In Cape Girardeau, Missouri, Vincent T. Anderson, 19, from Little Rock, Arkansas, and Marcus E. Jones, 27, of Cotton Plant, Arkansas, have been charged with first stealing a car and then hitting pedestrians in what they described as a game akin to “Grand Theft Auto.”
Anderson (left) is facing the worst charges with assault first degree, tampering first degree, felony leaving the scene of an accident and felony resisting arrest.
Jones, 27, was charged with tampering second degree and resisting arrest.
Six runners were going through an intersection when the couple allegedly plowed into three of the joggers. Police say that the two soon abandoned the car but were found walking nearby.
One of those hit was university provost Ron Rosati, who says that he actually waved at the two men idling in the intersection just before they ran into the group. The two later allegedly described the hitting of the runners as “fun” and like a real-life version of “Grand Theft Auto.” If true, they might not want to adopt that analogy for the jury. Indeed, this would seem a good case for a plea. They have been very fortunate not to be facing an attempted murder charge since the police have concluded that the hitting of the runners was “deliberate.”
Source: KFVS as first seen on Reddit
Do believe we’ve got a bit of a problem here. Don’t like to keep talking about when I was in the Navy, but I had a Camaro with Oregon plates and a Honda 750 motorcycle with California plates. On balance, the California people were more polite.
Throw away the key comes to mind. These guys will eventually kill someone for kicks and were up for dong so this time IMO. I think you can predict future behavior and I’m of the mind that these guys shouldn’t be left in society, it’s only a matter of time before they kill people.
please fix the title, THIS story happened in MISSOURI, CAPE GIRARDEAU, MISSOURI. The next story, about the obese Dachsy, is the Oregon story! We have idiot teenagers in Oregon too, but not the jogger-hunters today.
Perhaps one of the problems with charging attempted murder would have been the inability to prove intent to cause death.
I am glad nobody died in this, yet if there was a death it certainly could be charged with Murder. Yet,
I reviewed The Oregon Manslaughter 1st Statute and found an interesting aspect.
Criminal homicide constitutes manslaughter in the first degree when:
(a) It is committed recklessly under circumstances manifesting extreme indifference to the value of human life;
The Murder statute seems to exclude use a vehicle for the purposes of assault when applied to their murder statute. (the assault being an element of the murder)
(6) As used in this section:
(a) Assault means to intentionally, knowingly or recklessly cause physical injury to another person. Assault does not include the causing of physical injury in a motor vehicle accident that occurs by reason of the reckless conduct of a defendant
It is interesting how the “Extreme indifference to human life” clause is mentioned in First Degree Manslaughter for Oregon but in Washington the same language is present in the First Degree Murder Law.
Based on the facts above, why not attempted murder?!?! Very curious.
Take these guys to a NASCAR race and make them cross the track back and forth. Maybe just taking them to the race will suffice.
Lrobby99,
The best place to make suggestions for stories is on the Corrections thread.
Is there some other way I can suggest the case I mention above to Prof. Turley? I mean obese Daschunds are indeed fascinating, but two 13 year old boys charged as adults are interesting too.
In LA when a driver does that to the cops it is called “suicide by cop.”
I’ll have to admit I’m a bit curious about the lesser charges.
Can they NOT be charged with attempted murder? I mean, they could’ve murdered them, and it should be obvious to any normal person that it is possible to kill someone by doing that.
I just read a factoid that I have no background on but it sounds just plausible enough that I am going to try to dig into it a bit more. Incidents of rape in the US is 27.1 per 100,000 people; in Canada it is 1.7 per 100k. That compares similarly to the gun ownership/gun deaths between Canada & the US.
While stories like 2 13 year olds killing grandma are not unique to the US they sure happen here more than in any civilized nation. WTF is wrong with us?
Interesting, but the case I would like to see the Professor delve in to is the Wisconsin case of two 13 year old boys charged as adults in the murder of one of the boys great-grandmother. See Antonio Barbeau and Nathan Paape. It was a horrible crime allegedly done by two very immature youths who are now, suddenly, adults-acording to the District Attorney. At what age is the cut-off? Is any child an adult no matter the age?
And if at first you don’t succeed… Maybe skydiving is not for you….
Take them ‘Sky diving’ with no parachutes……….