-Caveat Lector- >From Sierra Times
}}}>Begin Something Is Rotten In the State Of England By Robert A. Waters Published 05. 28. 02 at 21:34 Sierra Time Tony Martin still sits in an English prison. But the farmer who killed a burglar and wounded a second at least has a chance for parole later this year. In yet another bizarre twist to an already bizarre story, the second burglar, Brendan Fearon (who was also shot but did not die), has been consulted about conditions of Martin's eventual parole. You see, Fearon is considered the "victim" in this case, and in England, victims have a right to give their input when a convicted felon may be released. It doesn't matter that Fearon had more than 30 arrests, including several for crimes of violence. Nor does it matter that Fearon's own father has called for Martin's release. The conviction and imprisonment of Martin is a stain on the once-great British Empire. Now an equally disturbing case comes to light. Bill Clifford, 77, of Aldershot, Hampshire and a veteran of World War II, hanged himself on May 3, 2001. It was the day he was to appear in court on charges of "possessing an imitation firearm with intent to cause fear." According to his brother Raymond, the veteran had never been in trouble with the law and was so ashamed of being arrested that he took his own life. According to the Manchester Guardian, Clifford committed the heinous offense of using a pellet gun to scare off a gang of teenage punks who were kicking in his door and breaking a window in his home. Raymond Clifford stated that a long history of harassment led to the incident. "The trouble he had from the youths got worse in the last couple of months," Raymond Clifford said. "They shouted outside and put eggs through his letterbox." His brother called police several times to report the gang's criminal activities, but got no satisfaction. Finally, when the thugs attempted to break into his home, Clfford used the pellet gun to scare them away. Instead of detaining the punks who were threatening the homeowner, cops arrested Bill Clifford. It seems English Constables have trouble catching real criminals. But even though an estimated three million guns may be in the hands of English criminals, God forbid that any law-abiding citizen should keep a firearm for the defense of his home. Just as despicable to English police are children who play with toy guns. A few months ago, Constables stormed through the door of a residence in Red House, Sunderland and arrested an eleven-year-old boy who had just received a pellet gun for his birthday. According to the Newcastle Journal, the lawmen, accompanied by a riot van, interrupted a birthday party to make the arrest. The child, Roland Hopper, was spirited by cops to the local jailhouse and interrogated for two hours. His mother, Andrea Davies, stated that the Constables rushed into the house just as her son was about to cut his birthday cake. "I was pretty shocked," she said. "We looked out the window and they were swarming around like storm troopers in bulletproof vests...And on top of everything else, they confiscated the gun. Roland was in tears." It was later determined that a neighbor had seen the boys playing with the pellet gun and reported it to police. After being released, Roland said, "It was the worst birthday party I ever had." And now, in maybe the most outrageous case of all, Ruby Barber, a grandmother who had been repeatedly burglarized, decided to surround her house with barbed wire to protect it from intruders. Her request was initially denied because it "might hurt burglars." A storm of protest eventually caused the Northampton Borough Council to relent. Barber, they said, could surround her garden with razor wire. But there was a catch--she must take the precaution of posting warning signs and "agree to take full responsibility if a would-be intruder is injured." Am I missing something here? Sounds like the inmates are running the asylum. Robert A. Waters is the author of "The Best Defense: True Stories of Intended Victims Who Defended Themselves with a Firearm." His second book, "Guns Save Lives: True Stories of American Defending Themselves with Firearms," will be published in May. � 2002 SierraTimes.com (unless otherwise noted) Permission to reprint/republish granted, as long as you include the name of our site, the author, and our URL. www.SierraTimes.com All Sierra Times news reports, and all editorials are � 2002 SierraTimes.com (unless otherwise noted) SierraTimes.com� A Subsidiary of J.J. 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