The Evening News .. When The Story Comes Home 5/19/11

You don't have to vote up or down or any of that stuff on this hub. The truth is, I'm writing this for myself I guess, for the purpose of sorting things out. I'm also writing this for the purpose of officially publishing a little bit about a couple of wonderful friends, who rarely get any credit for being so far above average in terms of honesty, loyalty, and integrity. Much more so than me. I write a lot of stuff about a lot of stuff. It's only fitting that I say a word or two about a couple of people who I wouldn't be here without.

I'm taking a few days off from politics. There's some capable people doing a good job covering things, and the country will survive for a couple of days without my take. I wouldn't be comfortable taking any more time than that off though.

For those who don't know me, I'm an only child. I have been blessed with some friends who I consider my adopted brothers and sisters. They have all been better friends to me than I'll ever be able to be to them. Some of them have died recently. The best of these friends is a guy named Tom who lives in Nebraska. He's like my brother. I don't think I'm like a brother to him, as he comes from a big family, but I know he considers me a close friend. Tom's about as good as a human can get in my opinion. He's very intelligent, but humble. He quiet, but stands up for what he feels is right, and won't back down regardless of the odds. He's never judged me, and has always been there for me. Some of our buddies, including his older brothers all got down at the mouth on me for something I did one time. A thing developed between me and a beautiful girl, named Patti, who happened to be going with another close friend of ours named Tim. Timmy was another beautiful dude, kind of shy, and very good looking. Do any of you remember that old show called "The Munsters"? You know the family with a Frankenstein dad. Everybody in the family was freakin creepy, except the daughter. She was normal, and perfectly beautiful. The whole family thought she was the spook, and pitied her. Tim was like that. He was the beautiful, honest, hard working one who came from a family of zombies. Anyway, Patti had been coming on to me for a long time in front of Tim and everybody, and it was no secret that she wanted to be with me. One night at a party, she cornered me in my bedroom, and was .. you know, making it happen. It was getting real intence and I broke away and said, "I'll be right back." I went down stairs and told Tim what was going on, and told him if he didn't get her out of there, that I was going to nail her. I mean I'd been pushing my young hormones to the side to do the right thing by my friend long enough. Something had to give. Tim said, " Jim I'm sick of it." She's been pushing this so hard, just go ahead and do it." By the way, Tim was sitting there with the girl I was with at the party. He asked me if there would be any hard feelings if he was with Rose, and I said absolutely not. A deal was struck. Anyway, my clothes were coming off before I hit the stairs, and I had wonderful sex with the best looking girl in the state till the wee hours of the morning. (After that Patti sorta went back and forth between Tim and I without us figuring it out until years later.) The next day all my friends were pissed at me and talking about what an a-hole I was for doing Tim's girl. I was in my bed room and I could here em talking. Sounded like a lynch mob. Then I hear my friend Tom, who never raises his voice, telling every one of them off. "Every one of you guys are jealous. She's been coming on to Jim for a long time, and you all know it. If ANY of you guys had the opportunity, you'd have jumped on it long before he did, so you all need to keep your mouths shut" There wasn't a sound, and no one ever said a word to me about it after that. That's a friend folks.

Tom had a little brother named Ted, who was seven years younger than us. He was like a little brother to me too, and I watched Ted grow up, become a man, and a father. Ted got into some trouble with the law when he was young, but he completely over came it. He was a hard steady worker, and was one of the most gentle, pure souls to ever walk the face of this earth. Ted had a certain warmth about him, and a real calming effect on you. Maybe you know someone like that. He passed away a few years ago. He died young, robbed by cancer. Ted left behind a stepson and a son of his own blood. I'm sorry it took so long, but this is where the story begins.

Ted's own son, David, was somewhat high maintenance. Unlike his step brother, David was always the squeaky wheel needing the oil. He wasn't real bad, bad, mostly just kind of hyper, and a little hard to control. After Ted died, his son became a real problem. Wouldn't go to school, running away, getting in scrapes with the law .. the whole bit. Tom spent a lot of time with him, taking him fishing, and stuff. He gave him the talks, and the coaching .. all the things a loving brother would do in Ted's absence. Ted's boys love their uncle, and David was perfect when he was with Tom on the weekends, but would go back to his old ways when he went back home. Things have gotten worse as of late, so bad in fact, that his mother kicked him out of the house at the age of seventeen.  I know this family, and for her to kick David out, he must have been  really making things unbearable.

David is a big guy, but he's not tough. The only time he's really been in a fight is when he pushes his little brother too far, and gets hit in the mouth. He's one of those kids who dresses in black and lives in the plastic world of violent video games, and Death Metal music. David has been staying with a friend as of late I understand.

Tom called me a couple of days ago, and said David had been picked up by the police. I asked him what for, and he answered back, "First degree murder." I sat there in shock for a moment before asking for details, which are still sketchy, but this is what's known about what went down according to the Lincoln Nebraska newspaper.

"The three teens arrested earlier this week in the beating death and robbery of a homeless man in Lincoln appeared in court.

17-year old David Centamore is charged with first and second degree murder in the death of 49-year-old William Morgan. 17-year-old Jonathan Gollin is charged with robbery and 17-year-old Johnnie Showalter is charged with Aiding and Abetting in the robbery of Morgan.

Police say on May 5th, officers were called to Trago Park in north Lincoln. They found Morgan and took him to Detox. The next morning, Morgan was found unresponsive and transported to the hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police say an autopsy revealed Morgan had died from blunt force trauma. Police say a confidential informant told them the three boys had been punching and kicking Morgan in the park. Police also say the boys took Morgan's wallet and shoes.

Court documents say Centamore claimed Morgan had touched him inappropriately, so he retaliated by assaulting Morgan. Police say Centamore also called Showalter and Gollin to come to the park and help him.

The next court date for the three is June 1st. Police say they are treating this as an in custody death which means it will be heard by a Grand jury."

At first they all three were charged with first degree murder. I'll find out more details as the days progress, but what I do know is this; David's been getting drunk and doing a lot of drugs. David punched a drunk and knocked him out. David called his friends, and they came to the park moments later. They all started punching and kicking the drunk until he was unresponsive. Then they took his wallet and his shoes. Did you hear me? They took his freakin shoes!! That just won't go away. What ever this poor dude did, he didn't deserve to die at the hands of these three punks. He was alive as they stripped him of his wallet and his shoes. What was going through this poor man's mind if he was conscious I wonder? There's more to it.
When the police picked him up and he was conscious. They saw he was beat up, but the old man said he just fell down. They should have taken him to the hospital, but took him to detox instead. He died during the night.

You see this stuff on the news all the time on the news. You hear it, then forget it fifteen minutes later until it comes home.

My friend Tom is taking this kind of hard, but my friend is a man, and he may be taking it hard, but he's taking it standing up. We've talked for hours, and we both agree that we want David to get every bit of what's coming to him, but we don't want him to be made an example of and get railroaded. David has to pay. He's being tried as an adult, which is fair, and he's going to prison. He wouldn't listen to anyone, and every decision the boy has made has been wrong. The next decision he'll have an opportunity to make will be when he's on the bus headed to his new home. This decision will determine whether he becomes a functioning part of the world at some point, or live and die a number in the system, surrounded by walls and barbed wire. Will he decide to go with the prison flow, and fall into a gang, or will he make the decision to use the time to grow up and learn a trade? In all probability he will be under thirty years of age when he walks out of prison. Will he have a trade and a goal, or will he be more more hardened, and doomed to return? Will he accept the responsibility of taking a person's life, and bear the guilt the way that he should, or will he blame it on the victim, or what he perceives as bad breaks in his young life?

All the details aren't in on this yet. Tom will be in contact with David's attorney next week. We anticipated David would have trouble with the law. He was on a collision course with disaster, and would not be derailed, but no one expected this. David has a small part of his dad in there. He actually has always had a soft tender side to him, but it's gotten buried deeper and deeper the past couple of years. Did the violent video games and music have anything to do with it? I'm not a shrink, but I know that repeated exposure to violence desensitizes you to it. I know that if his dad were alive, things would have turned out different. If his dad were alive, he might still be sitting where he is now, but he'd be sitting there with a boot up his ass.

I know all the things that you're supposed to say when something like this happens. Kids these days, and parents not spending enough time with their kids, and on and on. The fact is, I had a pretty miserable child hood, but fortunately I had a super mom. I've never blamed one problem I've had on anyone else, Neither did Tom or Ted. David had the greatest uncle a kid could ever have, but he wouldn't listen. Regardless of what cards life throws you, you still have an opportunity to choose right over wrong, and have to take responsibility for your actions. I'll stand by Tom, and he'll stand by David. Between the two of us, we'll make sure David gets justice. We want to him to get everything coming to him, but we won't sit around and let the state turn this into a political football, making some kind of example of David for the sake of some D.A. getting re elected. We'll do our best to fill Ted's shoes.

The important thing is to pray that God is in charge of this, and that God will give comfort to the family of the deceased, the folks who loved this man. It seems he was a lovely man who everyone liked, but had a horrible problem with alcohol. He deserved better. Also a prayer for Tom who is shouldering this thing, and a mother who, for what ever reasons, hasn't been all she could be, and is suffering deeply. Most of all, pray for our nation, that us humans, through God's strength, will become better stewards of this planet and it's inhabitants. We need to call upon that strength. If we don't, more and more of the evening news will find itself at our door step.

I always tell people to not and forget to vote, but not on this one. I didn't write this one with a hub rating in mind. I never do anyway, obviously. Like I said, I'm just sorting this out, and I appreciate having you folks to bounce my thoughts off of. As this thing develops, maybe I'll write more. Anyway, thanks for listening!

jim b