Officer Indicted in Death of Randallstown Teen

Buck Harmon June 28, 2012 at 01:42 pm

God does not judge...

Buck Harmon June 28, 2012 at 01:45 pm

Human beings judge because of what they don't know more than anything...
Judges are far from gods...they are corrupt by default...

Laura Jackson June 28, 2012 at 01:51 pm

Sorry to inform you, Buck--but, God DOES indeed Judge. If you are an Atheist, it does not matter. God will still be judging you (one day). And, while here on this Earth, man may judge others (right or wrong), God is the ULTIMATE judge of EVERYONE.

Buck Harmon June 28, 2012 at 02:03 pm

If that's what you believe and you are ok with that...cool, but I believe that if there is a "god" that he or she already knows all and therefore has no need or reason to judge.
What would be the point.....This whole judging thing is much like religion....it's totally human being made and has caused world wide problems throughout all of recorded history. To cling to a belief does not make it real in the eyes of others necessarily...

Evets June 28, 2012 at 02:07 pm

I do not see anywhere in his post where Mr. Callahan is of the opinion that the police officer should 'get off.' He clearly states that guilt or innocence will be determined via the legal system.

Buck Harmon June 28, 2012 at 02:19 pm

The cop was trained to deal with situations under pressure....he chased the kid down and killed him...if he chased the kid down, this could not have been self defense...
Perhaps the cop was not trained properly by the police force...maybe the entire police department should be held accountable as well...

Ginger Reposado June 28, 2012 at 03:17 pm

It's definitely a teaching moment for anybody. You never know what the other person is thinking during an altercation. It's like playing Russian Roulette. A seamingly docile person could be triggered to bash your skull in if they see you as a threat to their person, or property. Life really is like a box of chocolates. I'm one of those that believe in KARMA and God's judgement, but I still have my times where I lose it. It's a chance not always worth taking. I pray for all those involved in this tragedy.

Darnell Williams June 28, 2012 at 04:09 pm

I live in Randallstown and have for nearly 30 years. My son is a year older and went to school with Chris. From all accounts he was a very good kid who always seemed to have good intentions. Everyone always gave him high marks for the good kid he was. Peers and adults alike. The probably is no matter how good your intentions are most of the time, one act of stupidity or "prank" can cost you. Hear me out....I don't agree with the deadly force used by Mr. Laboard and nor do I feel like Chris deserved what he got. I grieve for him and his family. The problem is that one time you put yourself in a compromising act you truly can't determine what the other person's reaction will be when you make him a "victim". Mr. Laboard was the victim of a so called prank and did react harshly. I'm sure he had no intention that night while him the pravacy of his home that by night's end he would kill someone. I'm sure he now regret's the act. From all accounts, he too is a good person. Now, one life is gone another may be ruined and the families and friends of them both will suffer. I say we have to teach our youth to place themselves in better situations and know when to walk away. Don't give someone to overract due to what most would call "a prank". Don't be a perpetrator who treads on someone else that will extract the worst reaction possible.....the taking of your life. I pray for both "victims" and their families and friends.

Mari June 28, 2012 at 04:16 pm

Marcela,
I realize you are upset about the death of Christopher and do not think the indictment went far enough; I am guessing that (1) your are a teen or young adult and (2) you knew Christopher and/or his family and/or his friends. If that latter is correct, you do have my sympathies. It's never easy to see someone you know and like die, no matter the circumstances, age, etc. That said, you are not making much sense. The lack of punctuation alone makes your posts harder to read. Saying that teens are allowed to do vandalism simply because they are teens is ridiculous. A person's age does not give them free reign to damage property or even attempt to do so. There are consequences for actions. This consequence does seem rather harsh for the circumstances as reported, but people, including teens, need to understand that they can't taunt others, attempt to damage their homes, etc., and then just think that nothing will happen to them. (part 2 to follow)

Mari June 28, 2012 at 04:17 pm

Part 2 of my response to Marcela
As far as saying that "our future young adults die more of the hands by police than any other death..."? I THINK this means that you believe that the police are killing more young adults than any other cause, including automobile accidents, illness, drowning, other accidental causes, suicide and, yes, murder by non-police officers. This is false and you know it or should know it. Such outrageous claims and then saying that O'Malley needs to "MAKE IT STOP" are ridiculous on their face. I understand that you are emotional, but please try to stick to facts and things that can happen. I do not like the governor's policies, but even I know it is not fair to put it on him to make all this happen, unless he has some magic way to make people respect others, starting with the teenage behavior and continuing with the response of those they are trying to harm. I don't expect you to like or even respond rationally to my post. However, I hope it does make you pause and think about how you and your friends behave and what you do with your free time.

Laura Jackson June 28, 2012 at 04:23 pm

Buck--I'm sorry you feel that way about religion. But, there IS a God--ONLY ONE at that. And, no--contrary to what many others believe, the Bible was not created by man's words. The Bible IS the word of God! And, while God DOES know all, He also gives us the freedom of choice (whether or not to choose to do good or evil). That is left up to us. I'm not saying the cop was right; but, I do know that teens nowadays are out of control. I've even seen small children out in the streets at 11:00 p.m. One boy was outside skateboarding across a busy road (and could not have been more than 6 or 7 years old). I seriously wonder where the PARENTS are. Don't they care anymore??? Parents SHOULD be actively involved in their children's lives (know where they are, who they hang out with, and what they're doing--most, if not ALL, of the time). And, for this teen (being 17 years old) to be hanging out with other teens (still playing immature PRANKS by banging on doors of people they don't know) makes me wonder if his mother KNEW what he was doing, where he was, or who his friends were. Wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong people? Absolutely! But, I agree with the one comment earlier--it's sad that the punishment for those other teens will be likely to lose privileges to their Xbox for an hour or something like that for what they've done, while the cop may get a prison sentence for his part of 25 plus years. It's so sad. I, like Ginger, pray for all involved.

Mari June 28, 2012 at 04:25 pm

Pretty much my thoughts as well Darnell. As a parent of a 16 year old, I don't know how I would cope if this happened in our family. I also don't know how the officer and his family will get through this. I know that everyone involved in both families needs love, support, comfort, and care.
We need to constantly reinforce this message to our children. Don't bully, don't damage, walk away from friends whose behavior is not acceptable, etc. They may not like hearing it, but they do hear it and hopefully they will remember and learn and follow our guidance.

Laura Jackson June 28, 2012 at 04:36 pm

Good message, Darnell. I agree with you. While Chris may have been a "good kid," I question the "good intentions" aspect. Is it a "good intention" to play a PRANK on a total stranger? And, not that I'm blaming the parents in this (because I'm not); but, I wonder why the parents did not know who Chris was hanging out with (if they were not "good" kids). Actually, I should not say, "kid," as he was 17 years old. At that age, they should be working (at least, part-time) and be more responsible and also be taught not to play pranks (which is immature). The police should question the other boys involved here. I'd be curious to know which one of them made the decision to bang on the door of a police officer. I also wonder if any of them KNEW it was the home of a police officer. Either way, parents need to know more about their children and what they're up to when they're out with their friends. And, yeah--I'm sure Officer Laboard is regretting his actions. More likely than not, he simply responded by thinking someone was attempting to break into his home and decided to chase the perpetrator(s) down. If anything, I believe this officer only meant to "scare" these teens and nothing more (so they'd never do anything like that again). It is so sad; a horrible tragedy for all. I feel badly for BOTH sides. True--one life gone (victim's family destroyed); another life hangs in the balance (and it sounds like the officer's 7-year old will be fatherless, if found guilty). :(

bc67 June 28, 2012 at 07:34 pm

Imagine yourself chasing down someone putting your hands around his neck and choking the life out of him. I can see myself doing this in a fit of rage if my wife, kids or mom were attacked but not if someone was throwing rocks at my house. I would have call 911 and hoped the Police would catch them and arrest them. Even pulling a gun and shooting someone is less personal than physically choking someone to dead. This act of violence from a sworn Police Officer is very scary. We tolerate Police speeding and breaking lesser laws but we cannot allow them to kill people in a fit of rage. If this was a white officer can you imagine the outcry for his head

Jim Arrington June 28, 2012 at 07:50 pm

MARCELA -----right off the bat you are showing a bad attitude to a bad situation and you have already made up your mind that the cop is guilty of murder not the lesser offenses he is charged with. The cop is already ruined as he will lose his job, be found guilty of one of the charges, lose his child if he goes to prison, lose his home, car, lets see what else he can lose because the victims family wants his butt in a basket as they now want the fed's to investigate the offense. To all the other com-mentors here you are right on with your feelings so congratulations for being opened minded to a bitter person Mercella.

al walker June 28, 2012 at 11:04 pm

perhaps the mother wasnt trained properly in raising her kid... maybe the entire family should be held accountable as well... since this kid started it by destroying someones property. see how silly your comment is. the problem with the world is no one wants to be respsonsible for their actions. start with where the problem started from not where it ended. teach your kids right from wrong and to have some respect in the world and they will in return be respected. this would have never happen if those grown teenagers were doing right instead of wrong.

Evets June 28, 2012 at 11:25 pm

Very rational and reasonable comments, Darnell.

Dominic Sanchez June 29, 2012 at 12:06 am

Sure, get rid of all Police and let you fend for yourself...I'm sure you have all the answers to life's social problems, especially crime. So how do you keep order in our society? Obviously your verbage shows your mentality, sad to say the least.

Debra Harris July 12, 2012 at 05:44 pm

How many teachable moment do we as parents and our youngsters need to stop our innocent children from being killed? Do you know what it feels like to tell your son he is not safe to walk alone after dark or walk anywhere or anytime of the day with more than one other African American friend. Believe me, we do a lot more to ensure his safety and those of his friends but to live in community that tolerates the death of any youngsters by the hands of an adults is inexcusable.

Michael July 12, 2012 at 06:32 pm

Reality check here. We have Statutory Law that defines the difference between MURDER and MANSLAUGHTER. Murder requires not just the act of killing another, but the INTENT to commit this act. Manslaughter is a statute that covers the act of killing another, when the INTENT cannot be determined. This is to differentiate between premeditated acts or acts that include forethought that violence may occur and acts that happen out of careless or misguided actions.
I do not believe that any Grand Jury would have been convinced that the officer involved followed this teenager with the INTENT to kill him. That he did so out of a careless action may be the case. The Grand Jury got this right. Now a jury will hear the case and decide on the facts.

Laura Jackson July 13, 2012 at 01:29 pm

To Debra Harris: You said, ""How many teachable moment do we as parents and our youngsters need to stop our innocent children from being killed? Do you know what it feels like to tell your son he is not safe to walk alone after dark or walk anywhere or anytime of the day with more than one other African American friend. Believe me, we do a lot more to ensure his safety and those of his friends but to live in community that tolerates the death of any youngsters by the hands of an adults is inexcusable."
So, you want to stop "INNOCENT" children from being killed? Well, so do I!!! But, remember--this 17-year-old was NOT INNOCENT. In fact, he was out late at night wreaking havoc in the neighborhood with a group of hooilgans. It was noted that Christopher Brown was FIGHTING WITH THE OFFICER "BEFORE" this incident happened. I am certain the officer did not intend to kill him. I believe he was attempting to restrain him. But, we (AS PARENTS) should also know where our kids are, who they are hanging out with, and what they are doing. Why would you, or any other parent for that matter, ALLOW their "kids" out late at night just to ROAM through the neighborhood? By the way, if you check the statistics--MORE ADULTS ARE KILLED EACH DAY AT THE HANDS OF "YOUNGSTERS" (SO-CALLED INNOCENT KIDS--SUCH AS GANGSTERS) THAN ANY "KIDS" ARE KILLED BY ADULTS. I think the news should go back and say, "It is now 11:00 p.m. DO YOU KNOW WHERE YOUR CHILDREN ARE?"

Laura Jackson July 16, 2012 at 11:35 am

This message was from someone named "STAR CARTER--"I believe he did do tht shit on purpose it dosnt matter tht boy was a child an now his mother wont see him graduate or have kids or playball get married nuffin so the fuck what he was out having fun he was a child an tht grown ass man should not have done tht he got kids im sure what if.a cop does tht to his child take a life thts not up to him restrain him fuck know he wanted tht boy to die i pray for his family to stay stong through this i hope his ass get alot of time and lose his job!"
First of all, STAR, that "boy" was NOT a child. He was SEVENTEEN--A FEW MONTHS SHORT OF BEING CONSIDERED AN ADULT!!! And, you say he was "out having fun"??? Yeah--sure, it's "FUN" to destroy other people's property. And, he will not graduate or have children? People who are HOOLIGANS should NOT have children--because they are thugs themselves. And, Star--please note: This cop has already LOST HIS JOB. Apparently, you haven't been following this case. He's ALREADY been indicted. If you don't know what that means, look it up in the dictionary. For the record, the cop that you claimed killed this "ADULT KID ON PURPOSE" was ALSO black! So, you want to go after him??? Visit him in jail. As for the mother, I wouldn't feel too sorry for her. After all, she did not shed ONE freaking TEAR when she was interviewed by the media. So, what kind of "normal" mother is that? Doesn't cry for her son; wants media attention, and money!

Laura Jackson July 16, 2012 at 11:48 am

And, while we're on the subject, STAR--these GROWN-A$$ kids out having "fun" as you so kindly put it--that is WHY so many neighborhoods have been destroyed. You know WHY there's no bowling alley in Randallstown anymore (except for Marriottsvile)? Because blacks teens destroyed it. You know WHY Liberty and Randallstown Theaters closed down? Because black teens CUT UP THE SEATS WITH POCKET KNIVES--having fun, I suppose. You know WHY Woodlawn no longer has an amusement park (GWYNN OAK AMUSEMENT PARK)? No--It was not because of Hurricane Agnes--because, after the storm, the park was RE-BUILT. The blacks jumped in, they were losing money, and, again--seats on the rides were tore up and cut! Why??? You know WHY Owings Mills Mall had to CLOSE most of their stores? Black teens shoplifting, and NO PROFITS. Don't believe me??? Look at TOWSON MALL (mostly white); the businesses there are thriving and doing well. Same with all of the movie theaters in that area. Why?? Because white people do not DESTROY things--especially in their own neighborhoods. And, AFTER the blacks destroy their own neighborhoods, they are the FIRST to "COMPLAIN" how everything is RUN DOWN! Parents need to teach their "KIDS" to respect other people AND their PROPERTY! But, all is well. God is dealing with this so-called "nice boy" right now. If he WAS "good," then he is in the Lord's hands and being taken care of in Heaven. And, if he was a "thug," God is dealing with THAT situation as well.

remington lover August 9, 2012 at 05:45 pm

to Laura Jackson
i agree w you about G-D being a judge and parental responsibilities,but to put a racial face on your reasoning for all this stuff in NW bmore county,is not something a woman of G-D should be doing.....

FIFA August 9, 2012 at 05:54 pm

Why isn't god stopping this?

Eastsider August 9, 2012 at 06:03 pm

Why doesn't GOD stop all the maddness? Things that make you go hmmmm.

FIFA August 9, 2012 at 06:17 pm

Only two possible answers. 1. Can't or 2. Chooses not to. Both poor choices.

Laura Jackson August 10, 2012 at 01:52 pm

Well, Remington lower--I hate to talk about race (I really do); because I am definitely NOT a racist. Just want to make that point perfectly clear. I'm simply stating FACTS. And, the fact IS that when Randallstown was a predominantly white, Jewish neighborhood, there was no crime; there were no police officers stationed outside of all of the schools; kids could go outside at night (and not fear that something bad might happen to them); and properties were not run down. So, yes--what I said is absolutely true. And, even today--I highly doubt you will ever see a caucasion 5 or 6-year-old outside crossing Liberty Road at 11:00 p.m. unattended by any adults. But, I personally witnessed this happening and it was a very small black child running across Liberty Road at 11:00 p.m. NO ADULTS were anywhere around this child. Just saying. So, sorry if I speak the truth. As to the "Atheists" in here that keep asking, "Why isn't God (it is capitalized, btw) stopping this? FIFA--He doesn't stop people from doing anything. He gave each person (including you) free choice to do whatever he/she wants to do. Then, come Judgement Day, He will deal with the decisions that people he created have made. So, please do NOT say that God "can't" stop the madness or saying it is a "poor choice" for Him to choose NOT to stop the madness. God can do ANYTHING He wants to do. As for you, I certainly DO pray for your soul. Hell is a very real place, and I doubt you'd want to go there.

Laura Jackson August 10, 2012 at 01:53 pm

Sorry--I meant to say, "Remington Lover." BTW--is it the hairdryers that you love, or the shavers? :D

Laura Jackson August 10, 2012 at 02:05 pm

Oh--and as for the "destruction" portion I mentioned that occurred at Liberty Theaters, I personally witnessed two black boys (with knives) being taken out of there by the Baltimore County Police. A friend of mine who knew the owner showed me the damage (cut up seats) that was done by these "boys" (both of whom were black). And, if you go into the inner city, just take a look around at the neighborhoods and the graffiti (which is destruction of property). These ARE done by gang members (most of whom ARE black). I'm not saying that all white kids are perfect. On the contrary, they also are pushed by their peers to getting into trouble with the law. So, yes--I mainly have to blame it on the parenting of any kids who wreak havoc (whether they are black, white, green or purple). It makes no difference. But, the parents SHOULD do something about it. It's just sad that most of them do not. It's THOSE people who should never have become parents in the first place. But, like I said before. God will JUDGE everyone of us. He is the ONLY Judge, in my opinion--at least, the only Judge that I care about.