Bullied kid & dead friend: What would you do?
Discussion
Take a minute to read this story: www.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,2-1854159,00.html
How do you feel about this? If you were the Judge or on the Jury which was would you want it to play out?
I personally feel really sorry for the kid and hope he doesn't go down on the murder charge. He was pushed into the situation which he saw no other escape from so isn't 100% responsible for his actions but he obviously suffers from quite a rage (12 whacks to the head) so is he a danger to society?
How do you feel about this? If you were the Judge or on the Jury which was would you want it to play out?
I personally feel really sorry for the kid and hope he doesn't go down on the murder charge. He was pushed into the situation which he saw no other escape from so isn't 100% responsible for his actions but he obviously suffers from quite a rage (12 whacks to the head) so is he a danger to society?
ed up, this was supposed to be his friend, if he didn't like being teased he shouldn't have hung around with him. There was a lad I knew who that happened to. He was at a different school and had been teased for years by this other lad. Eventually Andrew snapped turned and whacked him in the head (temple area) and the other lad died instantly. Unknown to everyone, including the bully, he had a weak blood vessel in his brain and when Andrew hit him it burst. Andrew was taken to court (was only 15 at the time) and the judge threw the case out saying that no-one could take that much abuse and not retaliate. He then came to my school was in my class and he is one of the nicest people you could ever meet.
I think the same should happen in this case. No-one could take that much crap over that amount of time without doing something.
I think the same should happen in this case. No-one could take that much crap over that amount of time without doing something.
Very sad. The lad obviously needs help.
I very much doubt that a prison term for murder is going to help anybody, though I am sure that the Mother of the dead boy would disagree.
It sounds as if the boy has been ill treated, mentally and physically all his life by all around him. He must have been very troubled to attack what he considered to be his best friend.
I very much doubt that a prison term for murder is going to help anybody, though I am sure that the Mother of the dead boy would disagree.
It sounds as if the boy has been ill treated, mentally and physically all his life by all around him. He must have been very troubled to attack what he considered to be his best friend.
dick dastardly said:
I know what you're saying because this story has split me right down the middle. I can see it from both sides of the argument and if I was in the Jury I'd really be struggling to find an answer.
Agreed this is one jury I would not wish to be a part of!
I know kids can be cruel and all that but why if he regarded him as his best friend, could he not of expressed his pain at the jibes and asked him to stop.
staceyb said:
There was a lad I knew who that happened to. He was at a different school and had been teased for years by this other lad. Eventually Andrew snapped turned and whacked him in the head (temple area) and the other lad died instantly. Unknown to everyone, including the bully, he had a weak blood vessel in his brain and when Andrew hit him it burst. Andrew was taken to court (was only 15 at the time) and the judge threw the case out saying that no-one could take that much abuse and not retaliate. He then came to my school was in my class and he is one of the nicest people you could ever meet.
I think the same should happen in this case. No-one could take that much crap over that amount of time without doing something.
There is a world of difference between punching someone once and hitting them multiple times with a snooker cue.
silversun said:
I have to say that I don't feel the bloke deserves a murder charge. Having been badly bullied for years when younger, I know the damage it can do to you. Not condoning what he did, but surely a manslaughter charge is more appropriate?
I suffered a fair amount of bullying at school myself; I did not seek to spend my free time with the bullies though.
The facts are in this case that he chose voluntarily to spend his time with his victim. For all we know all that happened was a bit of teasing which has been exaggerated.
It is entirely possible the kid is a psycho who will strike again if left free.
cotty said:
Whatever the outcome I hope that every bully in the country reads this and thinks twice next time they decide to pick on someone.
Hold on a second here, was the accused ever the victim of physical violence from this 'bullying' Kids will be Kids, if I had killed everyone who called me names as a child I would have had to set up an extermination camp to take care of them all.
Jaglover said:
There was a lad I knew who that happened to. He was at a different school and had been teased for years by this other lad. Eventually Andrew snapped turned and whacked him in the head (temple area) and the other lad died instantly. Unknown to everyone, including the bully, he had a weak blood vessel in his brain and when Andrew hit him it burst. Andrew was taken to court (was only 15 at the time) and the judge threw the case out saying that no-one could take that much abuse and not retaliate. He then came to my school was in my class and he is one of the nicest people you could ever meet.
I think the same should happen in this case. No-one could take that much crap over that amount of time without doing something.
There is a world of difference between punching someone once and hitting them multiple times with a snooker cue.
not really
he hits you (it hurts) you hit him back he laughs and hits you again (it hurts the second time as well)
so now what you want to hit him back show him it hurt and you dont want him to hit you. but hitting him yourself didnt work
so need to hit him back with something more solid something you can hit him with.
few days later,
he hits you again, (it hurts just the same) only this time you have something to hand.
you hit him with that he realises the error of his ways.
but if you stop at once, well he will hit you again when you dont have the stick
so now you have to make him realise that there will not be a next time, and that if he thinks about hitting you again, you need to make sure he remembers this and thinks twice next time.
so where do you stop 2 more, 3 more, stop when he cries out enough? or stop when you realise you have gone too far? 12 times?
very tricky, but being bullied and backed into a corner can make people decide to do things that are out of character
edit to add
but yes at 19, should really have been mature enough to cope with it, or able to do something about it like keep out the way.
agree very much that the tone of the article is to provoke sympathy and not sure is the direction it should take. to sit on this case would be interesting, but not something that you would ever have a decision on that was 100% right, but at 19 he is adult to take care of his actions
>> Edited by Code Monkey on Wednesday 2nd November 12:17
Ok; so am I to take it that the consensus opinion of this thread is that the correct response of a 19 year old boy to being teased is to beat his friend to death with a snooker cue and that he should be released forthwith because of course the poor boy is not the slightest danger to society
Jaglover said:
Whatever the outcome I hope that every bully in the country reads this and thinks twice next time they decide to pick on someone.
Hold on a second here, was the accused ever the victim of physical violence from this 'bullying' Kids will be Kids, if I had killed everyone who called me names as a child I would have had to set up an extermination camp to take care of them all.
Im not stating my case in this particular case but if it stops bullying by making the bully fear the retaliation then its ok with me.
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