When sports fans attack, Combat Marine shot stateside, and Babysitter charged with murder

   Good Day Humboldt County!

 Thanks for stopping by. Today’s theme is violence in our society. I’ve selected three current stories that illustrate how much it plays a part in all of our lives.

 No matter where we go, or what we do, or how young or old we are, we all can become victims of random violence…

 

When Sharks fans attack… A teenager with a brain tumor

Fans behaving badly isn’t anything new these days, but sometimes there are stories that just make you shake your head. One such story concerns 16-year-old Canucks fan in California Maggie Herger. Herger was attacked by a fan during a recent Canucks-Sharks game in San Jose that resulted in her being taken to the hospital and diagnosed with a concussion.

That might not sound so bad until you consider Herger’s recent battle with a benign brain tumor. Attacking a teenager is one thing, but one that’s already dealt with a lot of crap in life? That just makes this whole thing a lot uglier. Fans in California have had a bad  run of late when it comes to doing awful things at sporting events. Bryan Stow was nearly beaten to death at a Giants-Dodgers game in L.A., some fans shot each other after a 49ers-Raiders preseason game plus a stabbing at a Raiders-Chargers game, and now this case.

As Herger told Mike Rosenberg of the Mercury News, ”I was just really disappointed. I didn’t think that hockey fans were as bad as the baseball fans,” she said, recalling the Stow attack, which drew national headlines. “I didn’t think that anyone would physically hurt me.” Sharks fans don’t have that reputation of being jerks the way others do, but having one of your own attack a girl with a brain tumor is a good way to earn a really bad rap.

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After surviving combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, U.S. Marine Lt. Col. Karl Trenker came home to Deerfield, Florida and was shot three times. His training probably saved his life.

Babysitter charged with killing, dismembering girl

Prosecutors on Friday charged a babysitter with murder and two other felonies Friday in the bludgeoning and dismemberment of a 9-year-old girl just days before Christmas.

Michael Plumadore, 39, was charged in Fort Wayne with murder, abuse of a corpse and removing a dead body from the scene in the Dec. 22 killing of Aliahna Lemmon.

Time to walk on down the road…