police that they heard multiple shots Monday night.
Martin is Buffalo's 36th homicide the year. "

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/wire/ny-bc-ny-brf--shootingdeath0824aug24,0,6449222.story?coll=ny-ap-regional-wire

[MrBenchley]

15. Suspect Identified in Triple Shooting (MD)

"Baltimore, MD (WJZ) A suspect in the shootings of a woman and her two daughters has been identified.
Twenty year old Raymond Taylor of Taylor Avenue in Hillendale, Baltimore County, is charged with three counts of attempted murder.
Taylor also uses the alias Thomas Quarles.
Taylor is charged with shooting his girlfriend, 36 year old Tammy Johnson, and two teenagers, Cierra Johnson and Shatera Brooks Monday morning in Northeast Baltimore."

http://wjz.com/localstories/local_story_238082723.html

[MrBenchley]

16. Man Arrested In Gang-Related Shooting Death (OK)

"Steven Chavarria was arrested and charged with first-degree murder in the death of Rocky Ruiz.
Ruiz was shot and killed while sitting in his car in the 1100 block of Southwest 17th Street. Oklahoma City police said the shooting was gang-related.
Investigators are still looking for Joe Sayerwinnie, who is also wanted in the case."

http://www.channeloklahoma.com/news/3678486/detail.html

[MrBenchley]

17. Man dies in apartment shooting (IA)

"Officials say one man was killed and another man was injured in the shooting that happened late last night at the Douglas Woods Apartment. No names have been released.
Police spokesman Sergeant Tony Steverson says it may have been running gun battle."

http://www.wqad.com/Global/story.asp?S=2217900

[MrBenchley]

18. Columbia man accused of killing wife, shooting son waives right (SC)

"(Richland County) Aug. 25, 2004 - A Columbia man charged fatally shooting his wife at their home on Sunday waived right to bond and to appear on Wednesday.
Crawford Williams, 73, is charged with murder and assault and battery with intent to kill in the death of his wife, 69-year-old Sarah Williams.
Crawford Williams is also charged with shooting and wounding his stepson.
Officials arrested Williams without incident Sunday. "

http://www.wistv.com/Global/story.asp?S=2219338&nav=0RaPQEhr

[MrBenchley]

19. Second teen arrested in Saturday bus shooting (MS)

"A second Greenwood youth has been arrested in connection with the Saturday night shooting into a charter bus on U.S. 49, said Leflore County Sheriff Ricky Banks.
Cordaro Meeks, 17, of 702A Ash St., was charged Monday as an accessory before and after the fact in the shooting incident.
Corey Crain, 16, of 612 Cypress Ave. is charged with shooting into the bus. He was arrested by deputies early Sunday morning."

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=12776882&BRD=1838&PAG=461&dept_id=104621&rfi=6

Hey, gang! What far right wing bunch of racists, criminals and loonies, currently trying to keep the Swift Boat smear of Kerry alive, actually publishes a gun magazine for kids?

[MrBenchley]

20. Leads scarce in S. Dallas shootings

registration required
"DALLAS - Detectives were unable Tuesday to establish a motive or name suspects in the slayings of two men whose bodies were discovered a day earlier on a property in south Dallas where 348 gamecocks were being raised.
Police identified the slain men as Jose Guadalupe Obregon, 34, and his nephew, Roman Obregon, 18.
Both were shot to death. It was unclear Tuesday who owned the property. City records list a Roman Obergon as the owner, but Scott Tims, a city spokesman, said he had heard that the owner was not one those killed and may have been out of the country Tuesday.
According to police reports, the victims' bodies were discovered about 3:30 p.m. Monday."

http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/9490273.htm

Anybody check where Bwana Dick Cheney was at the time?

[iverglas]

21. Van full of guns, explosives found in Montreal

Big guns in the news day up here today.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2004/08/25/mtl_van040825.html

MONTREAL - Police say a minivan found in downtown Montreal loaded with guns and explosives likely belonged to an organized crime group.

Bomb experts used a robot to examine the rented Mazda MPV parked on René Lévesque Boulevard near the consulates of Panama and Costa Rica.

Inside the van, police found 15 guns and as much as 135 kilograms of explosives.

The firearms included automatic weapons, semi-automatic machine guns and handguns.

Yikes, too late to edit that post of mine about how I was driving around the countryside in a Mazda MPV this weekend ...



I can't resist ... a little "beer in the news" from that site --

http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2004/08/24/beer_nb040824.html

Police find missing beer truck driver

FREDERICTON - Police have found the truck driver who went missing last week along with more than 50,000 cans of Moosehead beer on the way to Mexico.

... Haines disappeared at the same time the beer was stolen somewhere between Fredericton and Grand Falls, N.B. The tractor-trailer he was driving was found last week near Woodstock, N.B.

On Monday night, police discovered nearly 8,000 cans of the stolen suds in a trailer that went off the road near Woodstock.

At the crash site, they found a half-ton truck with a trailer and the beer, which is labelled in Spanish and English. There was no sign of the driver.

Police are still looking for the rest of the shipment, worth $75,000, and the driver of the half-ton truck.

Somebody forgot to tell him not to drink the merchandise ...


Back to that vanful of stuff:

http://www.canada.com/montreal/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=c66f97b9-e852-4072-8e95-6082581c1582

It's unlikely to be the work of teenage gang members, said Const. Lynne Labelle, a Montreal police spokeswoman.

"I believe it's too big to be related to street gangs," Labelle said of the seizure.

Officers seized 17 firearms, including submachine-guns, handguns and rifles, on Tuesday. They also found between 90 and 135 kilograms of explosives.

No arrests have been made and police aren't sure how many suspects are involved and if they have left the country, Labelle said. Officers will need to find out who rented the vehicle.

Our gangs up here are the real deal. "Organized crime", in Quebec, generally means very big-time, very bad motorcycle gangs.

Oh, phew:

"There are no clues that are leading us to believe it's linked to terrorism," Labelle added.

[FeebMaster]

22. In Canada? Surely not.

Were those guns properly registered?


"The firearms included automatic weapons, semi-automatic machine guns and handguns."

Ahh, the ever classic semi-automatic machine gun. The most deadly weapon ever devised by man.

[Retired AF Dem]

25. Just goes to show you

that most reporters these days are in their position because they couldn't get hired at McDonald's.

[MrBenchley]

23. Gas station shootings kill 2 men (LA)

"With his dying breath, a man shot several times in a gas station parking lot early Tuesday morning named his attacker, court documents show.
As a result of that declaration, police issued a warrant later in the day for the arrest of Donovan Rogers, 31, 1965 Thomas H. Delpit Drive, on a count of second-degree murder.
Rogers is accused of shooting Derwin Bates, 34, about 1:50 a.m. outside a Highland Road FINA gas station across the street from the Second District police station. He surrendered to police late Tuesday.
It was one of two fatal shootings in gas station parking lots within a half hour. The cases are unrelated, Baton Rouge Police spokesman Cpl. Don Kelly said."

http://www.2theadvocate.com/stories/082504/new_shooting2001.shtml

[MrBenchley]

24. Darlington man charged with June killing (SC)

"Gregory Alonza Davis, 43, was accompanied by his attorney Tuesday as he was arraigned on a murder charge at the Darlington County Courthouse.
Davis is accused of killing 26-year-old Dontez Williams in June.
Transportation workers found him dead in his car in what first appeared to be a traffic accident. But investigators later said Williams was killed with a shotgun blast.
Authorities think Williams and Davis had a relationship with the same woman, sheriff's Lt. Robin Bryant said."

http://www.heraldtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20040825/APN/408250506

[MrBenchley]

26. Two Pines schools locked down as police hunt bank robbers

"PEMBROKE PINES -- Flanagan High School and Walter C. Young Middle School were locked down for security reasons on Wednesday while police searched for three bank robbers nearby.
A police supervisor was flagged down and told three men had just robbed the Colonial Bank and fled in a silver four-door Hyundai Sonata.
A perimeter was quickly set up around the bank and, as a precaution, nearby Flanagan High and Walter C. Young Middle were locked down for about 45 minutes.
Investigation revealed three men parked a getaway car in front of the bank. Two of the men, armed with shotguns, went inside, vaulted the counter and took an undisclosed amount of money and safely fled."

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/local/broward/sfl-825pbbankrob,0,4348700.story?coll=sfla-news-broward

[MrBenchley]

27. New Information Supports Theory Of Shots Fired From Car (OH)

"COLUMBUS, Ohio -- New information was released Wednesday backing the theory that the accused highway shooter in Columbus fired a handgun from his car as well as from outside the car.
Records show that authorities found shell casings in the car driven by Charles McCoy Jr. The vehicle was impounded when McCoy was caught in Las Vegas this winter.
Franklin County Prosecutor Ron O"Brien said the evidence is important because it backs up reports from the scene of some shootings that the gunman was firing from inside the car."

http://www.whiotv.com/news/3680897/detail.html