Police act swiftly after gun purchases

[bigus_D]

Everybody realizes that this guy WASN'T ARRESTED... right?

I'm not a lawyer, but a phychological evaluation is a lot different than an arrest... not to mention that the guy willfully surrended himself to the cops.

And the cops just took his guns to protect them while he is in the looney bin.

 

[inxs]

Scenario- I've been busting tail at XYZ corp for 20 years, working 50 to 60 hours a week. One day they decide they don't want me anymore. Don't really make me happy. Decide that maybe I'll just rest for awhile and do some shooting, since I haven't had any time to do any for the last 20 years. Maybe buy me some new guns I've been putting off since I wouldn't of had any time to shoot 'em anyway. Who's that beatin' on the door at 3:00AM?

 

[Ogre]

Everybody realizes that this guy WASN'T ARRESTED... right?

I'm not a lawyer, but a phychological evaluation is a lot different than an arrest... not to mention that the guy willfully surrended himself to the cops.

And the cops just took his guns to protect them while he is in the looney bin.

Psychological evaluation> would the mere fact he was evaluated be grounds to deny a ltch, or revoke a permit???? I bet it would at least put him in a gray area for a "judgement call" to deny...

Willifully surrender > so had he not, and refused to cooperate, he would have been arrested then they would have said that his refusal just proves their point that he was a menace...

I think in that instance, the guy couldn't exercise his rights, lest the whole situation be worse for him. (which obviously flies in the face of what this country stands for)

 

[Joe Williams]

Under which statute were the Oregon police operating?

Anyone have the cite?

I'm operating under the assumption, though the article doesn't say so, that they had a "mental health" order from a judge to take him into custody. I saw this done to one of our neighbors once in PA. Guy had quit taking his meds, and was completely off his rocker. Wasn't eating, his only sustenance was beer, was worried about the Martians getting him if he stepped out from under the roof of his porch, and I'm not kidding about the Martians part. His downfall came about when the mailman accidentally put a piece of mail for the house next door in his mailbox. Mike called the cops, saying the Martians were trying to get into his house. The cop that responded was concerned, and the cops got a court order to take him in for mental eval. Since there was a .38 out there somewhere in his name, they handled it exactly as described in the article. Full SWAT callout, negotiator, and all that. We watched from our bedroom window (cops had asked us to head for the basement, but we were naughty). Cops kept hollering on a bullhorn till he woke up. He came out, they cuffed him up, asked him where the gun was, and found out he'd gotten rid of it. We did things the same way in the AF when EST was called out.

Anyway, I'm assuming they were operating with a court order. It would be stunning to me if they weren't.

 

[Joe Williams]

Scenario- I've been busting tail at XYZ corp for 20 years, working 50 to 60 hours a week. One day they decide they don't want me anymore. Don't really make me happy. Decide that maybe I'll just rest for awhile and do some shooting, since I haven't had any time to do any for the last 20 years. Maybe buy me some new guns I've been putting off since I wouldn't of had any time to shoot 'em anyway. Who's that beatin' on the door at 3:00AM?

Another scenario, one more likely in this case. You've been busting your hump for 20 years, get canned, and scream that you are going to go buy a gun, come back, and shoot everybody.

You go buy a gun... THEN you can go "who's that beatin' on my door at 3:00 AM."

Despite all the hysteria, and disturbing departures from reality in this thread, I find it impossible to believe that the cops knocked on the man's door just because he bought some guns after getting fired. If that were the case, there'd be a lot more doors getting knocked down, what with the way things are in this country nowadays.

I'm not going to get on the bandwagon of a man who very probably threatened to become an active shooter. Sorry. Ya'll can support that type of thing if you want, but I'm not going to assume the cops took this guy in for no reason other than getting fired and buying some guns. And EVERYBODY that's been here any amount of time knows I don't cut cops slack when it comes to misconduct. It's beyond stupid to ignore the reality that active shooters are becoming the "in thing" for losers who need attention.

 

[Indyhd]

I got fired from my construction job in 1981. Sure I was mad, and the next day I went and bought 4 new tires for my 79 Bronco. Nobody showed up at my door and confiscated my truck and took me to the mental hospital.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Anyway, I'm assuming they were operating with a court order. It would be stunning to me if they weren't.

Why would the media not mention a court order and why would the police not blurt "court order signed by judge" out first thing???

This is strange.

 

[Joe Williams]

Why would the media not mention a court order and why would the police not blurt "court order signed by judge" out first thing???

This is strange.

If they didn't have one, even if they turn out to be right in what they did and the guy was planning on shooting up the place, a judge is going to be knee deep up someone's butt, is my guess. If they had time for a SWAT callout, they had time to call a judge.

 

[ar15junkie]

How did the police get tipped off about this guy losing his job? I smell a lawsuit coming.

 

[Leadeye]

Like most news storys this one leaves out really critical information a reader would need before being able to make an accurate judgement. What does "really disgruntled" mean? That black hole alone makes a huge difference in this case.

 

[oldschoolmuscle]

wasnt there a tom cruise movie... kinda like this... they arrested people before the commited the crime....

 

[Ogre]

Like most news storys this one leaves out really critical information a reader would need before being able to make an accurate judgement. What does "really disgruntled" mean? That black hole alone makes a huge difference in this case.

I think it has little baring. Since when is it illegal to be mad? or even enraged?

 

[Ogre]

I got fired from my construction job in 1981. Sure I was mad, and the next day I went and bought 4 new tires for my 79 Bronco. ...

Hmmm, 1981... IIRC, the hot ammunition for the .79 caliber Bronco Semi Automatic rifle with articulating flame thrower, was the "tire" brand fmj's.... you should have definately been put on a list!

 

[tk6968]

Police act swiftly after gun purchases | MailTribune.com


Police act swiftly after gun purchases
ODOT worker who'd been put on leave is mentally evaluated after buying handguns, AK-47

March 09, 2010

By Anita Burke
Mail Tribune
Concerns about an Oregon Department of Transportation employee who purchased several guns after being placed on leave prompted law enforcement across Southern Oregon to step in.

Negotiators and a SWAT team from Medford police safely took a man — whose name wasn't released — into protective custody Monday morning in the 500 block of Effie Street, Medford police said in a news release.

He was taken to Rogue Valley Medical Center for a mental-health evaluation.

The man recently had been placed on administrative leave from his job and was "very disgruntled," the news release said.

ODOT Communications Director Patrick Cooney said there were administrative, personnel matters involved that limited what the department could discuss.

However, the state agency had reported concerns about the man to law enforcement agencies, who started monitoring him, officials said.

"We had concerning information regarding a personnel issue and were watching the subject," Jackson County Sheriff Mike Winters said.

In two days, the man bought a Heckler & Koch .45-caliber universal self-loading handgun, a Walther .380-caliber handgun and an AK-47 assault rifle, Medford police Lt. Bob Hansen said. All of those firearms were purchased legally, with required record checks by the Oregon State Police.

Authorities were "extremely concerned" that the man may have been planning to retaliate against his employers, the news release said.

"Instead of being reactive, we took a proactive approach," OSP Sgt. Jeff Proulx said.

Douglas and Jackson County sheriff's departments, OSP officers based in both counties and police in Medford and Roseburg collaborated, he said.

Medford police watched the man's home overnight, starting at about 9 p.m. Sunday, Hansen said.

Because he was known to have weapons, police wanted to defuse the situation and ensure the man wasn't a danger to himself or others before the neighborhood awakened and people started their daily activities, Hansen said.

Medford's hostage negotiators and SWAT team were called in at 3 a.m. Monday and arrived on the scene at about 5:45 a.m., he said.

About a dozen officers responded. They closed the street for about an hour and evacuated three homes to protect neighbors and prevent bystanders from gathering, he said.

After a phone conversation with negotiators, the man — who was alone in the home — agreed to come out, Hansen said.

Police seized the recently purchased firearms, as well as another .45-caliber Heckler & Koch handgun and a 12-gauge shotgun. Police are holding the weapons for safekeeping, but no criminal charges have been filed.

Reach reporter Anita Burke at 541-776-4485, or e-mail aburke@mailtribune.com.

Wow, the “Thought Police” are here?

I need to get one of those self loading handguns. I hate that I have to load mine to shoot it.

 

[Joe Williams]

There's a letter circulating on Facebook now purporting to be from the man involved. If true, it actually is pretty disturbing. Supposedly he's home, and his firearms have been returned. The disturbing part is that, according to the letter, five different LE agencies were involved, but none of them obtained a warrant or court order for their actions. I doubt the veracity of the letter, because I simply have a hard time believing police agencies could be so stupid. If they were, they richly deserve the sodomizing they've got coming in court.

 

[level.eleven]

There's a letter circulating on Facebook now purporting to be from the man involved. If true, it actually is pretty disturbing. Supposedly he's home, and his firearms have been returned. The disturbing part is that, according to the letter, five different LE agencies were involved, but none of them obtained a warrant or court order for their actions. I doubt the veracity of the letter, because I simply have a hard time believing police agencies could be so stupid. If they were, they richly deserve the sodomizing they've got coming in court.

Well, break out the astro-glide. No warrant was obtained. 5 agencies were involved. Per Balko at Reason.com. A little update on the story.

They never consulted with a judge or mental health professional before sending out the military-style tactical teams to take Pyle in.

"They woke me up with a phone call at about 5:50 in the morning," Pyles told me in a phone interview Friday. "I looked out the window and saw the SWAT team pointing their guns at my house. The officer on the phone told me to turn myself in. I told them I would, on three conditions: I would not be handcuffed. I would not be taken off my property. And I would not be forced to get a mental health evaluation. He agreed. The second I stepped outside, they jumped me. Then they handcuffed me, took me off my property, and took me to get a mental health evaluation."

By noon the same day, Pyles had already been released from the Rogue Valley Medical Center with a clean bill of mental health. Four days later the Medford Police Department returned Pyle’s guns, despite telling him earlier in the week—falsely—that he'd need to undergo a second background check before he could get them back.

Story here - Pre-Crime Policing - Reason Magazine

 

[txgho1911]

Yard full of cops that do not agree with you does not equal volunteer.

I got notice that my job is gone and my last is in July. Am I under surveillance? Is there something concerning for people that I put a rifle up for sale after I got the notice?

What if...
The man is trying to beat the notice to the CC company so his credit insurance policy pays the damn bill.
Or...
Man's income is shortly going to be limited. Everything he's been eying for the last 2 years just tensed for a decade jump away from him. Time to pull the trigger on what he wants while he can cover through unemployment.

 

[Digital_photog]

I won't rewrite my whole post, but I posted something on the "Guns in cars at work" thread that relates to this thread as well. I will just link and let you read it there. https://www.indianagunowners.com/fo...bring_your_gun_to_work_bill-2.html#post917659

 

[mrjarrell]

All the enforcers involved in the matter should be arrested for kidnapping and theft. Of course that won't happen, as we well know. Some people can get away with breaking the law with impunity. Looks like the taxpayers in that locale will have to pick up the bill instead.

 

[ak keep the second]

this is insane, how can the LE even do this, nothing ever mentions warrants. the only suspicion they had was he was buying a few guns...we all buy guns.