911 Transcript for Connecticut brewery shooter

[dave32]

Interesting.

-----------

 

Transcript of 911 call from Conn. shooter

 

By The Associated Press

 

Transcript of the 4-minute 911 call made by Omar Thornton to police in the moments after he shot 10 of his co-workers  eight fatally  at a beer distribution plant in Manchester, Conn., on Tuesday.

Link

 

___

Dispatcher: State police.

Thornton: Is this 911?

Dispatcher: Yeah, can I help you?

Thornton: This is Omar Thornton, the uh, the shooter over in Manchester.

Dispatcher: Yes, where are you, sir?

Thornton: I'm in the building. Uh, you probably want to know the reason why I shot this place up. This place right here is a racist place.

Dispatcher: Yup, I understand that.

Thornton: They're treating me bad over here. And treat all other black employees bad over here, too. So I took it to my own hands and handled the problem. I wish I could have got more of the people.

Dispatcher: Yeah. Are you armed, sir? Do you have a weapon with you?

Thornton: Oh yeah, I'm armed.

Dispatcher: How many guns do have with you?

Thornton: I got one now. There's one out, one out in the uh, in the uh, factory there.

Dispatcher: Yep. OK, sir.

Thornton: I'm not going to kill nobody else though.

Dispatcher: Yeah. We're going to have to have you surrender yourself somehow here and not make the situation any worse. You know what I mean?

Thornton: These cops are going to kill me.

Dispatcher: No, they're not. We're just going to have to get you to relax ...

Thornton: I'm relaxed. I'm calmed down.

Dispatcher: ... to have you, you know, turn yourself over.

Thornton: (Unintelligible) I hear the cops are already in there. Make sure you say the right thing. Hey, the SWAT team just rolled by in Army gear. They don't know where I'm at. But I don't know, maybe you can trace this from this phone call. But yeah, these people here are crazy. And they treat me bad from when I started here. Racist company. Treat me bad. I'm the only black they've already got here. They treat me bad over here, treat me bad all the time.

Dispatcher: It's a horrible situation, I understand that.

Thornton: Hey don't try to calm me down. I'm already calmed down. I'm not going to kill nobody else. I just want to tell my story to you, so you can play it back anyway.

Dispatcher: OK. You're going to help me get you out of the building, OK?

Thornton: Alright. I'm good. (Unintellgible) I got that taken care of. I don't need anyone to talk me into getting out of the building.

Dispatcher: Where in the building are you?

Thornton: I'm not going to tell you that. When they find me that's when everything is going to be over.

Dispatcher: Yeah. Where are you located? Are you up in the offices?

Thornton: When they find me everything will be alright. (Expletive) Manchester itself is a racist place.

Dispatcher: Yeah. Now, um, what time did you get there today?

Thornton: About 7 o'clock.

Dispatcher: This morning?

Thornton: Yeah, about 7 a.m. Yeah, they told me to come early today.

Dispatcher: What kind of weapon do you have?

Thornton: I got a Ruger SR9.

Dispatcher: A Ruger? SR9?

Thornton: Automatic, yeah.

Dispatcher: Is it a rifle?

Thornton: Nah, it's a pistol. (Unintelligible) are two of my favorites.

Dispatcher: Now, uh, you're going to make, uh, the troopers and the people come in and, uh, catch you? You're not going to surrender yourself?

Thornton: Well, I guess maybe on Thursday. Nah! They're coming to get me. They gotta come get me.

Dispatcher: Yeah, we wouldn't want to do it like that, Omar. You know, it's already been a bad enough scene this morning. We want you to relax.

Thornton: I'm relaxed. I'm calmed down.

Dispatcher: We don't want any more, any more, uh, people, you know, to lose their life here.

Thornton: I'm not going to kill nobody else.

Dispatcher: OK.

Thornton: I'm not coming out of where I'm at. I'm not coming out. They have to find me. Probably bring some dogs, or whatever, I don't know what they do.

Dispatcher: How much ammunition do you have with you?

Thornton: I got, uh, a lot of shots left. Uh-oh.

Dispatcher: What's that?

Thornton: It's alright. I guess this is (unintelligible) where I have to take care of business. Tell my people I love them and I got to go now.

Dispatcher: Omar, I really want you to help me stop this situation, OK?

Thornton: OK.

Dispatcher: If you work with me we'll get this to stop, OK? Omar. Ooh! Omar. Omar. OK, he's still alive.

[TroyinEwa/Perv]

I think I said somewhere yesterday it's too bad he offed himself. I changed my mind. I'm glad he did. Saved the taxpayer a TON of money by not having a trial and having to incarcerate his murdering ass forever or until they would have put him to death.

[BaronTT]

Having To Refute Racial Accusation Was True Injustice

 

What is injustice? A fired employee kills eight former co-workers, each with multiple gunshots, then takes his own life -- but not before "explaining" that his deranged actions grew out of racism at the company.

 

There's not a shard of evidence of racism by Hartford Distributors Inc., the Manchester beer wholesaler.

 

No complaints of any kind were lodged with any agency or organization by the killer, Omar Thornton, who was black  or by anyone else over race.

 

[sample Our Free Connecticut Business Midday Newsletter]

 

No one other than the killer's girlfriend claims to have seen or heard racist graffiti or taunts against Thornton.

 

Two days later, in the midst of mourning, the company president is forced to stand before the hungry masses of the media to respond to this drivel by a cold-blooded killer and his girlfriend. Are you kidding me?

 

The outrage here is that Ross Hollander was even put in this position, a victim of our society's obsession with instantly getting to the bottom of stories that never should be stories in the first place. He's no less a victim than Shirley Sherrod, the U.S. Department of Agriculture official who was wrongly fired last month in a rush to judgment over a videotape that appeared to reveal racism.

 

As it happens, Hollander has a bit of a record when it comes to civil rights and race relations. Going over his record isn't necessary to counter the sad accusations contained in Thornton's last breaths. But the facts help to show what a cruel injustice the system foisted on Hollander at a moment when he, his family, his employees, and chiefly the families of the deceased, were most in need of sympathy.

 

Hollander's recent civic work, and his family's philanthropy, especially in the Jewish community, are by now well told. Less widely cited this week is that back in the '70s, he was on the board of the region's Urban League. He also was active with the United Negro College Fund, something he only talked about when I pressed him on it in a conversation Thursday.

 

In 2006 he and two other prominent citizens brought a lawsuit against their town, Bloomfield, to uphold a voters' referendum for much-needed bonding for the schools, which are almost entirely black. "This is not a man that just gives money," said John Wolfson, the lawyer in that case. "Ross spent his time getting this referendum passed by organizing people, getting people in the fold."

 

In that integrated town, Hollander, 63, is known to have what one friend called an "integrated social life."

 

"If you go to a Ross party or event, you will see blacks and whites," said David Pudlin, a former state House majority leader.

 

At Thursday's gathering at the Teamsters union hall in South Windsor, many people publicly and privately said the Hollanders would not tolerate racial insensitivity. Hollander himself made that point, but only after explaining that the company will remain strong, and mostly, after honoring each dead employee.

 

"I want to concentrate on burying those people, who lost their lives due to this lunacy," Hollander said to me later.

 

Hartford Distributors has more than a few Latinos on its staff of 130, and a about a half-dozen black employees  a small number in part because jobs openings are scarce at the company where pay and benefits are the best around.

 

No one is saying this or any other workplace is Nirvana. David Zylberman of Vernon, who said he's the only Jewish driver, said he's been "razzed" on occasion, and not in a nice way, in his 34 years at Hartford Distributors. But the incidents are isolated. As Pudlin, a former labor organizer, put it, "In a random sample of 100 Teamsters, is there going to be a fellow who is a redneck jerk? Of course."

 

Ross Hollander takes any deeper accusation as a personal affront, and he shouldn't have had to explain himself.

 

http://www.courant.com/business/hc-haar-0806-20100805,0,2269245.column

[BaronTT]

Saying it was racially motivated is such a crock.

 

He got caught stealing (ironclad proof) and was fired. He then immediately starting the killing spree.

 

If he did snap because of racial harassment, why didn't he do this before he was fired?

 

The owners of the company are very liberal and progressive. They even sued the government in their town (a different town from where the business is located) in order to get more money for the black students in their community.

 

Everyone in the know, knows that the the racial excuse is BS in this case. People in that community are really upset about the killer's GF and family saying that he did this because of racial discrimination.

[unit731]

Here's more.

 

Audio

[BaronTT]

Thornton Complained About Racism Before

Thornton Shot, Killed 8 Before Killing Himself

 

POSTED: 7:51 pm EDT August 6, 2010

UPDATED: 8:07 pm EDT August 6, 2010

 

MANCHESTER, Conn. -- New information emerges about Omar Thornton's complaints of racial discrimination.

 

Thornton said he believed he was the victim of workplace race discrimination, but Channel 3 Eyewitness news learned that Thornton had made similar complaints about past employers.

 

"At two different jobs he felt like he was being mistreated because he didn't get a pay raise when he had a good record at work," said Jessica Brocuglio, who dated Thornton for six years a decade ago. "He just felt like he could have got more or been thought of more in some ways and he never did."

 

It isn't just anecdotes of past discrimination. Eyewitness news uncovered some documents Thornton filed against another employer. The documents detail a small claims case Thornton filed against Cory First Choice Home Delivery, a Florida-based furniture delivery company.

 

Among his charges in the 2009 filing was "unfair treatment and work environment."

 

After a trial last October, Thornton lost with the court entering a judgment for the delivery company.

 

Phone calls made to Cory's were not returned as of 8 p.m. Friday.

 

Eyewitness news reporter Eric Parker asked Brocuglio, "From what you saw do you feel like Omar Thornton dealt with a lot of racism?"

 

Brocuglio said, "Yes, because I dealt with it with him, so I know from the heart." Fighting back tears, Brocuglio said, "We stopped going out in public because people would make bad comments all the time."

 

All anyone knows for sure is that racism was a theme that ran throughout Thornton's life, one he believed he could not overcome.

 

http://www.wfsb.com/news/24544647/detail.html

[TroyinEwa/Perv]

Whether there was racism or not, killing 8 people doesn't justify it. The article seems to be suggesting it, imo, towards the end of it.

[Flashermac]

Wow, he never had a pay raise! I have never had a pay increase in Thailand unless it has been across the board by the government for all Farang lecturers. It just doesn't happen, even though I have never had a less than excellent evaluation. But my Thai colleagues get at least a 5% - if not a 10% - pay hike EVERY SINGLE YEAR. Is it racism? Naw, Farangs are all rich. We also have to teach more classes than our Thai colleagues for our money. Thai civil servants' pay does start much lower than Farang pay, but it doesn't take many years for them to catch up and then surpass us. So should I go to work and blow away half of my department?

 

Oh, yeah ... they finally started referring to us as Non-Thai staff, since some folks were complaining about being called Farangs all the time. A couple of new guys quickly found out how we stand with the Thais. The university announced it was holding a faculty meeting to introduce all of the new lecturers. Foolishly, they went. The university rector introduced all the new Thai staff, as the Farangs sat there applauding politely. Then he ended the meeting with the Farangs sitting their ignored and feeling like idiots for going. Tell me about racism.

 

Greetings from the back of the bus.

 

p.s. What a piss poor excuse for murdering people!

 

 

 

[BaronTT]

Maybe they are implying that Thornton THOUGHT he saw racism everywhere he turned. It was in his mind only. Some people simply have a chip on their shoulder.

 

Many sources have said that the current employer was anything but racist. As a matter of fact, he sued another town's government in order to increase help for minorities.

 

EVERYONE that knows the owners say that they are not at all racist. As mentioned above, regarding the owner of the company:

"back in the '70s, he was on the board of the region's Urban League. He also was active with the United Negro College Fund"

 

Seems highly unlikely that he would be a racist, or allow it at his company. And that is what EVERYBODY who knows him and the company has said.

 

Note that there is not a shred of evidence about racism at the company, other than what Thornton told his GF and family. I don't think that anyone can legitimately argue that he was not mentally deranged.

 

This area is not red-neck territory. Very liberal, heavily Democratic.

[Bangkoktraveler]

Hard to believe nobody saw any of the signs and got help for the man.

 

Too bad we can't hear his side of the story.