The Briefing Room
General Category => National/Breaking News => Topic started by: rangerrebew on January 06, 2014, 12:26:07 pm
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Parents call police for help, cops show up and kill their 18-year-old son
Posted By Robby Soave On 10:39 PM 01/05/2014 In | No Comments
Two North Carolina parents are in shock after local police shot and killed their 18-year-old son in their own home, while they watched helplessly.
The family called police because they were worried about their son, Keith Vidal, who is schizophrenic and suffers from depression, according to local news. Vidal, armed with a small screwdriver, was apparently having a psychotic episode. Mark Wilsey, Vidal’s father, called the authorities to help deal with the situation.
An officer from the Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office and another from the Boiling Spring Lakes police department showed up to the house soon after. Eventually, a third officer from the Southport police department entered the home as well, and ordered the use of tasers to subdue Vidal. According to Wilsey, Vidal was pinned on the ground by two of the officers when a third said, “we don’t have time for this,” and shot Vidal, killing him.
Vidal had just turned 18, and weighed a mere 90 pounds. He couldn’t have hurt anyone with the screwdriver, and had no history of violence according to family and friends.
“There was no reason to shoot this kid,” said Wilsey in a statement. “They killed my son in cold blood. We called for help and they killed my son.” (RELATED: TheDC’s Dirty Dozen: 12 SHOCKING police abuse stories of 2013)
After her son was killed, Vidal’s mother suffered a mental breakdown and was treated by medical staff.
The New Brunswick County Sheriff’s Office told The Daily Caller that no statement has been released yet, but the district attorney and state investigators are looking into the shooting.
A similar thing happened to a Georgia family in October. (RELATED: Family calls 911 for medical help, cops show up and kill son)
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Article printed from The Daily Caller: http://dailycaller.com
URL to article: http://dailycaller.com/2014/01/05/parents-call-police-for-help-cops-show-up-and-kill-their-18-year-old-son/
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BOILING SPRINGS LAKES, N.C. — (AP) -- The State Bureau of Investigation is investigating the shooting of a teenager by a police officer in Boiling Springs Lakes over the weekend.
Brunswick County District Attorney Jon David asked for the investigation after the shooting Sunday afternoon.
Family members said they called police after 18-year-old Keith Vidal picked up a screwdriver and threatened his mother.
Mark Wilsey Sr. says that initially officers were able to calm his son, who suffers from schizophrenia. But Wilsey says when a third officer arrived, his son became agitated. Wilsey says officers used a stun gun on Vidal and then a shot was fired and Vidal was hit.
Authorities say officers from three agencies responded. They have not released additional details.
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5' 3'' and 90 lbs. is not normally a tough take down for 3 cops.
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5' 3'' and 90 lbs. is not normally a tough take down for 3 cops.
It is and it isn't.
First - I am not condoning the actions of the officer who shot him. In a just world, he would be shot himself. They knew he was "not in his right mind" and should have proceeded accordingly. The third officer should have withdrawn out of sight immediately on noting his presence was agitating the boy, especially since the other two officers were succeeding in calming him down.
Having said that, true schizophrenics are both incredibly strong and fast, and have limited feelings of pain. They can be hard to take down and keep down, even if they are not that large. No filters to slow things down.
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I am aware of that, having taught in a youth home for over 20 years. I've had to take down murderers, schizophrenics, psychopaths, etc., most of them much bigger than this young man. None of them is ever easy but when the number is 3 against one, the take down gets much less difficult.
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:nometalk:
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My mentally handicapped b-i-l is about 5'4", 120#, and he can seriously hurt much larger and heavier individuals when he's agitated about something. In this case, however, it appears the young man was threatening his mother with a screwdriver. The cops didn't have to shoot him, perhaps, but it may have been justified if it appeared he was going to stab her.