Linda Walker shooting at troublesome teens

Even the troublesome teenager at the centre of the Linda Walker hoo-ha seems to think she should be released, but I’m not so sure. I think he’s playing to a gallery. After all the Manchester Evening News still treats ‘victim’ as a quote, even though the law says that’s what he is. And what a bizarre position for the lad to take: I didn’t do nothing, but if she wants to shoot at me that’s okay. His mum’s had a bit of grief from local scallies, so he understands the desire to take pot shots at the nearest group of suspects and so, it seems, does the rest of this world gone mad.

Yet I do understand the urge to shoot troublesome teens. Petty crime, graffiti and the like are problematic and I’m suspicious of any youths who come near my close: it’s not a through route after all. Indeed, last summer kids starting to use it for play and to access the brook whose meander marks it boundaries. We’re still graffiti et cetera free, but they did burn some rubbish neighbours had stupidly left out and tried to set fires at the brookside. Looking to nip it in the bud, I asked local councillors about an ASBO to stop under 16s entering the close at all. Curtailing innocent kids’ rights to go where they’ve no business and are universally unwelcome is a small price to pay for some peace. But shooting at them is quite another matter and Linda Walker had no idea if the kids she was shooting at had poured water on her son’s car (the incident that broke the camel’s back).

What secured Linda Walker’s downfall was, without a doubt, the police response to the crisis. Her call to them was broadcast on North West Tonight; she says she’s going to shoot some teens; the police say that would be a criminal offence, ‘good-bye’.

It’s like the police were on a Kafkaesque wind-up… but shooting at people you merely suspect must always be criminal… unless you’re mad enough to be locked up anyway.

Posted at 11:20 am. You may read & scrawl graffiti, or trackback. The graffiti has its own RSS 2.0 feed.

2 graffiti on “Linda Walker shooting at troublesome teens”

1. Michael Myers says:
   

   Mrs Walker called the Police. Which criminal does that? You say she must be mad. No, she was at the end of her tether. How many times do you have to ask the Police? My brother recently asked the Police, seeing kids damaging a shop, Can I make a citizen’s arrest? No we would not advise you to do so! So he went to tell the kids off. Mother of one of the kids falsely accused my brother of assault. The Police were there in no time!
   We surrender our natural right to defend ourselves, our families and property to the State in return for the State giving us adequate protection through the Police and justice through our Courts. Unfortunately, in my view, the Police, the Trial Judge and the Judge who refused bail have nothing to be proud of. If the Court of Appeal gave Mrs Walker a pre election bonus in the form of a conditional discharge (which does not count as a conviction) why has she spent so much time in prison? But, as always, lessons have (in this case NOT) been learned and we must move on until the next poor unfortunate gets tangled up in, as you say, the Kafkaesque web. No one takes responsibility for this sorry state of affairs. The Government, tough on crime and causes of crime, it seems is about to be re-elected by those who vote with their hearts and not with their brains. It could be you next time! My wife (62)was recently accosted by a 13/14 year old ‘Hey would you like to be my girlfriend and give me a blow job?” If she slapped his face (as he deserved) she would have been another Mrs Walker and paying damages (and Solicitor’s fees).
   Mrsz Walker could also loose her job.
   Message to the yobs - none - carry on boys you are untouchable in your uniforms of Hoods, tops, jeans and trainers) and don’t they know it!!!

   May 5th, 2005 at 1:16 am
2. john says:
   

   OK I haver a vested interest in this case as I taught kids that were EBD ( Emotionally and Behaviourally Disturbed) in Salford for 15 years and you need to be really special to do this as it is the very toughest job in the profession. Linda Walker was very good at it and not many people are and women are better suited to it than men is my belief. The school she worked at is basically the all new building of the Salford School I worked at that closed down quite a few years back. People like Linda are able to relate to kids that no one else wants or has time for and mainstream schools neither want or can cope with the extremes of behaviour these kids constantly throw at you day after day. They are inconsequential and part of your role with them is to upturn their preconceptions and explain that all actions have consequences for which you are responsible. Outside the context of the school, near her own home she couldn’t do nothing when those ferral kids were acting anti- socially and maybe she lost the plot. (Locals would have wanted her to aim higher than just firing at their feet let me tell you and of course that ain’t right! Salford LEA were guttless and sacked her. I think the GTC will not revoke her license to teach. That is a fair outcome. Revoking her licence / registration sends out the wrong signals to the scally kids that behaved so badly without any knowledge or understanding that their behaviour was anti - social and out of order. Their norms are not those of the majority so what do you do about them? Most anti- social behaviour is an own goal and the sad part is the kids that go in for it have no idea. People like Linda are their only hope of salvation in my view and she should not be villified.

   February 5th, 2008 at 8:40 pm

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