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POS nerd sentenced in swatting death

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ajax

ajax 2620

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Lots of blame to go around. He should have gotten life.

But I really wonder about the part in bold. Basically, in any no-knock raid, even a mistaken one, the chances of you ending up dead are high. And the cops completely wash their hands of it.

WICHITA, Kan. — A California man was sentenced Friday to 20 years in prison for making bogus emergency calls to authorities across the U.S., including one that led police to fatally shoot a Kansas man following a dispute between two online players over $1.50 bet in the Call of Duty: WWII video game.

U.S. District Judge Eric Melgren sentenced Tyler R. Barriss, 26, under a deal in which he pleaded guilty in November to a total of 51 federal charges related to fake calls and threats. The plea agreement called for a sentence of at least 20 years — well over the 10 years recommended under sentencing guidelines. Prosecutors believe it is the longest prison sentence ever imposed for the practice of "swatting," a form of retaliation in which someone reports a false emergency to get authorities, particularly a SWAT team, to descend on an address.

Melgren said the case went into "uncharted legal territory," that the law has not caught up with technology and the charges didn't address the severity of what happened.

The 2017 death of 28-year-old Andrew Finch drew national attention to swatting. But Barriss had made dozens of such calls before that and was "known as the guy on Twitter that is good at this," his attorney, Richard Federico, said.

Authorities say an Ohio gamer recruited Barriss to "swat" a Wichita gamer, but that the address they used was old, leading police to Finch, who was not involved in the video game or the dispute. Barriss called Wichita police from Los Angeles on Dec. 28, 2017, to falsely report a shooting and kidnapping at that Wichita address. Finch answered the door, and an officer shot the unarmed man.

Barriss apologized to Finch's family on Friday, saying he takes full responsibility for what happened.

"If I could take it back, I would, but there is nothing I can do," Barriss told the court. "I am so sorry for that."

Federico described Barriss as a loner who "found solace in the gaming community" as he became a "serial swatter." His best friend is someone he knows only online, Frederico said, his father died when he was young and his mother abandoned him.

Outside the courthouse, his sister, Dominica Finch, said Barriss got what he deserved, but that she also wants to see police held accountable. Finch's family has sued the city of Wichita and the officers involved. Police have said the officer who shot Finch thought he was reaching for a gun because he moved a hand toward his waistband. Prosecutors declined to charge the officer.

 

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/crime/california-man-sentenced-to-20-years-in-fatal-swatting/ar-BBVn019?ocid=ientp#page=2

 

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Cajun

Cajun 11722

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Maybe, just maybe if they toned down the full battle rattle schtick Kansas dork would still be sucking air irrespective of California nerds phone calls.

Just spitballin' here.

If you're so volatile and full of hubris that you are easily duped into killing innocent people to the extent that the term "swatting" becomes common to our language, you may need to take a long look in the mirror.

 

Edited by Cajun
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Drew

Drew 2516

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Yeah sure, let's turn this into another Police Bad, Person who committed the crime also bad, but not as fun as hating cops bad thread.

You're absolutely right the Cops shouldn't have even come close to killing the victim.  That's ridiculous, and crazy the cop isn't being punished at all it seems.  But need more anger directed towards the idiot that faked a call.

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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31529

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Very conflicting deal.  I'm never going to be happy about a sentence that actually exceeds the Guidelines, much less doubles it.  I'm guessing the guy suffers from some mental frailties that don't absolve him of the crime, but are probably worthy of consideration in the punishment.

And the most important question of all, does 20 years accomplish anything that 10 doesn't?

Edited by TwiceHorn
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bolverk

bolverk 29709

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2 minutes ago, Drew said:

Yeah sure, let's turn this into another Police Bad, Person who committed the crime also bad, but not as fun as hating cops bad thread.

You're absolutely right the Cops shouldn't have even come close to killing the victim.  That's ridiculous, and crazy the cop isn't being punished at all it seems.  But need more anger directed towards the idiot that faked a call.

The nerd is going to jail and does not represent my interests in any capacity. Shitty people, like him, who do shitty things should be publicly scorned and punished to the full extent of the law. He truly is a piece of shit and is getting his due. Anger against him does nothing to change the past.

The police are an arm of the State who fulfill a vital role in upholding the law, as well as protecting lives and property in our Democratic Republic. As citizens, we should be hyper-vigilant that those who are called to serve and protect are answerable to "We the People." On the other hand, anger directed at the cop can be constructive. In doing so, we can work to prevent tragedies such as this from occurring in the future.

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The People’s Elbow

The People’s Elbow 707

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42 minutes ago, Drew said:

Yeah sure, let's turn this into another Police Bad, Person who committed the crime also bad, but not as fun as hating cops bad thread.

You're absolutely right the Cops shouldn't have even come close to killing the victim.  That's ridiculous, and crazy the cop isn't being punished at all it seems.  But need more anger directed towards the idiot that faked a call.

lol wut? The idiot is being punished. 

The trained professional, on the other hand, whose job is to quickly and tactically assess and mitigate threats while preserving life, ostensibly with a bias for deescalation, isn’t being punished. You’re right, it’s ridiculous.

You seem to confuse “cop-hating equivocation” with holding them to a higher standard.

 

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Drew

Drew 2516

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10 minutes ago, The People’s Elbow said:

lol wut? The idiot is being punished. 

The trained professional, on the other hand, whose job is to quickly and tactically assess and mitigate threats while preserving life, ostensibly with a bias for deescalation, isn’t being punished. You’re right, it’s ridiculous.

You seem to confuse “cop-hating equivocation” with holding them to a higher standard.

 

Not what I said at all, but doesn't surprise me that that's your first thought.

 

My point was we can have this thread without it dissolving into the typical Surly "cops evil" trope it always does. I clearly stated the Cops handled this wrong and it should have never even come close to a situation where there was even a possibility that someone could get killed. 

Need to calm down bro.

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Cajun

Cajun 11722

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2 hours ago, bolverk said:

The nerd is going to jail and does not represent my interests in any capacity. Shitty people, like him, who do shitty things should be publicly scorned and punished to the full extent of the law. He truly is a piece of shit and is getting his due. Anger against him does nothing to change the past.

The police are an arm of the State who fulfill a vital role in upholding the law, as well as protecting lives and property in our Democratic Republic. As citizens, we should be hyper-vigilant that those who are called to serve and protect are answerable to "We the People." On the other hand, anger directed at the cop can be constructive. In doing so, we can work to prevent tragedies such as this from occurring in the future.

All of this.  Well put

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Cajun

Cajun 11722

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2 hours ago, Hank Scorpio said:

Getting the police to murder your enemies for you is pretty smart though. 

Um, I’m thinking that spending the next 20 yrs in pound me in the ass prison doesn’t quite jive w/pretty smart.

Get away with it?

Yeah, that’d be smart.

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HoustonHorn

HoustonHorn 1062

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One of them is sentenced to 20 years. That's Justice so people aren't angry. On the other hand...

Yeah sure, let's turn this into another Police Bad, Person who committed the crime also bad, but not as fun as hating cops bad thread.
You're absolutely right the Cops shouldn't have even come close to killing the victim.  That's ridiculous, and crazy the cop isn't being punished at all it seems.  But need more anger directed towards the idiot that faked a call.
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TwiceHorn

TwiceHorn 31529

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3 hours ago, XYZ said:

Prevent the guy from getting other people killed for an extra 10 years?

If you assume he's immediately going to recidivate.  He's a skinny, white kid probably on the spectrum somewhere or otherwise deranged/demented.  He probably needs some psychological help, which he won't get in the joint.  He's going to be traumatized plenty, he's not going to turn into a big boss shotcallah.  A guy like him is probably going to do everything in his power, maybe with a little court help, never to return to prison again whether he serves 5, 10, 15, or 20 years.

A 20 year term is just going to make him more nonfunctional in society when he gets out.  And that's a real problem. Most everyone gets out, you can't and shouldn't keep them forever.  And the longer they're in based on some incapacity notion that has no basis in fact, or on pure retribution, the less likely hes going to be able to function when he gets out.  So he becomes a ward of the state or a criminal for survival, neither of which are satisfactory outcomes.

Edited by TwiceHorn
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SDG

SDG 3319

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18 hours ago, TwiceHorn said:

If you assume he's immediately going to recidivate.  He's a skinny, white kid probably on the spectrum somewhere or otherwise deranged/demented.  He probably needs some psychological help, which he won't get in the joint.  He's going to be traumatized plenty, he's not going to turn into a big boss shotcallah.  A guy like him is probably going to do everything in his power, maybe with a little court help, never to return to prison again whether he serves 5, 10, 15, or 20 years.

A 20 year term is just going to make him more nonfunctional in society when he gets out.  And that's a real problem. Most everyone gets out, you can't and shouldn't keep them forever.  And the longer they're in based on some incapacity notion that has no basis in fact, or on pure retribution, the less likely hes going to be able to function when he gets out.  So he becomes a ward of the state or a criminal for survival, neither of which are satisfactory outcomes.

I agree with all of this. I’m not a law dog so take this question with a grain of salt; would he have gotten 20 years if officer trigger happy hadn’t opened fire?  

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hopkinsnhorns

hopkinsnhorns 533

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Fuck the pussy-ass DA for not even pursuing charges for the cop the fired w/ no reason, warning, or justification.  He's an enabler of this sort of unnecessary deadly escalation.

Fuck the trigger happy cop.  I hope that cowardly fuck is haunted by his actions until he takes his own life, but you know he's too much of a puss to even follow through with that.

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RPM

RPM 26341

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Am I out of line thinking a lifetime ban from the internet is not unreasonable? Enforce it with a 20 year prison sentence for each violation. This is why he can't have nice things.

Edited by RPM
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ajax

ajax 2620

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1 hour ago, hopkinsnhorns said:

Fuck the pussy-ass DA for not even pursuing charges for the cop the fired w/ no reason, warning, or justification.  He's an enabler of this sort of unnecessary deadly escalation.

Fuck the trigger happy cop.  I hope that cowardly fuck is haunted by his actions until he takes his own life, but you know he's too much of a puss to even follow through with that.

That's assuming the cop is haunted by it in the first place.

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XYZ

XYZ 2154

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On 3/29/2019 at 9:18 PM, TwiceHorn said:

If you assume he's immediately going to recidivate.  He's a skinny, white kid probably on the spectrum somewhere or otherwise deranged/demented.  He probably needs some psychological help, which he won't get in the joint.  He's going to be traumatized plenty, he's not going to turn into a big boss shotcallah.  A guy like him is probably going to do everything in his power, maybe with a little court help, never to return to prison again whether he serves 5, 10, 15, or 20 years.

A 20 year term is just going to make him more nonfunctional in society when he gets out.  And that's a real problem. Most everyone gets out, you can't and shouldn't keep them forever.  And the longer they're in based on some incapacity notion that has no basis in fact, or on pure retribution, the less likely hes going to be able to function when he gets out.  So he becomes a ward of the state or a criminal for survival, neither of which are satisfactory outcomes.

I don’t disagree with what you say. I just threw that out as a possible reason the judge/jury could have had for giving the guy a long sentence. The “correction” system in this country is fucked up. People get the shit beat out of them in prison, and many come out of prison more hardened and filled with resentment than when they went in. And then, every job application asks if you’ve ever been convicted of a felony. That’s bullshit, same as the sex offender registry.

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