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Ice-T says he almost shot an Amazon delivery driver 'creeping up to my crib'

30 points| LinuxBender | 6 years ago |lite.cnn.io

52 comments

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[+] ggambetta|6 years ago|reply
> "Just regular people workin," Ice-T wrote. "I ain't mad at them. Just sayin. That ... ain't safe."

You know what else "ain't safe", Ice-T? Defaulting to shooting people you don't recognize!

[+] gregkerzhner|6 years ago|reply
His reality is not one that (at least I) can understand living a safe and comfortable life in the suburbs. He was associated with crime, gangs, and fame throughout his life. It may be that he is more defensive because he has had (or currently has) people trying to come and kill him. That being said, if I ever need to put a hit out on Ice-T, I will make sure I am wearing an Amazon vest.
[+] js2|6 years ago|reply
If nextdoor has taught me anything, it's that many of my neighbors are deathly afraid of two things: snakes, and people they don't recognize.
[+] HarryHirsch|6 years ago|reply
But it's America, where you take personal responsibility for your own safety. The organs of the state are either absent - consider George Zimmermann, his neighbourhood did have a crime problem, so he saw fit to take matters in his own hand - or they are not safe to call. I bet there's a substantial contingent of African-Americans who won't call police because of previous unfavourable interactions, US police have a deplorably low standard of training and discipline. If anyone needs proof for that, look no further than Mohammed Noor or Amber Guyger.
[+] WalterGR|6 years ago|reply
You know what else "ain't safe", Ice-T? Defaulting to shooting people you don't recognize!

The unnecessary verbatim quoting, both in the article’s title and in this comment, serve only to highlight the otherness of Ice-T, which then makes it easier to accept the premise, because (clutches pearls) I would certainly do nothing like that!

[+] shams93|6 years ago|reply
Well Los Angeles culture is like that you have even greater social inequality in LA than the Bay Area. Robberies of the wealthy are commonplace and the police will get there like 48 hours after the fact. So yes its a dangerous place to deliver for Amazon. If you don't get shot by mistake you could be eaten by a pack of guard dogs.
[+] norswap|6 years ago|reply
People say "he's from the street" but damn, he's also a celebrity — that's bound to attract a slew of weird and ill-intentioned people.

That being said, I doubt he would have shot someone unprovoked. That part is for the street cred.

[+] jancsika|6 years ago|reply
Which is worse (by far):

* one object's memory becoming corrupted due to a local hardware error

* a change to a class member that silently loses data

Edit: clarification

[+] lallysingh|6 years ago|reply
> ... Dave Clark, the company's senior vice president of worldwide operations. > > "Just saying... thanks for the suggestion. We MF'ing love you and our drivers," Clark wrote.

I was surprised at that part.

[+] mavsman|6 years ago|reply
Ya is that real? It either sounds like a parody or an out of touch exec trying to sound in touch.
[+] dontbenebby|6 years ago|reply
Good thing he didn't, because even in conservative states merely trespassing isn't enough to allow you to use deadly force. Some states allow you to defend property (shoot someone stealing), or to shoot someone who when told to leave refuses, but nowhere in America can you shoot someone dead simply for crossing your property line.
[+] mrkstu|6 years ago|reply
Kind of. If the property owner believes that he is preventing/stopping another crime (i.e. burglary/theft/criminal mischief) the homicide would be without criminal consequence to the owner. The criminal mischief (at night only) is a pretty broad category and makes it hard to win a prosecution.

A 2015 study found that only 2 of 45 shootings claiming self-defense in Texas were even charged...

[+] xfitm3|6 years ago|reply
The law gives property owners the right to defend themselves with a reasonable response. That means any force used against a trespasser must usually be proportionate to harm that is reasonably perceived.

For example, Florida lets you open fire on someone forcibly trying to enter your dwelling -- including your attached porch -- but not the rest of your property (such as a yard).

[+] michaelt|6 years ago|reply
Presumably, a delivery driver looking for a safe place a parcel can be hidden looks a lot like a package thief looking for a safe place a parcel might be hidden?
[+] raisedbyninjas|6 years ago|reply
Conservative states don't always have duty to retreat laws. Even for those that do, dead men tell no tales. Ice T could have just murdered the delivery man then lied about threatening behavior.
[+] jstanley|6 years ago|reply
Good thing he didn't, because otherwise the guy could have been killed!
[+] jsiepkes|6 years ago|reply
I don't think the problem here is delivery people not being easily identifiable as friendly targets....

Seriously in what kind of world do you live if you even vaguely think you need to shoot at everyone in the vicinity of your house who you can't identify?

[+] ASalazarMX|6 years ago|reply
We are used to see sleeping babies as innocent, but if we approached carelessly to their cribs and scared them, and they were armed, they would shoot at us too.
[+] kstenerud|6 years ago|reply
I don't get it... Why would your default impulse when an unknown person approaches your house be to shoot them?
[+] daveFNbuck|6 years ago|reply
There's a good chance Ice-T was just made uncomfortable by the stranger approaching his house and used an attention-grabbing way to express it publicly. He may have also felt that this was the sort of thing that would boost his public persona.
[+] brazzy|6 years ago|reply
Because the NRA has drilled it into people that "home invasions" by people who want to kill you are an everyday threat you need to be prepared to.
[+] sxp62000|6 years ago|reply
He was joking. He probably got startled.
[+] sundvor|6 years ago|reply
"Only in America", as my friends say.
[+] Dirlewanger|6 years ago|reply
He brings up a good point. How can one reliably distinguish between an Amazon drone on-the-clock and some moron's amateur drone snooping around peoples' yards? There just isn't a way right now, and I don't see a better way any time soon. Any way of identification from the ground will most likely add weight, and more weight == higher cost to fly.
[+] gppk|6 years ago|reply
What's the problem here? If a drone is flying around you're not exactly allowed to interfere with it anyway?

If it's a drone that crashes or causes an issue, then presumably the Amazon drones will be tracked/registered and hobbyists wil llikely have to be conforming to their local laws wrt registration

[+] battletested|6 years ago|reply
> Amazon Help promised to "be in touch soon" and thanked Ice-T for his feedback.

So, Amazon does respond to customers questions, I mean apparently when you're rich and famous..

I am banned for life because I tried to buy something when my credit-card was on its limit without me knowing it. It was a non-issue as I monthly settle any credit-card debt outstanding. But no Amazon for me anymore, no customer support nothing, banned for life, amazing company.