War hero helps nab suspects in dog killing

[sabra]

Source: MSNBC

Labrador retriever had been given to him to help heal after Afghan combat

HUNTSVILLE, Texas - A highly decorated Navy SEAL who found his beloved yellow Labrador retriever shot dead outside his home helped capture the alleged gunmen following a high-speed chase through three counties.

Marcus Luttrell stayed on the line with a 911 operator as he tried to catch the fleeing suspects during the 40-mile chase that reached speeds of over 100 mph.

"I told them, 'You need to get somebody out here because if I catch them I'm going to kill them,'" Luttrell said he told the operator, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Police stopped the three suspects and charged two men with cruelty to a non-livestock animal. The driver of the vehicle was cited for not having a license.

There are at least five area dog killings in recent months that could be linked to the case, said Texas Ranger Steven Jeter.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30136615/

[sinkingfeeling]

1. Can anybody explain to me the point of 'men' going around shooting people's dogs?

[stray cat]

2. Beyond explanation - banal evil

[Tempest]

7. They're working their way up to shooting people

There's a direct link between animal cruelty and violent crimes against people.

[wartrace]

12. They are suspected in other dog killing.

If one of those homeowners had confronted them in the act it wouldn't be surprising if they killed the person.

[glinda]

20. there is a link between animal killing and being a brutal freak

[hfojvt]

3. this cannot be LBN. I read this a couple of days ago.

The dog's name was Dasy after the men in his unit, who were all killed in Afghanistan.

[Name removed]

24. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[DS1]

4. Shame he didn't catch them

If I were on the jury, he'd walk out of court a free man

[wartrace]

9. He did catch them.

He was there when the police arrested them. He chased them across four counties and they had the balls to start talking trash to him. They threatened to kill him. I hope they try, there will be some dead dog killers "chillin" in the morgue.

[hlthe2b]

5. I can SO understand this man's actions...

I have such a hard time with animal cruelty stories. RIP dear little Lab. You've got lots of company as a newly minted guardian angel.

[driver8]

I'm with you -- this really pisses me off.

This dog had a family and was loved -- and these pieces of shit killed this defenseless Lab.

These assholes are scum.

[wartrace]

6. Those punks threatened Mr. Luttrell's life when they were caught.

I wonder if the tough guys (dog killers) will have the balls to try that. I wouldn't shed any tears if they ended up tagged & bagged in the mourge. Thrill killing dogs is right up there with child molestation in my book.

[flvegan]

8. If guilty, they'll be safer in prison. Fuckers.

Navy SEAL awarded the Navy Cross for a firefight against the Taliban, and you shoot the dog given him to try to get over it? Yeah, you're safer in jail.



"I could tell she tried to get away because there was a blood trail," Luttrell said. "When I saw she was dead, the only thing that popped into my head was, 'I’ve got to take these guys out.'"

Luttrell was recovering from surgery, but when he spotted a suspicious car parked nearby, he crawled under a fence and snuck up on the strangers, aiming a 9mm pistol at them from about 25 yards away.

He didn't fire, however, and as the car left, he ran to his pickup and launched the high-speed chase. His pickup couldn't keep up with the car, but police eventually stopped the suspects.

Luttrell said he the confronted the men. "I was like, 'Which one of you guys killed my dog?'" he said. "They started talking smack."

"I did everything right; I didn’t do anything wrong," he said. "Make sure everyone knows they cold-bloodily murdered."

Now in 'middle of nowhere'
Jeter, the Texas Ranger, said "Marcus is trained to do certain things; he fell back on his training." But he added: "I wouldn’t advocate to the general public to do what he has done — to follow them at that rate of speed."

In his phone interview, Luttrell said he had left his Huntsville home and was in "the middle of nowhere."

He added that Dasy's killing was a huge setback in his life.

"I was trying to talk myself out of being who I am," he told the Chronicle. "Talking to myself about not doing the one thing I am good at."

[wartrace]

10. They won't go to prison for that.

I would not be surprised if they all turn up dead at some point. I am sure Mr. Luttrell will not be involved in it but it wouldn't suprise me if some of his buddies go hunting. Right or wrong it wouldn't suprise me at all.

[Eric Condon]

14. I'm against the death penalty as executed by the government, but not by victims.

If this guy had killed these pieces of shit, I wouldn't lose one second of sleep over it.

[Vidar]

29. Wouldn't bother me either.

[jobycom]

17. I suspect that questions of life and death and killing are a little more real

to Marcus Luttrell than to most of us. When he sighted them at the end of his pistol, he knew exactly what it would mean to pull the trigger, in a way most of us don't.

Let the courts deal with it. They stepped in it bad. It's bad enough to get caught killing people's dogs in Texas, but to add the sympathy of a war hero to the mix... The courts won't be nice to them.

[driver8]

11. I read the book "Lone Survivor" about the SEALs and Marcus Luttrell.

Quite an amazing story of what this guy went through with 3 other SEALs in this battle.

These guys are lucky that Luttrell didn't hurt them -- because he definitely could!

Chickenshit cowards...

[tomm2thumbs]

13. Glenn Beck has made him his own personal hero -multiple shows on this

Beck is trying to come up with new reasons to feign crying

[RamboLiberal]

15. I hope some judge gives these f*ckers a long sentence

But first maybe he ought to give them to some SEAL instructors for a Hell Week. They'd have these punks puking their guts out.

[keepCAblue]

16. The Phoenix serial killers started off shooting dogs and horses...moved on to people. Thrill killers

n/t

[jobycom]

19. I don't think every bully who kills animals for fun graduates to killing people

but the type of person who would kill a person for the thrill of it will probably have some history of trying it out on animals first.

[keepCAblue]

23. To refer to them as a "bully" is a bit euphemistic, dontcha think?

How 'bout animal abuser, or murderer? Bullies steal your lunch money, not shoot, maim and kill innocent animals.

[jobycom]

25. It's a harsh word for me. If it's too soft for you, I won't quibble about upgrading it. nt

[Nickster]

18. I'm the only one that thinks it was incredibly stupid to chase these guys over 40 miles at 100mph?

I'm sorry about his dog, but putting people at risk because of his driving like a maniac is beyond stupid. All he needed was the license plate number, descriptions, and a call to the police.

[Rebubula]

21. You like Dags??

For some people, dogs and cats are the same to them as a wife, husband or child. Pain and grief can make all of us do things that will not seem too smart when you look back at them.

Also, knowing that area of Texas, I would bet that he passed\saw maybe 5 other cars the whole drive.

[jobycom]

26. Yeah, it was stupid, as he and the cop basically agreed.

I can't beat him up for it, though, considering. He saw red, who wouldn't? And it was the middle of nowhere, so minimal risk.

He had a gun on the guys while they were on the edge of his property after they had fired shots into his yard. He could have shot them dead, and in Texas he'd never even be brought to trial. He had the training and the experience to do it, too. Luckily, he had the wisdom not to. I think in the scheme of rights and wrongs and what could have beens, he didn't do badly.

[WriteDown]

28. Disagree on one bit...

I wish he had had the wisdom to shoot these guys dead. They are not needed in this world. Of course I would have liked him to maybe shoot them in the knees first before delivering a the killing shot.

[TorchTheWitch]

36. I agree

With you that is. I would have preferred he shot the fuckers when they were in his yard. These punks will get a slap on the wrist and will be back to terrorizing the neighborhood again only to graduate to bigger and badder crimes. They also may likely come back to the guy's house for revenge, so now he's always going to have to look over his shoulder.

[EFerrari]

39. He did much better than I would have done, that's for sure.

[haele]

27. The dog may have been one of the only links to humanity for him -

I can't tell you how many Vietnam Vets that I've met over the years that could only relate on a personal level to a dog, cat - or parrot - a living being that would be there for them, no matter what, that could accept them for what they were unconditionally.
For many vets, their animal companion was the only thing that kept them sane, or kept them from leaving or hurting their families or jobs when the stress of what they had gone through was exaserbated by what was going on around them.

For those people, it's not "just a dog" - it's their only true friend. I would have a hard time if I were on the jury if that former SEAL had actually killed one - or all of those thugs that shot his dog for fun.

Haele

[TorchTheWitch]

37. It's not just vets that can feel that special bond

Many people feel a bond as strongly with their pets as they do with others in their family especially if they don't have any close relationships with other people. The elderly in particular very often have the same sort of bond. Anyone can. I've always felt that way about my dogs... they're my family. I have a large family and we're pretty close as families go but we very seldom see each other. I don't get much in the way of emotional support from them although I know in an emergency I could rely on them. I'm very much of a loner, and though I have friends I'm more emotionally attached to my dog than to any of them. My dog is my best friend and my closest family member, and that's not unusual.

And now I have to go give him a great big hug. Damn me, I just adore that big slobbery bag of fur!

[The Stranger]

31. I suppose instead of chasing them, he could have just shot them.

:shrug:

[glinda]

22. The group that brings dogs over from war zones should give him one.

[UTUSN]

30. LUTTRELL's politics

Heart to the dog. Contempt to the killers. That said, any mention of LUTTRELL has a dimension of wingnut politics, since he injected politics himself into his account of his military service. And he gloried in being paraded around all the wingnut media venues during his book tour, much the same as the role of Joe the Plumber. And btw, there are questions about his account of his "Lone Survivor".

Now. Just saying, let's keep the incredibly cruel senselessness of the crime against the dog separate.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x5421783

[rvablue]

32. Thank you, thank you, thank you for bringing this up. I've seen multiple posts

about this guy on DU the past couple of days and while I agree that the killing of the dog is horrible and heartbreaking this guy is the cause du jour on Cry Baby Beck's show this week.

Why? Not because of the dog. Because he loves to go on about how when he didn't act with "force" or with "conscience" it was because he had been "inculcated with liberal ideas." (quotes are my paraphrasing from what I recollect)


So thanks and hopefully folks on this thread will read your comment.



ed: punc.

[fishnfla]

33. expect to be blasted for pointing this out

I was on another thread. DUers should read this guys book before they weep for him. He hates us, and to a point blames liberals for the ambush he got caught up in.

Weep for the dog, sure. But I'll bet a buck he finds a way to blame liberals for the dogs death

[TorchTheWitch]

38. I don't give a shit about his politics

Not everything should be reduced to politics and DAMN RIGHT I'll feel for this guy in this instance and I don't give shit one what his politics are. As long as people are always reduced to what their politics are there will never be peace or understanding.

[jobycom]

34. Fair enough, but I'd support Dick Cheney in a case like this.

Of course, with Cheney I'd want the cops to arrest him , too.

[Hawkowl]

35. I'm shocked

Shocked that Luttrell didn't kill them immediately. I know they certainly deserved it. However, it may be that Luttrell didn't need the extra pain it would have caused him. That being said, if he decides later that he needs "to take them out", I would fully support his decision to do so.

Having been in a similar place, where only an animal was really able to reach me, I doubt I would have been able to show his level of restraint.