Posted on 01/13/2014 9:11:20 PM PST by smokingfrog
A moviegoer lost his life inside a Pasco County theater Monday afternoon after a dispute over texting with a retired police officer.
According to the sheriff's office, the dispute happened before the 1:20 showing of 'Lone Survivor' had even gotten underway at the Cobb CineBistro at Grove 16 complex on Wesley Grove Blvd.
Investigators say two couples had gotten into an argument over noise.
"The victim was on his cell phone; he was texting. We believe he was making some kind of noise. This noise led to an altercation between the suspect and the victim," Sheriff Chris Nocco explained.
A witness recalled seeing the agitated man -- later identified by deputies as Curtis Reeves -- get up and leave in an apparent attempt to find a manager. When he came back alone, the argument escalated.
Charles Cummings told FOX 13 he heard the victim say he was texting his 3-year-old daughter before Reeves pulled out a pistol.
"Their voices start going up, there seems to be a confrontation, somebody throws popcorn, then bang, he was shot," said Cummings, who was there to celebrate his birthday. "I heard the victim say, 'I can't believe...,' then he fell on us."
"I asked if the guy was OK, and he started gurgling blood and then fell," recalled Cummings' son, who said he ran to call 911.
(Excerpt) Read more at myfoxtampabay.com ...
Showing my age but theaters used to have ushers that would enforce rules on people who disturbed the movie goers!!!
Who the hell said he got what he deserved???
Right on...what’s wrong with getting up and moving if something is bothering you? I would ask the guy to please stop and if I got lip I would report him to the management and move some where else in the theater.
Before the movie starts, while the lights are still not dimmed, I don’t see what business it is of anybody if you are typing on a cell phone (hard to understand how texting would cause a noise problem, except if people were yelling at him to stop texting).
I read a book before movies, which also doesn’t make noise. Sometimes I play Sudoku on my PDA.
I turn off the phone when they make that announcement to silence your cell phones.
And I don’t care how obnoxious a person is, you never get to kill someone for making too much noise in a theater.
We don’t even know who threw the popcorn, it might have been another patron who just wanted the cop to sit down and shut up so they could enjoy the previews.
John Wesly Hardin was so mean, he once shot a man for snoring.
Over 100 years later, we hear that and chuckle.
100 years from now, it’ll be -once shot a man for texting in a theatre!
That is exactly what happened.
That is exactly what happened.
the victim was texting during previews//////// sheesh it wasn’t even the real movie which in that case shooting would have been justified (joking)
...but one undisciplined moment...
Do you really think this was his first?
Noisy texting???Yes, it the texter has his volume up. There are sounds when a text goes out or comes in. Some people have keyboard click sounds enabled, too.
Hardly a capital offense, though.
I suppose the retired cop may indeed have killed before, in the capacity of law enforcement. To have purposely ended anyones’ life for any reason, I would assume, make it easier to end another life. I hate to think he may have straight out murdered before as in this case. The act sure came easily for him, didn’t it? Now his son who is also a cop has people silently wondering if he has a short fuse too.
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