Man Hits Would-Be Carjacker in Face with Ring of Keys

March 23rd, 2006 @ 11:27am
by Associated Press

A strong arm and a good aim foils a carjacking in Tucson.

A 47-year-old man told Tucson police that a man walked up to him armed with a knife and demanded his truck.

According to a police report, the victim responded by winding up and pitching his ring of 50 workplace keys at the suspect. The keys hit the would-be carjacker in the face and he took off.

The incident occurred Tuesday morning on East 30th Street near South Craycroft.

Paranoid About Restaurant Shootings?

Strange coincidence that there were three shootings at California Denny's last week?

All of them are unrelated, but there have been a number of high-profile shootings at restaurants in the past -- can you say Luby's and McDonald's?

So are you being paranoid when you go into a restaurant armed? Or you specifically choose a table or chair with a clear view of the front doors?

Actually, no. Now, it's probably true that, statistically, you aren't more likely to be attacked in a restaurant than anywhere else. But I have seen some stats that show that late-night restaurants that cater to the younger crowds have a higher rate of crime (including shootings) than other restaurants. I would also think that the concentration of people (potential victims) usually present in a restaurant (and malls, etc.) make for an attractive target for deranged shooters. Widespread media coverage of successful restaurant shootings compounds the attractiveness for copycat shooters as well.

Personally, I would not feel uncomfortable treating a restaurant as a higher risk area.

We like to say that you're not paranoid if you are constantly thinking about being attacked. But if you are constantly thinking about being attacked by vampires, that's paranoid.

Carlie Brucia's Killer Sentenced to Death

Joseph P. Smith, the 39-year-old former mechanic who raped and killed 11-year-old Carlie Brucie in 2004, has been sentenced to death.

Carlie's stepfather, Steven Kansler, said, "I just feel that Carlie has been heard."

The photo of Carlie's abduction, caught on a carwash security camera, never fails to rock people who see it -- knowing that they are looking at a young girl's last moments of life.

I've had plenty of people comment that it appears that Carlie just doesn't know what to do and is basically just willingly going to her torture and death.

It does seem that way in that one snapshot. We don't know what she did later...did she scream, did she fight, did she beg for mercy?

Unfortunately, in a stressful situation, it's difficult to just spontaneously come up with the correct solution. You need to either have thought out a possible solution or -- better yet -- receive training on what to do.

You will fall back on your training during any life-or-death situation. So make sure you and your daughters get rape prevention training. Now. Before it's too late.

Imette Lured to Her Death with Ride Offer?

According to a witness who was sleeping in a park across the street from The Falls in SoHo, Imette St. Guillen was lured to her brutal rape and murder with the comforting words, "Don't worry, I'll take you home."

Allegedly that’s what suspect Darryl Littlejohn said to Imette when he led her out of the bar and into his blue van. Littlejohn was a bouncer at the bar.
Miguel Angel Cruz said, "He was saying, 'Don't worry, I'll take you home.' He put her in the van in the front seat and they left. She left like he was giving her a ride."

St. Guillen was raped and strangled, her body was found 17 hours later wrapped in a blanket and dumped in Brooklyn.

Some of the details of her condition are chilling – both her hands and feet had been bound. A sock was stuffed in her mouth and packing tape wrapped around her head. It is probable that the packing tape held a towel or some other cloth that was wrapped around Imette’s head.

Imagine the complete and utter terror that this poor person endured at the hands of her attacker – bound and tortured, struggling to breathe with a sock in her mouth. The torture probably lasted for a quite a while before the attacker finally snuffed out her life by slowly strangling her to death.

Imette, a 24-year-old graduate student, was reportedly severely intoxicated and out at the bar by herself at 4 a.m.

This was clearly a case where Imette should have “stayed with people” to ensure her safety. Don’t go to a place where there is privacy for an attacker. Stay with people and the relative safety they bring. Another aspect that has not come out was that perhaps Imette's drink could have been spiked with a "date rape" drug, many which are commonly available which would have explained her extreme intoxication.

Ray Nagin Confiscated Guns in N.O., Can it Happen to You?

I’ve just been reminded that Ray Nagin, Mayor of the City of New Orleans, is still in contempt of a temporary restraining order handed down by a judge Sept. 12, 2005 ordering an end to all illegal gun confiscations in that city in the aftermath of Katrina.

According to the legal order, the City of New Orleans must rescind its order to confiscate citizens' guns and return those which were confiscated. Apparently, the mayor and the city have not done either.

I don’t know the specifics of the restraining order, but it shook me a bit when remembering that Ray Nagin called for the confiscation of firearms from all residents during all the rioting, looting and murderous shooting going on in the anarchy following the hurricane.

No cops, no firemen, no military, no law and no order. (A fast-selling t-shirt at this years Mardi Gras had the initials for the New Orleans Police Department – N.O.P.D. – with the caption, “Not Our Problem Dude”). This is precisely when citizens need their tools to be able to protect themselves. I was stunned to see the knee-jerk reaction by an American politician and police chief. Were you as dismayed as I watching the cop slam the elderly woman in her kitchen as he attempted to take her revolver?

The fall out for you and me?

I think you are going to have to count on the strong possibility of a public confiscation of your self-defense firearms during the time when you are most vulnerable.

ASIS Publishes Workplace Violence Guide

Alexandria, VA (March 1, 2006) – ASIS International (ASIS)has published the final version of its Workplace Violence Prevention and Response Guideline. The guideline is designed to help organizations understand the scope and far-reaching consequences of the problem that affects an estimated 1.7 million employees directly and millions more indirectly each year, and to serve as a practical tool in helping employers develop a proactive and reasoned approach to dealing with workplace violence issues.

The guideline—produced by the ASIS Commission on Guidelines—presents practical definitions of workplace violence and the continuum of acts and behavior, from less severe to more severe, and a classification of workplace violence incidents based on the relationship of perpetrator to victim. It outlines prevention strategies and practices for detecting, investigating, managing, and following up on threats or violent incidents that occur in a workplace.

A key conclusion of the guideline is that no organization can assume that it will be immune to the wide range of conduct that falls within the rubric of workplace violence.

“Workplace violence knows no boundaries in terms of time, place and circumstances,” said Michael A. Crane, CPP, the Commission member responsible for the development of the Workplace Violence Guideline. “Because this problem can surface anytime, anywhere, with little or no warning, it is one of the most constant and pressing challenges that any employer must face.”

While legal liability and other tangible financial costs are the most visible concerns facing an organization in the wake of a workplace violence incident, the guideline warns of the more fundamental costs to employers unprepared to detect, manage and prevent such incidents, in the form of disrupted productivity, low employee morale and a public image that communicates a disregard for employee safety. Conversely, an organization equipped to handle the broad range of workplace violence issues is more likely to not only avoid such costly incidents, but also will benefit from feelings of confidence, security and safety that characterize a successful enterprise.

“We are proud to offer this guideline as the first guideline after the U. S. Department of Homeland Security awarded ASIS a Designation for its Guidelines Program under the SAFETY Act (Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technology Act of 2002),” said Regis Becker, CPP, Chairman of the Commission on Guidelines. “This Designation is significant in three ways in that it establishes ASIS’ guidelines as qualified to be a ‘technology’ that could reduce the risks or effects of terrorism, limits ASIS’ liability for acts arising out of the use of the guidelines in connection with an act of terrorism, and precludes claims of third party damages against organizations using the guidelines as a means to prevent or limit the scope of terrorist acts.”

Up to five copies of the printed guideline are free to ASIS members; the non-member fee is $10. To order, please contact the ASIS Call Center at 703-519-6200 or email asis@asisonline.org. This document is also available free of charge in its entirety at http://www.asisonline.org/guidelines/guidelineswpvfinal.pdf.

For more information about ASIS Guidelines, either published or in development, visit the ASIS Web site at http://www.asisonline.org/guidelines/guidelines.htm.