Preliminary information, but I think try not to be these guys…
Deschutes County District Attorney John Hummel…said there was an altercation inside The Capitol, a downtown bar, late Saturday night. He said 22-year-old Barry Washington Jr. of Bend was out with friends when he approached a woman in the bar to compliment her. According to Hummel, the woman said she was flattered, but in a relationship. That was the extent of the interaction.
Later, shortly after midnight, Hummel said Washington Jr. approached the same woman again, this time on the street corner outside the bar. Hummel said it’s unclear if Washington Jr. recognized her, but he complimented her once more.
“There’s no evidence that what Mr. Washington did when he approached the woman was inappropriate,” Hummel explained. “There’s not an allegation that he groped her, grabbed her, was crass with her. He complimented her in a respectful manner. She was fine back. She said, ‘No, thank you. I’m flattered but I’m in a relationship.’ No allegation that anything Mr. Washington did was inappropriate.”
Still, the woman’s boyfriend, 27-year-old Ian Cranston of Bend, was nearby and was “not happy” with Washington Jr.'s actions, Hummel said.
“He said some words to Mr. Washington. Mr. Washington said some words back,” Hummel said. “There was some pushing, some jostling, some punches thrown, but then it calmed down. It was not going to get out of hand. Then Mr. Cranston pulled a gun out of his waistband and shot and killed Mr. Washington.”
…
Online court records show Cranston has no criminal history in Oregon.
Cranston was a machinist at Nosler, a bullet manufacturer with offices in Bend and Redmond. A spokesperson for the company told NewsChannel 21 he was surprised to hear about Cranston’s involvement in the shooting.
He said everyone who works there has to pass a criminal background check, and Cranston’s came back clean. He said Cranston was hired last October, but is now suspended during the investigation.
It’s a tragedy, and a shame when someone loses control and others suffer for it. I certainly don’t want to take away from the fact that a man needlessly lost his life here.
However, there is something that bothers me with the reporting. It’s the headline, specifically those two words, “totally preventable.” How is this at all “preventable?”
My concern is they’ll take the position, as they most often do, of “if we just got rid of all the guns.”
Maybe by observing John Farnham’s “Four Rules of Stupid”?
But you’re probably right, somebody will inevitably want to go down the other street. Because, obviously, it would have been so much less tragic if only the homicide was by knife, or automobile, or cracked against the curb — right?
This is tragic one way or another. And we don’t yet know the full story.
*We don’t know if the shooter tried to deescalate
*We don’t know if the shooter tried to escape
*We don’t know if the victim pulled a knife or a gun or in any way threatened the life of the shooter.
*We don’t know if there were other options other than pulling a gun and shooting the guy.
Personally, I won’t stand my ground just because I CAN and because I have a gun on my hip. I’ll stand my ground only if there are no other good choices. Short of that, grab your girlfriend’s hand and walk away. Just walk away.
The way the article is written, this is not a reporter’s opinion but quoting from a statement by the district attorney. From the nature of the narrative and the time since the incident, I presume it is initial perceptions based on the initial police report from the night of the incident and maybe the next day or so.
Charged individual is bailed out the following day, perhaps with the assistance of his USCCA representation benefits. Have to see how the rest of the story comes together.
Oh, absolutely. This is only a couple days ago — long ways from fully investigated, long ways from indictment, very long ways from any trial judgement of fact. And it seems like a long time since society has accepted a trial judgement as establishing facts, anyway.
My point is not to assert facts about what happened, but to provide an opportunity for us all to visualize ourselves as any of the three primary participants, and consider what we might have tried in order to obtain a better outcome.
He was clearly injured in the brawl outside the bar as the photo after his arrest shows, but the story so far does not indicate a valid use of lethal force. Sadly, the news story implies a racial motive where there is no evidence for that. It will be interesting to hear his side of it, and any other witness testimony.
Interestingly, if he had a criminal record as a minor, that would not be available, but his comments on “social media” as a minor are. As to posting about his excitement anticipating getting a rifle as a teen, I can’t see where that has an relevance, except to show he had/has an interest in firearms, and that he became an employee of Nosler.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but being a firearm owner does not make me prone to violence. I am just as pacificistic now as I always have been. That does not mean I will be a willing or unwitting victim, just that I am not seeking to harm anyone or anything. I do practice situational awareness, and I do believe that has kept me and my family safe.
Just like the discussion going on about the Walmart parking lot, avoid, avoid, avoid. Grab your girlfriend’s hand and just walk away. As a civilian with a gun hanging on my hip I feel I have a higher level of responsibility to avoid conflict, not stay in it or, even worse, walk into it. Pull that gun out as the last “oh crap” option to protect your or someone else’s life.
I believe there was no racial animus just a you punched me in the and got the better of me so I kill you ! You’ll never humiliate me in front my lady ever ! Lack of good coping skills and alcohol make for this type of situation the only problem appears that the shooting was after the fact ( fight) according to the surveillance tape yeah sad story, because every time incidents like this happens it Jades on more person to giving up the right to keep and bear arms.
13 years ago he was a minor but what goes in there on the internet stays forever though our speech is free it can be used against us without the proper context
Humans tend to speculate when they lack facts.
The speculation rarely considers facts that are unknowable at the time and includes facts not in evidence!
My condolences to the family and friends of the deceased!
Here’s the only fact I get out of this, the shooter posted some slang terms for blacks in his social media accounts which will certainly not bode well for him.
Hang out in bars, and flirting with some other dude’s lady is a recipe for trouble. Sooner or later there will be trouble. The best way to win a fight, is avoidance. Don’t be there.
Absolutely. The best use of these case studies is to speculate about what we would do if we found ourselves in a similar situation — better yet, how we would try to avoid getting into a similar mess.
The speculation about what “really” occurred, or what somebody was “really” thinking, at an event about which we actually know almost nothing — and likely never will — is sort of an exercise without social value.
Actually, just hang out in bars and sooner or later there will be trouble. To the best of my knowledge, there is no state in this country where flirting justifies the use or threat of deadly force. A successful defense is going to need something else to hang on.
So, you’ve figured out your solution if you were the guy in a bar without a gun — no flirting, and definitely no punching, eh?
Know what you would do if you’re the guy in a bar with a gun? Know what you would do if you were the lady in a bar with a guy with anger management issues and a gun?
Update, to curate a topic I started, as it develops.
I want to repeat that I don’t see any value in trying to judge right or wrong or facts of this case based on a few newspaper reports. My intention remains for each of us to think about the incident as described — since we cannot know how it actually happened — and consider what we might have done differently in the place of any key participant.
One guy is dead; one guy is facing serious legal troubles; and a woman is facing a future maybe much different than anticipated. Any one of them might have chosen a different course that evening and produced a happier outcome — try to play your part the best way.
A few more comments from the District Attorney before the grand jury presentation:
“You’re allowed to use non-deadly physical force at a pretty low bar. If someone comes up and shoves you and pushes you, you can shove and push them back, and that’s not a crime…but if you’re going to kill someone, there’s a much higher standard that Oregon law sets, which it should.
“You can only use deadly physical force if you or someone else is about to be killed or about to be seriously physically injured. There is no allegation here that Mr. Washington was trying to kill anyone, or trying to seriously physically injure anyone." DA reveals more details on Bend fatal shooting
Grand jury returns charges:
Cranston…was lodged in the Deschutes County jail and is being held without bail. [He] faces charges of second-degree murder, first-degree manslaughter, second-degree manslaughter, first-degree assault and two counts of unlawful use of a weapon. Man charged with murder in Bend shooting death of Barry Washington, Jr
I am not stating the person is right, only that conviction in the public square based on statements from a DA that is prosecuting the person is not right, either.
Have to see how the rest of the story comes together.