Police Standoff

[Coyote_Bandit]

The guy climbed up a cell phone tower and is now in day 5 of a standoff with Tulsa police. He's reported to be mentally ill.

One local tv station is live streaming the guy on the tower. I hope he doesn't jump or fall but a poor outcome seems likely. And it will be live streamed if it hapens.

They also have a comments section with their online news story. With some ugly comments. I find it interesting that a comment suggesting the use of anti-anxiety meds was deleted but all the racist comments remain.

Here's a link for anyone who is interested:
http://www.newson6.com/story/15263769/day-four-begins-for-man-on-tulsa-tower

I've contacted the tv station to indicate how I feel. Unfortunately, this seems to be a spectator sport. I hear parents are taking their kids to see and that the fast food place at the base of the tower is packed out.

Disgusting. Some days I am ashamed to be human.

[Demoiselle]

1. I'm not gonna link on it, Coyote, but I will keep that poor soul..

his family and everyone trying to deal with the situation seriously in my prayers.
I'm glad you told the TV station what you think of such a dreadful circus.

[Coyote_Bandit]

2. I suppose

that's about all we can do.

No doub the media and businesses will capitalize on the circus.

Still, I am angry about the comments on that news story thread. In addition to the racist comments there are several comments suggesting that the guy jump. And those comments have no been deleted. It's offensive.

I suppose some would tell me that I should just accept this course of events as SOP in our society. Sorry. Can't do that.

[Shagbark Hickory]

3. They should put a net up just below him than shoot him with a tazer.

That way he can be safely apprehended.

[Coyote_Bandit]

4. The tower

is wider at the base than at the top. It seems that if he falls he will hit the tower rather than fall to the ground.

Authorities on the scene do not think he is suicidal.

[Shagbark Hickory]

5. Has he not slept? Gone to the bathroom?

[Coyote_Bandit]

8. He lies down on the tower framework

and naps. He has lost his shoes but is wearing socks.

Bathroom? I would assume he has had to eliminate sometime in the last 4 or 5 days while up that tower. I'd also assume that he is dehydrated.

[Shagbark Hickory]

10. Then why not send up some people to apprehend while he's napping/pooing?

[Coyote_Bandit]

18. He has threatened to jump

if they try to apprehend him.

[Shagbark Hickory]

33. So the cops have nothing to lose and everything to gain then.

[TorchTheWitch]

34. they have their own lives to lose

How the hell do you apprehend someone on what is essentially scaffolding?

[Shagbark Hickory]

36. By waiting for the individual to go to sleep

[spanone]

6. it's night time in tulsa?

sad story..

[Coyote_Bandit]

7. The live stream is here

http://www.newson6.com/category/202152/pop-up-video-player-kotv-encoder-2?redirected=true

The link is inside the text of the story.

[Coyote_Bandit]

9. Being reported now

that he fell.

Sad. Tragic beyond words.

[tawadi]

11. He died

I guess?

[TorchTheWitch]

12. not the same guy

the guy in your link is some guy that fell from the eighth floor of an apartment building.

[tawadi]

13. I edited

Sorry, didn't read the whole thing. My apologies.

[guitar man]

14. who's reporting that?

none of the tulsa news stations have anything about him falling that I can find?

[Coyote_Bandit]

19. I heard that

from a resident who lives in the immediate area around the tower.

[guitar man]

20. I hope not

I hope they can get him down safely and get him some help

do you live in Tulsa?

[Coyote_Bandit]

21. I'm in Tulsa now

Not a full-time resident however.

:)

[guitar man]

22. oh I'm sorry

Seems you got to town just in time to witness one of our finest in action :P

[Coyote_Bandit]

27. I always thought some of Tulsa's finest

were on the northeast corner of 81st and Lewis. :shrug:

I'm not a full-time Tulsa resident but I've spent decades in that region of the country. I'm quite familiar with northeast Oklahoma, norther and wester Arkansas and Tulsa specifically. Also, pretty familiar with northeast Texas, southeast Kansas and southwest Missouri.

[guitar man]

30. LOL

:spray:

So you're probably familiar with the quality of musicians in our local music scene then. whatever else we've got here the musicians around this town are for the most part outstanding

[Coyote_Bandit]

32. Absolutely

and I have been privileged to know a few through the years.

[guitar man]

35. We have lost a few lately

Some of the greats are no longer with us :(

[TorchTheWitch]

15. I've only seen that in some comments

Where is it being reported by anyone in the news that he fell? There's another story in the same area that is saying some other guy fell and died from the 8th floor of an apartment building, but that's a different guy and a different story.

I can't figure out what's going on about the dude that's been on the cell tower for days. Sadly, I don't think it will end well. If they could figure out a way to get him safely down against his will they would have done it by now. About a half hour ago there were a couple of comments that he fell, and apparently the live feed hasn't worked since then, but I can't find anything being reported that he fell other than those comments.

[Coyote_Bandit]

17. Other local news sources are reporting

that he partially descended the tower. Not for the first time during this stand-off.

Apparently he has not had anything to eat or drink since Friday morning when he had some Gatorade.

Also being reported at other local sources: in the past he walked from Tulsa to Dallas and within the last month, he stood on a bridge for several hours.

Temperature here is in the mid 90's. While o the tower he has already weather three bouts of severe weather - including 60 mph winds, rain and lightning.

[TorchTheWitch]

23. I read he ate and drank on Monday morning

when they lifted a bucket up to him and tried to convince him to come down. At least he "ordered" a Sprite, Dr. Pepper, "Rooster Booster" and a cappuccino. I'm guessing a "Rooster Booster" is some kind of fast food chicken based meal.

I don't think this is going to end well. Particularly since he's still walking around on the thing in his socks and sleeping on it.

I don't want to know how he's going to the bathroom.

I also think it's sick that it's a news company that has a live stream on him.

[Coyote_Bandit]

25. He requested food

The local Faux station reports that cops told them that he has not had anything to eat or drink since having some Gatorade Friday morning.

[Liberal_in_LA]

16. lots of insenstive comments on the site, people hoping he jumps and such

[muffin1]

24. This is very sad, indeed.

And yes, the comments are disgusting. How have we become this cold and heartless?

[tawadi]

26. Sometimes I think it is just Internet anonymity

Other times, I'm not so sure.

[Coyote_Bandit]

28. I've heard

that there have been spectators at the scene yelling at the man and telling him to jump.

Some of the comments in that discussion thread have made the same suggestion.

[muffin1]

29. Some people are just simply AWFUL, I guess.

I could NEVER imagine saying that in person to someone in trouble, and I can't even imagine typing that as an anonymous Internet poster, either.

I really hope this doesn't end the way it seems likely to end.

[Coyote_Bandit]

31. I fear it is going to end badly

Apparently the man has a history of bizarre behavior and mental illness - as well as criminal and dru offenses.

No doubt he has been troubled for some time. It is a tragedy for him and his family that he apparently has not been able to get the help he needs.

[Coyote_Bandit]

37. There's now a thread on Free Republic about this

http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/ee277122ccb34a4c8cc2138cda2e3ca1/OK--Man-Tower/

Not much commentary yet.

[Coyote_Bandit]

38. Tuesday morning update

This guy is still up on that tower.

He still hasn't had any food or hydration since Friday morning.

Local TV is still live streaming and their website continues to host a discussion thread with lots of ugly comments.

Temperatures today are forecast to be in the triple digits. We had rain last week (yippeeeeee!) so the humidity and heat index will be up today.

This is getting worse.

[muffin1]

39. That poor man.

Have you heard anything since this morning? And would it really KILL them to send up some water?

[Coyote_Bandit]

40. Despite my fears

this had a good ending.

The man spent over 128 hours on that tower. By this afternoon it was apparent that his physical abilities were impaired and I feared that he would fall unintentionally. He surrendered just after 6:30 tonight and was lowered in a bucket. He lost his shoes several days ago. Apparently he removed his tee shirt in the heat and he took his socks off sometime yesterday. By today he had lost so much weight that his baggy shorts would no longer stay up. By the time he came down he was only wearing his boxers.

There was a single police negotiator that was raised to him in a bucket about noon today and he negotiated that surrender. The whole thing was live streamed by that local tv station. Probably had higher ratings than anything else here. I continue to be appalled by much of the commentary posted on that news discussion board. I alerted on the racists comments that I observed but most remained and were not deleted. Meanwhile all references in that discussion thread to the DSM-IV or anti-anxiety meds were deleted.

There are two stories being told here about this guy. One that he was a star high school athlete who got into drugs and crime and is mentally ill. The other that he is long-term unemployed after his employer went out of business, has financial problems and just learned that his mother has terminal cancer. I suspect that there is a bit of truth in all of it.

I really hope this guy gets the help he obviously needs.

[uppityperson]

41. Yay! Glad they got him down, hope he gets the help he needs