Life term for killing teen who walked on lawn

[strat81]

I couldn't find anothrr post about this so...

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18849855/?GT1=9951

Life term for killing teen who walked on lawn
Ohio man said boy knew how he cared for his grass and provoked him

BATAVIA, Ohio - A man who fatally shot a teenage neighbor because he walked on the man's carefully tended lawn was sentenced to life in prison.

Charles Martin, 67, must serve 18 years before he can be considered for parole, Clermont County Common Pleas Judge William Walker ordered Wednesday, adding that he would urge that Martin never be considered for parole.

The man was convicted last month of murder in the March 2006 shotgun killing of 15-year-old Larry Mugrage Jr., a high school student.

Martin told the court he was sorry the shooting occurred but said the teen knew how much Martin cared for his lawn and provoked him.

"He stepped on it and he walked 40 feet through it," Martin said. "I cared about it. I cut it every five days."

Prosecutors alleged Martin had confronted the teen earlier in the day when he walked into Martin's yard on his way to a friend's house, then loaded his .410-gauge shotgun and waited more than three hours for him to return.

When the boy stepped on the lawn again, Martin fired at him twice, according to testimony. He then called police, telling a dispatcher: "I just killed a kid."

Martin was tried on aggravated murder but convicted of murder, a lesser count, because jurors because could not agree the killing was planned.

OK, aside from the fact the man is a lunatic, *** is up with the jury? "because jurors because [sic] could not agree the killing was planned." Didn't the article also say "loaded his .410-gauge shotgun and waited more than three hours for him to return" ? Seems planned to me.

 

[WayneConrad]

Prosecutors alleged Martin had confronted the teen earlier in the day when he walked into Martin's yard on his way to a friend's house, then loaded his .410-gauge shotgun and waited more than three hours for him to return.

The jury did not buy this part of the prosecution's case.

 

[S.P.E.C.T.R.E.]

What did he think was going to happen? That he'd get a clap on the back for taking care of teen lawn wreckers? Now, instead of fussing over his lawn, he'll die in prison. Nice way to cap off your life. What a jackass.

 

[buck00]

I remember back when this happened originally a THR member had an interesting observation.

He said something to the effect of: if you knew your neighbor was mentally unstable and had guns, why would you be foolish enough to walk on his lawn continuously and provoke him?

Sure, it is a crime and a certainly a tragedy this happened- but some basic common sense and old-fashioned respect from the teenager's end could have avoided this. JMO.

 

[.cheese.]

ok... this reminds me.

Where is that series of letters by the guy who was using a certain leaf-blower and pissing off the neighbors, and was writing into a magazine to talk about it repeatedly and went psycho eventually.

Anybody?

 

[PILMAN]

I remember when this happened, what a moron, sure we all get ticked off but we certainly don't go out guns ablazing. This guys ego got the best of him and now he will suffer and pay the price for murdering a kid.

 

[.cheese.]

I'm stuck wondering why the guy had nothing better to do with his life. Sounds like he needed a job or a hobby to get out some of that anger.

 

[Kali Endgame]

Yikes, what a nut job. It's just grass and it grows back. What was that cadence? "Blood makes the grass grow, kill, kill, kill!"

 

[Joe Demko]

Every blade of grass that hooligan crushed to death was the theft of the lifespan the poor old guy put into growing it.

 

[strat81]

I'm stuck wondering why the guy had nothing better to do with his life. Sounds like he needed a job or a hobby to get out some of that anger.

I think the lawn was his hobby.

Obviously we need to ban assault shotguns like the extra-deadly .410. Remember, you can't legislate crazy.

 

[DogBonz]

Why, you ask?

He said something to the effect of: if you knew your neighbor was mentally unstable and had guns, why would you be foolish enough to walk on his lawn continuously and provoke him?

Because the KID was 15! Teen-agers often do stupid things due to their superman complex, and their disbelief that really bad things can and do happen.

 

[Speer]

"He stepped on it and he walked 40 feet through it," Martin said. "I cared about it. I cut it every five days."

Aw, man...

That's, like, really worth dying in prison for.

 

[Sindawe]

While shooting the kid dead was an overreaction on the older dudes part, I can understand where he was coming from. I've had my share of encounters with smart mouthed students from the local high school who come onto my HOAs property to loiter, litter and smoke dope during the school day.

I'm stuck wondering why the guy had nothing better to do with his life.

I think his life was enjoying the peace and quite of his well tended patch of grass and home. The problem with ignoring youth hanging out on your property is that begin to assume that ANYTHING they do there is cool. What starts as tresspassing after asking 'em to not be there becomes the smoking dope I noted above, then raging parties at all hours of the night, fights and tagging by wannabe gangbangers.

As I noted, lethal force was an over the line. A super-soaker full of cat urine and butyric acid would have been more reasonable in my eyes. Although 'prolly not in the eyes of the law.

 

[Steve N]

butyric acid: Now that is really nasty. Used to use it in bee hives (legally) to drive bees out in order to collect honey. Smells like beer barf (vomit). I called it Bee Vomit. Sickenly sweet, used to have to leave the rags used for application in the bee yard because it stunk up the home.

Put some of that into a super soaker and watch everyone run. But don't get it on yourself because you'll have to strip and shower 200 ft. from your own home, or you'll drive everyone out!

 

[DoubleTapDrew]

Because the KID was 15! Teen-agers often do stupid things due to their superman complex, and their disbelief that really bad things can and do happen.

It's been a while but I'm pretty sure when I was 15 I was invincible (or so I believed). I always had respect for my elders though. There's a lot of that lacking these days (not that I don't agree with the verdict and sentence).
I'm surprised the jury didn't believe the murder was planned when the guy got his .410 and waited 3 hours with it (although maybe planned and premeditated are 2 different things).

One thing's for sure...his grass will go a LOT longer than 5 days before he cuts it again.

 

[Rustynuts]

Maybe not, he may get shanked the first week for being a child killer.

 

[Titan6]

Normally when people get this upset about grass it is the kind some people smoke.

 

[TexasP226]

Wow...shooting a kid for repeatedly walking on your lawn? My first solution would have been to tun the sprinkler system on him. Then maybe verablly confront him. Then maybe call the police. Shoot the kid? Good grief.

 

[pax]

"He stepped on it and he walked 40 feet through it," Martin said. "I cared about it. I cut it every five days."

What, he didn't walk on it to mow it?

This story really sickens me. I believe spending the rest of his life in prison is hardly adequate punishment for taking the life of a teenager over something so utterly ... trivial.

pax

 

[helpless]

It is generally a good idea to stay clear of people you know are unstable and own firearms.

 

[gezzer]

Less than he deserves. If it had been my kid I know this is not High Road but he would have not made trial.

 

[redneck2]

If it had been my kid I know this is not High Road but he would have not made trial.

Yeah, if this would have been me, my dad would have lit me up nine ways to Sunday. A red butt beats shotgun rounds to the chest.

Looks like Darwin at work on both sides here.

While I have a hard time believing that walking on grass should be a death sentence, the kid just tried to do something to piss off the old man.

It worked.

Keep to yourself and you'll be fine. Go out of your way to piss somebody off and they'll probably get pissed off.

(Sorry to use "the language", but in this case it fits.)

 

[Joe Demko]

Maybe the old guy read "The Moon is a Harsh Mistress" too many times.

 

[elrod]

There has to be much unsaid in this case. To have been initally only charged with aggravated murder rather than murder one says much to indicate that there is more to the story. Nonetheless, going postal was uncalled for! It is unfortunate that a young man had to die.

 

[Windhover45]

I'm not sure if that is the case. The published parts of Charles Martin's diary shows to me a bitter, nitpicking, possibly insane old man who had problems with everyone around him. Interviews with former co-workers at Ford plant tends to show a bitter, paranoid bully who held grudges.

http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070428/NEWS01/704280388

The picture of the houses in question shows a rural-ish area where there are no sidewalks. A concept of easement would indicate that at least several feet of the grass abutting the street should be considered public domain.

I am rather appalled at the attitude that the Larry (the victim) somehow brought it on himself. He was a shooting victim remember for having committed the "unpardonable" sin of walking on grass and mouthing off a little to a nutcase.

The result was the nutcase waiting 3hours for the kid to come back, shooting the kid once, and having wounded him, chased him and put a finishing shot into him. Oh, and Larry wasn't even on Martin's lawn when he was shot. Martin had to actually cross his own lawn onto the street to gun down the boy.