A 10-year-old boy was shot dead in front of his Omaha, Nebraska, home on Thursday night—allegedly by his own father.

  • can@sh.itjust.works
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    11 months ago

    He said investigators were still working to “figure out” if McDonald may have mistaken his own son for a car thief. Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said formal charges could be filed as soon as Sunday.

    “It’s obviously very tragic,” Kleine said. “But we have to determine if he [Will McDonald] was justified in doing what he did. . . . At this point in time, it doesn’t appear that he was justified in firing.”

    Is this real? Did I just eat the onion?

    • Hillock@kbin.social
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      11 months ago

      That’s important to figure out because it impacts the kind of charges they are going to press. There are different degrees of murder.

      If the guy planned on killing his son, that’s first degree murder. If he mistook the kid for a car thief that’s second degree murder or depending on the exact circumstances maybe just manslaughter. And even with manslaughter the exact circumstances change it between voluntary and involuntary.

      So let’s not get our pitchforks out for the police doing their work right (for once).

      • Kekzkrieger@feddit.de
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        11 months ago

        So why does a potential car thief even be shot. Maybe let the police and later a judge handle thieves and not take justice into your own hands.

        • Hillock@kbin.social
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          11 months ago

          What if that car thief suddenly charges you after you hear the alarm and go outside to check on it.

          I can see a situation where the kid was trying to scare his father as a prank. And unfortunately the father mistook it for a real threat.

          I assume the person who shot the kid claims he felt threatened. It’s probably not enough and even the police said so, but they still have a duty to look into it.

          The police jumping to conclusions is a big issue in the US, so let’s not criticize them when they follow proper protocol. In every civilized country in the world the police would investigate exactly what happened.

          Maybe the person giving the interview/report should have used better words. But what’s going to happen would still be the same.