Shooting "Victim"

Let's say that you're a clerk at a convenience store in a bad part of Toledo.  For your protection the owner of the store has installed security cameras, which is what Toledo Police Chief Navarre advocated.  Being a somewhat practical man with more than a modicum of common sense, the owner has also install a 9mm handgun under the counter - also for your protection.  Nice, huh?

All you (the clerk) want out of life is what most men want.  You want to finish your shift and go home, have dinner, maybe have a drink and pat momma on the ass.  One morning around 10:00 you run into a little opposition.  Two black gang bangers come into the store, pull out their guns and start yammering away at you.  For your part, you pick up the handgun that the owner has thoughtfully provided for just such an emergency.  The three of you put lead in the air, and when the smoke clears the authorities find one robber dead right there.  The other robber sought safety in flight.  The local bird cage liner announces that the victim of the shooting was the robber that you ventilated.



Word of the shooting and the dead robber's identity is spread via the jungle telegraph, and the dead gangster's entire extended family shows up at the scene.  Cut to Shaniqua Theater, extended version.  There's no sympathy or help for the poor clerk who will get to go home to his wife, but whose troubles have only begun.  Believe me when I say that the clerk (Bandar Abu-Karsh) doesn't see a train load of fertilizer.  He doesn't see the fan blades of the turbine, and he's completely unaware of his position relative to the fan blades and the likely trajectory of the fertilizer.  Why should he?  They were going to kill him.  He dinged one and the other ran.  Now there's a mess to clean up, he very likely does not feel at all well, the police are asking far too many questions and not offering him any help, and the natives want to crucify him.

The owner and the editors of the local scandal sheet (Toledo Blade) took a lot of heat for the way they initially wrote up this story, and subsequent versions have been just a little more critical of the armed robber who was justifiably shot and killed while practicing his career of choice.  You can read the original clip here: Person fatally shot in North Toledo - Victim was suspect in apparent robbery attempt.  Maggie Thurber over at Thurber's Thoughts wrote about this incident here: You're not a 'victim' if you're shot while committing a crime.

All this happened back in November of 2011.  Subsequent to the criticism, the Toledo Blade published a follow up article: Store clerk shoots, kills robbery suspect - Police treating incident as self-defense.  Here are a few particulars:

“There is always a gun in the store behind the counter, a 9mm we keep for protection,” store owner Mamoun Awwad said. “We feel good that our employee had something to defend himself with, because it could’ve happened the other way around. He was very lucky. They shot at [the clerk] a lot.”

[Lamar] Allen leaves behind a large family that includes 16 siblings, 10 nephews, and three nieces, said Kenyata Ratliff, 29, a sister.

“He is gone but he is not forgotten,” Ms. Ratliff said. “He loved football. And he loved his nieces and nephews.”

Allen, who had felony convictions, had been released Oct. 7 from the Lucas County jail, where he was booked after being arrested and accused of disorderly conduct and failure to display a license plate, according to jail records.

He also was facing a felonious assault charge for allegedly shooting a girl in the hand during an altercation in June.

My compliments and words of encouragement to entrepreneur Mamoun Awwad for having the common sense to keep a gun behind the counter.

Note that Lamar Allen was a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, which is a clear violation of the law.  I suppose it's likely that Lamar didn't know he was breaking the law by owning a firearm, so the real culprit here is the public education system.  Maybe the geniuses in State government can craft a law to fix that - you know, teach the kids early on that if you're going to be a career criminal, please understand and accept the fact that guns are forbidden to you right after your first felony conviction.  Yeah, that should work.

I also note that Lamar was facing more charges for various violations of the law, but somehow he was out running around committing crimes.  Should you want to see a good family photo of Lamar, follow this link.  Lamar is the person seated making a complex gang sign - see the second link here.   This is all history, and should have been swept under the rug.  Naturally, this being Toledo, Ohio, it wasn't.  Here's the story from Thursday's paper: Clerk indicted for killing man in robbery

Bandar Abu-Karsh, 28, of Moore Street, was charged with the shooting death of Lamar Allen, 25, who died Nov. 21 as the result of multiple gunshot wounds. Allen was with another man [Joseph Hunter - MJ] when they entered the Express Carryout on Mulberry Street and attempted to rob it.

If convicted of the charge, Mr. Abu-Karsh faces up to 11 years in prison. A summons will be issued for him to appear in court for an arraignment, which has not yet been set.

John Weglian, chief of the special units division of the prosecutor’s office, said that the issue the grand jury had to consider was whether self defense applied to Mr. Abu-Karsh’s actions throughout the entire incident.

“The issue was that although [Mr. Abu-Karsh’s] conduct was initially justified, the grand jury concluded that his subsequent conduct was not in self defense,” he said.

Mr. Weglian declined to comment on the facts of the case or say what conduct was considered not to be self defense.

This is nothing more than top quality stable dressing.  Grade double A, top quality.  Two violent felons, Joseph Hunter and Lamar Allen, were in the act of committing armed robbery on Bandar Abu-Karsh, who was working as a clerk at the Express Carryout in Toledo, Ohio.  A gunfight ensued and when the smoke cleared Lamar Allen was quietly reaching room temperature, Joseph Hunter was showing a clean pair of heels and Bandar Abu-Karsh wasn't leaking.  The case should be closed right away, but somehow, and I can guess how this happened, Bandar is now headed for trial with a court appointed attorney.

I don't blame the Toledo Police for this one.  This is a combination of John Weglian and his fascist boss, Lucas County Prosecutor Julia Bates.  I hold the people idiots on the grand jury responsible as well; it's their job to see crap like this doesn't happen.  They've failed miserably.  I think it's very likely that Bates hates anyone who has the audacity to defend their own life with a firearm.  It's also likely that her sycophant, John Weglian, feels the same way.  Ergo, persecute Mr. Abu-Karsh until he's found guilty of something, and with a court appointed attorney it's likely that the time remaining to him comes from a jealous clock.

Similarly there's also this news about the remaining criminal, Joseph Hunter:  Toledo man in court, charged with fellow suspect's death

Prosecutors have charged [Joseph] Hunter with Allen's death because they say he wouldn't have died if they hadn't tried to rob the store.

This is more stable dressing.  Hunter committed armed robbery and escaped being conveniently ventilated.  Hunter is not responsible for anything Allen did or suffered.  Allen was an adult and fully capable of getting himself shot to death - he didn't need any help.  Give Hunter a fair trial and a fine hanging, but do it for armed robbery.

This is just the latest example of the despotic elected officials in the oligarchy that claims to be a democracy in the State of Ohio.