Couple of Idiots with guns dangerously close to I-5 in Seattle.

[kd7nqb]

Didn't see this posted yet but if it is then feel free to call it out as a duplicate. But thought it was kinda creepy if these guys really did feel the need to start shooting cars.

Also while the reporting does have some of the standard media issues like calling a guy with AK a "sniper" and using the term assault rifle its not the most anti-gun piece I have heard.


http://www.komonews.com/news/local/56231487.html

SEATTLE - Two men arrested Friday night during a bizarre shooting spree along Interstate 5 in North Seattle may have been planning to fire at vehicles driving up and down the freeway, police said Sunday.
"One theory is that maybe they were going to snipe at people as they were driving by on I-5," Seattle Police Department spokeswoman Renee Witt told KOMO News.

Investigators also found a hidden campsite the suspects had built in a wooded area near North Seattle Community College, Witt said.


Trash and debris litters the remnants of the suspect's campsite.
She said the positioning of the camp also lends credence to the idea that the suspects planned a sniper attack on the freeway.
But she cautioned that it is just a theory at this point. "We don't know," she said. "One good thing is they're both in custody," she added.

Both suspects are being held in the King County Jail following the Friday night shooting spree only yards from Interstate 5 near North Seattle Community College.

One of the suspects was found with an AK-47 assault rifle and multiple rounds of ammunition, police said.

The incident closed down all lanes of the freeway for hours, trapping thousands of motorists, but there were no injuries or property damage.

She said officers performed a more thorough search of the brushy, wooded area between I-5 and the college campus on Saturday and discovered more weapons and ammunition stashed there.

Searchers also found the hidden campsite, covered in a camouflage tarp, with a "significant" amount of ammunition.

"We did locate some additional weaponry and ammunition that the suspects put there," Witt said.

She said the campsite has been dismantled by police, and everything found there has been taken into evidence.

The shooting spree began Friday at about 9:30 p.m. when dispatchers received a 911 call from an alert citizen about shots fired in the 100 block of North 90th Street.

Witt said police are glad the citizen called 911 so fast on Friday - because otherwise the situation could have "been a lot worse then it was."

When officers arrived, they heard shots to the north, near I-5, a Seattle police spokesperson said.

Officers continued searching the area and then heard more shots near the southeast corner of the community college bordering the southbound lanes of I-5. As police converged on the area, multiple rifle shots were fired within 50 yards of officers.

Police could see several red tracer rounds fired into the air from the wooded area. As they took cover, the shooter fired up to 15 more rounds in a rapid-fire mode.

Officers surrounded the area where the shots originated, then called in a SWAT team and the Guardian One police helicopter.

As automatic rifle rounds whizzed within 25 yards of I-5, officers made the decision to shut down the northbound and southbound lanes of the freeway at about 10 p.m.

Seattle Police Department spokeswoman Renee Witt said roadblocks were set up well away from the area of gunfire, and that motorists stuck in their vehicles on the freeway were never in any danger.

The suspects ultimately were found and arrested after a two-hour search.

The first suspect was booked into King County Jail for investigation of obstructing. The second suspect was booked for investigation of violation of the Uniform Firearms Act and reckless endangerment.

The suspects were described as white males in their 20s.

 

[DAVIDSDIVAD]

I like how they slowly ease their way into BSing the reader into believing that it was automatic fire

 

[kd7nqb]

I like how they slowly ease their way into BSing the reader into believing that it was automatic fire

I agree, also the story and even the quotes from the cops are kinda vague. It says they found multiple rounds of ammo. Is this one box, a case or a 10,000rnd stock pile?

 

[bigfatdave]

AK-47 assault rifle and multiple rounds of ammunition

Semiauto knockoff with two rounds?

additional weaponry and ammunition

A pocketknife and a single round of .22LR?

multiple rifle shots were fired within 50 yards of officers

How many shots, and who measured?

officers made the decision to shut down the northbound and southbound lanes of the freeway at about 10 p.m.

Because stopping traffic right in front of the perceived threat was the right way to safeguard the public.

Reporting FAIL - I have no idea how much of a danger these people were to anyone.
Scaremongering WIN - We're supposed to get all exited, right? Even though we don't have all the facts, beyond some reporter's vague understanding of a police report written to make the arrest sound as daring and heroic as possible.

 

[OregonJohnny]

My dad actually had his passenger window shot-out while driving on I-5 through Seattle a few months back. It was most likely a high-powered pellet gun. He filed a report and the police said it wasn't the first they'd heard about it in that area. Scary stuff.

 

[Cesiumsponge]

They also found a "samurai sword" with some of the stuff which probably means the cheap $20 pieces of junk you can buy through catalogs, not a $10,000 nihonto. People seem to overreact to these as well, as seen in UK-based legislation.

AK-47s and samurai swords, striking fear in the hearts of the uninformed. Traffic was held up for quite some time. Some of the newer stories I see are saying that one of the suspects has a prior record. Some local comments on news stories also said one of the individuals might be mentally ill.

We'll see as things come out but right now the media is grasping at straws, releasing any random information they can, like the community college or the books they had at their "super secret sniper camps". College texbooks like Unix Power Tools (which KING5 called "a book on power tools"), as well as fireworks, a book called The Game, cell phones, and toiletries, etc.

 

[shibby]

I was wondering what happened. The newsbots were saying they heard reports from everything from fireworks, to bb guns, to "semi automatic" fire LOL

Great, more people ruining it for the rest of us. Just like the fools shooting too close to the rangers by Snoqualmie Pass...and how now, no one can shoot in the woods (theres a well known clearing used as a shooting range for instance)

 

[ArmedBear]

There's no shortage of idiots and *******s in Seattle.

That's not news, though.

 

[Impureclient]

I like how they slowly ease their way into BSing the reader into believing that it was automatic fire

Lucky the article ended without a couple more paragraphs. Had they added those to the article it could be worse; they would have been
carrying full auto, banned?, stolen from police, killer assault, grenade launching death sticks with Teflon coated heat seeking bullets.

 

[Double Naught Spy]

I like how they slowly ease their way into BSing the reader into believing that it was automatic fire

The AK47 in semi-auto is an automatic (loading) weapon. The article never said it was automatic fire. They said rapid fire. It was stated clearly. Their description is not inaccurate. I don't see why you are trying to find fault for information that isn't wrong. I am sorry if you don't like it when they described the rifle and rate of fire correctly.

Where the article went wrong is in the description of AK-47 "assault rifle." By actual definition, the semi-auto firing version is not, but by old legal definition, it would count, just like by legal definition, a tomato is a vegetable (but in reality, it is a fruit).

 

[fal 4 me]

The AK47 in semi-auto is an automatic (loading) weapon. The article never said it was automatic fire. They said rapid fire. It was stated clearly. Their description is not inaccurate. I don't see why you are trying to find fault for information that isn't wrong. I am sorry if you don't like it when they described the rifle and rate of fire correctly.

Don't forget about connotative meaning. When the average person hears or sees the term "automatic weapon" what picture forms in their mind, a semi-automatic firearm, or a fully automatic firearm. While I don't know for certain, I believe most people think of a fully automatic firearm when they see the term "automatic weapon." This would be the connatative meaning, and for all intents and purposes, the more important meaning, especially when dealing with the general public and not experts in the field.

 

[Locosway]

The AK47 in semi-auto is an automatic (loading) weapon. The article never said it was automatic fire. They said rapid fire. It was stated clearly. Their description is not inaccurate. I don't see why you are trying to find fault for information that isn't wrong. I am sorry if you don't like it when they described the rifle and rate of fire correctly.

Where the article went wrong is in the description of AK-47 "assault rifle." By actual definition, the semi-auto firing version is not, but by old legal definition, it would count, just like by legal definition, a tomato is a vegetable (but in reality, it is a fruit).

Article
"As automatic rifle rounds whizzed within 25 yards of I-5"

Wiki
"Automatic rifle is a term generally used to describe a self-loading rifle chambered for a rifle cartridge, capable of delivering both semi- and fully automatic fire."

Average person hears automatic and thinks full-auto. It's uninformed press and readers that get rifles banned on looks.

 

[cchris]

The AK47 in semi-auto is an automatic (loading) weapon. The article never said it was automatic fire.

True, but news sources also call semi-automatic assault rifles "machine guns". And when people hear the word "automatic", they think of a fully-automatic gun.

IMO, it was a very "clever" (if you can call it that) omission of words from the sentence to cause people to think of something when it means another.

 

[9MMare]

That's my old neighborhood (I dont miss it)

They've already let one suspect go and they didnt stop traffic "in front of the threat," it was farther back. If they were going to stop it that far back, then why not stop it at an off-ramp?

No reason given yet for the firing. Drunk?

 

[9MMare]

Small Off-topic:

Hey Double Naught Spy, "Alas, Babylon" is one of my all-time favorite books.

Cheers!

 

[Double Naught Spy]

Hey guys, you can claim to believe what the average person thinks and that is fine, but the description as given was not in error. It is a shame the average person doesn't know the difference, but don't blame the author for being accurate just because the readership isn't up to speed. The AK47 in semi auto is an automatic rifle, plain and simple, just like my 1911 is an automatic pistol that fires automatic ammo called .45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol).

Wiki
"Automatic rifle is a term generally used to describe a self-loading rifle chambered for a rifle cartridge, capable of delivering both semi- and fully automatic fire."

Okay, I can play this game. If you are going to go the easy route and do a quote from Wikipedia, at least give your eyes and fingers a bit more exercise and cite the entire passage. Funny how you left off the part that doesn't support your view.

Automatic rifle is a term generally used to describe a self-loading rifle chambered for a rifle cartridge, capable of delivering both semi- and fully automatic fire. This "select-fire" capability, as well as the (general) use of magazine-fed rifle ammunition, differentiate it from other classes of automatic firearm such as the machine gun and submachine gun.

In many cases, however, it simply describes a rifle capable of self-loading, but not capable of automatic fire (i.e., semiautomatic). Depending on the expert and point in history, fully-automatic carbines and assault rifles are sometimes considered to be a type of automatic rifle, and at other times separated into their own categories.

Reading further down...

Usage

As an example of the confusion, or at least differences in usage, there are books which feature a section for automatic rifles listing several semi-automatic self-loading rifles, but not a single fully automatic weapon. On the other hand, soldiers of the United States Army carrying the M249 SAW are designated automatic riflemen, and the weapon itself an automatic rifle — even though it is a fully automatic firearm, normally classified as a squad automatic weapon (SAW) or light machine gun.

------------------

Alas Babylon is an excellent book, indeed.

 

[bryskee]

Intersting how they can say white males in this case but GOD forbid they say Mexican, Muslim, anything else. It's all hush hush or racism unless your peggin two honkey's huh. Equality, gotta love it.

 

[berettaprofessor]

One of the suspects was found with an AK-47 assault rifle and multiple rounds of ammunition

Good, cause I'd hate for them to be found with an AK-47 assault rifle and only one round of ammunition.,,,that'd be true stupidity.

 

[cchris]

I feel like enough people know what an AK-47 is (gosh, only been 60+ years?) that "assault rifle" is a little unnecessary. But hey, they were probably also carrying a "revolver handgun".

 

[Diggers]

bryskee,

“White males” is not the equivalent of Mexican or Muslim.

A Mexican is a citizen of Mexico and a Muslim is person who practices that religion, nether have anything to do with race.

It is exceedingly common to give the race of people arrested for a crime as a descriptor, be it white, black, Hispanic or any other race. I can’t understand how you think this could possibly be taken in a racist light.

However, what we do know about these two white males, for certain, is not their nationality or religious preference, but that they are screaming idiots.

 

[bryskee]

Insert whatever you want to. I was trying to be vague and general. Using descriptors is not needed. Tell me, what did that very last little line making sure all know their skin color do? Does that change the story? Does it add anything? Does it clarify or put things together knowing their skin color? Does it help locate missing wanted criminals? NO. So why add it. Descriptors are good when someone is "wanted". However that is not the case here. Two people were apprehended. Not being searched for. So what purpose does adding skin color serve? Seems everyone else cry's racist when the race is pointed out if non white. What % of American Hispanics flood our prison? What % of black Americans fill our prison? Why put race on this crap unless we're searching for a wanted person and race is relevant. Why not startthe story with two people apprehended blah blah...

 

[DAVIDSDIVAD]

The AK47 in semi-auto is an automatic (loading) weapon. The article never said it was automatic fire. They said rapid fire. It was stated clearly. Their description is not inaccurate. I don't see why you are trying to find fault for information that isn't wrong. I am sorry if you don't like it when they described the rifle and rate of fire correctly.

Where the article went wrong is in the description of AK-47 "assault rifle." By actual definition, the semi-auto firing version is not, but by old legal definition, it would count, just like by legal definition, a tomato is a vegetable (but in reality, it is a fruit).

Must be a slow day in Forestburg.
Long story short: nobody cares, man.


If you understand the context and true meaning of "automatic", then that's great.

I really doubt that the media is that familiar or careful with terms like automatic, especially when dealing with "assault rifles."


I remember hearing a Janitor from VT on the radio just hours after the shooting described the guns as "black" "machine guns."

 

[jeepmor]

There's no shortage of idiots and *******s in Seattle.

I've never seen a shortage anywhere I've ever been.

 

[Cosmoline]

But she cautioned that it is just a theory at this point. "We don't know,"

I've heard this kind of "theory" before. Anyone with an "assault rifle" is bound to be planning a major slaughter.

 

[toivo]

When the average person hears or sees the term "automatic weapon" what picture forms in their mind, a semi-automatic firearm, or a fully automatic firearm. While I don't know for certain, I believe most people think of a fully automatic firearm when they see the term "automatic weapon."

The average person has very little concept what any of this terminology really means. All they know is the magic "AK-47" name, which is automatically linked in their minds to an image of a guy in a headscarf (or black pajamas, if you want to go back one generation) blazing away full-auto.

One of the suspects was found with an AK-47 assault rifle and multiple rounds of ammunition

Good, cause I'd hate for them to be found with an AK-47 assault rifle and only one round of ammunition.,,,that'd be true stupidity.

Again, poll the general public. See how many of them think a "round" is a full magazine. You know -- one of the "round" ones. I'm not kidding.