Cheney Cleared in Shooting

[warrens]

Jesus, THAT was fast.

http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/02/14/cheney/index.html

[elcondor]

1. So if Whittington dies

does that mean Cheney won't be charged with anything? Or does it become involuntary manslaughter?

[enid602]

16. cheney

Involuntary troll pelleting, and one count of assholis in the first degree.

[Tight_rope]

52. LMBAO....And the Sentence is life in Hell with Jeffrey Dahmer and all the

Other SERIAL KILLERS (And the list follows)

John Eric Armstrong
Joe Ball
Cesar Barone
Martha Beck
Marie Alexandrine Becker By Queenie
David Berkowitz
Paul Bernardo
Kenneth Bianchi
Arthur Bishop
Lawrence Bittaker
William Bonin
Vladimir Bratislav By Queenie
David Owen Brooks
Jerry Brudos
Ted Bundy
Vernon Butts
Angelo Buono
Harvey Carignan
David Carpenter
Richard Trenton Chase
Andrei Chikatilo
John Christie
Douglas Clark
Nathaniel Code, Jr.
Alton Coleman
Carroll Cole
John Norman Collins
Daniel Conahan
Anthony Cook
Nathaniel Cook
Ray Copeland
Dean Allen Corll
Juan Corona
Richard Cottingham
Jeff Dahmer
Charlie Davis
Karl Denke
Gilles De Rais
Albert De Salvo
Robert Diaz
Nannie Doss
Herman Drenth
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Nikolai Dzhumagaliev
Mack Ray Edwards
Donald Leroy Evans
Richard Evonitz
Raymond Fernandez
Albert Fish
Kendall Francois
Joseph Paul Franklin
John Wayne Gacy
Gerald Gallego
Carlton Gary
Pee Wee Gaskins
Robin Gecht
Ed Gein
Guy Georges
Harvey Glatman
Billy Gohl
Gwendolyn Graham
Harrison Graham
Marvin Gray
Vaughan Greenwood
Douglas Gretzler
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Saeed Hanaei
William Hance
Robert Hansen
Donald Harvey
Charles Hatcher
Gary Heidnik
William Heirens
Elmer Wayne Henley
Johann Hoch
H.H. Holmes
CalvinJackson
Keith Hunter Jesperson
Genene Jones
Patrick Wayne Kearney
Arohn Kee
Edmund Kemper
Bela Kiss By Queenie
Paul John Knowles
"The Kobe Killer"
Andrew Kokoraleis
Tommy Kokoraleis
Vasili Komaroff
Ali Kordiyeh
Randy Kraft
Peter Kurten
Leonard Lake
Donald Lang By Aimee Massey
Gerald Patrick Lewis
Bobby Joe Long
Pedro Lopez
Henry Lee Lucas
Bruno Ludke
Cedric Maake
Kenneth McDuff By Aimee Massey
Joe Metheny
Gennadiy Mikasevich By Queenie
Ivan Milat
Frederick Mors
Herb Mullin
Wayne Nance
Earle Nelson
Charles Ng
Dennis Nilsen By Queenie
Robert Nixon
Roy Norris
Gordon Northcott
Clifford Olsen
Anatoli Onoprienko By Queenie
Carl Panzram
Jesse Pomeroy
Cleophus Prince, Jr.
Dorothea Montalvo Puenta
Richard Ramirez
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Larry Ranes
Todd Alan Reed
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Angel Maturino Resendiz
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Dayton Leroy Rogers
Danny Rolling
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Helmuth Schmidt
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Arthur Shawcross
Dr. Harold Shipman By Queenie
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Joseph Smith
Arnold Sodeman
Timothy Spencer
Edward Spreitzer
Lucian Staniak
Cary Stayner
William Steelman
Peter Sutcliffe By Queenie
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Ottis Toole
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Jack Unterweger
Coral Eugene Watts
Wayne Williams
Randy Woodfield
Aileen Wuornos
Yang Xinhai
Robert Lee Yates
Huang Yong
Graham Young By Queenie

[JoFerret]

44. What if he's dead already?

.

[hang a left]

2. At the same time Whittington suffers heart attack

from pellet lodged in heart. That is some superficial wound.

[SoCalDem]

9. Not really, we all know how compassionate conservatives are built

Their hearts are always on public display for all to see..Kinds of like "wearing their hearts on their shirtsleeves".. Okle Whittington was apparently wearing Short sleeves:eyes:

[gratuitous]

3. No indication at all whether they talked to Whittington

But I guess the victim probably has a built-in bias, so it's understandable that the authorities wouldn't want to talk with him.

[xultar]

5. They didn't need to talk to him to get his story.

[xultar]

4. Well it isn't like we didn't know this wasn't going to happen.

[Bluzmann57]

6. Do you honestly believe it was on purpose?

I think Cheney showed bad judgement, but did not intend to shoot Mr. Whittington. If I were Mr. Whittington, I wouldn't go out hunting with Cheney again though. He obviously isn't a very responsible gun user.

[Inland]

10. Well, there's criminal negligence, I suppose.

Still seems pretty quick, since it's less than 24 hours from initial police report and I bet nobody has been interviewed.

[WhiteTara]

12. glad you are so charitable. If I ever shoot

someone, I want you in my corner. Especially if I turn into an evil asshole who has no regard for others. I'm not so charitable. I believe him capable of premeditated murder. What better way, in public, so it had to be an accident.

[warrens]

14. I dunno

There are pure accidents and there are injuries caused by complete disregard of the most basic tenets of safe gun handling. I knew not to put my finger on the trigger until I was aiming at my target when I was 12. I would think this has some sort of criminal overtone.

[hang a left]

15. How the f*%$ do you know Chaingang didn't get pissed off and

just shoot him. It's not like we are getting the truth from anywhere. He is an evil bastage. You don't think he is capable of shooting someone?

[Bluzmann57]

25. To answer your first question

I don't. But having handled firearms before in my life, I know that accidents happen often when people are hunting. It's the apparent coverup which bothers me. I'd say that NOT EVERYTHING IS A GODDAM CONSPIRACY THEORY but I realize that I'm wasting my time if I do.

[Gormy Cuss]

48. Possible negligence is why the whole story needs to be investigated.

Accidents happen. So do shootings by partying drunks or people who refuse to follow basic gun safety rules. As you noted, it's the cover up which makes this story not sit well with many of us. I think Whittington was shot at very close range because Cheney was inattentive or had his finger slip on the trigger. Whatever the truth is, Cheney and perhaps others decided that it was best to wait and concoct the perfect spin before the press heard about it.
Perhaps they also wanted to wait to see if the 78 year old man with bird shot peppering his head, throat and chest would live. It would be nice to have had Cheney himself make a statement to the press (not a press conference with questions, just a simple statement)but I guess that would look like he was taking responsibility for his actions.

[smb]

50. Precisely

If it was Joe Blow citizen, there'd be a proper investigation to see if criminal negligence or intoxication was involved. Cheney is not (supposed to be) above the law.

[HuffleClaw]

60. the sheriff in question is a REPUBLICAN

so even if the guy does die nothing will happen. and that 14 hour delay was engineered so cheney could sober up obviously. i really want to know more about this AGREEMENT between the sheriff and cheney. also, they have conveniently forgotten that he didn't have the proper permit and the accident report claims the shot was taken from 'approximately 30 yards' away which is very very dubious, but if it had been from less than 30 yards a charge of negligance would be nearly automatic. so...

[mim]

59. I agree, it's the cover-up.

Still, I don't know how the possibility of criminal negligence was dismissed so quickly. Or manslaughter, if Whittington dies.

[Maraya1969]

18. I don't think any of us believe it was on purpose, (well most of us)

the point is, if these officials knew about the heart attack they wouldn't clear someone so fast if they were not Cheney. It is not that they would charge anyone but they would have to investigate.

[ContraBass Black]

33. It's against the law to have a fatal accident.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

54. None of us know what really happened, do we?

[keopeli]

58. Neglegence without intent is still malicious. eom

[Hobarticus]

7. It's a hunting accident, not first-degree murder

There's a couple hunting accidents a year around here. They get wrapped up pretty quickly.

Not saying that the subsequent cover-up and circumstances around this don't reek, but there's no grand first-degree murder investigation going one here, as some would scream in all-caps.

[Hawkeye-X]

13. Accident my foot!

It's murder. Insane people with bad tickers should not be allowed to touch a gun.

It's murder, plain and clear.

[Hobarticus]

26. Then Cheney's the worst murderer, ever...

Why use birdshot, when his intended victim is thirty feet away? A slug would do the trick, for sure.

And with two witnesses at hand, he's none too bright.

Come on. I hate the evil bastard too, but this was an accident. I'll give that the circumstances are suspect, but that's as far as reason will go.

[coalition_unwilling]

35. Yes, an "accident" maybe with alcohol involved

I grew up in Southwest Missouri, where these types of accidents occurred frequently during quail, duck-hunting and deer season. As often as not, the members of the hunting party had been drinking.

This makes the Secret Service's sequestration of Cheney from local sheriff's deputies for 24 hours incredibly suspicious, as that might be just enough time for any residual alcohol in his system to metabolize.

[Hobarticus]

37. My thoughts exactly...the timing's just too suspect

My guess is, the Secret Service kept him sequestered to clear his blood, and 'scrubbed' the ranch for evidence of booze.

Fishy as hell.

[coalition_unwilling]

38. MADD to become MADH (Mothers Against Drunk Hunting)-n/t

[Hobarticus]

39. HACK-Humans Against Cheney Killing n/t

[coalition_unwilling]

40. LOL--Beautiful

[Media_Lies_Daily]

56. Bingo. That's exactly why the delay in reporting took place.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

55. Sure. So, why the delay in reporting the story in the first place?

[Hobarticus]

61. Booze and/or another woman involved. It'll pop up...

The shooting itself is secondary, really. It's the subsequent cover-up and delay that will cause problems for the Prince of Darkness.

[mom cat]

8. Swift Justice ... Texas style! ... COVER UP!

[Hawkeye-X]

11. Don't think so.

If Whittington dies, then Cheney will have to be implicated for murder or manslaughter. Accidental shooting of tame game birds are not going to cover that ass.

[Crunchy Frog]

17. Of course.

You wouldn't expect one of these guys to actually be held responsible for anything whatsoever, would you?

[McKenzie]

19. "Whittington shot a quail,

dropped back from the rest of the hunting party to retrieve it and was rejoining the group when Cheney fired." That sounds very odd to me. Normally a retriever would pick up birds. Besides, dropping back suggests that the bird was shot by a shooter swinging through the line which isn't a good idea. Whittington must have been in a position either behind or to the left or right of Cheney if Cheney did not see him. So Cheney would have to have been shooting in an unsafe manner

The article reads as a whitewash and seems to be going out of the way to gloss over what happened.

[tularetom]

20. What if the mofo was DRUNK when he shot him

Couldn't he be charged with negligent homicide? Shouldn't there at least be some sort of inquiry into cheney's condition at the time of the shooting? Gimme a break, this thing stinks more and more by the minute.

[demo dutch]

24. My thoughts exactly, But no-one talks about drinking!!!!!

[Hobarticus]

27. And the Secret Service took 24 hours to 'scrub' the area

and Cheney's blood alcohol to go down.

This thing stinks.

[951-Riverside]

28. A very good excuse that will probably stick among the others tularetom

but I think he meant to shoot the guy for kicks

[Waistdeep]

21. Quick, get me a corrupt coroner .....

I'm sure the autopsy will report that a preexisting condition was unfortunately uncovered and that the shotgun blast had nothing to do with it.

[Tandalayo_Scheisskopf]

23. I know!

They can get that Houston-area coroner who called the bullet that killed the Enron president, in what was called a "suicide", ratshot!

When in fact it was a Glaser Safety Slug, a frangible bullet that explodes when it hits something soft and wet. Like a human brain.

Glaser: The bullet to use when you want someone dead and want them to stay dead. The Choice of Professionals Who aren't Afraid to Get Their Hands Wet.

[Dover]

29. Considering the "victim's" corrupt past with a funeral home company

perhaps karma will pay him a visit, and his own death will be shrouded by crooked coroners who'd happily provide whatever reports were required....for a fee. In 1999, Gov. George W. Bush named Whittington chairman of the funeral services commission, in the midst of a scandal, to help cover it up.

Whittington may also be involved in a coverup of deaths in Katrina-ravaged New Orleans. So hold your tears until we get some truth.

http://crawfordpeace.nfshost.com/node/2133 (scroll down to 'Gravedigger' story)

http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2004-05-14/pols_feature.html

[ripple]

22. Has Whittington regained consciousness?

If not, the investigation was nothing but a sham. Given that he's EXPECTED (pre-heart attack, anyway- haven't heard since)to make a full recovery, wouldn't any investigator worth his/her salt want to actually interview THE key witness before concluding such an investigation?

[ColonelTom]

30. What's good for the Prez is good for the Veep

In other words, if the Vice President does it, it's not a crime.

If you buy the White House description of the incident, it's an unfortunate hunting accident. But being that Cheney refused to speak to the authorities until the next day, the "was he drunk?" questions are legitimate and have to be asked.

[NorthernSpy]

31. special treatment for special people

"This department is fully satisfied that this was no more than a hunting accident," the Kenedy County Sheriff's Department announced in a statement issued Monday evening.

Baloney! Failing to verify the target -- and a clear path to that target -- is negligent and reckless. The result of negligent and reckless behavior is not rightly considered to be an "accident".

Just more special treatment for the Bush regime.

[ContraBass Black]

32. What?

I smell shit.

[CreekDog]

When does Whittington get charged?

I mean after all, this was all his fault. ;o)

[formercia]

34. The article says the shot was approximately 5mm

That would be around BBB size shot.

Nobody in their right mind would use that size shot for quail. That would be used for large birds such as Canada Geese.

or personal defense or offense.

Something is rotten here.

[NorthernSpy]

41. good catch

:thumbsup:

[screembloodymurder]

45. Cheney's not into eating the bird.

He's just out there to blow the bird into pieces.

[mac56]

36. They've changed the headline now.

Hunter shot by Cheney has 'minor heart attack' - Doctors: Birdshot moved to Harry Whittington's heart

[nickn777]

42. And if the situation had been reversed......

and Dick was the one that was shot, I wonder if Whittington would have been 'cleared' so quickly?

[screembloodymurder]

43. When will the authorities have a press conference.

If I were a reporter, my first question would be: Did you test the VP for consumption of alcohol? If not, why not and how can you declare him cleared? This stinks.

[AnneD]

46. Check this out.....Smoking Gun strikes again...

the website, not the dick:evilgrin:


http://www.thesmokinggun.com/archive/0213061cheney1.html

[54anickel]

47. How could an investigation that was put off for some 14 hours conclude

there was no alcohol involved? Not saying there was but, sheesh, sure looks like they were trying to cover up something. Pretty dang quick investigation, did they even ask why it wasn't reported to the local authorities sooner? My understanding (though I've not followed closely) is that it wouldn't have been reported at all except that it sort of slipped out.

[kayice]

51. I wonder if the authorities feel like dumba$$es since the truth

about Wittington's real injuries came out, not Armstrong's puff statement or her blame she placed on the victim.

Amazing how radio communications failed getting the sheriff there---with the S.S. and today's threats and all. :wtf:

[aquart]

49. How?

Did they do an alcohol test?

[warrens]

57. One of his secret service guys swore

Nobody had touched a drop and Cheney only had his usual 12 afternoon Percodans.

[zann725]

53. According to which 'puppet' judge? Gonzalez? Roberts? Alito?

Since Darth was NOT even cross-examined for 24 detoxifying hours,andsince he "released" his "story" first to a local paper whose own reporter said on "Countdown" last night...has a "long-time, CLOSE association with the Admin."

At the very least, he wasn't ENTIRELY properly licensed. And the victim just had a heart attack. And Cheney was carrying the "smoking gun" that did it.

Isn't THAT exactly what the Dem's have been looking for to reverse the 2004 election results...a "smoking gun?" Well NOW they have one... literally...in Darth's Helliburton-stained hands.