I wish they'd post more pics today like this one of killers. Maybe people wouldn't think it was so 'glamorous'.
Posted on 12/27/2012 2:25:21 PM PST by bgill
Houston McCoy, who as an Austin police officer in 1966 climbed up the staircase of the University Tower to help kill Charles Whitman and end what at the time was the nation's largest mass murder, died Thursday.
(Excerpt) Read more at kxan.com ...
RIP. I long for the days when a gunmen shooting from a tower prompted citizens to grab their constitutionally protected rifles and head to campus to return fire.
A great hero. I’m glad he lived a long life.
Whitman did not commit the “largest mass murder in US history”. Reporters are idiots incapable of doing even the most basic research.
It says ‘at the time’..
Then came the copy-cats.
God,I remember that day as if it were yesterday.
A horror show.
.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/2972741/posts?page=1
Nearby thread. Mother Jones magazine says that armed civilians have never stopped a mass shooting. I recognize that McCoy was an officer, not a civilian, but it still bears mentioning. A killer was stopped because a good guy had a gun.
RIP Officer McCoy.
The Bath School Massacre occurred decades before Whitman’s rampage.
I wish they'd post more pics today like this one of killers. Maybe people wouldn't think it was so 'glamorous'.
None of the weapons used were assault rifles.
True. They don’t like to mention bombs.
Remember this very well
There was a made for tv show about the shootings
and this brave mans actions stopping Whittman
RIP.
Thanks for the post. Great picture of the sicko! I was 18 years old working a summer construction job building the top floor of a girls dormitory 3 blocks away and heard ever shot!
At the time, it was reported that a hipanic police officer named Martinez and a civilian shot and killed Whitman. This is what I have always understood. So, something seems not right here with this report.
According to the “official” story, Houston and Martinez both took him down. They were both up there for sure and stopped him. Amazing that you heard it.
Yes. . I seem to recall a made-for-TV-movie that showed the hispanic guy taking down the shooter, when (if I recall correctly), it was the Caucasian officer. Seems I recall quite a few people were upset that the movie was making PC points at the expense of facts and history.
They wanted to do research on his brain but they couldn’t because it was pretty much liquified from all the shots to his head.
They wanted to do research on his brain but they couldn’t because it was pretty much liquified from all the shots to his head.
As do I. My uncle taught there. I remember my parents calling over and over again trying to reach him or someone with information.
A good book regarding this incident is “A Sniper in the Tower.” by Gary Lavergne. I believe that Officer Houston first shot Whitman in the head and Officer Martinez ran over and fired several more shots. These men were absolute heroes and saved many, many lives. RIP Officer Houston.
McCoy took him down but Martinez took the credit. Same now as then apparently with the msm. That’s what Chief Acevedo meant when he stated McCoy was humble.
Should have said Officer Houston McCoy instead of Officer Houston. Sorry for the error.
I grew up with a girl in TX named Martinez who told me that her cousin was either the one that killed him, or one of the ones. Don't remember which.
Anyone remember the New Orleans Howard Johnson’s shootout in the early 1970s?
Weapon was a Ruger .44 mag deerslayer with a short tube magazine.
Remember the charge of the cops toward the elevator shaft on top of building? Several cops shot by “friendly fire” there.
I grew up with a girl in TX named Martinez who told me that her cousin was either the one that killed him, or one of the ones. Don't remember which.
***There was a made for tv show about the shootings***
There were several anti-gun comments written into the script, and at the end a voiceover says Whitman had a brain tumor, however, a louder voiceover shouted out that one told everyone not to miss some other show on the network.
He and the civilian were so brave. May God comfort his family.
I think they meant at that particular time in our history.
There was a civilian...armed...who accompanied him though...correct? If I remember correctly.
A competent journalist would make what he wanted to say clear.
I was wrong then. Thank you for correcting me. And you have a memory than I. My cat has a better memory than I though. That is no reflection on your memory....but mine...and the cat’s of course.
I was wrong then. Thank you for correcting me. And you have a better memory than I. My cat has a better memory than I though. That is no reflection on your memory....but mine...and the cat’s of course.
I agree.
No problem. A better way to make his point would be: “Whitman committed the largest mass murder in America since the Bath School massacre in 1927.”
It’s a clear, concise, and factually accurate statement which modern day journalists seem to be incapable of writing.
They did do an autopsy and found a brain tumor:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Whitman#Autopsy
&
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Whitman#Findings_of_Connally_Commission
You would make an excellent editor. Makes one wonder what happened to editors, does it not?
Thank you for the compliment but I’d last about a week in a modern “newsroom” before I snapped someone’s neck on general principle, probably someone masquerading as a journalist.
Can you find a bigger image next time? I can hardly see that one.
Since folks seem interested in the Whitman shooting, a few more facts for me that day. That day I was on the 5th floor of the LaContessa Dormitory pouring concrete with a large group of guys when the shooting started. I turned the transit level (scope on 3 legs eye level high) I was using around from time to time during the shooting and saw rounds pinging off the side of the tower. Interestingly, I would see the limestone dust kick up from the round impacting and then a half second later hear the shot. I could see Whitman’s shadow through the scope as he ran by the 3 famous port holes on each side of the building. The part about civilians firing was 100% true. Those days it was common as dirt for guys to have rifles in their cars and just thousands of rounds were fired in the two hours this went on. The cops had a hard time calling a cease fire. Martinez years later became a Texas Ranger. Everyone gave this incident credit for that accomplishment.
I wish people would post smaller ones so that one doesn't have to actually scroll down or left to right to actually view it.........
LOL....you and me both. Oh for the days of investigative journalism. I wanted so badly to be an investigative journalist.
......went back and researched it, 5 studley men got themselves on the 27th floor with Whitman about an hour and fifteen minutes after the shooting started. The Tower Observation Deck is a perfect square about 30’ x 30’ in the form of a narrow walkway that looks down over a chest high parapet onto Austin and the campus below. I have been on it many times. They all had to be really careful as rounds were impacting the building all around them from shooters (good guys) below. There is one door in and one door out onto the parapet and it faces the south side. Whitman was on the northwest corner when 4 of the five went out the south door. McCoy and Martinez went up the east side. Crum (a civilian) and Day headed along the south side west with Crum in the lead. Crum heard Whitman running toward him and fired a round into the wall in front of him (Crum). Whitman then reversed and ran back to the Northeast corner. When he rounded the corner, McCoy fired hitting him in the head. Martinez then grabbed McCoy’s gun and ran over and fired rounds into Whitman as he lay in the corner. There has always been much discussion on the need for this since Whitman had been shot in the head. My opinion is that Martinez deserved all the accolades he got, period. But, God only knows if Whitman was dead when Martinez shot him.
Interesting. From what I understand his brains spilled out of his skull when they opened it.
I don’t doubt it at all. That Wiki entry referred to him taking 1-2 headshots w/ .00 buck (”my brain is Jell-O”), but they found the tumor down on the brainstem. That pic looks like part of his brains are laying out on the bricks, too.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Whitmandeck.jpg
I actually saw two autopsy photos of JFK on Yahoo and one of them showed his brains oozing out of his skull. The other one showed a picture of his face and his eyes were wide open. *shudder*
The same here. The incident still brings back memories of that tragic day. I wasn't too far away at the time. I was only in my mid-teens> but I recall it well.
My recollection was that the "civilian" was an off duty police officer or he hadn't SO'd just yet and rushed to the scene just prior to reporting for duty or something like that. I could be wrong but that was what I recalled hearing and reading from the tragic day.
That is only because "guns" were not involved.
There are many dozens of the autopsy pics, on numerous sites, here:
Each time I Google the subject, I find add’l ones I hadn’t seen in previous years.
When mob/CIA did close-execution headshots, the autopsies usually recovered small cal bullet, which entered skull, and bounced/ricocheted around like a jet-propelled tennis ball in zero gravity, turning the brain into Jell-O. Usually stayed inside skull and was recovered. .22short or .25cal was preferred round, IINM.
Hi-Po round like Kennedy’s brain shot took-off a large chunk of skull and underlying brainmatter and caused widespread internal skull/remaining brain damage. Exceptions like Rep Gabby Giffords headshot are extremely rare; it’s usually quite fatal. Whitman’s 12ga .00 buckshot sent multiple balls into skull cavity, and did what it did.
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