* HuffPo did a big Mike Bost document dump over the weekend…
Illinois state Rep. Mike Bost (R-Murphysboro) has made a name for himself throwing extraordinary tantrums during legislative sessions. But he doesn’t appear to have contained his notorious temper to the statehouse, according to a review of court and police records obtained by The Huffington Post.
* The one I’ve received the most e-mail about…
The earliest episode dates back to 1986, when a neighborhood beagle named Rusty bit Bost’s 4-year-old daughter. The report filed by animal control officials indicates that the girl provoked the attack by chasing the dog. She ultimately had to get 19 stitches on her face.
According to court records, Bost was displeased that authorities would not be able to deal with the 10-year-old dog immediately. So he got his handgun, drove to Rusty’s owner’s home, and shot the dog to death while it was penned in an enclosure.
Neighbors were “very alarmed and disturbed,” according to the police report, but a jury eventually found Bost not guilty of breaking any laws. The local paper reported the case under the headline “Area man acquitted in dog killing trial.”
* More deets ffrom the ever-snarky Wonkette…
The dog was quarantined in a pen at its owner’s home so it could be tested for rabies, but Bost didn’t feel that local authorities were taking quick enough action, so he drove to the trailer park where the dog was and Second-Amendmented the beagle to death, just as Adams and Jefferson would have wanted. According to the police report, neighbors of the dog’s owners were “upset and frightened” by the shooting because it took place within 20 feet of their trailers manufactured housing, as if they didn’t understand that the price of Liberty is eternal ricochets.
Discuss.
* Other stuff…
* Guest view: Bost shouts at rules he helped create
* New NRCC ad hits the 12th CD: Bill Enyart’s been a bust
* Foster, Senger clash on taxes, job creation
* Illinois a congressional battleground state
- Knome Sane - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:33 am:
Oh boy, Woodstock ain’t gonna like this news.
- 47th Ward - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:38 am:
Killing the dog and being acquitted might have made him something of a folk hero in the area, but that’s now a cancer for him in national politics. Most Americans have more empathy for dogs than their fellow man.
- Illinoise - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:38 am:
The headline “Enyart’s Opponent Accused of Killing Puppies” ought to land a view votes. It worked in 2010, after all.
- Formerly Known As... - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:39 am:
Throw away any substantive issues.
These candidates apparently want their race to be about yelling, gridlock, trailer parks, dog bites and “justice”.
Because that is the government we deserve?
- Norseman - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:40 am:
Was he barking up the wrong tree.
- Formerly Known As... - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:41 am:
Though it is an unusual story. You can’t help but read it.
- Dirty Red - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:42 am:
It’s still early but the Associated Press is ready to make a call, and Knome Sane has won the Internet.
- the Patriot - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:44 am:
Uhmm, not guilty means he did not break any laws.
- Aldyth - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:45 am:
Frontier justice from a legislator?
- Archiesmom - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:46 am:
Ruh-roh!
- Judgment Day - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:50 am:
‘Direct Action’ Bost!
- Anon - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 11:51 am:
Weirdly not surprised…and I feel bad saying that
- Skeptic - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:01 pm:
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state and protection from beagles, the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.
- Skeptic - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:02 pm:
A well regulated militia being necessary to the security of a free state and protection from beagles, the right of the people to keep and bear arms (and arm bears) shall not be infringed.
- Anonymous - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:05 pm:
snoopy is a beagle, you just upset the charlie brown fans (vote for me or i will shoot this dog)
- Angel's Sword - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:05 pm:
==Uhmm, not guilty means he did not break any laws.==
“I didn’t technically break any laws!” Well, that’s a winning campaign message if I’ve ever heard one.
- Put the Fun in unfunded - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:06 pm:
This is why we needed to elect Bill Brady governor. He had a plan to deal with the surplus dog population…
- Jimmy - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:08 pm:
I’m glad he has more patience with the Rules Committee.
- Jorge - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:10 pm:
He’s going to fit in with the tea party wing in the house very well.
- Phenomynous - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:11 pm:
“The report filed by animal control officials indicates that the girl provoked the attack by chasing the dog. She ultimately had to get 19 stitches on her face.”
The four-year-old provoked the attack?
The intimidating 4-year-old viciously chased the elderly beagle with malice while waving her water gun, screaming “Don’t Tread On Me”. What was the poor dog to do, but turn around and face his daunting, and armed, opponent? The dog was only “Standing its Ground”.
This is why there are leash laws.
- Namaste - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:12 pm:
Imagine if the dog’s owner had chosen to defend his property with his own gun.
- Rusty618 - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:21 pm:
Bost’s rant was concerning his opposition to the pension bill, that will ultimately get get tossed. His reaction to his daughter getting bit is something that many parents might have done also. Watch out Washington DC!
- Anon - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:24 pm:
The dog assassination seems consistent with the tantrum throwing on the House floor.
- mail guy - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:25 pm:
yikes
- Amalia - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:28 pm:
“Michael Vick” Bost is a horrible person.
- circularfiringsquad - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:33 pm:
So Boss Toss got less nutty as he grew older.
Remember the floor rant was rehearsed — as Bill Black did (practice make perfect)
- Reader - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:35 pm:
“Killing the dog and being acquitted might have made him something of a folk hero in the area, but that’s now a cancer for him in national politics.”
- Hardly. A roaming neighborhood dog mauled a 4 year old’s face. The voters in that district won’t have sympathy for vicious animals that attack toddlers.
- Precinct Captain - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:36 pm:
#PetsForEnyart
- Precinct Captain - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:40 pm:
Disturbing.
- wordslinger - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:42 pm:
Nineteen stitches to your daughter’s face is very upsetting, to say the least.
But taking the law into your own hands, going armed onto someone else’s property and shooting their dog is crazy.
He must have been hot as blazes when he did it — what if the owner had confronted him, armed as well?
- wordslinger - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:47 pm:
–The documents also detail another alarming, more mysterious incident. Bost, a gun-rights defender who in 2008 voted against a bill to require the prompt reporting of stolen guns, did not report a gun that was stolen from his own home.
In 2006, Bost’s nickel-plated special edition .357 Rossi revolver was stolen from his gun safe. According to police records, Bost did not know about the theft until police showed up at his door to inform him that the gun had been used to threaten another man’s life. Bost led investigators to the safe, and the firearm was indeed missing. –
Um, it’s a safe. Presumably it’s locked at all times. Or what’s the point?
- Nieva - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:47 pm:
4 year old child of mine with 19 stitches to the face from a dog that was running loose? I would have done the same thing Bost did. I love my dogs but totally understand his reaction.
- VM - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:49 pm:
Wow, just wow.
You have to play it carefully — his four year old daughter did get mauled, and 19 stitches is no joke.
But I’ve got to think that even in rural areas, going on somebody’s property to shoot a dog can’t play very well. If he shot it during the attack, that’s one thing. But going on someone’s land after the attach, while the dog is caged . . . I dunno how you justify that.
- too obvious - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 12:52 pm:
The jury apparently ignored the law and let him off, but there is no excuse for a public official (or anyone for that matter) taking the law into his own hands under any circumstances.
Ties in perfectly to the unstable hothead narrative. Which has the added benefit of being true.
- AnnaMan - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:02 pm:
If a dog attacked my four year old causing 19 stitches, I would also want the dog taken care of. Unlike Bost, however, I would call the police and insist that the dog be euthanized, and make sure that they follow through. I would NOT go on to another person’s property to shoot their dog. This is why we have laws and law enforcement in this country: so people like Bost are not running around with weapons shooting things as they see fit.
- Leave a Light on George - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:04 pm:
=Neighbors were “very alarmed and disturbed,” according to the police report, but a jury eventually found Bost not guilty of breaking any laws. The local paper reported the case under the headline “Area man acquitted in dog killing trial.”=
Sounds like he justified it to a jury just fine.
- PerryCountyILL - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:04 pm:
so did he know the gun was missing? did he know who took it? This is certainly disturbing but i think more details are needed, as this is sorta vague
- Demoralized - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:08 pm:
==Sounds like he justified it to a jury just fine.==
Yep. Nothing to see here. Move along.
Look, I’m not sure it would affect my vote one way or the other. Probably not. But it does fit within the narrative that is being put out there about him - that he is a hot head.
But I think it still says a little something about a guy’s character that he would go off and kill a dog like that. I understand how mad he was. If it was my kid I’d be angry too. But I don’t believe the answer is to go to somebody’s house and murder their dog. Sheesh.
- 47th Ward - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:11 pm:
===The voters in that district won’t have sympathy===
Your nickname is unintentionally hilarious Reader, because it’s clear you didn’t read what I wrote. Try reading it again, this time for comprehension.
- phocion - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:11 pm:
Bost needs professional help. He is not an acceptable person to be a part of Illinois’ congressional delegation.
- Duke - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:17 pm:
I can understand why he wanted the dog dead. What I can’t understand is why he thought it was okay to take the law into his own hands.
- Jon Zahm - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:28 pm:
So, 28 years ago a father shot the dog who bit his 4 year old daughter in the face, causing 19 stitches of damage? I think that is good reason to vote FOR Bost, not against him.
- ironman - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:32 pm:
NOT GUILTY….enough said
- too obvious - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:50 pm:
I refuse to believe that a majority of voters in that downstate district are yahoo enough to promote a disturbing hothead like Bost to D.C.
But if they do, then for the first time I’ll be in favor of making downstate a separate state. Some things are too embarrassing even for Cook County.
- The Dude - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 1:51 pm:
Bob Barker was probably on that jury. You know how he feels about the pet population.
- John A Logan - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:03 pm:
Acquitted.
- Formerly Known As... - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:11 pm:
== “Michael Vick” Bost is a horrible person ==
As opposed to the owner of the unsupervised dog who bit a 4-year-old in the face?
- John A Logan - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:12 pm:
“But if they do, then for the first time I’ll be in favor of making downstate a separate state. Some things are too embarrassing even for Cook County.”
My support of Bost’s candidacy just increased 10 fold.
- VanillaMan - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:14 pm:
I’ve had my share of four year olds and if any of them ended up being mauled enough to get 19 stitches, I would be out of my mind.
My priority would be to put down any dog that did that to her. Dogs are not as important as children. Dogs that maul children should not be treated like misunderstood kindergarteners. I have no problem hearing that Bost killed the dog.
People are more important than pets.
- Chicago Cynic - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:19 pm:
Why couldn’t Bost just follow Bill Brady’s lead on this one? It would have been much quieter.
Oh, and 47, you’re absolutely right. Empathy for dogs? You bet. Women? Not so much. Just ask Michael Vick, Ray Rice and the NFL.
- Ahoy! - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:22 pm:
It was 28 years ago, that’s a long time. It was extremely inappropriate, brash and something a young man might do when he looses control. I don’t even like Bost, but I don’t think this is a real issue today. It was wrong, but it was 28 years ago.
On a different note, I do think we should have an Onion style headline competition on this with “Area man.”
- North - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:31 pm:
It’s shameful that so many people think Bost’s behavior was justified. Shooting an already caged animal is borderline psychopathic.
- Under Further Review - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:34 pm:
Atticus Finch put down a dog too.
- NotAJournalist - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:53 pm:
Has anyone considered the fact that this came through the HuffPo and not one of the many local papers in the 12th district? We are all smart here. That means the DCCC went to the local news outlets and they all refused to print it. I wonder why? Maybe because they did their journalistic duty and looked into the story. Maybe they learned what other people have learned, that this was not the first child that was bitten by the dog and the vigilante justice only came after it was clear the authorities were not going to do anything about it. Right or wrong, he stood trial and was acquitted. That means he convinced a jury that it was excusable. I’m not sure any of you are qualified to decide now, nearly 30 years later, that it was unjustified. I think those of you that think it is unjustified just don’t like him and this adds to it. And that’s fine. But be honest about it.
- Formerly Known As... - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:53 pm:
== Empathy for dogs? You bet. Women? Not so much. ==
Definitely. You can even see it here on this thread.
It is odd so many people share more empathy and support for the dog than the 4 year old girl who could have died.
There is some blame and some loss shared by all parties in this incident, imho, but I am beginning to wonder if some commenters are not Republican or Democratic drones programmed to determine the party line and then post it.
Absent, of course, any sentiment or sentience.
- southwest - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:55 pm:
This makes me respect Mike Bost even more. The dog that mauled Bost’s baby was not quarantined. It was in a pen at its owner’s home - the same owner that allowed the dog to a attack a child!
- NotAJournalist - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 2:55 pm:
And let me add, I’m no fan. I’m not voting for him. But I think this is trash politics at its worst. And I think it’s pathetic that this is what the DCCC has stooped to. Their tactics are almost the tactics of an unknown challenger trying to unseat a beloved incumbent. Enyart’s team is desperate because they know this is coming apart. They screw up at every turn. And as someone that wants democrats to hold their seats, it’s very unsettling.
- Formerly Known As... - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:02 pm:
== this was not the first child that was bitten by the dog ==
Kind of significant, if accurate. Just a little.
- D.P.Gumby - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:16 pm:
It just fits the meme of Bost as not a rational statesman. If their are enough T’s wanting another foam at the mouth, get nothing done, shut down the gov’t, Pap Finn-type, then so be it. Not what I want in Congress…just look at the last one.
- ShootingPenned AnimalsIsNOTOkay - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:22 pm:
@FKA - The Huff Po says, “Local police records show that neighbors were so concerned about Bost’s pet scampering around their homes and the local school that they called police at least four separate times.” It sounds like Bost was guilty of letting his dog run around unsupervised as well; he was just lucky enough that parents were supervising their children around his dog and not letting them interact with a strange animal in an inappropriate way.
- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:34 pm:
Can’t believe anyone is supporting Bost. According to the file, the dog bit his daughter on September 1, 1986 (which was Labor Day). He killed the dog on September 2, 1986 - THE NEXT DAY. This wasn’t a “crime of passion” - rather “According to court records, Bost was displeased that authorities would not be able to deal with the 10-year-old dog immediately.” So if the authorities don’t move fast enough to suit our tastes (such as holiday closings), it means we can take the law into our own hands?
- Precinct Captain - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:40 pm:
==- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:34 pm:==
I’m sure Bost was standing his ground! At any time that caged dog could have been back for Bost himself!
- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:51 pm:
Precinct Captain
He stood his ground so long he probably needed a PortaPotty …
- Slip one through - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:57 pm:
Sorry folks. Until you have a child, you won’t understand the feeling Bost must have felt. He stood trial. Not guilty. We all can say the shoulda woulda coulda lines, but I think most that have had children can understand where he might of been mentally after holding his daughter after this went down.
- VanillaMan - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 3:59 pm:
Its like a Rorschach test. If you are a Person who believes in protecting children, you’d have no problem understanding what Bost did. If you wanted a happy ending, then you would have wanted Bost to adopt the dog.
Life can be tragic, and what we are seeing is what a father does when his four year old is permanently scarred by a dog. In Congress sometimes decisions are based on two bad choices. Bost defended and then revengef his daughter over all. It was a good choice. While it wasn’t nice, the incident exposes him as prioritizing his 4 year old over a dog.
That’s life.
This also exposes his critics as people who believe tough choices can be avoided. I can’t even imagine this as “oppositional” information at any other point in our history, except today’s Democratic Party. Can you even imagine Harry Truman trying to make political hay out of his opponents defense of his daughter?
Bottom line- this is oppositional to Democrats at a point when Enyart needs to expand his voter base.
- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:03 pm:
Slip one through - Disagree, and I have children. But he killed the dog 12 - 16 hours later because Animal Control couldn’t move fast enough to satisfy him. Yes, he was found not guilty. Doesn’t mean the voters can’t consider it. Further, the fact a Special Prosecutor was used indicates there were “complications” to this case.
- ShootingPenned AnimalsIsNOTOkay - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:10 pm:
@VMan So are you saying that if a person attacks my child and he is scarred, I am justified in killing them (or does that just pertain to caged animals)? I really need to know because this is “what a father does” and I want to make sure I am holding up my part of manly frontier justice!
- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:10 pm:
Vanilla Man -
Disagree. IF Mrs. Bost had taken the child to the hospital because Mr. Bost was tracking down the dog, that would be one thing. But that’s not what happened. He killed it the next day, after passions should have subsided enough for rational thought to take over.
- NotAJournalist - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:21 pm:
= Further, the fact a Special Prosecutor was used indicates there were “complications” to this case.
According to press stories at the time, Bost was a county board member. Therefore, it had to be a special prosecutor. But nice try making it seem like something else.
- Demoralized - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:24 pm:
==Until you have a child==
I have three children. I fully understand his anger. But that doesn’t mean I have to agree with how he handled the situation.
==except today’s Democratic Party.==
That’s just garbage. This could have just as easily have been something coming from an opponent within his own party during a primary.
==This also exposes his critics as people who believe tough choices can be avoided. ==
More garbage. This has nothing to do with tough decisions. A tougher decision would have been to let the process play out with the dog. If he had done that then talk to be about tough decisions.
- Anonymous - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:29 pm:
The dog’s owner was a relative of Bost. The time between the incident and when he shot the dog was because his daughter was in surgery. Still probably wasn’t a wise move on Bost’s part because it caused a huge family rift but the injuries to his daughter were severe and brutal and the dog was known to be viscous. Twenty eight years ago around here when a dog attacked a child it would be typical to “put it down”. As an adult his daughter still carries the scars from that attack. Just a little background….
- Anon - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:33 pm:
What was the cause of the dog bite: an unsupervised dog or an unsupervised 4-year old?
- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:36 pm:
Bost isn’t running for Father, but Congressman. What we consider to be understandable actions by a Father may not be traits we want to see in a Congressman.
- Bemused - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:41 pm:
Sorry but just because someone was found not guilty in a court of law does not mean they did nothing wrong. There are a few high profile cases that I think prove that.
I read this and wonder who was not paying enough attention to a four year old. I see a lot of youngsters allowed to do as they please by parents who feel they can do no wrong. Parents wrapped up in an electronic device that aren’t even watching their child. Sometimes we want to blame someone or something for our own short comings. If in fact the dog was a public nuisance Mr. Bost did not give the authorities much time to deal with it.
- NotAJournalist - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 4:45 pm:
I doubt if electronic devices were the problem in the late 80s. Brilliant.
If you do some research, the kid was playing with another kid in the yard when the loose dog came and messed around with them. The girl wasn’t chasing the dog, she tried to get it to go home. Like a 4 year old would. And the dog attacked. Would have killed her if another person hadn’t came to her rescue. Think about that. Would have killed her. And this wasn’t the first child attacked.
- 47th Ward - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:03 pm:
===what we are seeing is what a father does when his four year old is permanently scarred by a dog===
I didn’t have kids in 1986, but I do now and I don’t think too many things have changed. No Vanny, what a father does is to protect his child so there isn’t an attack in the first place. Why wasn’t an adult present? Where was Bost when this happened?
And this was a beagle for crying out loud, not a pit bull. The animal control report says the child may have antagonized the dog. Why didn’t some caring adult teach the child how to interact with animals? That’s what a father does.
And what lesson does a father teach his child when he recklessly shoots a caged defenseless animal? To take matters into your own hands? Street justice?
Defend Bost all you want. Once it gets out in DC that this guy shot a dog, he’ll be a national laughing stock. Late night talk show writers are praying that Bost gets elected.
- Smitty Irving - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:10 pm:
NotAJournalist
The elapsed time between the attack (which happened on a holiday weekend) and the killing is what makes his action inexcusable. If he had chased the dog and killed it within minutes, different story.
- Searchingfortruth - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:34 pm:
This story is not new. Bost still wins.
- Amalia - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:35 pm:
@Formerly Known As….the owner of the dog is not running for public office.
But Bost is, and he also lost a gun that was supposedly in a safe but was found to have been used to threaten the life of a man.
yep, “Michael Vick” Bost.
- Jorge - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:37 pm:
“This also exposes his critics as people who believe tough choices can be avoided.”
This is complete nonsense. How long have you been a member of the tinfoil hat club?
- VanillaMan - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:39 pm:
Once again, this is a political Rorschach test, not a way to expand a voter base. It also is a disservice to Enyart, who would probably do the same thing, but has to pretend he wouldn’t because his party finds this level of paternal action repugnant.
- Formerly Known As... - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:45 pm:
== This could have just as easily have been something coming from an opponent within his own party during a primary. ==
Perhaps. But it did not.
For some reason, Bill Enyart is the first politician in either party since 1986 who decided to try and make this a campaign issue.
Local media wouldn’t touch it, and the person who did write about it for HuffPo omits the fact this dog had previously bitten at least one other person. This ==story== seems more like a sign of desperation than anything else.
- lovecraft - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:54 pm:
The more I know about people (like Mike Bost) the better I like my dog (and dogs in general). Apologies to Mark Twain
- wordslinger - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 5:55 pm:
–Sorry folks. Until you have a child, you won’t understand the feeling Bost must have felt.–
What dazzling debate skills. Everybody understands how he felt. But not everyone takes a gun onto someone else’s property and starts blasting away.
–If you are a Person who believes in protecting children, you’d have no problem understanding what Bost did.–
Another dazzler here. Right. Because anyone who disagrees with what he did is in that big group of people who doesn’t believe in protecting children.
Your posts are hilarious, though.
You two have so little confidence in what you have to say that you take on the mantle of all parents and all people who want to protect children before you dare defend the crazy neighborhood vigilante.
Have the guts to speak for yourself, boys.
- wordslinger - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 6:01 pm:
–It also is a disservice to Enyart, who would probably do the same thing, but has to pretend he wouldn’t because his party finds this level of paternal action repugnant.–
Not repugnant, vigilante crazy.
How many kids get bit by dogs and their daddies go over to the neighbors blasting? How about none? What are they, bad fathers? Or just not nuts?
- Lincoln Lad - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 6:37 pm:
This is an easy one. Follow the process under the law. Don’t lose your temper, act badly, then justify your actions because a sympathetic jury or judge gave you a pass. Not if you want to be a leader in government. You need to be better than that.
- Lincoln Lad - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 6:41 pm:
It’s not my district, but I would implore local voters to vote against a vigilante, do what I want mindset. Washington is fractured enough, we don’t need another mindless hothead.
- Ed - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 6:57 pm:
Embarrassing to Cook County? That’s hilarious.
- Ed - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 7:06 pm:
Vanilla Man, your evaluation is very accurate which is not uncommon–even though your opinion is frequently very aggravating to me.Thanks
- inbostsbackyard - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 7:25 pm:
I live about 500 yards from where the beagle was killed. I also know the animal control officer in Jackson County and the vet listed in the police report. Both officer and vet are salt of the earth kind of men who both do their jobs well. Officer Nelson has come to the rescue of many animals in this neighborhood and I last helped him rescue a pit bull mama and puppy dumped nearby. This is not the first time Officer Nelson helped a lost dog. Officer Nelson’s wife is also an animal control officer dedicated to her job. Dr. Miller helped me locate the owners of another beagle, just neutered and we got the boy home.
The law is a one week quarantine. Not every dog that bites must be destroyed. Animal control law has provisions for territorial defense. In the event the animal must be destroyed, humane euthanasia is the accepted method after the dog is evaluated by a vet.
As far as what passes for journalism in the 12th district, I doubt any media outlet will publish or air this story.
Full disclosure: I have an adorable beagle under my desk and three other dogs nearby.
- wordslinger - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 7:44 pm:
–Atticus Finch put down a dog too. –
Yeah, I read that book — “To Kill a 10-year-old Beagle in a Cage.”
Somehow, out of all the characters in literary fiction, Atticus Finch didn’t spring to mind when thinking of Mike Bost.
- Bill F. - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 7:53 pm:
==Uhmm, not guilty means he did not break any laws.==
Come on back when you’ve finished 8th Grade Civics.
- Original Rambler - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 8:17 pm:
Since he killed the dog so quickly, didn’t that mean his daughter had to undergo the painful (back then) rabies shots since they wouldn’t be able to tell now if the dog was rabid?
I’m a city boy but 15 years ago the neighbors bulldog (no aggressive reputation) scratched my daughter under her eye necessitating 4 stitched. It was unknown if provoked or not. I did not shoot the dog. Now I wonder if that makes me a bad father. (Snark - I’m a good Dad!)
- Amalia - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 8:28 pm:
this is material for the Daily Show or Colbert.
- southwest - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 9:42 pm:
I have a feeling most posters live far north of CD12 - thankfully! I will be voting for Bost!
- Ducky LaMoore - Monday, Sep 29, 14 @ 9:56 pm:
From the Humane Society
47 percent—Percentage of households that own at least one dog
Maybe Bost should come out and say 47% of people won’t even consider voting for me! It’s worked out so well for past candidates.
- DuPage Grandma - Tuesday, Sep 30, 14 @ 8:39 am:
It is not a question of the value of a dog vs the value of a child. It is a question of the value of the rule of law. He did not kill the dog to protect his child, but because he determined the law to be ineffective. Clearly this was a vigilante action. He was found innocent, but I do believe the makers of our laws should be held to a higher standard. If they have no respect for the legal process, they should not be part of our legislature.
- Lynne - Wednesday, Oct 1, 14 @ 6:55 pm:
Hey I was bitten by a beagle before on my leg , so the scars are the same. In the 80’s that’s how people handled dogs that could have killed their babies. I remember a little boy in my area that was killed by a stray dog. And guess what? no one felt sorry for the dog. What is frightening about this is some peoples reaction to this , feeling sorry for this dog .
- Kristofer725 - Thursday, Oct 2, 14 @ 1:26 am:
This man seems to be a bit unbalanced. He should have been punished for shooting the dog. What happened was not the dog’s fault. In today’s world he appears to be somewhat of an outcast. Anyone who votes for this man is as crazy as he is.
- Lynne - Thursday, Oct 2, 14 @ 3:58 am:
In today’s world yes he does and that’s what so frightening about living in today’s world. Back in the late 80’s when a little boy was killed by the stray dog , no one was frightened by the group of real men that went out to hunt that dog down, because they couldn’t bear the thought of having a dog put their child through the torture of their child laying there while the dog ate the child’s belly out until it died. I’m sure the child was probably screaming for mamma . But in 2014 we are more concerned about whales over babies and unpredictable animals over a 4 year old. God have mercy on us in 2014 !!
- Henry - Thursday, Oct 2, 14 @ 8:25 pm:
What I do is look at the town the candidate represents and is from…. Murphysboro, and compare the condition of the town and how it is trending relative to other towns in the area. Well, the town is blighted and appears to be sliding more and more. Public services are horrible unless you have the right friends, taxes are high, homes on many blocks (even in the center of town) are dilapidated or have caved in roofs. The town is run in a “machine like” fashion” and the same boys run it year after year. Serious crime is a big issue with recent bank heists and armed robberies at local businesses. A few do well while most residents suffer.