An Ohio man has been sentenced to life in prison for shooting and killing a teenage neighbor who’d walked on the man’s carefully tended lawn.
Sixty-seven-year-old Charles Martin must serve 18 years before he can be considered for parole. The judge said he would urge that Martin never be considered for parole.
Martin was convicted last month of murder in the March 2006 shotgun killing of 15-year-old Larry Mugrage Junior, a high school freshman.
Martin told the court he was sorry the shooting occurred but said the teen knew how much he cared for his lawn and provoked him.
Martin was tried for aggravated murder but was convicted of murder, a lesser count, because jurors could not agree the killing was planned.
I am that kind of person that never tends their yard, so I pay to have just the front yard taken care of, sometimes let the back yard go. But my dealings with those that do get anal about their yards are usually the real a-holes of the neighborhood.
In fact I have one of these real creeps living just a few houses down across the street. An ornery old jerk who lures and traps cats because they poo on his perfect lawn. Neighbors have suspected him for years, animals disappear and never show up at the pound. I saw him put a screaming cat in the back of his suv so I followed him to see where he was going. He later pulled a gun on me and threatened to shoot me, broad freaking daylight.
I have this entire incident video on my camera phone (1gb mini sd) and yet the police didn’t really seem to care. They’re probably in the same camp as all of you jerks.
The cops are currently in a high speed pursuit with a pastry on a motorcycle.
Here is the original news story:
http://tinyurl.com/23ch4s
The old guy got everything he deserved. He, at least, gets to eat 3 meals a day, watch TV, & play cards with the boys. Not so the teen. The killer just as much turned his weapon on the boys family & friends too.
But rather than spending 10 billion dollars on a program to keep a certain type of lethal weapon out of his hands, I’d much rather spend the money on understanding what creates such a person that could do something like that in the first place.
RBG
#21. …“Since the new gun registration program started in 1998, the U.S. homicide rate has fallen, but the Canadian rate has increased. The net cost of Canada’s gun registry has surged beyond $1-billion — more than 500 times the amount originally estimated.”…
First, I agree with your point that the gun registry here is an expensive, useless boondoogle, but your point about murder rates is taken out of context.
Numbers:
I live in “The Murder Capital Of Canada” – Edmonton. Our murder rate last year was 4.3 murders per 100,000 population, more than twice the national average of around 2 murders per 100,000. The murder rate in the US is roughly 5.5 per 100,000 with some cities soaring above 40 per 100,000. So the Edmonton murder rate (our “deadliest” city) is 20% lower than the US national murder rate. Which place would you say is “safer”?
Edmonton is significantly safer. But my cited trends are given in perfect context.
Your stat only offers a snapshot not a trend nor correlation, missing the point completely and says nothing of the apparent correlation to the introduction and effectiveness of gun control or lack thereof. That is the context.
RBG
3 words: Private properties rights. The man owned something, expressed his desire to have it respected, and someone else seemingly ignored that repeatedly. It sucks that the kid died but the parents were obviously failing to instill respect in their son. The real story should be the parents and the boy, there are all kinds of situations where one will die or get themselves killed if they do not act with respect and common sense. I’d bet anything the old man even told the kid ‘stay off my grass or I will shoot you’
I’m sure the old man doesnt care much about his prison sentence.
He didn’t have to kill a boy; that’s what the cops are for.
No, wait, let me rephrase that.
RBG
#37 – You represent the worst part of America.
No. I don’t give a flying fuck if that offends you. You are what is wrong with modern American values. You are what is wrong with this culture of consumption. You are a sickness, like a cancer.
Private property rights? Fuck that. This guy killed a kid for walking on a lawn, and its sickening that its okay with some people because this asshole owned the property.
I’ve got a better idea, why not shift the focus away from the gun debate. This guy was crazy. He killed a kid and likely won’t make it very long in prison (at the very least he won’t be able to sit down).
Just for the record, there are no unlimited property rights. I can put a sign on my property that claims going on my lawn will cost you a $1,000,000 dollars or that I have the right to do whatever I want to your body (rape, put you into slavery). This, however, does not make it law. They are just words and not backed up by our legal system. He seems to have found this out the hard way.
You do have the right to defend your home and property. It has to be a reasonable threat (clear and present danger).
#28. “Yup, rock salt might have only gotten the guy a few years instead of life.”
That takes me back … I came close to getting the Morton’s treatment as a youngin’. But anyway.
#11, #39. totally agreed. jesus. “join the internet – get the ugly side of EVERYONE.”
This old man should have gotten himself a slingshot, a paintball gun or some other non-lethal method of self-help.
god knows kids can be annoying to the point of inducing insane rage, but dammit they are just kids – they don’t have anything resembling adult levels of judgment, a problem which is particularly acute when the parents are numbskulls themselves. nobody deserves to die for this sort of thing.
#36 RBG
The tone of your quote was indicating that crime is spiraling out of control in Canada. That was what I was trying to correct.
He was just cleaning his gun FFS.
39,OFTLO,
Gotta disagree with you on this one.
After my family, I have several items I treasure more then anything. A painting my grandmother did of my brother and myself shortly before she died 33 years ago, my guitar; a ’65 Tele, and my photograph portfolio. As much as they are property they are not replaceable. Each has a personal attachment and history that predate my wife and child.
Maybe you don’t have something you treasure very much. Maybe you do. You make it plain that nothing you have is worth more then a human life. That sentiment would also apply to my list. Push the right button, however, and that life just might become worth a lot less. Push hard enough and as in this case, that life is worse less then what is being fucked with.
Shooting the kid is not commendable, but I can empathize.
44. Do I really need to Google up a long list of heinous crimes and abuses and other such “non-commendable” acts against babies & children for your similar empathy?
RBG
All you pieces of SHIT that think that was ok to kill a child can burn in hell with that basturd you dont know what happend Larry did not walk or run through his yard the side of his foot barely toutched the edge when Larry moved for a car to go by there are no sidewalks on that road & Larry never spoke to the man so shutup if you dont know all the facts because I do