The threat within, part 2

[OldCurlyWolf]

River Oaks is the top-dollar neighborhood of Houston.

- Jim

If you ever get rich enough to buy a house there, DON'T. If you ever need a good land survey because of a grouchy neighbor it will cost a small fortune because the original subdivision is a nightmare.

[seamusTX]

If you ever get rich enough to buy a house there, ...

Having too much money is the least of my worries.

In San Diego today a 66-year-old woman was charged with murder for shooting her 48-year-old son in December. No motive is known.

http://www.10news.com/news/26395878/detail.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- Jim

[seamusTX]

In Columbia, South Carolina, Monday a 14-year-old boy allegedly shot his father, great-aunt, and grandmother. The father and great aunt are dead. The grandmother is in critical condition with a poor prognosis.

The boy is in police custody.

After the shooting, he reportedly called 911 and calmly surrendered. When asked by detectives why he shot his family members, the boy replied, "I don't know."

He reportedly used a .22 rifle that his father gave him for his birthday last year.

http://www.goupstate.com/article/201101 ... ?p=1&tc=pg" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- Jim

[RoyGBiv]

a 14-year-old boy allegedly shot his father, great-aunt, and grandmother.

He reportedly used a .22 rifle that his father gave him for his birthday last year.

Old enough to learn to shoot? Certainly.
Old enough to have access to the keys to the gun safe? Not.

Tragic.

[seamusTX]

In South San Francisco (south of Sodom and northwest of Gomorrah) Thursday, a man stayed out all night and came home around dawn. After hearing his feeble excuses, his wife shot him in the chest. He was treated in a hospital and discharged. She is charged with attempted murder and other felonies.

http://www.ktvu.com/news/26759539/detail.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Moral of the story: Do not buy your wife a "nightstand gun," teach her to shoot, and then expect to get away with monkey business.

- Jim

[Kythas]

Do people with mental problems need a motive?

Not necessarily. But more often than not there is some kind of trigger. For younger people who kill parents, it often involves being told they can't do something or denied money.

- Jim

A guy I used to work with has a son with severe mental/emotional issues. He goes to sleep every night wondering if he'll wake up in the morning.

On several occasions, he told me he's woken up in the middle of the night to find his son standing next to his bed with a knife in his hand, just staring at him.

His wife refuses to put their son in an institution.

I pray for him nightly.

[rmr1923]

A guy I used to work with has a son with severe mental/emotional issues. He goes to sleep every night wondering if he'll wake up in the morning.

On several occasions, he told me he's woken up in the middle of the night to find his son standing next to his bed with a knife in his hand, just staring at him.

His wife refuses to put their son in an institution.

I pray for him nightly.

that's creepy, i wonder the same thing about one of my younger cousins. he has some mental problems and his parents have him on medication for ADHD, but they take him off in the summer when he's not in school and he just turns into a complete psycho. labor day last year we were all at the family vacation house and were playing soccer in the backyard, i passed the ball to him when he wasn't looking and it hit him between the legs, and i felt bad about it and apologized. he just stood straight up, arms at his sides, gave me a demonic look, and threatened me with words so disturbing that i can't repeat them here. i told my wife what happened and my mom overheard and i told her not to worry about it, even if we told his parents they wouldn't believe me. i refuse to stay in the same house as him when our family gets together, and the one time i had no choice, i literally slept with a loaded gun under my pillow. it was real uncomfortable, both the pillow and the thought of having to sleep with a gun under the pillow because i felt threatened by a family member. i'm convinced that some day he's going to be one of those kids that snaps and shoots up the school, or brings a gun to work and guns down his coworkers. i do know that when he's 21 and if i ever hear of him trying to get a CHL, i'm going to write the DPS and tell them he's mentally unstable and would be a danger to society if he were allowed to carry a handgun in public. i just wish his parents weren't so naive, they could get him some help because he desperately needs it, but they're in denial and think it's just a "phase". sorry, threatening to dismember your cousin is NOT "going through a phase".

[seamusTX]

I think you have summarized the concern that I had when I started this thread.

We should be able to trust our family members.

However, as I have said earlier, "should" won't buy you a cup of coffee.

When a mental health issue or a problem like drug abuse or dementia emerges, we need to face it squarely. Probably most of the victims in these incidents knew on some level that there was a serious problem, but they denied it and did not seek help.

- Jim

[speedsix]

...I've taught my three sons about guns and defense and law since they were 5 or so...since they were 8, they've been able to access a pistol kept in a touch safe for defense..and shoot it well...a great source of comfort when I was gone, since their anti-gun mother(who has since repented and gotten her CHL) wouldn't THINK of picking up a gun...

...however...one day I found marijuana seeds in my oldest's(19) watch pocket and he freely admitted using MJ and some other drugs...from that day till he'd convinced us and proven it by his actions that he was totally off drugs...he didn't know where the defense guns were...and his brothers knew not to tell him...I told him I couldn't trust him with that kind of responsibility in his impaired mindset...it hurt me and him both...but it was necessary...he's just returned from a tour in Iraq, married and a 3-year-old daughter, in school and highly promoted in service...and once again, well armed...

...it's a hard thing...but we have to do it...

[rmr1923]

...however...one day I found marijuana seeds in my oldest's(19) watch pocket and he freely admitted using MJ and some other drugs...from that day till he'd convinced us and proven it by his actions that he was totally off drugs...he didn't know where the defense guns were...and his brothers knew not to tell him...I told him I couldn't trust him with that kind of responsibility in his impaired mindset...it hurt me and him both...but it was necessary...he's just returned from a tour in Iraq, married and a 3-year-old daughter, in school and highly promoted in service...and once again, well armed...

...it's a hard thing...but we have to do it...

i went through something similar when i was 16, i got to hanging out with the wrong crowd and started doing mj, and i consider myself lucky that i was caught and arrested. i thought it was the end of the world at the time, but that experience not only got me off drugs before i got into heavier stuff, it also completely changed the way i live my life and i'm a better person now because of it. of the 3 guys that i used to hang out with back then, 1 of them has been in and out of rehab the last 5 years, 1 turned his life around and has a degree and a good career, and the other is dead. the only negative that's come of it lately is that it's taking the DPS forever to process my CHL application, but that's something i can live with.

[seamusTX]

In Seymour, Missouri (middle of nowhere), Tuesday a 26-year-old decorated veteran fatally shot his mother and tried to shoot his father because they refused to acknowledge his belief that he was Jesus.

The man seemed to be obsessed with a combination of religion and gangster rap.

http://www.news-leader.com/article/2011 ... t-shot-mom" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I am not a psychiatrist and don't play one on TV, but this is a classic scenario for schizophrenia.

- Jim

[seamusTX]

In Edmonton, Kentucky (middle of nowhere), earlier this week a 15-year-old boy allegedly killed his guardians because they would not let him "date" a 12-year-old girl.

He then ran away with the girl. Police took him into custody Tuesday. Prosecutors plan to certify him as an adult and charge him with murder.

The victims had taken in the boy, a distant relative, because the boy's mother could not cope with his behavior.

http://www.wave3.com/story/14321627/pro ... ans-murder" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;



Not exactly the most dangerous-looking creep.

- Jim

[MasterOfNone]

because the boy's mother could not cope with his behavior.

= because the boy's mother did not want to get killed.

[seamusTX]

Garland, today [August 17, 2010], police allege that a minor teenage girl (age 12) and her "boyfriend" (age 13) shot her parents, killing the mother and putting the father in critical condition.

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent ... 39820.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

http://cbs11tv.com/local/garland.shooti ... 65539.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.myfoxdfw.com/dpp/news/081710 ... d-shooting" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Minor correction: The male victim was the girl's stepfather. He died two weeks after the shooting.

The male perpetrator was sentenced to 28 years for murder earlier this year.

Female pled to capital murder today.

http://www.kwtx.com/home/headlines/13-Y ... 96484.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Both will probably hit the streets in their early 20s, at which time they can resume their idyllic romance.

- Jim

[chasfm11]

Both will probably hit the streets in their early 20s, at which time they can resume their idyllic romance.

- Jim

I don't understand a lot of things about our criminal justice system but these situations are among the most bizarre. The compassionate side of me wants to believe that a 12 year old can be reformed. The logical side of me believes that a child of 12 who can kill and will be warehoused by the juvenile system for 10 years is unlikely to grow a sense of morality in the process. Releasing them onto the streets at 21-22 years old seems like putting 5 rounds in a 6 shot revolver, pointing it at your head and pulling the trigger. There is but a fleeting chance that the situation is going to turn out well.