“He never stopped saying that, and made every attempt to hurt the police officers with his automobile because that’s the only weapon he had,” [NOPD crisis negotiator James] Arey said. “Our officers are well trained to recognize crises and attempts at ‘suicide by cop,’ and that’s what this was.”
He was eventually subdued with a Taser and is in custody under a suicide watch.
This is terribly upsetting to me. John is a passionate fan of New Orleans jazz and a researcher specializing in Kid Ory. He's been a guest in my home, and I have talked with him about jazz many, many times. In all the years I've known him he has never been anything but a cheerful, well-balanced man. And yet what has happened to him is now commonplace.
This city is slowly going mad.
5 comments:
Commonplace? That's not good. I can't imagine the atmosphere that would make this sort of thing commonplace, because of course where I live everything is perfect. If it starts getting to you, move.
The jesus and mo cartoons are hilarious but Blogger commenting doesn't work for that post. Obviously the act of a vengeful God.
I wrote about this story on my own blog. It seems we have common friends.
http://cultureforall.blogspot.com/2006/08/everyday-tragedy-in-new-orleans.html
Very sad story.
Don: Obviously. I had a terrible time just getting that story to post.
Two T-P op-eds provide followup of a sort. Jarvis Deberry has been talking to mental health professionals about the emotional storms we can expect as the first anniversary approaches. Nobody knows how bad it's going to be, but it's going to be bad.
Jed Horne, a colleague of John's, reports that in the shocked and hushed newsroom the morning after this happened, everyone was wondering the same thing: "Who else among us has been pushed to the breaking point and just doesn't know it yet?"
"Who else among us has been pushed to the breaking point and just doesn't know it yet?"
As you may know, the Company is shrinking. So some of us occasionally have the bad taste to wonder which quiet unassuming engineer is suddenly going to show up at the door with a high-powered rifle. You know, morbid humor works best.
Yeah, joke about it. Then when he shows up and is picking his targets, he'll look at you and think, "Naah, skip him. He's amusing."
I guess that's an example, isn't it.
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