“Authorities are talking to the mother to determine why the children were home alone. They also want to know why the 11-year-old had access to a handgun. Police believe the mother purchased the handgun because of prior attempted home break-in attempts.” Ya think? The un-named north St. Louis County 11-year old used a handgun this afternoon to defend himself and his 4-year-old sister against two yoots who apparently had tried unsuccessfully to break into the home twice earlier today . . .
But one shot to the head of one of the suspects, a 16-year-old, convinced his partner in crime to leave the vicinity post haste. He’s since been arrested while his less lucky accomplice is currently occupying space in a drawer in the county morgue. All thanks to one of those tools that are known to be useless for self defense.
Did the boy’s mother intentionally give him access to the gun? Had he been trained in its use? Does any of that really matter to those who love those two children right now? You make the call.
[h/t Robert A.]
Nice work, boy!
No kidding! I don’t know how many shots he fired, but he got one headshot and no innocent bystanders or dogs were killed! They ought to hire this kid to train the police!
I think I’ve met that kid while playing Call of Duty…
You win the internet today.
How can so much win fit into one sentence?!?!
I highly doubt the child has is doing well. It is not normal to take human life and be ok with it, and I would assume this boy has the maturity to truly understand that it was him and his sister or the criminal. I’m sure he’s going to feel guilt and sadness. I doubt he’ll be able to cope with it on his own. I’m not saying what he did was wrong, or what the mother did was wrong, she seems to have raised a very responsible, yet very young man. It could have been all kinds of worse. But the situation is not nice. I pray for this child and I hope this incident doesn’t do any permanent harm to him. I pray he quickly understands that it is the fault of these perpetrators and not his. I hope the dead youth’s family doesn’t take revenge on him. This incident will affect him the rest of his life.
And had he not defended himself and his sibling, they might not have had a life to feel remorseful or any other emotion. Tough call, but this child is not at fault for the situation.
Agreed.
“Authorities are talking to the mother to determine why the children were home alone. They also want to know why the 11-year-old had access to a handgun. Police believe the mother purchased the handgun because of prior attempted home break-in attempts.” Because the live there. For self defense.
Are they asking the mother of the 16 year old what the hell the kid was doing burglar work for?
That would probably be racist, or something. Besides, she’s suffered enough, or whatever.
I grew up in North County (bridgeton, hazelwood, florissant). The cops there are not very understanding regarding children having access to guns (generally). Kudos to the mother and to the resolve and maturity of the boy….nay…young man. He stepped up and put on big boy pants. I still live in the general area…..keep in mind ferguson is probably only miles from there (and ferguson could be considered north county).
not probably. Ferguson is only about 1.5 miles from Castle Pointe.
I’m doubting it was an accidental head shot. Is it illegal for an 11 year old to have access to a handgun? Seems to me he was pretty effective. One dead the other ran . Happy ending for the family of the attempted robbery.
In California it’s illegal as heck.
In St Louis, the gun hating mayor and chief like to pretend it’s illegal.
Illegal? Maybe. But who’s going to charge or prosecute, or what jury would convict if so? Sure seems like a good way to end a DA’s career.
http://smartgunlaws.org/child-access-prevention-in-california/
Sounds as if Momma is gonna have some issues with CPS, so what is one more charge of leaving a loaded handgun where it could be accessed by a child, and the gun was used to cause serious bodily or death? Or contributed to the “delinquency” of a minor?
Even if it is illegal, two words: Jury Nulification.
Nope, there is a lovely little part in CA PC 25105
(f) The child obtains, or obtains and discharges, the firearm in a
lawful act of self-defense or defense of another person.
A kid can “magically” get access to a firearm for self-defense, even here. Just don’t tell the cops how your safe magically opened after you gave the code to your trustworthy kids.
Good to know – Thanks for the authoritative source.
It is not illegal for a child to gain access to a fire arm in California if he or she has there parents permission or The child obtained the firearm in a lawful act of self-defense or defense of another person or The child obtained the firearm as a result of an illegal entry into any premises by any person. This is written into to California law.
To clarify hat last part I meant to say You can’t be held criminally liable a child obtained youre firearm as a result of an illegal entry into any premises by any person.
If this was in North County, then it’s not in St. Louis.
I think mom will be OK. This is Missouri, after all.
I’m not sure I’d call an 11-year-old having to kill someone a happy ending. That kid is likely going to have some serious mental trauma from this experience. It’s better that the invader is dead than the kids being hurt, that’s for sure, but it’s a messed up situation all around.
Mental trauma? Please. There is too much pop psychology in our culture. He won. He will have no trauma unless we keep telling him that he should.
That’s not necessarily true; there’s all that’s gone into his make-up thus far to consider.
Rather than trauma, though, I’d say it’s likely he’ll be a bit shaken – hell, cops sometimes heave their cookies following a lethal shot – but he’ll be alright in the end.
Don’t be dismissive; it’s serious. Just hope he’s O.K. at school.
“That kid is likely going to have some serious mental trauma from this experience.”
He shot an evil little savage, which means nothing to worry about, as long as some pansy doesn’t project their insecurities and make him feel bad for protecting his family against ferals. I know some high functioning men, who have more trouble shooting an animal, that they are going to butcher for food, then any of their human kills. An animal just out eating is a gift of resources, a feral savage intent upon harm is why cave men had sharp sticks and didn’t sleep with their back to the front of thew cave.
A good life is up to that young mans mental ability, some can, and some become homeless vets on the street, because they chose the wrong profession.
Tell the young man welcome to the animating contest of liberty, and nice shot to the T-zone. Single shot for the engine block.
That is not the way trauma works. To you and I taking a life in this situation is reasonable and our brains are developed enough to probably be okay. We’ve probably trained hundreds of hours preparing for such an experience. When an exerpience is this powerful, it “rewires” people’s fear/anxiety response. Let’s say with this kid the gunshots are when he felt the most fear. IF that fear is intense enough, he could now associate a car back firing, something heavy dropping, or any loud noise with that previously felt fear. Not logical, but it can be wired into his flight or fight response. These later harmless instances could evoke panic attacks, some mild mania, nightmares, etc. It’s the same reason certain smells might trigger intense fear in a rape victim, or a plane flying overhead might send a GI into a state of mania thinking he’s back in Iraq. Our limbic systems form new neuropathways from traumatic experiences as a way to protect ourselves and be ready for the next time that happens. Their minds cannot out logic nearly instantaneous flushes of adrenaline when something triggers that trauma.
That being said there is a chance this won’t effect this kid at all. I agree, if you don’t tell him he’s having trauma, his chances of avoiding it all together are better. Still though, this has zero to do with toughness, and everything to do with biochemistry. A 11 year olds brain is much more impressionable to something like this bs you & I.
The panic attacks, nightmares, and mania can be managed through logic as the kid gets older, but no amount of logic will stop him from waking up in the middle of the night sweating, having a panic attack, dreaming that the gun didn’t work, him and his sibling are doomed or being tortured. Really trauma comes down to luck and body chemistry.
Your complete is ability to even understand what trauma doesn’t suprise me. Talk to a physician at the VA and tell me trauma isn’t real.
Edit- not the most articulate, I’m on my phone, but you get the point.
I’d be concerned about the kid getting kicked out of school even though no crime was committed.
I had my own rifles in my own closet from 12-17 years old. Apparently that was illegal in the state I was living. I just found out about the law years and years later.
Castle Pointe is a ROUGH drug infested area in st Louis county (not too far from the city). I wouldn’t go there without back up and spare mags. in daylight. never at night. Kid is gonna need counseling, but he protected his 4 yr old sister from some wanna be choir boys who meant to do them harm.
suck on it Shannon.
To be honest castle point is not all that rough anymore…of course it still has it’s moments like any part but it’s a pretty quiet neighborhood and close to hathaway manor which is quiet.
So why was the door unlocked, especially since there were two atemted break ins earlier?
Guess the kid’s not perfect
I was terrible about locking doors all the way through my teens and twenties. I can’t imagine I was the only one that had trouble paying attention to doors.
Who says kids today don’t persevere. 3 times was a…well, not a charm per se.
jeez, you people. children have no business handling guns. leaving guns around where children can get access will result in more accidental deaths than can be made-up for in self-defense shootings. better these two youngsters had been injured or killed by bad guys, than allow a risk that some other children might accidentally kill another.
get a grip. self-defense is for adults. we may lose a few small ones to vandals or criminals, but better all the other children be free of the threat of death by gun, than one or two actually save their lives by grabbing a gun for defense.
you just gotta accept that in the quest for protecting the children, there are going to be some unfortunate losses. price of living in a safe world.
Gotta love sarcasm
don’t forget – funeral homes in STL are running 1/2 off specials on children’s funerals. . . . I am sure Bloomy would pony up the $$ in the name of principle.
Self-defense is for adults. we may lose a few small ones to vandals or criminals, but better all the other children be free of the threat of death by gun, than one or two actually save their lives by grabbing a gun for defense. Are you serious? If you are you’re an idiot.
if you did not pick-up on the use of gun grabber logic, the fault is mine. trying to learn how to write like mush-heads on the left. it is actually more difficult than anticipated.
Drink heavily before hand, then ride a unicycle with no helmet on. I hear that helps you get into their mindset.
ok. added those to my checklist.
I’d say the kid earned a raise in his allowance.
and a sh!tload of babysitting requests . . . . we pay $12-15/hr.
And we have a winner!
An 11 year old girl shot a man stabbing her mother to death only a few blocks down the road from me last year. The authorities didn’t question the girl’s access to her mother’s handgun one bit and instead applauded her.
I drive through STL annually when visiting the folks. That place can sink to the bottom of the Mississippi for all I care. Your highway system is terrible as is your law enforcement.
I like our highways just fine, and I only run into LEO’s at the range. What’s to complain about? Maybe you mean downtown? STL encompasses 30 minutes north and south of there and a good hour west — few potholes and fine cops, and I’m here everyday.
LEO’s give CCW holders a break for speeding. I have been stopped 6 times in 3 yrs. always well over the limit by 15-20. just warnings. . . .
I-44E to I-55 ramp can burn in the deepest pits. Also, when you guys had the construction going on, almost none of the signs for Westbound 44 were updated. A “detour” sign took me in a complete circle. Not to mention all your drivers apparently just don’t give a fk about the law. I’d *almost* rather drive through Dallas. Almost.
The highways aren’t all that terrible, try out Manchester or Olive surface streets next time you’re in town.
I’ll agree there’s a general disregard for traffic laws around here, plus a complete lack of comprehension of the word “merge”
World-class zoo and botanic gardens, STL ain’t so bad.
Head shot? I read a study done regarding video games that rewarded points for gunshots, then they asked the teens playing that game and the control group to have an airsoft or nerf war and there was a significant higher amount of head shots coming from the group playing the violent viedeo game with headshot bonuses. That aside good job kid. At 11 I was in charge of my siblings, and if a thief had tried to kick in the door, he would have left with a .410 slug through his intestinal tract.
“Authorities are talking to the mother to determine why the children were home alone.” Umm…because perhaps it’s lawful and the 11 y/o could be trusted?
A number of people on this site claim to have begun shooting by themselves at that age or younger. Agree it’s important to keep a 4 year old away from firearms. An 11 year old? Depends, but not clear from article if there were a law violation.
I can see circumstances where it would be perfectly fine for solo firearms use by an 11 y/o. Particularly for girls as they have better judgement at that age.
Disappointing that the original article fails to mention any counseling for the children, just criticism of the {single?] parent.
my 10 yr old has been asking when she gets the combo to the gun safe in the bedroom. . . . I told her when she is able to stay home by herself. I then asked what happens if someone breaks into the house. She calmly responded “run to your bedroom. call 911. get the gun out the safe. let them have anything in the house they want but if they come into the bedroom, drop them.” Like the Bible says, train up a child in the way. . ..
She calmly responded “run to your bedroom. call 911. get the gun out the safe. let them have anything in the house they want but if they come into the bedroom, drop them.”
And a proud dad you must be!
(Fist-Bump) 🙂
.
Two wrongs
Break in,
11 year old in charge of of a 4 year old
Made a right
@KCK: Two wrongs ? One 11 year old that was mature enough and well trained with a firearm to the point that he was able to stop the bad guys and not hurt himself or his sister in the process. Sounds like that 11 year old is pretty good at taking care of himself and his sister. Wonder how my first babysitter was ? Probably not much older than this kid.
The year a kid turns twelve you can’t get a child care credit on your tax return because the kid’s old enough to take care of himself and take babysitting jobs watching smaller kids.
I can’t see why being 11 automatically disqualifies him from babysitting his own sister.
Already doing society a huge favor at 11 years old!
Right on.
…but guns kill children.
Guns don’t kill children, children kill children.
“Did the boy’s mother intentionally give him access to the gun? Had he been trained in its use? Does any of that really matter to those who love those two children right now?”
Probably, and probably; Of course; it’s why they still have two children instead of a funeral to plan.
Hell, 11 isn’t too young to be at home alone; I started at 9.
As to access to a gun, that’s well and good provided the kid is responsible – which he appears to be.
It’s a judgement call, and the call was in this case apparently correct.
Hell, I was wandering alone in downtown D.C., exploring the Smithsonian when I was 9. I’m thinking it was safer then (1950s), but still…
And all children are not safe around guns?
Instead of calling this justifiable self defense, the grabbers will call this “another child died from gun violence”.
Wherein I call it “For the Children”
Too true.
A warped narrative, that, whose proponents twist what they can and ignore what won’t twist.
Wonder if climate deniers, evolution deniers, birthers, gun deniers and all the other willfully ignorant share a common ancestor?
“Instead of calling this justifiable self defense, the grabbers will call this “another child died from gun violence”.
Unfortunately, the grabbers may be right on that.
See Dirk’s update below.
That 11 year-old just might be a stone-cold killer…
It’s probably one of those rare single parent households where mom has a job, you know the thing you do to earn money, and you can’t afford daycare, and your addict babysitter keeps calling in sick? I’d bet a donut Mom works, if it was an Obama welfare crackhead mom there would be more kids and she would have never left home, except to score. Oh and the cops wouldn’t bother asking why the kid had a gun, he’d already be crippin.
newsflash: Media is saying it was not a defensive use. . . . witnesses claim the 11 yr old deliberately shot the 16 yr old outside the house
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/year-old-st-louis-county-boy-fatally-shoots–year/article_a2898e6e-37aa-5eea-9bb6-14c71622f03a.html
Criminy!
“newsflash: Media is saying it was not a defensive use. . . . witnesses claim the 11 yr old deliberately shot the 16 yr old outside the house”
A neighbor made a statement that the 11 year old shooter has been known to break into and rob neighborhood homes.
2 eyewitness said the 11 year old walked up to the 16 year old and shot him in the head.
That kid and the mom have got real problems now…
Do they try 11 year olds for murder 1?
I don’t know just how there could be a conflict in stories. The police know where the body and brains were found, was it out on the sidewalk, or in the house?
I hope that’s wrong… 🙁
Instead of deploying them picking up trash on the side of the road as community service, perhaps we could put convicted young thieves on brain detail in people’s homes after such events?
Yeah, I don’t think the regular cleaning guy does brains…
Good one, Other Barry
“Well, I’m a mushroom-cloud-layin’ m*****f*****, m*****f*****! Every time my fingers touch brain, I’m Superfly T.N.T., I’m the Guns of the Navarone! IN FACT, WHAT THE F*** AM I DOIN’ IN THE BACK? YOU’RE THE M*****F***** WHO SHOULD BE ON BRAIN DETAIL! We’re f*****n’ switchin’! I’m washin’ the windows, and you’re pickin’ up this n******r’s skull.” -Jules
Well, this turned from a feel-good hero story for gun nuts into yet another cautionary tale for liberals.
11 year old home burglar shoots 16 year old teen in the head who was screaming at him for stealing stuff.
“Whats a Yoot”?
“Oh, excuse me your honor, two youths”.
An ok movie but darn it, I like Joe Pesci.
Here in Texas if a child gains access to a firearm it is a defense if it “consisted of lawful defense by the child of people or property”.
But abandoning a child charge is a felony.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yq3N46ciKJw
Anti-gunners want them cops to dig up some dirt post-haste so they can vilify this youth for his heinous crime of protecting himself and a child. SMH
I guess that may not be what happened. Now I have guilt for my comment.
Self defense is an affirmative defense to most weapons violations in California and I’d imagine the rest of the country. The mother won’t be charged and the boy certainly won’t. One down, a few million to go.
“Affirmative Defense” is a tricky thing. An “affirmative defense” can only be asserted at trial. Normally, the prosecutor has to prove you committed the crime. Where an “affirmative defense” applies, the crime is stipulated (you did it, no proof needed). The difference is the prosecutor has to prove you had no defensible reason to commit the offense. That is, the prosecutor must prove you did not act in self-defense. Must prove no “reasonable person” would act as you did. Pretty stiff climb for the prosecutor. BUT…you are charged, and you are in court, and you are out fees and bail, and whatever. And out of work. You bear all the burden of being charged with the crime. No prosecutor who wishes to make a name will be deterred by an “affirmative defense”. Their only concern is ruining your life as an example.
Well this story sure went from “atta’ boy” to “aw shit”…Hope the little 4-year old girl has loving relatives who will take her in rather than let CPS send her into Foster care.
Having been raised essentially by one Parent I can equate with this Moms dilemma and now her sons! for the Son you did the right thing, no matter what the Laws lackey’s portray!
to these Social worker types and anti-gun crowd GGF’ed,
There were many times my mom had to leave me alone with only a 20ga in the house, Eleven years old, used it once never fired a shot. a drunk was doing a B&E, about the time I pulled the hammer back he was long gone, cops picked him up about 200 feet from door way! I’m guessing but it sounds like the mother was very responsible about teaching fire arm safety and usage or the kid new where it was and decided not to be a victim in his own house! Our Nanny Government assumes too much Authority over our Children and with this control they teach pacification so they hate whoever go outside their system
Oh, damn, I just saw this story referenced on the MSN page that comes up when I access my browser. The headline: “Police investigating why 11-year old allegedly shot, killed 16-year-old”. Somebody got an “A” in Slanted Headlines 101 at J-school I guess.
“They also want to know why the 11-year-old had access to a handgun”
Isn’t it obvious?
I’ll bet the young man doesn’t even own a single piece of Under Armor clothing.
Another case of a DGU by someone who doesn’t operate operationally!
+1
If UA makes DOC garments, he might get some soon.
Dirk Diggler says:
http://www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/year-old-st-louis-county-boy-fatally-shoots–year/article_a2898e6e-37aa-5eea-9bb6-14c71622f03a.html
Kinda throws a wrench into the whole: you’ll be over powered, your weapon taken from you and used against you argument, huh?
The police shoot between 2 and 30 times or eight times in the back as you run away. let me get this straight, it is said the 11 year old walked up to the dead 16 year old boy and shot him in the head. That sounds to weird
I grew up around guns that were NEVER locked with ammunition an arms left away and not locked. Then I lived in the country. mroresident2016.com
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