British man facing up to 20 years behind bars in 'swatting' incident

[Morris Minor]

I hope they throw the book at them, make an example of them. Might make these *****s think again.

 

[Capaill]

How about I prank call at 4am and say that every American politician and judge is holding hostages and is armed.
How many broken faces will it take to change the law?

 

[Capaill]

Having said that, I cannot fault the SWAT team. They entered the room in the belief that they were facing an armed individual who was holding hostages. Even worse, he was under bed covers so his weapon was not visible. A fast neutralisation was needed, preferably one which the target survived.
The fault lies with whoever gave the SWAT team the GO. Why was there no hostage negotiation started? Why was there no attempt made to have a peaceful outcome, which is surely the role of the local police forces? What analysis was done between the time that the call was received and when the SWAT team kicked in the door and shot a guy in the face?
I'm just glad the SWAT guys used rubber bullets.

 

[stewi0001]

Having said that, I cannot fault the SWAT team. They entered the room in the belief that they were facing an armed individual who was holding hostages. Even worse, he was under bed covers so his weapon was not visible. A fast neutralisation was needed, preferably one which the target survived.
The fault lies with whoever gave the SWAT team the GO. Why was there no hostage negotiation started? Why was there no attempt made to have a peaceful outcome, which is surely the role of the local police forces? What analysis was done between the time that the call was received and when the SWAT team kicked in the door and shot a guy in the face?
I'm just glad the SWAT guys used rubber bullets.

I can't get mad at the SWAT guys either. The biggest thing that most people seem to forget is that none of us were there or involved with anything that transpired, but they think they can pass judgement based on a news article. All I can confirm is, don't do prank phone calls. Seriously don't.

 

[TheBigT42]

"The call was ultimately traced back to McDaid"

LMAO You can't fix stupid

 

[davislane1]

I can't get mad at the SWAT guys either. The biggest thing that most people seem to forget is that none of us were there or involved with anything that transpired, but they think they can pass judgement based on a news article. All I can confirm is, don't do prank phone calls. Seriously don't.

Guy gets cops to blast someone in the face with a shotgun.

All that can be confirmed is that prank calls are bad.

Jesus Christ, dude.

 

[wiyosaya]

Having said that, I cannot fault the SWAT team. They entered the room in the belief that they were facing an armed individual who was holding hostages. Even worse, he was under bed covers so his weapon was not visible. A fast neutralisation was needed, preferably one which the target survived.
The fault lies with whoever gave the SWAT team the GO. Why was there no hostage negotiation started? Why was there no attempt made to have a peaceful outcome, which is surely the role of the local police forces? What analysis was done between the time that the call was received and when the SWAT team kicked in the door and shot a guy in the face?
I'm just glad the SWAT guys used rubber bullets.

I would be surprised if most SWAT teams do not have some sort of FLIR goggles or something similar even though they are expensive. Covers are no obstacle for those, and outlines of things like guns could be seen through something as IR transparent as a bed cover.

I do agree that there should have been an assessment of the situation. Use of SWAT, or so it seems, in some cases has become the knee-jerk reaction. Perhaps they could learn a lesson from the use (more correctly put, lack of use) of the SWAT team in Rochester, NY - which supposedly has only fired one shot in 30-years time.

I can't get mad at the SWAT guys either. The biggest thing that most people seem to forget is that none of us were there or involved with anything that transpired, but they think they can pass judgement based on a news article. All I can confirm is, don't do prank phone calls. Seriously don't.

Absolutely, we were not there.

However, there has been a growing trend in some cities to use SWAT teams on the slightest hint of trouble. This fact is what makes this crazy swatting thing possible. With the publicity that swatting has been getting, I would like to think that SWAT teams have adopted better protocols to asses the situation. FLIR is a well-known technology, and there are cases where it might be used to see through the walls of a building to assess the situation. This is not a case of "only in the movies;" it is real technology that is purchasable ATM.

I am absolutely not saying that the use of SWAT in some cases is justified. However, if the trend continues in the areas where using SWAT at the slightest hint of trouble is already practiced, then SWAT teams in such areas might be called for someone relieving themselves in public.

 

[stewi0001]

Guy gets cops to blast someone in the face with a shotgun.

All that can be confirmed is that prank calls are bad.

Jesus Christ, dude.

Moments before the prank call:

 

[Tanstar]

Broken facial bones....ouch!
as far as the tactics go, everyone knows that speed, surprise and violence of action carry the day whether it's blitzkrieg (nation level) down to an individual.

But once you have the gun on your suspect, no need to shoot uness he has a weapon. You have him out numbered and surrounded, why fire?

 

[Kibaruk]

But once you have the gun on your suspect, no need to shoot uness he has a weapon. You have him out numbered and surrounded, why fire?

If you can't see his hands and don't know if he has a conceiled weapon, would you risk your life on that? Or follow your training and reduce the suspect?

 

[Tanstar]

If you can't see his hands and don't know if he has a conceiled weapon, would you risk your life on that? Or follow your training and reduce the suspect?

If your training says to shoot a man in his bead, then you need better training. The bigger problem is that this was all don based on a pone call that was later traced back to another country. The slightest attempt to check the veracity of the claim would've stopped this from happening.

 

[Kibaruk]

If your training says to shoot a man in his bead, then you need better training. The bigger problem is that this was all don based on a pone call that was later traced back to another country. The slightest attempt to check the veracity of the claim would've stopped this from happening.

Ok... let's keep going in circles then... this conversation is going a long way....... do read please.

 

[Tanstar]

Ok... let's keep going in circles then... this conversation is going a long way....... do read please.

I read every word and my reading skills are top notch. If your job is Police Officer, you don't shoot an American citizen unless he has a weapon (confirmed) and you have reason to believe he intends to use it on you or others. This isn't a Marine on foreign soil, charging into an insurgent's home. It's deeply disturbing that could get a warrant on such flimsy evidence, but doesn't change the fact that lying in your bed DOES NOT constitute behaving threateningly.

 

[enderjed]

"McDaid claims he was asked to swat Dobbs by another American gamer, Zachary Lee, who has also been charged with the same offenses."

Seriously? So the guy that asked someone to do something stupid gets charged and will also face a possible 20 year prison sentence?

So, like, if I ask someone to jump off a cliff and they do it I am responsible for their stupidity and lack of sense in decision making???? Really?

Jumping off a cliff is not a crime. Incite someone else to commit a crime and be charged with one yourself. Incite 2 people and it's now a conspiracy

 

[Arris]

Jumping off a cliff is not a crime. Incite someone else to commit a crime and be charged with one yourself. Incite 2 people and it's now a conspiracy

It really depends if it was "you know what would be funny? Call swat on Jo Bloggs!", or actual incitement to a degree that would be deserving of being charged with the same crime.