The day that the guilty
verdict came down for James Holmes, the man who shot up a movie theater in
Colorado, I breathed a sigh of relief. For the victims. For the community. For
the families of the victims. For the families of victims of senseless violence.
Three years after the fact, there was justice. Or what could be administered by
our system with its due process and checks and balances. That was the moment I
felt relief.
Then came the shooting in Chattanooga. We now have another accused
killer. This is how we refer to Mohammad
Youssuf Abdulazeez. There were plenty of witnesses who watched him spray two different recruiting centers with
automatic weapons fire, seven miles apart. Allegedly. That would be Ei incumbit probatio qui dicit, non qui
negat or in the more easily digested English: the burden of proof is on he
who declares, not on he who denies, And we should probably point out that
Mister Abdulazeez is not around to deny his innocence or guilt. He was shot by
police who arrived on the scene. Four Marines are dead. That is not an
allegation. That is a reality. Still, we will keep referring to this gentleman
as a suspect until the investigation is through. The hairs that can be split
between criminal and terrorist acts will be split and any possible accomplices
will be rounded up and that will give us all a chance for some catharsis, since
surviving accomplices can be given that due process and eventually justice will
be served. Cold and late, but served nonetheless.
Just in time to try and figure out how to step
up theater security, at least in Lafayette, Louisiana. Three more dead, and
nine injured. One of the casualties was the suspect, John Russell
"Rusty" Houser. The self-inflicted gunshot that took his life was the
last of the "methodical" killing that took place during a showing of
"Trainwreck." Now, aside from questioning the necessity of metal
detectors outside movie theaters, we can wonder what "Rusty" might
have had against Amy Schumer. Allegedly. There investigation here will probably
not run as deep, since the potential political and ideological questions can be
swept aside. Except for that whole mental health thing. A history of mental
health concerns didn't keep Mister Houser from passing a background check and
legally purchasing the .40 caliber semiautomatic handgun that he fired twenty
times. Allegedly.
And lest we forget that old news of Dylan Roof,
suspect in the murder of nine church members in Charleston. He will be charged
with hate, not with terror. Perhaps his defense might find a way to swing that:
innocent by reason of hate.
It's been a rough summer. Allegedly.
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