Family of electrocuted thief gets $75,000

Chicago Sun-Times ^ | 2-25-2003 | DAN ROZEK

[HamiltonJay]

Tom, I have no problem with Lethal force, believe me, if this guy broke in and the bar owner blew his ass away... I got no problem with it. I also am not losing sleep that the guy died trying to break in... however you cannot create mantraps its that simple. Booby Traps are illegal, pure and simple, regardless of the justification you use for building them. That "security" system would know more discriminate between the crackhead thief or the fire department... booby traps, regardless of their "justification" are indiscriminate weapons... if booby traps are justifiable as some here are insanely trying to argue then hey, you want to keep the neighbors kids off your lawn, plant some land mines... want to keep salesmen from bugging you, rig your doorbell to an acid dump.... sorry, indiscriminate time bombs designed with the pure intent and purpose to kill or maim when triggered are illegal.


As to the barbed wire guy, barbed wire strung along a fenceline is hardly a man trap.

[You Dirty Rats]

So you claim the right to shoot and kill a kid stealing your hubcap off your car.

A little lack of proportion there, dude.

[You Dirty Rats]

I'm not sure fellows who advocate execution for stealing property are all that reasonable.

[Gunslingr3]

So you claim the right to shoot and kill a kid stealing your hubcap off your car. A little lack of proportion there, dude.

Two can play wild exaggeration. You'd have a 'civilized' man sit back and call the police while his daughter gets raped, because using force against criminals is the duty of the police and courts, not the 'civilized' subjects. Is that about as unfair a comparison?

P.S. I'd probably use rocksalt on the kids...

[dalereed]

"I believe human life is precious"

I don't believe that for a second!

That includes my own life, no one is irreplaceable.

[Landru]

"FYI....Aurora is 2 countys over and about 50 miles west of Chicago."

FYI...I grew up in Brookfield Wisconsin, about 12 miles west of Milwaukee & 75+/- 10 mi north Chicago.

The area (geographically speaking) shares many similarities.

...maybe it's in the water. {g}

[stylin19a]

my wife grew up in wauwautosa. Believe me, there are NO similarities :)

[cynwoody]

I remember seeing a lethal anti-carjacking system on TV a couple of years ago: The driver pressed a button and ignited flamethrowers that were positioned underneath the body of the car on the driver's side. Wonder if that's still around?

You can see the video here.

[Landru]

"my wife grew up in wauwautosa. Believe me, there are NO similarities :)"

Typical Wisconsinite; that union mentality. ;^)
(~gawwwddd I hope you've even a small modicom of appreciation for a sarcastic sense of humor...)

~eh?
My bride & I used to rent a bungalow on 67th & Mieneke; just north of North Avenue -- around 20 years ago.
Back when God was a Private, Jake's had a steak house on 60th & North, & the area still reasonably safe? {g}

...small world, isn't it?

[Mark]

I read about a guy who set a trap by the rear wall of his business at an industrial site. His business was burglarized a few times, so he buried some steel spikes just inside the rear wall. His alarm went off and police responded. One officer jumped over the rear wall to check the business and a spike went through his foot. The owner was jailed and sued, giving a large amount of money to the officer.

[Mark]

Need to add--- Shouldn't the value of the life, earning capacity, etc be considered in coming up with an award amount? $75,000?-- Maybe $7.50 would be more appropriate.

[Moonman62]

They are indiscriminate and thus can cause harm to innocents.

I guess that's possible, but I've never seen a story about them causing harm to an innocent. It always seems to be a criminal.

[MississippiMan]

You can see the video here.

Thanks, that's the one! That's what I call a mind-changer! A reconsiderator.

MM

[stylin19a]

I DID catch your humor...mine was suppose to be humor back.
Her being from wauwautosa, I STILL call her a "cake-eater".
Small world indeed. My wife lived @ 64th & Garfield. Was a Holy Angels girl...
How I,(at the time) a born/raised/bred/drop-dead/1st Mayor Daley/blue-dog/straight ticket/democrat voting Chicagoan, met up with her 29 years ago, I'll never know.

Freep On

[JavaTheHutt]

I believe human life is precious. It can never be replaced which is why we can never defend property with deadly force even from a criminal. But we do have the right to defend ourselves and loved ones with deadly force from harm from some one who wants us gone from this life.

I think you forgot your < sarcasm >< /sarcasm > tags. Either that, or you've been living in the golden state a little too long and are starting to become indoctrinated by the liberal babble that permeates that state.

Deadly force is the exact level of force needed when some drug crazed lunatic crawls through a window into my home. I don't care what his intentions are. Maybe he's wanting to use my phone to make a long distance call. Too bad.

[JavaTheHutt]

Lethal security systems are flat-out wrong.

If I ever go into business for myself, I intend let a pit bull with rabies run loose inside my business at night. Would you consider that a lethal security system?

[celtic gal]

THIS IS ALL WRONG!!!!!!!!!!

[Cinnamon Girl]

When will the madness end. This verdict is part of the sick slippery slope which will lead to burglars staging injuries while attempting a harmless little break in, so they can score with a jury.

[waterstraat]

If someone has a terminal illness anyways, it is a great way to financially provide for your family without having to pay any premiums either.