ok i am wrong on that point

"Horn was not taken into custody after the shooting. A Harris County grand jury will decide if charges are to be filed."

i figured when they told him to lay down they cuffed him but i guess they were just making sure he wasnt a threat

either way, he was questioned, he went in front of a grand jury, and through the legal system it was deemed that he did not have to stand an additional trial...he didnt just shoot them and the cops said "no problem you're fine" and end the story right there

7/10/2008 2:21:28 PM

Quote :

"Thanks for the heads up. I'll be sure to do my best to thwart the liberal invasion so this doesn't happen. "

Yeah, funny. Something like that would never happen here. It's not like the courts ever look to other countries for precedents (however foolish that idea might be).

Quote :

"They aren't supermen, but they are trained properly to handle a gun and extreme situations and on average have been in such a situation more than your next door neighbor. "

Given that cops shoot an innocent person 11% of the time, and citizens shoot one about 2% of the time, trained to properly handle a gun and extreme situations I would say is somewhat overestimating. Also, most of the time, cops show up after its all over.

Quote :

"How many cops would have smoked these guys in the back? You didn't have a good answer for this last time I asked you."

Cops are bound by law to use lower levels of force as they have access to more tools, but perhaps you should ask Sean Bell if cops ever use poor judgement and kill someone who people think pose no threat to them.

Quote :

"When crime becomes uncontrollable in my area, I'll start having this mindset. It seems like if something were broken, this country would have descended into anarchy a long time ago. "

When crime becomes uncontrollable it will already be too late.

Quote :

"Precisely. None of the people in the surrounding area were trained and qualified and licensed by society to aid the victim at the time of the accident. Call 911, and then it's not your problem, because if you do try to interfere with proper medical care that they will receive, then you can be found at fault for any problems that arise. Same thing goes for law enforcement. You are interfereing with the situation, and trying to do the cops' jobs for them. They will retaliate against you."

And we as a people should not stand for this. Interfering with a cop or a paramedic doing their job (as in actually obstructing them) should be a crime, but a citizen doing his part to help out should never be something we punish. The problem is, the police can't be everywhere at once, so why shouldn't the people be allowed to act in their stead when they aren't there?

Quote :

"These guys are normal citizens, but that have been granted special training and protection by the state. Properly trained medical and law enforcement officials are protected by the state for fault that arises when they're on the job. Normal citizens aren't. Really, it all comes down to insurance, or who's protected when the lawsuits start flying."

See I don't buy this though. Why is it that a citizen should live in fear of doing the right thing because they might get sued?

Quote :

"tell me how the US is so dangerously close to this liberal fantasy land that you and 1337 are claiming."

I said nothing about us being "dangerously close" but surely you can see that self defense and people doing the right thing is hardly held in as high a regard anymore. During the shooting by Charles Whitman, citizens brought their own guns and helped the police keep Whitman pinned down. The cops even deputized a citizen on scene and had him assist in their push into and up the tower. Somehow I doubt any of that would happen today. After all, it's not their damn problem, just let the cops sort it out, that's their job.

7/10/2008 10:06:22 PM

Privatize police, fire departments, and 911 call centers. The free market will sort out problems with this system until we reach the zenith of safety.

7/10/2008 11:44:35 PM