Cops confiscate firearms anticipating guy might go postal.

[toivo]

This is a classic case of NEI: Not Enough Information. Had he made threats? We don't know. IMO, the gun purchases alone do not justify the reaction.

A few years ago there was an incident in the town where I work. A retired state trooper was going through a messy divorce, and his wife got a restraining order on him based on threats he had made. The court sent deputies to his house, and they confiscated all his firearms. So he went and got a shotgun that he had stashed, and drove to her house and blew her away. Then he drove to a convenience store and blew his own head off in the parking lot.

What's the right course of action? There might not be one. One thing is clear: when faced with a tough call between civil liberties and security, we in this country are erring on the side of security much more than we used to.

 

[bikerdoc]

This is a classic case of NEI: Not Enough Information.

5 pages worth.

 

[RS14]

A few random remarks.

Buying guns immediately after going on administrative leave isn't necessarily unreasonable. It may be paid leave. Maybe he figures he'll have plenty of time to shoot while on leave.

It occurs to me that making violent threats won't necessarily result in an arrest. I recall some months ago reading here of an individual who was murdered after failing to obtain even a restraining order or somesuch. Perhaps the police concluded that he was simply very upset at the time of making the threat, he didn't really mean anything, and there's no need to arrest him. But they might have kept an eye on him. When he made gun purchases, they decided to arrest him, with those threats alone being sufficient reason.

Which is more likely? That the individual made threats which were not reported because the journalist didn't dig deeply, the police declined to comment due to policy, the employer declined to comment due to policy, and the editor didn't care because digging deep requires a large investment of time, and it's a minor local story mostly read online by people who aren't paying for the news? Or that the police decided to arrest somebody without probable cause, and have no intention of charging him with anything, and are exposing themselves to substantial risk of a lawsuit on the basis of a denial of due process?
As I said, save your outrage until more information comes to light.

 

[RebelRed]

How many guns does it take to be a threat and "go postal"?

Answer: Zero.

See Oklahoma City.

 

[Deanimator]

It occurs to me that making violent threats won't necessarily result in an arrest.

I guarantee you that it often doesn't.

When I was in college, the dope dealer who lived across the hall from me and his dimwitted wannabe "hitman" buddy (along with some fraternity pledges with whom they'd been in a botched dope deal) got expelled. In the MISTAKEN belief that a group of us in the dorm had turned them in, the "hitman" threatened to have us killed. We went straight to the Fulton, MO PD who told us that they'd leap right into action... as soon as one of us were killed or injured, and not a second sooner. On that date died any illusions I had about the police "protecting" me from anything or anyone as an individual.

 

[Deanimator]

See Oklahoma City.

See the "Happyland Social Club" arson.

See 9/11.

 

[TexasRifleman]

See the "Happyland Social Club" arson.

See 9/11.

You mean guns don't have to be involved for a crime to exist?

You MUST be making that up.

Next you will be telling me that guns don't make people commit crimes, that criminals behave they way they do regardless of the tool they decide to use.

You lunatics can't go around spreading stories like this........

 

[Deanimator]

You lunatics can't go around spreading stories like this........

No doubt AHSA and its ilk would like a law to prevent that sort of thing.

 

[Ragnar Danneskjold]

DUI = $, otherwise the crooked ones in the city where I grew up wouldn't park a block away from the bar and wait for people to get on the road before stopping them. That's besides the point.

Knowing where crimes will probably occur and posting up near that location to catch the criminals is crooked??

 

[Bubba613]

Or he cant' afford a lawyer. Or he doesn't even realize he needs one.

Well, given the story has been published and widely disseminated I would bet there are plenty of lawyers out there who would love to inform him of his rights and take the case on contingency. So your argument isn't sound.

 

[hso]

5+ pages worth of not enough info.

We should therefore wait for more information before we continue speculating wildly or counseling against wild speculation.