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good for her. old lady shoots punk kid

OscarB63

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Elderly Woman Shoots 12-Year-Old Boy
Boy Is Charged With Crime, Woman Is Not

A shooting on the city's Southeast Side has people telling two entirely different stories.

Neighbors said an elderly woman was fed up with constant harassment from a 12-year-old boy, so she took a gun and shot the child after he and his friends threw bricks into her home.

Now, the boy is charged with a crime, while the 68-year-old woman is not.

The boy who was shot, along with another boy, 13, are cited in juvenile delinquency petitions with one count each of misdemeanor aggravated assault to a senior citizen, according to police.

The woman, identified by neighbors as Margaret Matthews, was released from police custody without being charged, on the grounds that she acted in self defense, police said.

The boy who was shot was out of the hospital as of Wednesday morning, and was released to his parents, police said.

The shooting happened near 76th Street and Coles Avenue. Afterward, neighbors said Matthews was distraught because of everything that led up to the trigger-pull.

"She was very emotional; she was an emotional wreck,'' said a neighbor, Troila McCoy.

Neighbors said the boy was the ringleader of a group of kids, and had been holding his own little reign of terror on the block – especially targeting Matthews.

"I call him the little bad boy," said another neighbor, Hilda Brunt.

McCoy said the boy had been breaking windows, breaking items on Matthews' shed house, and setting her garbage on fire.

"I would say they were bullying her," added neighbor Frenchie Johnson. "She was an older lady. She stayed there by herself. They know that. And she's one of the ladies that, she stands up for herself."

Asked if he supported Matthews' actions, Johnson emphatically said, "Yes."

Damage from the alleged vandalism was apparent in the form of a boarded-up window at the home of the woman.

Neighbors say when the boy threw the bricks and broke Matthews' windows, she simply hit the breaking point.

"They threw a brick through her window," neighbor Rafael Ramirez said Wednesday. "I think she gave them as much warning as I think she could."

She called police and they came, but after officers left, the boy came back. That was when Matthews responded with gunfire.


But the boy's own family has a completely different story.

"He and his friend were walking down the street, and they saw a window broken at a woman's house, and as they passed by, they said she came out shooting," said the boy's grandmother, Donna Virges.

Other neighbors echoed the boy's grandmother's comments.

"I talked to (the boy) on the phone in the hospital," said neighbor Tania Outlaw. "He said that he was just walking past with two other boys… and the lady started shooting."

"All we heard was the shots, and she came out. (The boy) was like, 'She shot me! She shot me!'" said neighbor Rhonda Jackson. "He wasn't the type of little boy to do that; to throw a brick in an old lady's window like that."


Regine White is angry that Matthews wasn't charged with a crime.

"She could have threatened them and said, 'I'm going to call the police,' but the fact that she just hauled off and shot them – that was unnecessary," White said.

Still, the incident struck a nerve with some, as a desk officer at the South Chicago police district where the shooting happened said at about 11 p.m. Tuesday, he fielded a call from a concerned citizen who does not know Matthews.

The woman caller wanted to let police know that if needed, she would raise bail money for the woman involved because she "should not go to jail," the officer said.

The caller explained she had also been "terrorized" in a similar way, she "knows what she feels like," and the woman "did the right thing," according to the officer.

WBBM Newsradio 780 reports neighbors say Matthews is a widow, works two jobs and lived in the same home for nearly 30 years. Neighbors know her as "Miss Margaret," WBBM's Lisa Fielding reports.

The boy's charges could land him in juvenile detention for up to a year.

Elderly Woman Shoots 12-Year-Old Boy In South Shore - cbs2chicago.com

I can't believe the stupidity of people taking up for this kid. The lady did call the cops and then the kids came back. Of course the little bastard is going to deny doing anything wrong. My only complaint is that she didn't blast his nuts off to keep his sorry ass from reproducing more thugs like himself.
 
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I can't believe the stupidity of people taking up for this kid.

Indeed, sticking up for the boy with all the boys without the entie story set is unwise - but sticking up for the lady without all the facts eother is just as unwise.
 
I side with the old lady. I don't believe the story of the kids, especially considering the neighbors have stated they are trouble makers. If they were good kids why would the cops have to come out? You go granny :thumbs:
 
digsbe said:
I side with the old lady. I don't believe the story of the kids, especially considering the neighbors have stated they are trouble makers. If they were good kids why would the cops have to come out? You go granny

Yes... the response to kids throwing bricks through a window and setting a garbage on fire is to go out and shoot them. I'll remember that next time my annoying mail man intentionally leaves the paper outside while it's raining. Yes. That is what I will do. I'll go out and shoot him. Then after that? I'll shoot whomever cuts me off in traffic. After that? I'll shoot the first Mormon who comes and terrorizes me with their silly 18th century beliefs. Yes. That is what I'll do. Whenever I feel terrorized, I'll just shoot somebody. I could get used to the 2nd amendment.
 
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It's stupid to stand up for either side when at this point the only information given is he-said she-said.

My gut instinct says to trust the old lady over the kid, since it's common for kids to lie about doing something wrong.

However, there are some crazy old people out there who do stuff like this for no good reason, so until more information comes out I'm reserving judgment.
 
Hardly a he said/she said. More like kids said/and bunch of neighbors and cops said. The kids have been picked up by the cops a few times before, according to the article. And the neighbors have said they're troublemakers, vandalizers, and have been harassing this woman for some time.

Good for her for defending herself. A brick through a window could very easily have killed her. Get those punks off the street and teach them a lesson.
 
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Hardly a he said/she said. More like kids said/and bunch of neighbors and cops said. The kids have been picked up by the cops a few times before, according to the article. And the neighbors have said they're troublemakers, vandalizers, and have been harassing this woman for some time.

Good for her for defending herself. A brick through a window could very easily have killed her. Get those punks off the street and teach them a lesson.

Off the streets is different then killing them
 
I wish she would've taken a different course of action.
I think her firearm should be confiscated, and that she should lose the right to own one.
 
I was looking to see if parents could be held criminally liable for the actions of their kids. Apparently, they can be charged with neglect and in some cases be held civially liable for damages. But in general, no. But some states are considering it.....

Are You Criminally Liable for Your Child's Crimes? - Associated Content - associatedcontent.com

In this case, and because of the parents response, I think the parents should definiately be charged with neglect and the boy spend a long time in juvenile detention. Because I don't think that old lady has seen the last of that boy and I think he will try to retaliate.
 
Off the streets is different then killing them

Well apparently calling the cops and having them picked up repeatedly wasn't working. And if someone tries to harm/kill me by throwing a ****ing brick through my window, you can goddamn bet I'm going to confront them with even more lethal force. According to neighbors, she came out of the house and demanded they drop the bricks and leave. They refused to drop the bricks OR to leave, so she shot. This is after the ****ing cops had just left. Good for her for doing what the cops apparently were unable to do. (and shouldn't have to do anyway)
 
Too bad she didn't kill him. It's about time people sent a message that you can't terrorize people just because the police can't follow you around with a camera.
 
Listen, I'm all for an old lady who stands up and kicks someone's ass in self-defense, and I'm all about gun ownership, but come on.

Let's put aside the fact that she used lethal force against a kid for throwing a brick. I won't even address that.

How about the fact that she's living in a heavily populated area with neighbors in all directions and she used a weapon just about guaranteed to drill a hole in someone or something not involved in the brick-throwing?

Unless you're talking about a shotgun loaded with rock salt, firing off a few rounds is an unreasonable risk to those around you unless you're defending yourself from an imminent threat to your life.

A brick through a window does not qualify. It's dangerous, and it could kill you, but I don't think it's enough to send lethal projectiles of your own rocketing around the neighborhood.
 
One final note: She claims she wasn't aiming for him, and yet she hit him.

Seeing as how I for one believe she wasn't actually trying to shoot the kid, I rest my case.
 
A brick through a window does not qualify. It's dangerous, and it could kill you, but I don't think it's enough to send lethal projectiles of your own rocketing around the neighborhood.


a bullet from a gun is dangerous and it could kill you. just because she didn't get hit by the brick doesn't make it any less of a lethal projectile.
 
I like the way you phrased that. Nothing changes how lethal anything is except a change to the properties of the thing itself. :lol:

That said, if you are trying to convince me that a brick is as lethal as a bullet, good luck. Bricks aren't capable of the kind of penetration most bullets are, and bullets typically have a much longer range.
 
I like the way you phrased that. Nothing changes how lethal anything is except a change to the properties of the thing itself. :lol:

That said, if you are trying to convince me that a brick is as lethal as a bullet, good luck. Bricks aren't capable of the kind of penetration most bullets are, and bullets typically have a much longer range.

apparently that brick had enough penetration power and range to smash through the lady's window.
 
Hell's bells, dude, a LOT of things less lethal than a bullet can break a window.

"less lethal" kind of an oxymoron isn't it? either something is lethal or it isn't. but if we want to go down that road, not all "bullets" have the same lethality. I didn't see any mention in the article of the calibur bullet she used.
 
Listen, I'm all for an old lady who stands up and kicks someone's ass in self-defense, and I'm all about gun ownership, but come on.

Let's put aside the fact that she used lethal force against a kid for throwing a brick. I won't even address that.

How about the fact that she's living in a heavily populated area with neighbors in all directions and she used a weapon just about guaranteed to drill a hole in someone or something not involved in the brick-throwing?

Unless you're talking about a shotgun loaded with rock salt, firing off a few rounds is an unreasonable risk to those around you unless you're defending yourself from an imminent threat to your life.

A brick through a window does not qualify. It's dangerous, and it could kill you, but I don't think it's enough to send lethal projectiles of your own rocketing around the neighborhood.

Yes, I agree with 100%. She was lucky, she could have killed someone. A window can be replaced, but a life can't.
 
Yes... the response to kids throwing bricks through a window and setting a garbage on fire is to go out and shoot them. I'll remember that next time my annoying mail man intentionally leaves the paper outside while it's raining. Yes. That is what I will do. I'll go out and shoot him. Then after that? I'll shoot whomever cuts me off in traffic. After that? I'll shoot the first Mormon who comes and terrorizes me with their silly 18th century beliefs. Yes. That is what I'll do. Whenever I feel terrorized, I'll just shoot somebody. I could get used to the 2nd amendment.



yes, the proper response to arson of your property and assault with a deadly weapon is to stop the threat by any means necessary. If the parents can't control thier sociopathic savage, this is what happens.
 
I like the way you phrased that. Nothing changes how lethal anything is except a change to the properties of the thing itself. :lol:

That said, if you are trying to convince me that a brick is as lethal as a bullet, good luck. Bricks aren't capable of the kind of penetration most bullets are, and bullets typically have a much longer range.



If the brick hit the woman in the head, the elderly woman, she would most likley be injured as much as the little savage is right now.
 
I wish she would've taken a different course of action.
I think her firearm should be confiscated, and that she should lose the right to own one.




yes, disarm the victim. It's this sort of asinine commentary that sinks many of our urban areas into the savage cesspools they are. :roll:
 
The time for saying, "they are just kids..." ends when they engage in violent behavior. After that they get what they deserve. All this "poor underpriviledged kid" garbage makes me insane. Sterilize the parents and the kids and be rid of unecessary crime!
 
Yes, I agree with 100%. She was lucky, she could have killed someone. A window can be replaced, but a life can't.

Indeed. Which is why it's good that she put a stop to them before they killed her with a brick to the head or a fire in her house. (Because they'd set fire to stuff on her property previously)
 
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