Eagle Scout Pleads Not Guilty to Murder

[Sequoia]

WEYAUWEGA, Wis. Feb. 26 — Gary Hirte, a high school scholar, star athlete and Eagle Scout whose name seemed to be in the local paper all the time, is accused of committing murder not for money, or revenge, but just to see if he could get away with it. Hee pleaded not guilty at his arraignment Thursday.

The Weyauwega-Fremont High senior was charged last month in an arrest that was met with shock and disbelief in this small town of 1,800, where Hirte has long been the golden boy. He was accused of killing 37-year-old Glenn Kopitske.

"He wanted to see if he could do this. It was like a challenge for him," sheriff's Capt. Steve Verwiel said. "I would attribute it to arrogance."

Hirte, 18, told friends about the crime, but none of them took him seriously, authorities said. Finally, five months after the slaying, a girl he once dated went to police because she feared he would commit suicide out of remorse.

Hirte apparently sought out and stalked Kopitske, a substitute teacher who ran unsuccessfully for state Assembly in 2000, authorities said. Verwiel would not say if the two knew each other.

Kopitske was found dead Aug. 2 in his rural

<snip>

http://abcnews.go.com/wire/US/ap20040226_931.html

[curse10]

1. Yikes! That's scary!

I'm glad this kid was caught. What if he had gotten away with it? Would have just kept on killing?

[Wickerman]

2. This kid had everything going for him," Mayor Howard Quimby said

including a 14 year old girlfriend? 18 years old, 14 year old steady girlfriend - no one thought that was odd?


"Hirte was the city's first Eagle Scout in 20 years. He was an honor student and a 6-foot-4, 270-pound member of the track, wrestling and football teams, and has a steady 14-year-old girlfriend. Readers of the town's weekly paper knew all about his achievements."

"This kid had everything going for him," Mayor Howard Quimby said. "He can do anything he sets his mind to."

[depakid]

3. Sounds like the Leopold & Loeb case n/t

[BlueEyedSon]

4. Hey, why not? We invaded Iraq.....

[Mikimouse]

5. Sounds as if he may have followed the script in ...

'Apt Pupil'. The scenario sounds eerily familiar.

[muriel_volestrangler]

6. America really has a Mayor Quimby?

Excellent! Are there any nuclear power plant owners called Mr. Burns?

[mumon]

7. Here's what he looks like...

http://www.weyauwegawrestling.homestead.com/GaryHirte.html



I suspect there was something sexual about it.

[mike1963]

9. Yup, I suspect the same thing. I can't imagine this creep with a 14 yo

girl friend...
:eyes:

[proud2BlibKansan]

8. Now if the Boy Scouts had just let the gays join

this never would have happened.

[Gingersnapsback]

10. I knew the proud mother of 2 eagle scouts.

She told everyone she met how wonderful they were. She was Vice President of a company... a psychotic individual that could have driven any eagle scout to murder. I had to read the article to see if one of her eagles had fallen.