Juvenile Delinquent Celebrity
Imagine, the existence of a feral teenager. Glamorous, isn't it? Many apparently think so, he's reputed to have a 22,000 fan club on Facebook. "Ur awsome", his adoring public note. This is no cute little kid, he stands 6-foot-5 and because he forages he's likely always hungry. But no matter, he just breaks into private places to steal whatever he wants, or orders pizza delivered to the edge of a wood. Surreal? Kind of.
Just another abandoned kid; obviously the parenting he enjoyed left something to be desired. He has become skilled at evasion over the years, having managed to escape from a halfway house in 2008 where he was ensconced for a 3-year sentence related to burglaries he invested his time in. Since then he has roamed across the U.S. Pacific Northwest. And right into Canada, which he also treated to some of his burglary triumphs.
The police in Island County, Washington, where he was brought up, were very busy attempting to cope with this young man's irresistible urges to act out from the time he was all of eleven years of age, with one incident after another. The sheriff there is not impressed with the celebratory notoriety he enjoys among well-wishers and admirers. "He is an adult felon! I will not have him made into some kind of folk hero."
Isn't that an impudent way to describe a potential Hollywood star? Evidently movie producers, intrigued by this kid's exploits and the rings he's run around law enforcement are interested in making a deal with him; they sense a rising new star in the Hollywood firmament. They'll even pay his legal fees if he turns himself in.
It is, however, an issue he doesn't seem quite interested in. He's cheeky enough to have left a needling note behind one of his burglaries, with the legend "C-Ya!" from the Barefoot Bandit. So named for his proclivity to go about barefoot. Colton Harris-Moore, the Barefoot Bandit, stands accused of no fewer than 50 burglaries. But law enforcement agents have thus far been unable to corner him.
Meanwhile, he has made off with light planes and vehicles, each of which he uses, then abandons. Speculation has it that he taught himself how to fly planes studying manuals, and on-line how-to, so he's able to take off in the planes and fly them, but landing presents as a bit of a difficulty. He hot-wires the planes, isn't that clever of him?
Each of these incidents presents as a taunt to those out looking to apprehend him. Manhunts have been spectacularly unsuccessful; he just seems to vanish into thin air. He breaks into stores during off hours, takes what he wants, then vandalizes the place. Joyriding in stolen vehicles, he's just having himself a fine old adventure. Fodder for an autobiography at some future time?
This fugitive from justice is experiencing adventure writ large in the minds of juveniles who eschew normal societal values. And his mother? "I hope to hell he stole those airplanes. I would be so proud", she told an Associated Press reporter. Unsurprisingly, neighbours of the family claim he experienced a difficult childhood at a trailer park in Camano Island, Washington.
Just another abandoned kid; obviously the parenting he enjoyed left something to be desired. He has become skilled at evasion over the years, having managed to escape from a halfway house in 2008 where he was ensconced for a 3-year sentence related to burglaries he invested his time in. Since then he has roamed across the U.S. Pacific Northwest. And right into Canada, which he also treated to some of his burglary triumphs.
The police in Island County, Washington, where he was brought up, were very busy attempting to cope with this young man's irresistible urges to act out from the time he was all of eleven years of age, with one incident after another. The sheriff there is not impressed with the celebratory notoriety he enjoys among well-wishers and admirers. "He is an adult felon! I will not have him made into some kind of folk hero."
Isn't that an impudent way to describe a potential Hollywood star? Evidently movie producers, intrigued by this kid's exploits and the rings he's run around law enforcement are interested in making a deal with him; they sense a rising new star in the Hollywood firmament. They'll even pay his legal fees if he turns himself in.
It is, however, an issue he doesn't seem quite interested in. He's cheeky enough to have left a needling note behind one of his burglaries, with the legend "C-Ya!" from the Barefoot Bandit. So named for his proclivity to go about barefoot. Colton Harris-Moore, the Barefoot Bandit, stands accused of no fewer than 50 burglaries. But law enforcement agents have thus far been unable to corner him.
Meanwhile, he has made off with light planes and vehicles, each of which he uses, then abandons. Speculation has it that he taught himself how to fly planes studying manuals, and on-line how-to, so he's able to take off in the planes and fly them, but landing presents as a bit of a difficulty. He hot-wires the planes, isn't that clever of him?
Each of these incidents presents as a taunt to those out looking to apprehend him. Manhunts have been spectacularly unsuccessful; he just seems to vanish into thin air. He breaks into stores during off hours, takes what he wants, then vandalizes the place. Joyriding in stolen vehicles, he's just having himself a fine old adventure. Fodder for an autobiography at some future time?
This fugitive from justice is experiencing adventure writ large in the minds of juveniles who eschew normal societal values. And his mother? "I hope to hell he stole those airplanes. I would be so proud", she told an Associated Press reporter. Unsurprisingly, neighbours of the family claim he experienced a difficult childhood at a trailer park in Camano Island, Washington.
Labels: Adventure, Social-Cultural Deviations
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