Just goes to show ya - people suck

[cloudy]

This "kidnapping" happened just a mile or so from my house Monday morning. I was watching tv, and they broke in to announce an Amber Alert for this little boy. I think the entire town (what there is of it) was anxious that he be found.

Not only did this mother kill her own child, but then she mobilized federal authorities, and volunteers to "find" him.

She needs something extreme for punishment. In fact, I think once she gets to Tutwiler (women's prison in AL), her life's gonna be a living hell.

This just breaks my heart.

Mother, Boyfriend Suspects in Boy's Death

Sad news, in an Amber Alert case in Marshall County. Multiple law enforcement agencies have found the body of a five-year-old boy who they originally believed was abducted Monday morning in Albertville.

Police have arrested the boy's mother and her boyfriend in connection with Geontae Glass' death. Shalinda Glass is charged with hindering prosecution and Kevin Andre Towles is charged with capital murder. Both are being held in the Etowah County Jail. More charges may be pending.

Neither have any bond set, nor a court date.

Investigators say the motive for the murder appears to be that Geontae came home with a bad report card. Geontae was in kindergarten at John Jones Elementary School in Etowah County.

Investigators have not released any details about how the child died.

Glass and Towles were arrested this morning at Towles' apartment in Rainbow City. Police found drugs, weapons, and more than $30,000 dollars in cash inside the apartment.

The mother reported a truck pulled up to the gas station Monday morning in Albertville, and that a man jumped out of the truck and drove off in her 1994 Nissan Altima. Investigators questioned a third person who they believed was involved, but did not charge him. Police do have that truck.

As for a motive, investigators say Geontae may have been killed because he brought home a bad report card. Geontae was in kindergarten.

Law enforcement found the Altima in Etowah County around 1 o'clock Tuesday morning at a home on Shady Grove Road in Etowah County. Sources tell NewsChannel 19 the body of Geontae Glass was in the trunk of the car.

 

[Guest]

This "kidnapping" happened just a mile or so from my house...

Grieving for this child, and thinking about these people sure isn't compatible with "Good feelings for all" this Christmas season. And you're right Cloudy, her new friends in prison, many mothers grieving their own involuntary separation from their own children, will not be kind.

As for a motive, investigators say Geontae may have been killed because he brought home a bad report card. Geontae was in kindergarten.

My mind is boggling.

 

[lucky-E-leven]

It never ceases to amaze me that people can do such things to their children. I'm shaking-angry at the moment. Can't stop thinking about what goes through a 5 yr. old boy's mind when their life is being threatened/taken. Makes me physically sick to my stomach.

May his takers rot.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

I let my eyes pass over those stories without taking in a word (although it would be tough if it were one mile away, and for that you have my sympathy, Cloudy.) I do so not because I choose to live in a fool's paradise with blinders on and my head stuck in hole, but for three good reasons:

1. They are freak events, extremely rare, not typical of anything. They get "distilled" by mass communications so are in our papers regularly, but that is out of a population of 300 million in the US, so this gives a very skewed view of the world.

2. Tiny numbers of such things have always happened, and always will. There always have been and always will be small numbers of very sick people in the world and there's nothing I can do to change that. Period. (Even if there were, my wallowing in the horror details wouldn't be it.)

3. It lowers my quality of life to pay attention to these stories, and there is absolutely nothing to be gained by my tuning in. So I don't. Feel free to join me, and enjoy a higher quality of life yourself. Given Nos. 1 and 2, you can rest easy in your mind - you're watching or not watching won't change the world a bit. (Lucky - this invitation is for you too. )

 

[rgraham666]

Much as this act horrifies me, please don't draw general conclusions from specific actions.

I grieve for the little boy, and loathe the people that took his life.

But this act was an aberration and not indicative of all of humanity's behaviour.

 

[cloudy]

I think what has truly shocked this community is the fact that it happened here.

I leave my car keys in the car when it's parked in the driveway. I very seldom lock the doors on the house. This is a very small town, and incidents like this one are usually happening somewhere else, since our crime rate is so low (of course, part of that is that everyone knows everyone else, so if someone's going to commit a crime, they go elsewhere to do it).

They showed that poor child's picture on the news last night, and I couldn't help but look over at my 6-year-old son sitting next to me, and sob.

 

[Bishonen]

People are never quite as good nor as bad as you think they are.

 

[Aurora Black]

They need to bury these assholes under the jail.

 

[Misty_Morning]

Gosh, how do I respond to something like this without showing anything other venemous hatred. And that is not going to help.

I know there are alot of liberal diehards on these boards, and good for them. Personally I think we need to thin the herd a little. Negative reinforcement DOES work. You may not want to hear this but prison is too good for them. And why the hell should I have to contribute ANY of my tax dollars to support these societal rejects during their prison stay.

I know what Mississippi and Florida use to carry out the death sentence, but I am not sure about Alabama. What ever it is use it.

 

[cloudy]

from MSN (I can't believe this podunk backwater actually made national news)... he was a beautiful little boy:

http://msnbcmedia.msn.com/j/msnbc/Components/Photos/061205/061205_missing_hmed_1p.hmedium.jpg
Geontae Glass, 5, in a family photo released by the FBI.

Sheriff: Alabama mom, man held in boy’s death
Couple to be charged with murder after stolen-car story found to be hoax

GADSDEN, Ala. - A mother’s report that her 5-year-old son was asleep in the back of a car when it was stolen was a hoax, and she and her boyfriend were being held as suspects in the boy’s death, authorities said Tuesday.

The body of Geontae Glass and the car that was reported stolen Monday morning were found Tuesday in a closed garage at a house in rural Etowah County, Sheriff James Hayes said.

Police were holding Shalinda Glass, 25, of Rainbow City, and Kevin Andre Towles, who is believed to own the house where the body was found, Hayes said.

The sheriff said they would be charged with murder.

The mother had reported Monday morning that her car was stolen with her son asleep in the back seat in the parking lot of a convenience store in Albertville in neighboring Marshall County, about 80 miles northeast of Birmingham. Witnesses reported seeing a man get out of a pickup truck and get into the vehicle, then driving away while someone else drove off in the pickup truck.

It was not immediately clear if the boy was dead at the time the car was driven off in Albertville. Authorities at a midmorning news conference in Gadsden said a cause of death was still being determined.

Authorities were trying to determine jurisdiction, but believed the child was killed in Etowah County, where the mother lives, and that the alleged cover-up was committed in neighboring Marshall County, where the car theft was reported.

Boyfriend has criminal record

Towles was believed to be the “main player” in the boy’s death, Hayes said in an interview. Authorities weren’t sure what happened, he said, but Towles has a criminal record and appeared to be “an abusive boyfriend of the mother.”

Towles has several residences, Hayes said, and investigators searching his home in Albertville discovered evidence that led them to the house in Etowah County. Besides the body, officers found more than $30,000 in cash, a small amount of cocaine, marijuana residue and weapons including an AK-47, Hayes said.

“We believe this is what he thought was his safe house, where nobody knew where he was,” Hayes said.

Hayes said the pickup truck also had been found and the driver was taken into custody for questioning. No charges were filed, but he said the investigation was continuing.

“We do expect others to be arrested,” he said.

Mom seen crying in parking lot

Gina Keeton, a clerk at the store, said she saw Shalinda Glass crying hysterically in the parking lot.

“When I asked her what was wrong, she said someone had taken her child and her car,” Keeton said.

Police issued an Amber Alert after the abduction report, and the sheriff said alerting the public to the description of Glass’ car might have thwarted efforts to dispose of the car and the boy’s body.

“The Amber Alert was absolutely critical in this case,” he said.

In addition to being accused in the boy’s slaying, Towles will be charged with drug offenses and being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, the sheriff said.

 

[TE999]

I'm still enraged about the mom who microwaved her one-month old.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/1593773/

Now this. That poor little child.

Slow torture is too good for these people.

But strangulation is an excellent option.

No justice, no (peace).

 

[3113]

I leave my car keys in the car when it's parked in the driveway. I very seldom lock the doors on the house. This is a very small town, and incidents like this one are usually happening somewhere else, since our crime rate is so low

It still is. This guy didn't steal a car or break into someone's home. Horrific as this is--and it most certainly is--it was, alas, the usual. An abusive boyfriend who ended up killing his girlfriend's kid, not a criminal on a killing spree taking out random victims.

I don't mean this as a silver lining, just to put it into perspective.

 

[rgraham666]

Personally I think we need to thin the herd a little.

(Hands Misty a pink triangle)

 

[Misty_Morning]

(Hands Misty a pink triangle)

I take offense to that, Rob.

My comment about thinning the herd may have been a little brutal, but what these individuals did was evil.

My sexual orientation does not cause any person physical harm and certainly does not cause death to innocent people.

And yes, I do believe in the death penalty. And I do believe it should be used more. Just because I am a lesbian does not mean I have surrender my conservative values. And just because I have these beliefs not not mean I have a nazi mentality.

BTW I used to be a die hard bleeding heart liberal. All that changed one night when I became the victim of a brutal random attack.

That having been said, I gladly take that pink triangle and display it with pride.

 

[English Lady]

Much as this act horrifies me, please don't draw general conclusions from specific actions.

I grieve for the little boy, and loathe the people that took his life.

But this act was an aberration and not indicative of all of humanity's behaviour.

I echo Rob's wise sentiments

 

[rgraham666]

I take offense to that, Rob.

My comment about thinning the herd may have been a little brutal, but what these individuals did was evil.

My sexual orientation does not cause any person physical harm and certainly does not cause death to innocent people.

And yes, I do believe in the death penalty. And I do believe it should be used more. Just because I am a lesbian does not mean I have surrender my conservative values. And just because I have these beliefs not not mean I have a nazi mentality.

BTW I used to be a die hard bleeding heart liberal. All that changed one night when I became the victim of a brutal random attack.

That having been said, I gladly take that pink triangle and display it with pride.

And I've been on the receiving end of my share of brutality as well.

It made me convinced not to become like the people who performed those acts on me. I'm better than that.

I'll simply quote a favoured Taoist saying of mine. "What you resist, you become."

Or if that's too metaphorical for you, try Nietzsche.

"Beware when you battle monsters,
lest you become a monster.
And as you gaze into the abyss,
the abyss gazes also,
into you."

 

[Guest]

i believe in torture.
i dont know why but i think it sends the message home much more than a quick trip to the death chamber and drugs to kill.
how do you think she would deal with her life is forever, she was surrounded by the sound of her sons voice? how about wallpapering her cell with his image? cruel? yep.

but to be fair, we don't know what happened. its all subjective at this point. there may be something going on that we have no idea...conjecture is a cruel bitch.

 

[lucky-E-leven]

I let my eyes pass over those stories without taking in a word (although it would be tough if it were one mile away, and for that you have my sympathy, Cloudy.) I do so not because I choose to live in a fool's paradise with blinders on and my head stuck in hole, but for three good reasons:

1. They are freak events, extremely rare, not typical of anything. They get "distilled" by mass communications so are in our papers regularly, but that is out of a population of 300 million in the US, so this gives a very skewed view of the world.

2. Tiny numbers of such things have always happened, and always will. There always have been and always will be small numbers of very sick people in the world and there's nothing I can do to change that. Period. (Even if there were, my wallowing in the horror details wouldn't be it.)

3. It lowers my quality of life to pay attention to these stories, and there is absolutely nothing to be gained by my tuning in. So I don't. Feel free to join me, and enjoy a higher quality of life yourself. Given Nos. 1 and 2, you can rest easy in your mind - you're watching or not watching won't change the world a bit. (Lucky - this invitation is for you too. )

I can appreciate that this works for some people, and I don't knock it. For me, however, it pushes me very near a line in the sand that I never ever want to cross. To feel pain and sadness for a little boy I never knew, somehow reminds me I'm human. My fear is that the moment I stop recognizing tragedies and processing them in my own heart and through my own values will be the moment I can no longer say with certainty that I am a compassionate soul.

And just to be clear, my rage had plenty to do with the fact that I tuck a 5 year old little girl into bed at night, and it's near impossible for me to not place her inside the story of this little boy. Being reminded of the cruely and malice others are capable of serves another purpose for me. It's just a little tap on the shoulder and reminder that I should never take things for granted, and I should never just assume my family is safe. Like Cloudy said, she keeps things unlocked and hasn't felt she needed to be hypervigilant until now. Even if this incident was contained to that one family, the message to those in the area becomes one of, "Yes, this can happen where you live too."

I appreciate the invite, Roxanne, and if I was tearing through my house yesterday breaking things I would have taken you up on it. As it was, I just felt it necessary to process my sadness for the little boy and the anger at his caretakers, because to simply ignore it (for me) is like saying his life meant nothing. I don't believe anyone's life means nothing.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

To feel pain and sadness for a little boy I never knew, somehow reminds me I'm human. . . . It's just a little tap on the shoulder and reminder that I should never take things for granted . . .

I am weird. I understand exactly what you're saying, and agree, but my source for such reminders is not freak-show criminality. It is instead history. Also, an awareness than on large parts of this globe desperation and tragedy are a part of everyday life, just as they were for everyone for most of history. What makes me weird is that I think in terms of, "You think you have it tough," (to myself). "Be glad your not a resident of one of the cities of the Khoresmian Empire in the 1220s when Genghis Khan was sweeping through, in some cities putting every living being to the sword, in others just rounding them all up and bustling them off to the slave markets, with no rhyme or reason to which city got which treatment."

I can't avoid my knowledge of history and the wider world, but I can choose to avoid knowing any details of "retail" atrocities like this one, and so I do.

 

[cloudy]

I can appreciate that this works for some people, and I don't knock it. For me, however, it pushes me very near a line in the sand that I never ever want to cross. To feel pain and sadness for a little boy I never knew, somehow reminds me I'm human. My fear is that the moment I stop recognizing tragedies and processing them in my own heart and through my own values will be the moment I can no longer say with certainty that I am a compassionate soul.

Yes.

I have a son just a year older than that little boy. Like you, it really hit home. And also like you, I feel that ignoring the incident because it's "unpleasant" or an anomoly would make me less than compassionate.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

And also like you, I feel that ignoring the incident because it's "unpleasant" or an anomoly would make me less than compassionate.

This doesn't apply to you because you didn't really have a choice here, with this hitting literally so close to home, but allow me to speculate about something. We do not have bottomless wells of compassion, either as individuals or as a society. I know the conventional thing is to pretend that compassion is or should be infinite, but it's not. Charities are familiar with "compassion fatigue," which means that if there is a rapid succession of big tragedies, giving slows in the later ones, in part because people just start tuning it out.

Now, think about millions of individuals reading this story, getting all worked up, shaking, and crying. There's not a damned thing a single one of them can do about it, and it's just one of a stream of such stories that flow past us every week. I imagine that some individuals follow them all closely, and get all worked up about many of them.

Is this a worthwhile expenditure of compassion? Should one be discriminating about the tragedies one chooses to focus on? Every now and again something like this strikes home and you can't avoid it, but in general, is it a better choice to not pay attention to the details of such stories?

I'm not saying that anyone here makes a habit of focusing on these things - this incident was thrust upon Cloudy, and she understandably wanted to share her angst with her friends, who being good friends tuned into it. I am speaking in general terms, as I did in my first post on this thread describing why I choose not to focus on stories like this for personal reasons.

 

[FallingToFly]

Gosh, how do I respond to something like this without showing anything other venemous hatred. And that is not going to help.

I know there are alot of liberal diehards on these boards, and good for them. Personally I think we need to thin the herd a little. Negative reinforcement DOES work. You may not want to hear this but prison is too good for them. And why the hell should I have to contribute ANY of my tax dollars to support these societal rejects during their prison stay.

I know what Mississippi and Florida use to carry out the death sentence, but I am not sure about Alabama. What ever it is use it.

Florida is still a death penalty state, thank all that's holy.

We simply don't use it often enough. And no, I will not debate that opinion- it's mine and YOU CAN'T HAVE IT!

 

[Misty_Morning]

Or if that's too metaphorical for you,

I enjoy a rubust debate on occasion, more so in my younger days, however there's one thing you should know about me, I get really fucking pissed off when people insult my intelligence.

So let's agree to disagree and not go down this road before I get really pissed and say things that I shall regret later.

But here is something I will not regret. I will discuss and debate with you the laws of the country and it's States when you are if fact a citizen of this country. I do believe that is not the case.

 

[rgraham666]

Well, I've sure been put in my place.

I'm not an American and therefore have nothing useful to say.

 

[Roxanne Appleby]

There is no reason to prohibit people of good from participating in a debate on the issue of capital punishment, regardless of where they live. It may be pointless, but nothing should prevent it, and a death penalty proponent shouldn't necessarily withhold their views from it.

Personally, I have no instrinsic moral objection, but I don't trust governments enough to give them the authority, so I'm agin' it. Also, life without the possibility of parole might actually be a worse punishment, but I'm speculating there. (Could we arrange for mean guards?)