Doctor stabbed by patient at 50 Staniford St., LTC holder saves the day

[Underwhere]

Nice. A head shot.

 

[Rob Boudrie]

Off duty security guard is what the police and head of MGH security said.

If this person was not an MGL employee, his status as a "security guard" is completely irrelevant except to spin-doctor the situation to make it sound like something other than what it mist likely really was - a non-LEO individual with an LTC-A/unrestricted who had the fortune, and misfortune, of being in a situation where the firearm was used defensively. The MGH PD head is probably very relieved he was handed a "duck the facts" card on an situation where non-LEO concealed carry saved someone's life.

In reality, one of the heros of this situation is the licensing officer who did not have "on duty only" added as a restriction on that LTC-A. I hope the doctor who survived the stabbing knows that things would have turned out quite differently if the security guard lived in a town that limited him to a "work only" carry restriction on his LTC-A.

 

[hicksonj]

IANAJ (I am not a judge) but as a security guard, I think he will be ok. A carrying civilian would be in violation of MGH's no firearms policy too.

 

[red87930]

Maybe one of us should start a security firm. We could all get hired but our marketing department would never find any work and we then could all be off duty security officers.

 

[zeppelinfromled]

If you don't want your head to explode do NOT read the comments.

Why don't I listen?

 

[hicksonj]

That's called a militia.

 

[Underwhere]

IANAJ (I am not a judge) but as a security guard, I think he will be ok. A carrying civilian would be in violation of MGH's no firearms policy too.

A security guard isn't exempt from any laws that civilians need to abide by.
He is still in violation of MGH's policy...which is simply a policy.

 

[red87930]

That's called a militia.

I don't think that has the same affect as off duty security officer. What is the differentiation?

 

[hicksonj]

I don't think that has the same affect as off duty security officer. What is the differentiation?

Just being funny. Although it would attract a lot of unwanted attention.

 

[terraformer]

I am lost. I read the bostonchannel.com comments and they didn't seem that bad. Lots of people who understand CCW and the laws and were glad he broke the hospital's policies. Good, right? I am either dulled to the stupidity or I am reading a different page.

 

[Pete85]

IANAJ (I am not a judge) but as a security guard, I think he will be ok. A carrying civilian would be in violation of MGH's no firearms policy too.

This guy was nothing more than a "carrying civilian" just as any of us would be. Whether they will try to press the issue where this is a teaching hospital and thus "school grounds" is up for anyone to guess at this point, but I was under the assumption (as many posts on this board have pointed out) that a no firearms policy only had any teeth against employees of an establishment, or those who were asked to leave by staff at said establishment (i.e. trespassing).

IMO, after an incident like this, it will only hurt MGH to press charges against anyone legally carrying a firearm in the building. If nothing else they'll publicly be stating that they value one person's life over another based on the job that person holds.

ETA: I still wouldn't want to be the test case for fighting their policies.

 

[kaetaur]

What people need to realize is that allowing everyone to carry everywhere will make people think twice about shooting a place up. If the person is nuts and going to attack anyway then all the armed citizens will be able to handle it with a minimal amount of blood shed.

 

[Kid Presentable]

I am lost. I read the bostonchannel.com comments and they didn't seem that bad. Lots of people who understand CCW and the laws and were glad he broke the hospital's policies. Good, right? I am either dulled to the stupidity or I am reading a different page.

derek was probably thinking all the moonbats would have commented saying that he should not have a gun in a hospital...i try not to read comments anymore in gun stories

 

[Admin]

I am lost. I read the bostonchannel.com comments and they didn't seem that bad. Lots of people who understand CCW and the laws and were glad he broke the hospital's policies. Good, right? I am either dulled to the stupidity or I am reading a different page.

Good?

You people are ridiculous. Has it occurred to you that the people involved may have, I don't know, possibly been improperly medicated? Or that perhaps there was an imbalance in their neurochemistry? This is a psychiatric clinic. I'm not saying what happened was right by any means, but the statements that you all are making here are based on pure assumption. Wait for the facts before blaming "the man."

I agree with BettyBoop! what does corp. america have to do with this? the dr. should have been paying more attention to the 'patient' and figured out they were not taking the meds as prescribed. not many of them do,,too many 'patients' like to self-analyze and take meds when they feel like it. perhaps this building and more like it should all start using metal detectors?

I'm guessing this someone should have been in a locked psyche ward instead of out voluntarily taking meds. There's a few of these cases wandering the streets. Voluntarily taking drugs does not always make people safe to live in society.

Daisy, couldn't agree with you more. I hardly ever watch local news anymore because it has become so tabloid. And for the rest of you who blame the doctor, the liberal do-gooders etc., shame on you! Obviously this guy wasn't playing with a full deck and treating mental illness isn't an exact science. It's not like you can look at an x-ray and say "that's broken". As a society we walk the line between treating people on an outpatient basis and admitting them to a psychiatric hospital. Do you know how few beds there are in psych hospitals? A good number of the homeless in Boston are former psych hospital patients who were kicked to the curb when all of the state hospitals were closed, BY A REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR. This is just a tragedy period. And there's plenty of blame to go around. Unconsciaonably, people fall through the cracks everyday.

Bottom line is a bad guy got what was coming.

 

[jcr]

as a security guard, I think he will be ok. A carrying civilian would be in violation of MGH's no firearms policy too.

Security guards are civilians.

 

[cekim]

Just being funny. Although it would attract a lot of unwanted attention.

"Unwanted Attention?" How else will the world appreciate my chest rig?






(FTR: I don't own a chest rig...)

 

[MetalgodZ]

If you don't want your head to explode do NOT read the comments.

Amazing - The 2nd commenter is saying that this is the result of lax MA sentencing. I sometimes wonder if people even read the articles they're commenting on before spewing completely unrelated garbage.

 

[cekim]

Amazing - The 2nd commenter is saying that this is the result of lax MA sentencing. I sometimes wonder if people even read the articles they're commenting on before spewing completely unrelated garbage.

Were they talking about the stabber? If so, that could indeed be a "cause"... If he should have been rotting somewhere instead of out and a bout - that would definitely increase the likely-hood of him committing future crime...

If so, that doesn't seem like such a crazy thing to say...

 

[Uncle Fester]

If you don't want your head to explode do NOT read the comments.

See, that's just not cool. I wasn't even going to click the link. Now it's going to haunt me.

 

[LTCRN]

IANAJ (I am not a judge) but as a security guard, I think he will be ok. A carrying civilian would be in violation of MGH's no firearms policy too.

Maybe, just maybe, hospitals will change their minds about allowing security or employees to carry on premises. When I leave at night, I am constantly looking over my shoulder for the bad guy to come out behind a dumpster, bush, vehicle, or anywhere else until I am moving out of the parking lot. There is no paranoia here, just being vigilant because of previous incidents that have occured over the last three years. The clientel (sp?) and their friends that frequents the ER at the witching hours between 0000 and 0200 aren't the most friendly or positive citizens of the Commiewealth. They say there is strength in numbers, meaning lots of visible unarmed security is suppose to be enough of a deterrent, but I feel there is a lot more strength in one full mag that holds a minimum of 6 and a max of 33 and this allows me to make decisions regarding my safety / well being by myself.

 

[terraformer]

Good?

Bottom line is a bad guy got what was coming.

I think the good ones outweighed the doogie howsers 2:1. There were folks praising the guy for carrying against the hospitals policies and discussing what legal issues exist. That is a step in the right direction.

 

[terraformer]

This sucks. They are focusing on the fact that he was a security guard. Like this makes it all OK. The spokesperson is praising him. If this guy wasn't a mall/rent-a-cop, what would the reaction have been?

 

[mikem317]

Well thank goodness that the off-duty security guard had an LTC and was carrying a firearm. There's no telling how many lives were saved.

However, I thought that MGH was a victim-disarmament zone. Who knew?

 

[deadhead133]

Good?









Bottom line is a bad guy got what was coming.

"A good number of the homeless in Boston are former psych hospital patients who were kicked to the curb when all of the state hospitals were closed, BY A REPUBLICAN GOVERNOR. This is just a tragedy period."


IIRC it was Dukakis who put all the mentally ill on the streets.

 

[Ricky]

....

However, I thought that MGH was a victim-disarmament zone. Who knew?

50 Staniford Street location is a satellite site, the building host other businesses there, I don't believe MGH owns this building, just maybe lease some floors

Google: All businesses at 50 Staniford Street

 

[punx45]

This sucks. They are focusing on the fact that he was a security guard. Like this makes it all OK. The spokesperson is praising him. If this guy wasn't a mall/rent-a-cop, what would the reaction have been?

i have a feeling if they werent able to tag on the safety words "security guard" the reporting would be very different.

 

[hicksonj]

This sucks. They are focusing on the fact that he was a security guard. Like this makes it all OK. The spokesperson is praising him. If this guy wasn't a mall/rent-a-cop, what would the reaction have been?

I agree that his roll as a security guard will at least skew public and potentially prosecutorial interpretations. It is a lot more palatable for anti-s to hear about a security guard's protection of the public vs. Joe 6-Pack. That is what I meant about the civilian dichotomy. If they press charges, he has no official capacity to claim. Either way... he is a hero, maybe even has a NES handle, and we should get behind him in lock step to show citizens of the Commonwealth that life threatening events occur too quickly for police intervention and self-protection is not mutual exclusive with public security.

 

[economist]

This sucks. They are focusing on the fact that he was a security guard. Like this makes it all OK. The spokesperson is praising him. If this guy wasn't a mall/rent-a-cop, what would the reaction have been?

I can't tell from the news reports (can't trust them, anyway), but it seems like this was just a guy who happened to be there (why?) and was carrying (LTC?). The great news is that an armed citizen who had no professional responsibilities and just happened to be there seems to have acted sensibly and could well have saved one or more lives. And on top of that the bad guy is dead. The shooter is being called "heroic" by the MGH head of security. All told, this is a great outcome to a bad situation.

But I agree, it would be a little better if all else were equal and he didn't happen to work as a security guard.

 

[terraformer]

Either way... he is a hero, maybe even has a NES handle, and we should get behind him in lock step to show citizens of the Commonwealth that life threatening events occur too quickly for police intervention and self-protection is not mutual exclusive with public security.

Agreed.

I can't tell from the news reports (can't trust them, anyway), but it seems like this was just a guy who happened to be there (why?) and was carrying (LTC?). The great news is that an armed citizen who had no professional responsibilities and just happened to be there seems to have acted sensibly and could well have saved one or more lives. And on top of that the bad guy is dead. The shooter is being called "heroic" by the MGH head of security. All told, this is a great outcome to a bad situation.

But I agree, it would be a little better if all else were equal and he didn't happen to work as a security guard.

But they, by focusing on his day (or night) job are ascribing to him professional duties which, as you also assume, likely have no bearing on the facts at hand. As a result, they are making him more equal and escaping having to deal with the fact that it was civilian CCW, in the face of numerous policies and laws standing in the way, that made this possible. I don't begrudge him at all. He would have been well advised and smart to have screamed for all to hear he was a security guard to take advantage of the sheeple trust for authority to keep from getting shot himself and to curry favor as he is investigated.

He will likely be fine legally through this, as he should be, but not for the right reasons. I think we all agree on this point, I just want to make sure we all see it for what it was so there is no illusion that now somehow MGH buildings are safe for CCW, etc. This will change nothing.

 

[economist]

But they, by focusing on his day (or night) job are ascribing to him professional duties which, as you also assume, likely have no bearing on the facts at hand. As a result, they are making him more equal and escaping having to deal with the fact that it was civilian CCW, in the face of numerous policies and laws standing in the way, that made this possible. I don't begrudge him at all. He would have been well advised and smart to have screamed for all to hear he was a security guard to take advantage of the sheeple trust for authority to keep from getting shot himself and to curry favor as he is investigated.

He will likely be fine legally through this, as he should be, but not for the right reasons. I think we all agree on this point, I just want to make sure we all see it for what it was so there is no illusion that now somehow MGH buildings are safe for CCW, etc. This will change nothing.

Yes, I agree.