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Dorchester teen arrested on gun charges after cops noticed a couple guys wearing hoodies despite temperatures near 90
By adamg on Sat, 05/26/2018 - 6:53pm
Boston Police report arresting a 16-year-old they say was walking around Franklin Hill with a loaded gun yesterday afternoon - while wearing a hoodie and long pants.
Police say this is the fourth teenager they'd arrested in 72 hours on gun charges.
Police say officers on routine patrol around 3:10 p.m. noticed a couple guys walking on Angell Street in odd attire for a sweltering day. But what really got their attention, police say, is when one of the two "immediately turned and walked in the opposite direction" - while holding one hand against his waist and swinging the other freely, which is often a sign of somebody with a gun and no holster.
The male then began running, and the officers observed the male take a black object that appeared to be a firearm from his waistband. The officers ordered the male to drop the gun while continuing to pursue on foot. After a lengthy chase, officers were able to take the male into custody without further incident. Police K-9 “Duke” responded to the scene and alerted to the presence of a firearm in the area where the officer observed the suspect remove the object from his waistband. Officers then recovered a loaded Taurus .40 caliber firearm with an obliterated serial number.
The teen, too young to be named, was charged with being delinquent for unlawful possession of a firearm, unlawful possession of ammunition, unlawful carrying a loaded firearm and possession of a firearm with an obliterated serial number. The person with him was not charged.
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Comments
Thanks, BPD
Nice police work on a holiday weekend.
I never understood people who
I never understood people who wear hoodies on a perfectly nice day
They don't want to be recognized by potential
enemies. Lot of drama in da hood.
Hey, I have an idea
Let's hide our guns in a way that totally tells everyone around us that we are hiding something!
What could possibly go wrong?
It’s weird that none of them
It’s weird that none of them have holsters. I mean they sell them on Etsy for heavens sake.
I know, right?
Plenty of options for keeping a gun secure in your waistband - where it won't fall out, and will be in a stable position.
I don't think we are dealing with sensible people who have thought things through.
I made a similar observation
I made a similar observation to my wife, who fortunately is thoughtful and clear-thinking.
She pointed out that sometimes these are young guys, low-level in their gangs- given guns by their seniors for specific times and tasks. Poorly-served from many angles - badly equipped, badly trained, and/or sent out to do stupid stuff that will just get them caught, arrested, prosecuted, a record, and a downward cycle of recidivism.
Someone explained it in another thread
It's easier to claim you never had a gun then to try and explain why you're walking around with an empty holster.
?
Why would anyone walk around with an empty holster? Is that illegal? Is it detectable?
I think what he meant was.....
If you run from the police and throw your gun away and/or get away, they have to prove you had that gun. If you had the holster and ran away, there is more reason that you may have had the firearm...
Holsters conceal firearms
Holsters conceal firearms better than not using them. But a holster is made to the exact make and model of a firearm. So if a criminal throws a gun away and is caught wearing the holster for it, then it's a dead giveaway. Holsters also pick up oils and other trace evidence from use which from a forensics standpoint make them easier to match to people and or ditched firearms.
Fingerprints
And the gun this kid tossed probably had his fingerprints on it.
Nonsense
People have different comfort levels on a hot day, including their level of comfort in cold air conditioning. Although I was wearing shorts and a t-shirt, I saw plenty of people wearing long pants and I saw people wearing hoodies yesterday in downtown Boston and on the Red Line. It doesn't mean they were carrying guns.
Re-read the post, please
Yes, the cops' attention was drawn to two guys wearing hoodies on a really hot, humid day. But it was the way the guy moved after he noticed the police that made them suspect he had a gun (holding his waist and swinging an arm), not the hoodies by themselves.
Dudes act like they have a constitutional right to carry guns
Fer crissake! /weird humor off.
In all seriousness, though, I wonder if the Boston police ever stop somebody in a situation like this (probable cause: wearing hoodies in late spring, etc) and find that the person has both a legal weapon and a licence to carry. I know next to nothing about guns or gun laws, but it must happen ocassionally, right?
First off.....
Wearing a hoodie is never probable cause for anything. Running while clutching your waist surely adds to it though if you appear underage (those under 21 can never posses a firearm concealed in public)
But basically no, class A permit holders don't usually hang around the city and run from the police when approached. Never.
Thanks!
I had a feeling you would answer. Happy Memorial Day, Pete. Enjoy your weekend.
Would be very, very rare
Anything could happen. But what you describe is pretty unlikely, for a few reasons;
- Boston issues very few (close to zero) license to carry. They issue sport/hunting, but with sport/hunting, the gun has to be secured/locked in a container and not on your person. I also think it can only be transported on the way to the range or hunting area. (* I'm not an expert and may be a bit off in my memory of the regs)
- The person could have been granted their LTC in another town and be (legally) visiting Boston. But how likely are they to grab their gun when a cop passes by? Or to run? People I know who legally carry daily make it a point to carry something comfortable, in a safe holster, and they aim to keep things very concealed.
- I'll also say they're unlikely to be hanging on the corner. Again, anything can happen, but then see above- they're unlikely to run or grab their waist when a police officer shows up.
- People who conceal carry may wear a long sleeve or jacket more often than most people, but would likely have a light-weight top. Of course fashion is in the eye of the beholder, so I'll repeat again that anything's possible.
Great arrest, but MA SJC will dismiss any charges
Great job by BPD. Another gun permanently removed from the streets and a
criminal"delinquent child" removed from the streets for a few minutes.Sadly, my guess is that his court appointed, taxpayer funded, usually Harvard trained lawyer will argue that the choice of warm clothing was not reasonable suspicion, especially given that Hillary Clinton wore winter clothing and a scarf in Boston in sweltering temperatures just the day before. If the court agrees, any evidence recovered (gun) will be considered "the fruits of the poisonous tree" and inadmissible. At least the gun will be destroyed or whatever BPD does these days to keep them out of circulation. Nice work, but this kid will need to turn 18 and kill someone before anything is done with him. Sad.
Doubt it- that sort of stuff isn't fashionable anymore
Harvard types like Alan Dershowicz and other formerly idealistic "civil libertatians" have in recent decades taken to defending the likes of Trump, OJ Simpson, and other wealthy criminals rather than bozos like these. There's far more money in it, as you can imagine.
hands on the waistband will be key....
If you remember the 2011 case where it was later ruled that black people can run from the police and that basically does not add to any suspicion (basically turning a conversation into a seizure without PC). In that case, all the police had was a clothing description and people near the scene around the same time. In this case the added grasping of the waistband should be a key factor.
But is the grasping of the
But is the grasping of the waistband visible on dash or bodycam footage? If it isn't then a court might view it along the lines of the canned drunk driving script used in police reports as a given claim not necessarily backed by recorded evidence.
Nope
A prosecutor will counter the lack of video by getting the officer to explain his expertise in whatever the issue is. In a case like this, it'd be something like him explaining he's been an officer for X years and has long expertise in detecting signs a person is carrying a gun, such as, oh, holding his waist with one hand while free swinging the other. We're not at the point where we're going to just dismiss decades/centuries of law about "expert" testimony.
The defense attorney, of course, is then free to try to poke holes or even completely discredit that testimony. But you'd get the same sort of questioning even about videos.