Grave desecration of Liberty Marine leads to arrest

[douglas9]

Source: Houston Chronicle

LIBERTY — A suspect has been arrested in connection with the desecration of the grave here of a 22-year-old hometown hero, a U.S. Marine, who died in Iraq.

Liberty Police Chief Mike Cummings has not yet released the name of the suspect arrested last night in this Liberty County town about 30 miles east of Houston.

Cummings said only that the suspect had not known Lance Corporal Jeremy Burris and had not intended to pick out that grave. Details will be released at a press conference at 2 p.m.

Within hours of Burris' burial on Oct. 16, the grave was desecrated. About 30 sprays of flowers were ripped apart, flags torn down, posters and notes shredded.

Read more: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/5244962.html

[Cooley Hurd]

1. I hope it wasn't an antiwar protester and Cummings has to eat his words...

When this was first reported a few days ago, he was operating under the assumption that it was an antiwar protester...:eyes:

[MADem]

2. Well....'had not intended to pick out that grave' sure sounds like it was a random act of a random

asshole. Time will tell.

[Cooley Hurd]

4. They've updated the article:

<snip>
According to investigators, neither an anti-war activist nor prankster was behind the damage to Lance Corp. Jeremy Burris' grave about 30 miles east of Houston. About 25 floral arrangements, flags and notes were shredded within hours after his burial on Oct. 16.

The motive was to steal some 25 wire stands that had held the floral arrangements and some other items that could be reused and sold to a floral shop. The recycled stands are bought for $1.50 each, authorities said.

Wallace DeBlanc, 41, was arrested at his home on County Road 145 in Liberty about 11 p.m. Wednesday without incident, police said. He is charged with a state jail felony, criminal mischief to a place of human burial.
</snip>

Yikes! What a ghoul...

[MADem]

6. What a BAAAAAAAASTID!!!!! A floral accoutrements grave robber!!

Now I've heard EVERYTHING.

Why couldn't the asshole have STOLEN the stands, if he HAD to do that, and gently laid the flowers on the grave? What a fuck! A stupid fuck, too!!!

[Cooley Hurd]

9. He might've wanted the police to THINK it was a prank by kids or antiwar people...

...to cover his tracks.:grr:

[MADem]

12. Bingo--that makes total sense. NT

[Xipe Totec]

19. More likely just in a hurry to get out

A 42 year old stealing wire from graveside flower arrangements sounds like a person desperate for a few bucks.

I'm not defending the guy, just wondering what his motivation was.

[kestrel91316]

5. I don't know any anti-war folks who would do something like this.

This is either a teenage malcontent or a drunk/druggie. Or maybe a freeper wanting to make it LOOK like it was done by an anti-war protestor.

[booksenkatz]

8. I was thinking it would be a Parlock or a Phelps, myself. NT

[Psephos]

14. Then you haven't been to San Juan Island

http://www.sanjuanislander.com/county/sheriff/flag.shtml

Extremists from both ends of the spectrum are capable of nasty stuff.

[SyntaxError]

15. You don't it more likely that some right-wingers did that to make anti-war protesters look bad?

[Psephos]

16. No

Unless you have some evidence, that's called "projection."

Do you think these guys are right-wing agitators, too?

http://youtube.com/watch?v=dir1tkQftww

The vid omits to show one of the protestors pulling down his pants and taking a dump on the burnt remains.

Extremists and zealots exist on both ends of the political spectrum. We need to take ownership of ours if we expect the wingnuts to take even token ownership of theirs.

Ideological zombies are a plague on both our houses. Or, more accurately, they are a plague on humanity.

[proud2BlibKansan]

18. where does it say that?

[Psephos]

20. What are you talking about??? n/t

[Progressive Friend]

21. Probably a Neocon did it, to try and make the oppostion look bad

[Demeter]

3. God! What an Ugly Nation of Ugly People This Has Become!

[MADem]

7. Turns out the motive was simple greed!! All's right with AMERICA!!

PHEW--thank GOODNESS!!!

:sarcasm:

[Blaze Diem]

10. Bush says its American to be greedy. Patriotic even !

Our role model for acceptable criminal behavior.

[MADem]

11. Ha, so he ain't a grave desecrator, he's one a-them ON-TER-Pron-OOORS! nt

[Demeter]

13. Poverty--Material and Spiritual

A nation of street rats--

[UpInArms]

17. a entirely new form of grave robbing

:sigh:

[hisownpetard]

22. Phonetic Spell Check: Alternate pronunciation = ON-cha-pin-OOR