Weeping mom blasts Texas grand jury for DECLINING to indict man who accidentally shot and killed ...

[Novara]

Weeping mom blasts Texas grand jury for DECLINING to indict man who accidentally shot and killed her daughter, 9, as he chased armed man who had just robbed him at ATM

A distraught mother slammed a Texas grand jury for refusing to indict the man who shot and killed her young daughter while chasing down a man who'd just robbed him in February.

On February 14, Arlene Alvarez was sitting in her family's car listening to music through headphones when she was shot in the head by Tony Earls, a 41-year-old who was on the street chasing down a man who had just robbed him at an ATM.

Earls thought the robber had hopped into a vehicle and he mistook the Alvarez family car for one his assailant may have been traveling in.


Gwen, the girl's mother, says he fired a total of nine shots at them, knowing he was going to kill someone or at the very least hoping he would.

Earls was later charged with aggravated assault but a Grand Jury on Tuesday declined to indict him, accepting his claim that he was acting in self-defense.

More in the link.

[OneGrassRoot]

1. Fuckkkkkkkk............

How many horrific, heartbreaking stories are out there like this in our Wild West culture????

[2naSalit]

2. Now THAT is fucked up.

But then, it is Texas. Survive there at your own risk.

[Maru Kitteh]

3. What a shithole country Texas has become

I loved living in El Paso in the 80’s, but there simply isn’t enough money on planet Earth to entice me there for any reason right now.

[Paladin]

5. Yeah, well. Thank Christ this sort of tragedy is confined to Texas.

[Mariana]

18. This type of crime isn't confined to Texas

but where else would a grand jury accept the argument that Tony Earls killed Arlene Alvarez in self-defense?

[mountain grammy]

44. Florida? Wisconsin?

and actually any state. Devastating.

[inthewind21]

49. IF

You have to ask. You haven't been paying attention.

[Lars39]

4. FFS, that is not anything close to self-defense!

[USALiberal]

6. Sue the asshole until he is homeless! Nt

[inthewind21]

50. Well

In Texas it won't do any good. 2 words. Tort Reform.

[Mr. Sparkle]

7. Horrible state, horrible people.

a cesspit of corruption.

[Scrivener7]

8. But... but... he's a good guy with a gun! We must worship at his feet!

The 9 year old is unfortunate collateral in men's live action cosplay of their favorite westerns from when they were children.

We all just have to live with the fallout.

And PS, kids. It's not the Texas. It's the guns.

[Nevilledog]

22. Funny how they gunvangelicals don't mention this case, huh?

[groundloop]

34. Damned Straight. The good guy with a gun scenario rarely ends well.

Without constant training people will do stupid shit like this and innocent people will be injured or killed.

[kacekwl]

9. So abortion for a child who was raped is murder

but killing a child with a gun for no reason is cool in Texas. Ok got it.

[exboyfil]

10. You can only use lethal force to prevent a robbery

of your person not in pursuit of someone who has already robbed you. There is no justification.

[inthewind21]

51. Incorrect

[barbtries]

11. WTF Texas.

self defense? the dude was in the wind. he wasn't under any immediate threat, he just wanted to hurt someone back. he got away with it.

no words. I hope she has a civil case going against him for wrongful death, maybe she'll get a measure of relief out of that. She will never get her baby back.

[RAB910]

12. Republicans did with with their perverse gun laws

The world is burning because of their evil denial of global warming.

Americans are dying because of their sick gun laws

Women are suffering because of their obscene violation of their civil liberties


These evil fuckers need to be stopped

[Hermit-The-Prog]

15. Your post is a bit hard to understand.

[Johnny2X2X]

14. Not advocating for this, but it's what I would do

I would have to take the law into my own hands and track this guy down.

[bluesbassman]

23. Seriously? For a few dollars you'd hunt somebody down and execute them?

And in the process if some child becomes collateral damage in your vigilante exercise, oh well?

You may want to consider decaf. Many brands are just as tasty as the real thing.

[robbob]

26. For a few dollars?

Not sure how you interpreted his post. I think he’s saying if someone recklessly gunned his 7 year old daughter down and got away with it then he would feel compelled to take the law into his own hands.

Where are you getting “for a couple dollars”?

Anyway; not saying vigilante justice is right, just saying I think you misread the post.

[bluesbassman]

28. After re-reading the post, you are probably right.

I took it to be defending the shooter’s action after being robbed. The wording could very well be about avenging the child’s killing. Still can’t condone vigilante justice, but I understand the sentiment.

[muriel_volestrangler]

29. The post was very vague - just about "this guy"

Since it was a reply to the story in the OP, it's easy to interpret "track this guy down" as the action in the story - the man who was robbed took the law into his own hands and tried to "track this guy (the guy who robbed him) down" - and then killed the girl. And that's where "a couple of dollars" comes into it - the killer had been robbed.

You interpret "this ... what I would do" to refer to the idea of someone now taking the law into their own hands and tracking down the killer - which is probably right. But since no-one had said that yet, it's easy to think "this" meant "something we've already talked about". The post was confusingly worded.

[yardwork]

39. I read the post differently.

[Thtwudbeme]

56. if you have that type of "vigilante" personality, then you probably

just need a slingshot, or a Red Ryder BB gun.

[Kaleva]

16. There can still be a civil lawsuit

[bronxiteforever]

31. Do you agree with the grand jury findings?

[Kaleva]

35. One probably can infer from my comment that I don't

I wouldn't be suggesting a civil lawsuit if I agreed with the grand jury the man didn't commit a crime. That what he did was defensible.

[bronxiteforever]

59. Thanks! Giving your posts which I always read

I didn’t think you would have!

[Kaleva]

68. I personally feel the gun owner ought to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

[inthewind21]

52. Yes

And in Texas, the attorneys will cost more than she can recover in a civil suit. That's been a known for years. If you paid attention.

[Kaleva]

57. You must have a link then which is easy for you to provide

As you've known this for years.

[flying_wahini]

61. That's rude.

[sarisataka]

64. Doesn't everyone keep abreast of Tort law

In all 50 states?

[treestar]

67. this sort of case can be on contingency fee

the attorney can't get more than a percentage, like 33 or 40%.

[treestar]

65. Yes, it's gross negligence at least

[dlk]

17. The lives of women and girls are meaningless to Republicans

Again and again, they tell us who they really are: that only certain lives matter.

[Kaleva]

21. I wonder how many women were on that grand jury.

[yardwork]

40. Even if there were, it doesn't negate the truth.

Unfortunately, many women buy into and help enforce discrimination and abuse directed at other women, and at children.

The fact that individuals turn on others in their own group doesn't negate the truth, anymore than the actions of Clarence Thomas, for instance, negate the truth of systemic racism.

[Kaleva]

70. I agree with you

[dlk]

69. Apparently not enough women who are independent thinkers

Sadly, too many women assimilate the popular culture and go along with the men who have no regard for their lives.

[greenjar_01]

19. The people on that Grand Jury should be ashamed of themselves

This is pure ideology gotten out of control. He fired into a car in self defense? The wrong fucking car? In self defense?

What the actual fuck.

[Ferrets are Cool]

20. Well, you can't convict a "good guy with a gun" can ya?

[aocommunalpunch]

24. So, we have this lunatic running down the street and firing where he likes.

This literally means nobody is safe, anywhere in this country. How do you prepare for a lunatic like this guy? You just sit in your car, listening to music, and you're dead. Would being armed have helped the victim? Nope.

Self-defense is simply being aggrieved. Should there have been another gun to take down the lunatic that was wildly shooting everywhere? How would anyone know the aggrieved party was just defending himself by shooting everywhere, with no concept of his actual surroundings?

How many more must be harmed before it hurts someone of consequence? Is that how we teach empathy in this country now? Wait until somebody with enough influence gets fucking hurt?

[JI7]

25. We have a lot of these Fucked Up People in this country. Just look at the Votes Trump Got

[RocRizzo55]

27. That's why I call it

Texass.

[samsingh]

30. so screwed up - and a jury made that decision so they are so mental

[harumph]

32. Really insane if the facts are being presented correctly.

So, it would seem to be from the standpoint of the grand jury, OK to chase down and shoot at a suspect who robbed you - BUT WHO NO LONGER POSES A DANGER BECAUSE HE IS RUNING AWAY. Maybe the grand jury was thinking about the cops that routinely pump bullets into fleeing suspects and wanted to make sure that remains 'OK' too. Wtf is right.

[Bear Creek]

33. Good guy with a gun

This scenario is more often the outcome of some random guy with a gun stopping a crime. One I remember from a few years ago happened at Walmart. The guy was shooting at a shoplifter and killed someone sitting in their car. Or the one more recently that escalated into a multiple shooting deaths. If they should have just let the guy go. Shoplifting is a fine. Walmart has cameras in the store and parking lot. They just send police to ticket them at their residence.

[moniss]

36. Based

on the reasoning of the morons on the GJ the family could claim "stand your ground" if they blew him away on the courthouse steps and claimed that since he had random fired at them before he may well do it again. Texas was/is/will always be a failure when it comes to human decency.

[IronLionZion]

37. TexAss

where you can kill people because you made some idiotic Ass-umptions and acted on it with guns.

[karynnj]

38. Even if the thief ran into the car, that is still not self defense

His money WAS stolen, but his life was at that point when he was chasing the man not at risk.

If he really was convinced the thief was in the car, couldn't he just get the license number?

[48656c6c6f20]

41. Thank god there was a good guy

WTLF? Was this guy a Kyle Leftenhouse hero?
Another glorious day in GunMurka!
Hmm. The bats should be leaving the bat cave right about now. This probably triggered their anti gun echo locaters.

[xocetaceans]

42. Daily Mail is a right-wing rag: one might as well be posting directly from Fox "News" or OAN.

However, with a little more searching, here's the story from a local Houston station:

Arlene Alvarez killed: Harris Co. grand jury declines to indict robbery victim who shot 9-year-old
By Pooja Lodhia
Tuesday, July 19, 2022 10:20PM

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas (KTRK) -- Arlene Alvarez's family on Tuesday found themselves nowhere close to true justice five months after the tragic chain of events that led to the 9-year-old girl's killing.

Earlier in the day, a Harris County grand jury declined to bring charges against 41-year-old Tony Earls, the man whom police say fired the shots that left the little girl dead on Feb. 15.

An investigation determined Earls and his wife were targeted by a robber near a Chase Bank ATM in the Gulfgate area. Earls then got out and shot at the fleeing suspect and a pickup truck that he thought the person was getting into, police said.

But the pickup was not the suspect's getaway car. Instead, Arlene and her family were inside.

...

https://abc13.com/robbery-victim-tony-earls-no-billed-arlene-alvarez-death/12061282/

Daily Mail

?ssl=1
?w=357&ssl=1

...

Analysis / Bias

The Daily Mail is a known supporter of the Conservatives. They are also one of the pro-Brexit tabloids. According to a Reuters article, the Daily Mail published a controversial headline in response to a Brexit Court ruling criticizing the judges by branding them as ‘enemies of the people.’ According to CNBC, the Daily Mail has also been criticized by Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales for publishing fake news articles and “hyped up” headlines and “mastered the art of running stories that aren’t true.” Further, CNBC reported that DMG media responded by saying, “DailyMail.com is the very antithesis of click-bait and hype headlines. We just tell stories better than anyone else.”

The Daily Mail tends to publish stories utilizing sensationalized headlines with emotionally loaded wordings such as “Woman, 63, ‘becomes PREGNANT in the mouth’ with baby squid after eating calamari”, which is a misleading headline. In 2017, Wikipedia banned the Daily Mail as an ‘unreliable’ source. When it comes to sourcing information, they use minimal hyperlinked sourcing and sourcing to themselves. Further, a Reuters institute survey found that 26% of respondents trust their news coverage and 47% do not, ranking them #11 in trust of the major UK news providers. In general, most stories favor the right; however, the Daily Mail will report either side of the story is sensational enough.

...

https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/daily-mail/

Who really wants to read from right-wing news sources? (i.e., Why drink from a toilet?)

[ramen]

48. daily mail is terrible, but this story is unfortunately true,

per your link. Here's another non daily mail link https://www.khou.com/article/news/crime/reward-offered-for-robbery-suspect-in-arlene-alvarez-death/285-2a568e20-6c4c-4c92-890c-db739493fcf4

What a miscarriage of justice. I can't imagine it

[Novara]

63. Same story, isn't it?

[treestar]

66. that's not much better, as if informs you what to think of it

in the first paragraph.

[xocetaceans]

72. True, it's not much better, but it's not Daily Mail, Fox News, or any deeply RW site.

It's a choice. Does DU prefer to support that sort of organization and its style of reportage or not?

Here is the report from another more reputable news source:

Texas grand jury declines to indict man accused of killing 9-year-old girl while shooting at armed robber

By Rebekah Riess, CNN
Updated 11:53 AM ET, Wed July 20, 2022

(CNN) A grand jury in Harris County, Texas, on Tuesday declined to indict a man who allegedly killed 9-year-old Arlene Alvarez while shooting at an armed robber in February, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said.

"I just want to tell the family how saddened we are," Ogg said. "We don't have the luxury of disagreeing with the jury's verdict, with the grand jury's determination. But we have the ability to move forward and to catch the person who they've indicated is criminally responsible."

The killing happened February 14 at about 9:30 p.m. when Tony Earls and his wife drove to a drive-thru ATM to deposit some cash and a check, according to the district attorney's office. A man then ran up and put a gun in the wife's face and demanded their money, car keys and her wallet, the prosecutor's office said.

The couple initially complied with the robber, handing over the check, cash and wallet, before the robber started to run away, the office said. Earls, who stepped out of the vehicle, said he heard gunshots and believed he was being shot at, so he shot at the robber, the office said.

...

https://www.cnn.com/2022/07/20/us/arlene-alvarez-9-year-old-shooting/index.html

[treestar]

74. that one is much better

it tells you what happened, and the opinion stated is what Ogg said, which the fact of Ogg's saying is just a fact.

[PTWB]

43. That is awful. He should absolutely have been indicted for his reckless firearm use.

[patphil]

45. Self defense? How many times was he shot at?

I don't see how you can claim self defense when you're chasing someone, and not even close enough to see which car the person gets into.
Of course, it isn't about the guns; never is.

[nuxvomica]

46. One word blows away the self-defense argument: "chasing"

[Laffy Kat]

47. I hope she sues for wrongful death in a civil court and takes everything he owns. eom

[inthewind21]

54. lol

Yeah, sure. Tort reform ring a bell? The tort reform from YEARS ago.

[COL Mustard]

53. Interesting...both shooter and victim

Are POC. In no case was the shooter justified in what he did. Shooting multiple times without knowing what your target is just shows irresponsible behavior.

[progressoid]

55. Earls did what 'anyone in that situation would have done.'

WRONG!

[TeamProg]

58. Sounds like murder, yes?

[raccoon]

60. You bet your ass if Arlene had been the daughter is someone powerful,

Earls would have been indicted.

[RobinA]

62. One Wonders

what would have been the result if Mama Alvarez had pulled out a gun and blown Earls' head off. Good lady with gun shoots good guy with gun, bad guy goes free.

[ZonkerHarris]

71. White guy shoots Latino child. Not a crime in Texas. Fuck Texas. It can burn for all I care now

If your a Dem in texas, California awaits you

[Catherine Vincent]

73. That is so wrong

No excuses. He should serve some time for what he did. I remember that incident. This innocent child lost her life over probably $20. Sad for that family.