Seeking YouTube Fame, A Teenager Kills Her Boyfriend (arstechnica.com) 605
Last Monday a 19-year-old woman named Monalisa Perez gave the police a strange reason for why her boyfriend, Pedro Ruiz III, was dead. An anonymous reader quotes Ars Technica:
A Minnesota woman has been charged with manslaughter after she shot and killed her boyfriend as part of the pair's attempt to become YouTube celebrities... The two had set up two video cameras to capture Perez firing the gun at Ruiz while he held a book in front of his chest. Ruiz apparently convinced Perez that the book would stop the bullet from a foot away. The gun, a Desert Eagle .50 caliber pistol, was not hindered by the book. Ruiz, who was found with a single gunshot in his chest, was pronounced dead at the scene. Hours before the incident, Perez posted on Twitter, "Me and Pedro are probably going to shoot one of the most dangerous videos ever. HIS idea not MINE."
The teenager -- who is pregnant with the couple's second child -- now faces second-degree manslaughter charges, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $20,000, or both. A local sheriff told the New York Times, "I really have no idea what they were thinking. I just don't understand the younger generation on trying to get their 15 minutes of fame."
The teenager -- who is pregnant with the couple's second child -- now faces second-degree manslaughter charges, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison, a fine of up to $20,000, or both. A local sheriff told the New York Times, "I really have no idea what they were thinking. I just don't understand the younger generation on trying to get their 15 minutes of fame."
Doesn't belong here (Score:4, Insightful)
Old news, not for nerds, shit that doesn't matter.
Sure it does.... (Score:5, Funny)
It teaches a lesson, Don't test in Production ...
Re: (Score:3)
Before testing or reconfiguring, always mount a scratch Mexican.
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
"Don't test in Production" still applies, though. You can't just say "well, we can't afford to have a test environment so we'll do it in Production and work out the bugs there." ALWAYS have a test environment. Work out as many bugs as you can there.
This guy's test environment was simple: A second copy of the book, a second bullet, and a melon.(Melon credit to michelcolman.) Position the melon behind the book and fire on it. If the book stops the bullet, move to
Re: (Score:3)
Or third option; just fake it and edit the video, like the majority of other unbelievable videos on YT.
Re: Sure it does.... (Score:5, Informative)
Try actually reading some NRA materials. They are all about safe firearm handling. They are the leading producer of firearm safety training materials and certification of firearm instructors. They are all about safety. Real safety, not the false 'safety' that anti-gun groups try to call gun control.
Re: Sure it does.... (Score:5, Insightful)
... how often do you see PSA's about jumping off bridges with umbrellas to break your fall?
some things are to stupid it's assumed that the majority of americans won't do it.
Re: (Score:3)
Old news, not for nerds, shit that doesn't matter.
Hey I want to know which book they shot!
Re: (Score:2, Funny)
Hey we learned a book doesn't stop a .50 caliber round.
You could have learned that a long time ago by watching Death Wish 3.
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
Or they might have first tried with a book held in front of a melon or something like that.
Maybe they only had one book...
Re:Doesn't belong here (Score:4, Insightful)
A Minnesota woman has been charged with manslaughter after she shot and killed her boyfriend as part of the pair's attempt to become YouTube celebrities...
Turns out, the celebrity they achieved was beyond what they imagined, as was its cost.
Re: (Score:3)
You would be wrong. It takes about 6-8 telephone books to stop a handgun bullet 9mm or larger.
Re:Doesn't belong here (Score:5, Funny)
But we did not learn how thick the book was, nor its title or author.
The first book was "The Art of the Deal". The bullet got halfway through the book and died of boredom. The second book was Harry Potter, the bullet flew through it looking for more sequels.
Re: (Score:2)
This isn't even a new Darwin. This one was already awarded years ago:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
Re: (Score:3)
That's a bit different. (Damn, I loved Voyagers! when I was little.)
It doesn't qualify for a darwin award (Score:5, Informative)
Re: Doesn't belong here (Score:2)
Umm... I'd have happily told you this, without even needing to shoot somebody. Hell, if you know what the book was, a friend has the AE model and we can recreate it without even shooting anybody.
It's gonna take a whole lot of books to stop a .50...
Re: Doesn't belong here (Score:5, Insightful)
One would do it - if it was about physics and you read it.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: Doesn't belong here (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: (Score:3)
There is nothing new about greed driven stupidity. All they see is dollar sign and caution is thrown to the wind. Youtube or no Youtube, greed was the driver, and likely they couple would have found other ways to fuck up driven by greed, if Youtube was not available. From top to the bottom of society, greed will drive people to do the stupidest things imaginable, regardless of consequences.
Re: (Score:3)
I had thought a Desert Eagle costs in the range of $1000.
Even used a Desert Eagle is ~$1200 and up, most are in the $1500 range.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Deser... [gunbroker.com]
It'll be interesting to see where the gun comes from and how he got a hold of it.
Re:Doesn't belong here (Score:5, Insightful)
By the wrong end?
Re: (Score:3)
I support everybody's right to make a long term commitment to their partner of choice.
I don't support giving tax breaks or other benefits based on whether they've done that.
Where the fuck does gender or sexual preference come into it?
Simple (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Simple (Score:5, Insightful)
And physical reality is utterly merciless.
Re:I wonder... (Score:5, Informative)
Is it possible that she just murdered him, and made up this "it was his idea" story after the fact?
She posted that it was his idea before the shooting, so unless she has a time machine ...
Why yes, I did read the story. Several brain cells committed suicide after reading something so stupid.
Re: (Score:3)
She could also have been planning this and made the "his idea" post to bolster her story later.
Nope. They had two different GoPros rolling the whole time and it shows that he clearly was a willing participant in the endeavor.
Re: (Score:3)
I'm with qbast on this one. I don't know how a couple would pull this off without agreement of some kind. This involved a high level of stupidity.
Re: (Score:2)
Indeed. Although if that book had stopped the bullet, fibrillation, broken ribs and as a result, death, would still have been a real possibility.
Re: I wonder... (Score:5, Insightful)
I was wondering why they didn't do a test run. Then I figured they only had one book.
Re: I wonder... (Score:5, Insightful)
The story about it I read last week said that he did test it on another book and showed it to her to convince her it was safe.
That's why she's not going to prison. They'll drop charges, or she'll get acquitted. He asked to do the stunt, she said no, and he kept trying until he convinced her it was safe. Stupid? Yes. Manslaughter? No, she only did it after he had convinced her it would be OK.
The key thing here is that if they had done the stunt successfully, everything is legal. This is no different than a circus accident at the knife-throwing event.
Tests rigor (Score:3)
The story about it I read last week said that he did test it on another book and showed it to her to convince her it was safe.
Which overall speaks for the necessity of being very rigorous during testing.
Yes, paper armor is a thing. (And was a thing in historic China).
Swords blows, and even some (not to high velocity) bullets can be stopped, while the overall armor is extremely light.
(The explanation : the friction with each individual layer of paper slow the weapon a bit. After dozens and dozens of layer, a sword will get stopped. Some bullets might to. I think there might be a Mythbuster episode about this ?)
BUT it's extremely de
Re: (Score:3)
A lot of variables. He clearly didn't test it adequately.
Book thickness, paper type, # of pages, moisture content, cover type.
Plus round type variations. Low velocity, hollow point, unjacketed would likely be the best bet for under penetrating. Practice, won't wear out the gun rounds, not full tilt. Just the kind a kid wouldn't bother buying.
Darwin Award... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Managed to reproduce before removing himself from the gene pool, so not sure if this qualifies...
Re:Darwin Award... (Score:5, Informative)
Nominees significantly improve the gene pool by eliminating themselves from the human race in an obviously stupid way.
They are self-selected examples of the dangers inherent in a lack of common sense, and all human races, cultures, and socioeconomic groups are eligible to compete. Actual winners must meet the following criteria:
Reproduction Out of the gene pool: dead or sterile.
Excellence Astounding misapplication of judgment.
Self-Selection Cause one's own demise.
Maturity Capable of sound judgment.
Veracity The event must be true.
They are dead, obvious lack of judgment, did it to themselves, and the event is true. The only question mark is maturity. But the same can be said for most members of Congress and the Senate.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
Your genes are in the pool. You aren't.
Re:Darwin Award... (Score:4, Interesting)
Actually, 50%.
Unless want to count the mitrochndrial DNA.
Re: (Score:2)
Well, you've removed yourself from the gene pool quite successfully, through a combination of mental and physical illness.
According to Slashdot.
Congrats, I guess?
You want a pat on the head?
Narcissism competition for the "Zuckerberg church" (Score:2)
And the sheriff doesn't understand? (Score:5, Insightful)
I just don't understand the younger generation
19-year-old couple, 3 year old daughter, one in the oven - and you expect responsible behaviour on the internet?
Re: (Score:2)
' I just don't understand the younger generation on trying to get their 15 minutes of fame.'
Yeah; it's not like they tried to go over Niagara Falls in a barrel like previous generations attempted.
Re: (Score:2)
You are illustrating your disconnect from the real world clearly. This was in the real world. Idiot.
Re: (Score:2)
19-year-old couple, 3 year old daughter, one in the oven - and you expect responsible behaviour on the internet?
Yes, I quite reasonably expect a young adult couple not to point guns at each other and pull the trigger simply because they had unprotected sex a few years ago.
Re:And the sheriff doesn't understand? (Score:5, Insightful)
The argument goes (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:The argument goes (Score:4, Interesting)
So diving licences are the first step to rounding up cars? They are an attempt to limit your constitutionally guaranteed right to travel around?
Re:The argument goes (Score:5, Informative)
The issue at hand is that the right to keep and bear arms is specifically enumerated in the constitution therefore laws targeting to limit or control it are treated with the highest scrutiny, furthermore in Heller v. D.C. the Supreme Court ruled that given the historical background of the second amendment it protects an individual right to keep and bear arms unconnected with military service and that the idea behind the second was to provide a deterrent against tyranny whether domestic or foreign. That being said it seems like the government knowing who and where all the guns are would defeat the idea behind the amendment, but even otherwise the whole round em' up scenario is no longer a hypothetical situation as we've seen gun confiscating campaigns in California and New York already. Speaking of hypothetical situations there is also a famous scene in the movie Red Dawn, whose producers were opposed to the then new FFL system, where a soviet commandant in the invading force orders a subordinate to raid all the gun stores in occupied territory to collect all the Form 4473's so they can systematically quell any opposition in the bud before the citizenry can form a militia.
I'd also like to point out that licenses for firearms originated in the Jim Crowe south with the idea of oppressing certain racial groups from being able to defend themselves against injustice. Martin Luther King, for example, was denied a gun permit even though people were terrorizing his family, defacing his property and sending him death threats.
One could argue that you have some vague right to drive a car but the fact remains driving cars are not specifically enumerated in the constitution like arms are. A more apt comparison might be if the government tried to limit freedom of speech by requiring a license to publish anything for public consumption but then make the argument that because you might be able to get a license means your rights are not being infringed on. In fact we're already seeing this type of thing spread in Europe where certain types of speech is banned and a criminal offense.
Fools Repeat History, the Wise Learn (Score:3)
Fools ignorant of history are doomed to repeat it.
Hitler signed the Weapons Law of 1938 followed shortly after by Jewish gun confiscation, and 7 million Jews were murdered.
Stalin presided over CPSU gun licensure followed shortly after by gun confiscation of all dissidents, and the USSR murdered 20-60 million people, unable to resist. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... [wikipedia.org]
Mao presided over gun licensure followed shortly after by gun confiscation, and tens of millions were murdered by the Mao regime, unable to re
Re: (Score:3)
Side fact, gun deaths plummeted after they did it, not that you care.
I care about crime rates, not "gun crime" rates. Gun deaths went down after the 1996 confiscation but gun deaths were already declining before that. Murder rates went down too but those were also declining before 1996.
Licensing guns does not help you round them up. It is simply propaganda by the NRA to stop reasonable laws.
"Propaganda"? There are multiple instances of the police getting caught looking into firearm ownership records to take lawfully owned firearms. It's not a widespread phenomenon but it happens in the USA regularly.
Hand guns on the other have NO legitimate civilian use.
Is that why the effort to ban them was successful in the 1930s? It was not s
Re: (Score:3)
Hand guns have a very legitimate civilian use. They are poor hunting weapons but my uncle hunted from four wheeler for years with one due to injuries that made a rifle unfeasible. And more importantly they are prime defensive weapons.
Re: (Score:3)
Erm, that is not how it works.
First you get a letter telling you to hand over the gun at a certain office with a timeframe.
Then they come as a small team, armed, armored.
If you pull a gun at them you are most likely dead.
No idea in what ferry world you are living.
Re: (Score:2)
Desert Eagle is not an inexpensive pistol. About $1350 from a quick google search. Sure you can spend a lot more, but it's hardly a KelTec.
A license for all deadly weapons? Not even in _crazy_ backward assed, overly restrictive states like England or Japan.
Burroughs
Re:And the sheriff doesn't understand? (Score:5, Insightful)
Burroughs
I dare say if she'd hit him in the book with a frying pan, he'd still be alive to talk about it.
And how many deaths by frying pans are there every year, in say, England?
Re:And the sheriff doesn't understand? (Score:5, Interesting)
Frying pans specifically or just improvised bludgeons in general? I can't imagine too many deaths by frying pan but I do recall reading how the sale of baseball bats go up with every street riot.
Murder rates generally are unchanged or go up with restrictions on gun ownership. I can't imagine death by stupidity would be changed by gun control laws either. This guy was looking to get killed, jumping off of roofs and driving go-carts like mad.
I'm paraphrasing Penn Gillette who said something like passing insane laws to stop the insane from doing insane things is itself insane.
Re: (Score:3)
Actually there are gun licences in the UK.
Re: (Score:2)
Yeah that must be it. It couldn't possibly be because they're just stupid people willing to risk life and limb for fame. It's not the duty of the education system to teach them not to do obviously stupid things, nor is it the government's job to sanitize the environment for them. The rest of us should not have to live shackled lives to protect the witless from themselves.
Re: (Score:3)
Desperate to become famous, most likely due to having few other opportunities, and the product of a society and education system that failed to teach them to know better.
This is America. People literally risk their lives to cross the desert or the ocean and get here so they can enjoy those "few other opportunities". And guess what? Those who come here to chase the dream are not posting Youtube videos from their iPhones and buying $1,000 guns.
The only way society failed those Youtube idiots is by letting people like you establish a culture of non-accountability for personal decisions.
Re: (Score:3)
Human beings aren't like that. While they have to accept responsibility, they are note solely responsible. Why is that so hard for your to grasp?
It's not hard for me "to grasp" that you're draping yourself in the cloth of social virtue instead of looking at things for what they are.
Here we have two kids living in the land of opportunity (Minnesota unemployment rate is under 4%, placing it in the top 15 states) who choose to make a video of one shooting at the other as a mean to get instant access to fame and money.
They could have spent that time working their way up the ladder in any organization, or creating a small business (lots of programs to he
Re: (Score:3)
Unless you want to also require licenses for car batteries, wall AC voltage, bleach, knives, drain cleaner, gasoline, kerosene, pool acid, etc, you are making a specious argument. None of the items listed above (and car operation) are constitutional rights, whereas gun ownership is, but you can kill yourself with any of them quite easily. In a free society, you must exhibit responsibility or bad things happen.
Furthermore, there IS a federal background check to make sure you are who you say you are
Re: (Score:2)
If the child is 3 now, they conceived around age 16. Still children. I don't think they can be held 100% responsible for that poor decision.
Re: (Score:3)
Wait, are you arguing that sex education put ideas in their head and contributed to their getting pregnant? Evidence suggests that education tends to lower teen pregnancy rates.
Re: And the sheriff doesn't understand? (Score:5, Funny)
How very Republican of you to blame the child instead of the gun. If they didn't have the gun, then this would not have happened.
If we didn't have the Internet, this would not have happened.
It's Al Gore's fault.
If they would have used a .22, (Score:2)
or something bigger than a comic book....
Re: (Score:3)
Apparently they were very scientific about it. He practiced on a thick book without the bullet exiting the other side. Test_run_1 total success, theory tested & proven, move to launch phase for project Shooting Star.
Re: (Score:3)
what kind of .22? you can see some powerful .22LR going through 2,000 pages of phone book on youtube.
we won't even talk of .22 magnum or .223
Darwin in action (Score:2)
I hope they didn't breed.
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Haha oops. A part of me truly did not want to know.
They were on youtube? (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
even an ordinary handgun people use for self defense will go through any book. a 9mm para. will make holes in 7 inches of paper, so even two of the 2600 pages of my CRC Handbook of Chemistry and Physics (2 x 3.1") is useless. Three would suffice, except many 9mm loadings are "hot" +p or +p+ and go through a lot more paper than that.
It's shit like this... (Score:2)
that makes me think that maybe humanity isn't going in the right direction and makes me reconsider if it's really worth saving. :(
Re: (Score:2)
that makes me think that maybe humanity isn't going in the right direction and makes me reconsider if it's really worth saving. :(
Are you referring to the act in question, or the large number of posts here which indicate the people commenting may be sociopathic to one degree or another?
This is a sad, tragic event. Yes, it was really stupid... but most people can look back and find at least one breathtakingly stupid thing they've done during their lives. I can certainly think of a couple really dumb things I did while driving, at a younger age.
Deagle noobs... (Score:2)
Taking ~2,000j to a small rectangular region of your chest(while offering better odds than taking the same amount of energy directly from the bullet) does not sound like a good time. You might just break rib or two; but there's lot of important soft tissue there:
Test fire first, you idiot (Score:3)
First, you use a freaking blank in the gun for something as inconsequential as a Youtube video. This isn't a Mythbusters tv show.
Second, if it were something more important than a Youtube, then you do a TEST fire first.
Third, you still freaking use a blank. There is no media police checking to see if you used a real bullet.
Re:Darwin Award (Score:5, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
Posting to cancel ykwIm
Re: (Score:3, Interesting)
Doesn't change the fact that their genes get carried on regardless, which is the whole point of calling it the DARWIN Award.
Re: (Score:3)
No, the point of the Darwin Awards is to be morbidly amusing.
Re: (Score:3)
Pretty sure I'm not retarded, thanks for asking.
Are you capable of reading replies in a discussion in the proper order, though? Because what you're saying after your insult AGREES WITH ME.
Re: (Score:3)
Re: (Score:2)
I know you didn't read the article, because if you did you'd know they have the whole thing on video. Is there any better evidence??
Re: (Score:2)
Re:Can't do math (Score:5, Insightful)
"Cars and alcohol", "pointless fights", and "things not to do in flooded quarries" are more common variants than "youtube stunts"; but unless the sheriff's social circle is really small, he probably doesn't even have to imagine; odds are pretty good that someone he went to school with, or was otherwise close enough to have heard about, died while taking really stupid risks for attention. It's not that uncommon.
Re: (Score:2)
you can see that a 50 cal rifle bullet will go through almost 5,000 sheets of paper.
This is why I can't stand it when on TV bullets are stopped just by squatting behind a couch. You really think some foam and fabric will stop bullets? :-)
Re: (Score:2)
You just need to watch more Quentin Tarantino movies.
Re: (Score:2)
This is why I can't stand it when on TV bullets are stopped just by squatting behind a couch. You really think some foam and fabric will stop bullets? :-)
No, the bullets are stopped by the gallons of useless flame-retardant chemicals that furniture are doused in. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers bind with foam and creates a kevlar-like polymer.
Re: (Score:2)
there are many different kinds of .50 caliber rounds, usually caliber refers to diameter. The 50 BMG in those videos is much more powerful then the 500 S&W Magnum which is more powerful than the .50 AE, for example. All will go through any book, of course.
the lowly .22 LR out of a handgun will poke holes in about an inch of paper. Standard 9mm para about 7 inches. Just from that you can tell that any *powerful* handgun cartridge like .44 magnum or whatever will go through a truly *thick* book wit
Re:Just FYI: bullets go thru things (Score:4, Informative)
This was 50 cal auto, a handgun round with 700 Joules of energy. What you saw was 50 cal BMG, a rifle round that has 20,000 Joules of energy. 50 BMG will put a hole through a phone book and the concrete wall you propped it up against...
Re:Just FYI: bullets go thru things (Score:4, Insightful)
Re: (Score:2)
Hehehehe, funny!
Re: (Score:3)
After Clinton's assault bullet ban expired, so many more Mexican children are dying.
After Clinton's assault bullet ban expired, he was no longer in a position to take bribes to renew it.
Re: (Score:2)
Tiny orange hand covered in Mexican blood, gripping a .50 assault bullet...
That's enough slashdot today.
Re: High speed assault bullets... (Score:2)
It is a beautiful thing...
Re: (Score:2)
This is payback for buzzfeed who published a story about linux
Re: (Score:3)
Did either of them get prosecuted? Of course not.
...because there was probably a rigorous paper-trail of risk-assessments, safety precautions, waivers, insurance, compliance by-laws for handling dangerous animals etc. proving that everything had been done to make the "stunt" relatively safe. Oh, and lawyers. Lots of lawyers. If it had just been a case of "hey, why don't you get in the cage and play with the tigers - I saw somewhere on Slashdot that tigers never attack humans" then there may well have been a prosecution. I bet there was also a doozy of an
Re:A Desert Eagle? What a mong. (Score:4, Interesting)
I haven't even listened to rap music to know that. The Desert Eagle is the totally OP handgun in so many shooters I've lost count. Max Payne took it up a notch and let you dualwield Desert Eagles.