Teens accused of shooting Wildlife, Dogs and 100 Cats.

[ta2er]

Consider the following facts:

The FBI sees animal cruelty as a predictor of violence against people and considers past animal abuse when profiling serial killers.
National and state studies have established that from 54 to 71 percent of women seeking shelter from abuse reported that their partners had threatened, injured or killed one or more family pets (Anicare Model workshop, Tacoma, 2004. Created in 1999, the AniCare Model of Treatment for Animal Abuse treats people over 17 by bringing abusers and animals together. A companion program treats children.)
In assessing youth at risk of becoming violent, the U.S. Department of Justice stresses a history of animal abuse.
More than 80 percent of family members being treated for child abuse also had abused animals. In two-thirds of these cases, an abusive parent had killed or injured a pet. In one-third of the cases, a child victim continued the cycle of violence by abusing a pet.
A 1997 study by the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and Northeastern University found that 70 percent of animal abusers had committed at least one other crime. Almost 40 percent had committed violent crimes against people.

The researchers also compared matched groups of abusers and non-abusers over a 20-year period. They found the abusers were five times more likely to commit violent crimes than the non-abusers.

 

[lippidude]

the overall problem is that they had access to these weapons as minors. they should suffer harsh punishment for abusing animals because that is sick. If you don't believe so ill gladly link you a video of a kid aiming a bb gun into a kittens eye and happily pulling the trigger. It is overall sick. pets aren't just property they are family. and you don't go after someones family.

The problem is that these underaged retards had weapons that probably belonged to a 18 year old friend or relative. This needs to be looked at more so. They shouldnt have had any access to the rifles to begin with. It is a bubblegum that these kids and other pieces of bubblegum alike will eventually make it impossible to buy a fire arm. I think the owner of the fire arms needs a firm talking to as well. I have a feeling the kids where taking the rifles without permission and that the rifles where not properly taken care of the prevent this in the first place. Unless i'm mistaken, you must be 18 the legally own a fire arm. this mean that, unless there is an emergency, you should not have easy access to the guns.

This is ultimately sick, but i think we should be looking into where they got their ammunition and fire arms and revoke that persons rights for a while as well the these kids rights to obtain fire arms in the future. they give everyone a bad name

 

[Cougfan2]

I am by no means excusing the actions of the criminals at hand. Just amusing myself in a bit of a thread hijack.

But you don't see random dogs out walking themselves. Why cats?

I had a neighbor that I was talking to quite a while back about another neighborhood issue that mentioned that she had to take her cat into the vet because someone shot it with a pellet gun. I asked her, "You're kidding me, someone walked into your yard or house and shot your cat?". She said, "No my cat was just cruising around outside.". I then asked her, "So you let your cat loose to roam free and crap in neighbor's backyards?". She got this screwed up look on her face and closed the door.

My point is, if you value your pet's life and safety, you won't let it run loose. That being said, I have no sympathy for the cat shooters. I have sprayed cats with a hose using my bark dust as a litter box and even stung some of them with a BB gun with power low enough to send them running, but not permanently harm them.

If you don't want your pet harmed, keep it on your property. That being said, if someone comes on your property or shoots onto your property to harm a pet, throw the book at them.

 

[lippidude]

ya but your intent is not on harming the cat, but instead training it to stay away from you. I understand that you don't want bubblegum all over your lawn. I pick up my girlfriend from an apartment where a neighbor of hers lets their dog bubblegum in the beauty bark right across from the apartment doors(maybe 10 feet away), and nothing has been done and there are just piles of bubblegum in a public place. That bubbleguming sucks cause that owner is not fit to take care of her dog while living where she does. The owners do have a responsibility, but not all people are like you and will incourage better animal behavior. Those kids as well as alot of people will gladly injure an animal to not have to have any more problems for themselves. Not everyones intentions are as good as yours. There are also a million what if situations that could go with an animal being where it shouldnt. It cant allways be the owners fault.

Would you disagree with this: Animals should stay indoors their entire lives if they are truley loved and cared for by their owners?

Although I do not equivocate the life of an animal to a humans. You let your kids out side with the risk of them being picked up by a stranger. animals are domesticated, but they are not meant to live a life indoors. Humans in a way are also domesticated, but we don't want to be stuck indoors.

 

[Burt Gummer]

They are lucky the cops got them eventually. Given time they would have killed the wrong guys pet and possibly lost their lives. That said, it would be wise of them to never release their names.

USAtoday did a poll a couple of years back. Asked if people would take a million dollars for their family pet and 66% said no. That says a lot about how strong people's bonds are to a pet. You buy a dog at the shelter for $100 and a year later you won't take a million for it.

I am not as attached as others and get infuriated when a cat climbs on my car and scratches the crap out of it, but I am sympathetic toward others feelings. With some people, their dog or cat is a family member. You don't shoot a family member and casually drive away.

 

[lippidude]

exactly, these kid are lucky. and that poll reflects the ideal that pets are family, which i believe is true. You don't point a gun at someones family and get away with it.

 

[Cougfan2]

Would you disagree with this: Animals should stay indoors their entire lives if they are truley loved and cared for by their owners?

Although I do not equivocate the life of an animal to a humans. You let your kids out side with the risk of them being picked up by a stranger. animals are domesticated, but they are not meant to live a life indoors. Humans in a way are also domesticated, but we don't want to be stuck indoors.

You apparently DO do find the life of an animal equivalent with humans. People (kids) can be taught about "Stranger Danger" and other such concepts, animals can't. I guarantee you that my kid or 99.99% of other kids that are out of diapers know that it's not right to crap on a neighbor's lawn. I don't advocate keeping pets indoors all the time. You just need to control them if they are going to be outside your property. If you don't want to have to control your pet, don't have one.

 

[MrNiceGuy]

animals lives are NOT more sacred than human liberty... but at the very least, peoples' property has been destroyed, and a lot of it.

I just couldnt disagree more. Especially in this instance.
Lock those punks up. I want them to develop a serious animal phobia.

I'm really liking the tuna juice idea.

 

[lippidude]

No i don't.....

I'm saying you can train your pets to be better behaved so that they can be outside. I wouldn't hurt another animal unless it was hurting my family or I. I was saying that shooting an animal just because its on your lawn isn't right. That is something you need to discuss with the animals owner. You don't smash someones window because they parked their car in front of your drive way. You tell them to move it or get someone to move it for you. you don't punish a kid that isn't yours. You Shouldn't kill a domesticated animal that isn't yours unless you are being harmed in some way by it. That's where i stand when I say I don't equivocate animal to humans. I would be less likely to hurt your child if he came up and bit me than ones cat doing the same thing.

people like your neighbor, that assume their cat can run around every where, are stupid. They need to be a little more responsible for their pets actions. I just don't agree that a persons counter action should be to hurt a pet that is dumping in your lawn.

 

[coop44]

Animals behave the way animals behave, witout forethought or ill intent. People on the other hand have a choice, I really hope these little fellows go to grown up jail and get to make a lot of special friends.


People have a responsibility to treat animals humanely, and with respect. If some one threatens my animals they have threatened me. I have known them longer than most of my acquaintences, and frankly I like them better.

The more I get to know people the more I like my dogs, and cats.

 

[sprocket3]

What is shocking to me is the quantity and how long they kept doing it. Kids do stupid things at times. Usually once or twice and then they start to think how stupid they are acting. These freaks turned into little serial pet snipers. Reminds me of the DC sniper. What was next when the cat killing got boring.

I don't care what law they use to put them away to be honest. To me these are the type of people that end up killing more than animals down the road.

 

[Rockwolf66]

What is shocking to me is the quantity and how long they kept doing it. Kids do stupid things at times. Usually once or twice and then they start to think how stupid they are acting. These freaks turned into little serial pet snipers. Reminds me of the DC sniper. What was next when the cat killing got boring.

I don't care what law they use to put them away to be honest. To me these are the type of people that end up killing more than animals down the road.

I'm a psychology major and as Ta2er posted above these little monsters were showing signs of getting much worse. they were not killing pets just because they thought it would be fun after a night of getting high. They were doing it as a hobby. Once shooting pets got borring they would start doing worse things. I'm suprised that killing pets was the only crimes they were up to.

 

[Buddhalux]

Now I do love my roomy's dog as if he was a family member. However, he is and always will be a dog/pet/companion/property. If someone was to harm him then I would exact my revenge 10 fold because that's the kind of guy I am.
However throwing around FBI polls as facts makes me laugh. All of us veterans are on a potential terrorist watch list made by those same people. How can you trust one poll but not another? I do hope that those kids get some severe punishment for their crimes and their parents as well. All of them are minors and had access to a 22 without adult supervision for months.
And finally, Playgirl go take a f'n midol!!

 

[OcelotZ3]

Gotta laugh about the statement that animal cruelty is an "invented crime". One apparently cannot be cruel to an animal, one cannot torture an animal, etc. It's all "invented".

What a maroon.

 

[U201494]

However throwing around FBI polls as facts makes me laugh. All of us veterans are on a potential terrorist watch list made by those same people. How can you trust one poll but not another?

They are studies not polls. Polls are opinions, studies are fact.
There is truth to the studies that find violent and sexual deviant criminals usually start with lesser crimes of the same nature.
I have no dog in this fight, just want to make the clarification.
People love their pets, right or wrong it's a fact. Animal Cruelty is a crime because as a people we have made it that way.

 

[Russianfist]

No i don't.....

I'm saying you can train your pets to be better behaved so that they can be outside. I wouldn't hurt another animal unless it was hurting my family or I. I was saying that shooting an animal just because its on your lawn isn't right. That is something you need to discuss with the animals owner. You don't smash someones window because they parked their car in front of your drive way. You tell them to move it or get someone to move it for you. you don't punish a kid that isn't yours. You Shouldn't kill a domesticated animal that isn't yours unless you are being harmed in some way by it. That's where i stand when I say I don't equivocate animal to humans. I would be less likely to hurt your child if he came up and bit me than ones cat doing the same thing.

people like your neighbor, that assume their cat can run around every where, are stupid. They need to be a little more responsible for their pets actions. I just don't agree that a persons counter action should be to hurt a pet that is dumping in your lawn.

What about the dogs and deer that were shot? Guys, these kids were killing anything with fur on it so don't turn it into the cat issue. They are demented and I think they deserve the tuna juice idea myself.

 

[SPU]

They are studies not polls. Polls are opinions, studies are fact.
There is truth to the studies that find violent and sexual deviant criminals usually start with lesser crimes of the same nature.
I have no dog in this fight, just want to make the clarification.
People love their pets, right or wrong it's a fact. Animal Cruelty is a crime because as a people we have made it that way.

The data cited earlier that impressed me the most was the 20 year PROSPECTIVE study showing a 500% increased chance of violent crimes by animal abusers over time. That is not an opinion or poll or even a guess as to why someone turned into a violent person by RETROSPECTIVELY trying to figure it out. This prospective research study is a case of waiting and checking to see how folks grew up over 20 years. Very expensive and time consuming to do, and therefore rarely the type of study done. Northeastern University is a well respected university with a world-class criminal justice education reputation. Ugly campus (IMHO) on the Green line in Boston, but they are pretty good academicians.

Another point: At least in Oregon, property destroyed or damaged by juveniles can be recouped by owners of the property from the parents/legal guardians of the little bubblegums. Hope they get the parents for being lousy parents in this way if no other. Hundreds of cats, dogs, vet bills, disposal costs of the animals, etc. has to be a fair amount of money.

Final thought: people, especially young people, can change. I believe in consequences that fit the crime, which is why society has laws and courts to be as fair as possible. I hope they learn their lessons the hard way, but more importantly, I hope the miscreants change their behaviors. Despite all the statistics and trends, maybe one or three of these kids can still become productive citizens. Probably not, but it is not a 1:1 correlation in the statistics and studies -- some turn out OK. If they have no conscience there is no hope for them. So I personally hope they meet Bubba in prison once or twice and learn compassion for somebody (or animal) getting hurt and being in pain. I also hope we don't as a society cut them slack in regards to firearms; I truly hope they get a felony conviction and never legally own a firearm again.

 

[coastal steelheader]

I still like the idea of a good public caning that was mentioned on page one

 

[Dresden]

The wife and I have adopted 3 cats and if these d-bags had harmed them they wouldn't have been casually driving away, it would have been full speed escape mode as i put many large caliber holes in the vehicle. Whether you love cats or hate them this issue is severe enough to warrant some heavy punishment. The 3 kids were killing more than just cats and that says something about them. What it tells me is this was more than 3 morons looking for fun they were being malicious about the destruction. The original article i read said that one of the cats they shot was in front of the owners home meaning they were shooting with an occupied house as a backstop. That alone should rack up at least a 5-10 year felony sentence in my opinion. I am glad to see that they will be charged and tried as adults as by the time you are 16 or 17 you should have a pretty good grasp of right and wrong and you are well beyond old enough to know that actions have consequences. and thanks penguin for showing us that emotional ret***ds com in all orientations. Cheers Dresden

 

[lippidude]

What about the dogs and deer that were shot? Guys, these kids were killing anything with fur on it so don't turn it into the cat issue. They are demented and I think they deserve the tuna juice idea myself.

well cats was just the topic at the time. dogs are the same. anything can be domesticated. we just chose wolves and large cats to turn into our modern dogs and cats. I was simply pointing out that it was wrong in general to shoot an animal (meaning something not feral) just because it was on your property.

that aside. these kids do deserve harsh punishment for there actions. they give gun owners and arms rights supporters a bad name and a harder future.