Teen shot after taking earth mover half way across Tucson

[havocmom]

Fourteen year old took a Caterpillar earth move from midtown Tucson to the west side. Police fired after he turned and came at them in the 40 + foot long piece of equipment with tires 6'+ tall. The kid had it up to 30 MPH during part of the little joy ride.

How did MATCOM miss this story?

http://www.dailystar.com/dailystar/news/78134.php

<snip> Wheeler said during the chase police were trying to contact Caterpillar representatives to see if they could help them find a way to stop the vehicle.

<snip> At one point officers were asking over their radios for permission to jump onto the vehicle to try to enter the cab and stop it. Supervisors told them it was too risky, with the vehicle weaving from side to side.

<snip> He said the vehicle headed toward at least 17 police vehicles and that’s when two officers fired at least one shot each at the boy.

<snip> Miller said the boy was communicating with pursuing officers, but wouldn’t respond to their commands to stop the vehicle.</>

How the hell are we raising kids in this country?

[Mutley]

1. someone watched Terminator 3

one too many times....

[DulceDecorum]

2. How did they get it to stop?

That's what I wanna know.
And did it crush any cop cars before it did?

[havocmom]

3. Atricle didn't say how they stopped it after hitting the kid.

Kid is in the hospital.

Sounds like the mover got stopped before hitting the cars.

Does anybody with Cat experience know if there is something like a 'dead man switch' on them that would cut the engine if driver released pressure on something? That's all I could figure.

What I wonder about is WHY? Why are kids doing such strange, violent, dramatic stunts and WHY are we not raising them better?

[AntiCoup2K4]

4. They didn't need to shoot him to stop him

No way in fucking Hell he would have made it over Gates Pass in that thing. That is a narrow assed road at the top.

[havocmom]

6. Gate's Pass is being worked on as we speak

Widened. My thought was he might be planning to take it OVER the pass via a shortcut

[aeolian]

8. Well, when you steal something with 6-foot tires,

smash utility poles, careen down city streets, and then head straight for a gaggle of occupied police cars, you're probably going to get shot.

...just one of those things, I guess...

[havocmom]

11. Hey, they called the people at Cat to ask how to stop the machine!

And they radio-ed into the cop shop for permission to YaHoo themselves onto the damned thing to try to stop it...

Not much left but shoot, unless you think the kid might have slowed down for a slurpee if the Circle K would offer a free one. :eyes:

[tyedyeto]

5. There have been a couple other incidents with earth-moving equip

here last couple of years. The others, if my memory serves me correctly, were adults, not teenagers. Road rage with heavy equipment is happening more frequently.

[kwassa]

7. Don't forget the guy in San Diego that stole the tank and drove it

all over town, crushing many parked cars, before he also got shot when he refused to stop for police.

[VOX]

10. That guy did a plumbing job for my brother in S.D. just days before that.

My brother was shocked to all get-out when he learned that this guy who'd been working in his house just a few days before flipped out like that. :crazy:

[kwassa]

12. So, the plumbing problem was that frustrating?

I've heard of work-related stress before ...

[VOX]

9. Matcom didn't miss it! He posted it at 9:56 a.m. PDT!

He's tough to beat! :thumbsup:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x3381849

[AngryAmish]

13. Remember that guy who armored his bulldozer and wrecked a town?

My Dad was a Caterpillar mechanic and when I went to the shop on Saturdays I got to "drive" the machines (Dad worked the pedals.) Also, strangely, he taught me how to hot-wire a Cat too when I was about 10.

This ended badly, but who hasn't dreamt of getting on one of those things and go smashing things?