Kids in Cedar Park Throwing Rocks at Dock Street Customers

[boognish]

No one is claiming it's just urban "ghetto" kids. But in this case, it was. And it was dangerous since they were throwing at people eating dinner with their children.

Edit: actually, I don't agree with the "ghetto" part. I don't consider that area ghetto at all.

[scottsb]

No one is claiming it's just urban "ghetto" kids. But in this case, it was. And it was dangerous since they were throwing at people eating dinner with their children.

Tartan69 came pretty close to saying that.

Edit: actually, I don't agree with the "ghetto" part. I don't consider that area ghetto at all.

I agree. That's why I kept putting it in quotes.

[Jayfar]

I was pretty sure of this. It actually came up again recently because back in July in Camden folks were opening so many without a sprinkler attatchment that it caused Camden Fire Dep't to cancel public events including a River Sharks game.

Minor nit, it was later discovered that the issue was mostly the result of a water main break, apparently in some isolated area where it wasn't discovered right away.

[loveisnoise]

Minor nit, it was later discovered that the issue was mostly the result of a water main break, apparent in some isolated area where it wasn't discovered right away.

But the water main break was caused from 10 year olds shooting at each other over access to the hydrant water.

[seand]

No one is claiming it's just urban "ghetto" kids. But in this case, it was. And it was dangerous since they were throwing at people eating dinner with their children.

From a playground I routinely go to with my 3 year old.

About 1/4 of the kids who i have of seen hanging out with this group (when they have just been hanging out dancing by the the playground) I know by sight as friends of neighbors from my block, 3 or 4 are boys I know by name from my block. The kids i actually saw throwing pebbles (they were actually throwing pebbles during the throng of people out for the last Dollar Stroll but basically it was so crowded, noone seemed to even notice) were pretty young, like 11 or 12, but i didn't recognize them. During the Dollar stroll they were over by the PFCU on Willows. i was with my 3 year old but by the time I crossed they had retreated down Willows giggling.

I'll just point out as someone who actually lives about 5 doors down from the corner in question, again, they have not been out in the park at all recently. I think arrests scared the hangers on away and they are not coming back

And the trolley track repairs to the 5000 block of Baltimore are basically done. SEPTA is moving down the street to the 5100 block and there are no more giant piles of gravel around.

[schmoe]

oops.

[schmoe]

A few weeks ago I busted a group of kids for drinking in their car while they were trying to harass women. When the cop was cuffing one of them they said to me," you wouldnt have done that in west Philly cause you be dead B!". I said,"well, I wouldn't be in west Philly because that' were scumbags live.".

Every ghetto in America has its own rules which I why it's the ghetto- to contain miscreants who generally should not be a part of the whole.

YEAH! Stay on your side of the river or we'll rev our ATV's and pop wheelies in every parking spot on your street until our hummer limo arrives with hydrant wrenches and Cristal for all! It'll be total anarchy where he with the most rocks rules!

[seand]

YEAH! Stay on your side of the river or we'll rev our ATV's and pop wheelies in every parking spot on your street until our hummer limo arrives with hydrant wrenches and Cristal for all! It'll be total anarchy where he with the most rocks rules!

Huh? All that "ghetto" stuff is every bit as popular in North Philly, Point Breeze, Logan, East Germantown, the Oak Lanes, Lower NE so I'll assume "your side of the river" in this post means between the Schuylkill and Delaware.

RE: LIN
Nope, nobody acts "ghetto" and/or "white trash" in any parts of Greater Kenzo/Fishtown, ever. Err, wait.

[schmoe]

To coin a phrase: "One man's ghetto is another man's, uh...grotto?" Those other neighborhoods can respond as they see fit. I'm just letting everyone know our protocol.
Now, ERRYBODY stay on your side of the river, see?

PS This thread became more or less exactly what I hoped it wouldn't. Aaahhhh, the internet.

[Dayman]

Rachel and I went to Dock Street a few weeks back during the Dining Days thing. A huge fight broke out in Cedar Park and I called the cops. Kids scattered and came back but were relatively harmless during that period.

[annie]

TheFuzz is saying there were only curfew citations no arrests. If your friend wanted them arrested he might want to follow up with the 18th.

[schmoe]

TheFuzz is saying there were only curfew citations no arrests. If your friend wanted them arrested he might want to follow up with the 18th.

I heard the story second-hand, so I'm fuzzy on the details other than the event itself. I'm probably also using the wrong terminology. It did sound like they had picked up a few kids, but even with positive ID from witnesses, I guess if he doesn't press charges there's no arrest. I'm inclined to think he didn't want to press charges anyway, but by that point he was in the ER for treatment.

[seand]

Interesting, for all talk about me suffering from lowered expectations or whatever, I would have made a point of pressing charges just to make sure the details of what actually happened gets back to the parents. Short of that, nothing is likely to stop boys from acting out in the future.

Though the disappearance of the gravel seems to have changed things, anyway.

[MariusPontmercy]

I heard the story second-hand, so I'm fuzzy on the details other than the event itself. I'm probably also using the wrong terminology. It did sound like they had picked up a few kids, but even with positive ID from witnesses, I guess if he doesn't press charges there's no arrest. I'm inclined to think he didn't want to press charges anyway, but by that point he was in the ER for treatment.

He had to go to the ER and he's not pressing charges?

[seand]

He had to go to the ER and he's not pressing charges?

True dat. Its my understanding that by pressing charges, as a crime victim, you would eventually get reimbursed for the ER bill from the perp. I'd be inclined to press charges out of sheer unvarnished cheapskateishness, but thats me.

[Gladys]

Ahh, brings back memories of a trek to the Art Museum about 20 years ago, Sunday afternoon,
brats throwing stones at cars heading into the Spring Garden tunnel under Eakins Oval...

Big mistake, hit a car of (what I guess) church pastor's wife
- car shudders to a stop, backs up, church lady runs after the kids in her Sunday best, [hat an all] ,
catches one kid by the ear,

Basically dragged the kid across Pennsy. Ave,
"Where do you live, Who are your parents, What is your name little boy, Do not lie to me..."


Hal

i soooooooowash there were a vid of this!

I don't want to make more out of it than it is, but this happened again Saturday night. I was not there, but heard that there were about twenty kids, some a bit older than the original group, closer to 15 say. Again, my friend happened to be there and approached them since he has a kid just about the younger kids' ages and his parent mode kicked into gear.

Words were exchanged, something amounting to "you disrespected my cousin" or some such nonsense. Um yeah, your cousin threw rocks at people sitting at dinner. I'd say he started the whole disrespect thing.

My friend realized the conversation was going nowhere, so he turned to walk back to his table and was jumped. By all 20 kids. He is OK, just a little bruised but understandably shaken.

They arrested a few of the kids whom witnesses could identify. One of the diners was an off-duty cop who jumped in to help. Apparently, one of the kids had a cast, which he used as a bludgeoning device, and was connected to an earlier mugging. Another kid had a 2X4 and cracked a guy over the neck when he came to help pull kids off. The guy who was hit grabbed the 2X4 and threw it off to the side.

Ugh. It may sound trite, but "kids these days!" WTF?!?!?!

Sounds like a flash mob.

Starting a melee and beating on a guy with rocks and boards goes way beyond average stupidity. These "kids" are cruel, vicious creatures that only understand interpersonal interaction on the level of posturing and violence. They can't comprehend anything else.

It was a flash mob. Since it wasn't in Center City you won't hear crap about it on the news though.

which makes no sense

Shooting a kid for throwing rocks. Makes perfect sense. Hell, we might as well rename the popular kid's game "rock, paper, 9mm".

lin the second incident could easily be viewed as self defense

The kids attacked the victim with more than rocks.

Learn to read.

[MariusPontmercy]

True dat. Its my understanding that by pressing charges, as a crime victim, you would eventually get reimbursed for the ER bill from the perp. I'd be inclined to press charges out of sheer unvarnished cheapskateishness, but thats me.

Ambulances are expensive, assuming he had to be taken in an ambulance. Maybe his insurance covered the whole thing?

[the mule]

Ambulances are expensive, assuming he had to be taken in an ambulance. Maybe his insurance covered the whole thing?

Having pressed charges against people for various crimes before, I'd eat the ER co-pay rather than go through the hell of pressing charges again. All of the wasted time and aggravation you have to go through to just to get justice will leave you wondering who exactly is being punished.

I have excellent insurance but I was unfortunate enough to have to take an ambulance ride once, which was not covered, and jesus are they expensive. In that case I think I might go through to try to get the kid convicted.