In Memoriam: Ian Murdock • Hacker News Board

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#351

Post by gumballhead » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:12 AM UTC

scrollaway wrote: post #52

kragen wrote: post #38

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the contrary: let's dig up all the links we can so that we can find out who was responsible, and prevent it from ever happening again. Just before he died, Ian had said he was going to devote the rest of his life to fighting police brutality: http://pastebin.com/dX3VSPkM Not only would we dishonor his memory by not digging up links and making speculations about what happened (did he commit suicide, possibly due to…

I should probably post this on a throwaway... but this hit somewhat close to home. A few years ago I was going through a very tough time. I lived in the UK at the time and went to california for a meetup. After even more personal crap happened, I went on a walk seriously considering suicide. Kept trying to call friends, family, nobody picked up, it was the hardest day of my life to get through. Next thing I knew I fo…

There is no situation that the cops can't make worse.

Don't call the cops. Don't ever ever call the cops.

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#352

Post by jessaustin » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:14 AM UTC

hueving wrote: post #345

>mugged by thugs. Or Police. Maybe there isn't a difference between the last two. I find it incredibly distasteful to offer this political commentary in response to a death that has no information about the cause. Please don't ever do this again.

I find it incredibly distasteful...

Tired and lame tone policing is tired and lame.

[edit: "nu-uh!"]

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#353

Post by Tenhundfeld » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:19 AM UTC

brogrammer90 wrote: post #327

Tenhundfeld wrote: post #315

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Cops think twice when they know there's an equalizer in the equation. What exactly do you mean by that? The reason I'm asking is that everything I've read or heard from law enforcement acquaintances is that cops are much more likely to draw their weapon in situations where they think guns are present. That is, they might be less likely to "beat the shit [out] of you", but they are much more likely to shoot you. If…

How do you know if he will just "rough" you up? Maybe Ian thought the same too. Expecting mercy from a criminal is like hiring a pedo to babysit your kids. I was pulled over once while carrying and the cop went from asshole to polite in a millisecond once I informed him I was legally carrying at 4 o'clock. Ultimately if a cop is going to draw on me with criminal intentions, then I will defend myself as if he were a c…

How do you know he's drawing on you with criminal intentions?

So, you had an experience where you perceived a cop's attitude to change. That's fine. Maybe next time the cop asks you to get out of the car. Maybe he says you match the description of a suspect and tries to handcuff you, confiscate your gun. At what point are you going to draw your gun and defend yourself? It's not like the very, very small percentage of cops who are "criminals" have some flashing sign to alert you. By the time you realize some shit is going down, it's going to be too late.

And who said anything about expecting mercy from a criminal? Do you know any cops? If not, you should make an effort to get to know some, at least the community officer assigned to your neighborhood, if that applies to your locale. Most are decent folks trying to do good. Most are not "criminals".

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#354

Post by rand1012 » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:21 AM UTC

at-fates-hands wrote: post #187

andy_ppp wrote: post #120

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is an alternative idea that the police accidentally killed him and are trying to make it look like a suicide. They probably had his phone after all. I'd like to see if twitter can get up geocoded info on where those tweets were sent from... If it's the police station rather than Mr Murdock's house... What happens in a case like this where the police are possibly suspects in a death?

>> What happens in a case like this where the police are possibly suspects in a death? Normally if someone dies while in the custody of police there is automatically an inquest as to what happened. If there's evidence of mistreatment or abuse, the District Attorney can then decide to send the case to a grand jury and let them decide whether they should charge the officers involved. The DA can also indict and charge t…

This is a fairy tale. In reality, municipalities don't go much out of their way to uncover their own wrongdoings. It is fallacy to assume that this would be handled properly.

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#355

Post by danielvf » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:23 AM UTC

zipwitch wrote: post #343

ladadadabing wrote: post #340

Here is what he did: 1) He tried to break into someone's home. 2) He fought with the police who were called by the homeowner. 3) He was drunk. 4) He returned to the same neighborhood and banged on another door; subsequently arrested 5) He died the next day, after the previous incidents.

Can you provide anything to support that particular narrative? Or any narrative at all?

"According to the San Francisco police, officers were called to Steiner and Union St in the city at 11.30pm on Saturday, December 26, following reports of a man trying to break into a home – that man was identified as Ian Murdock. He reportedly fought with the cops, and was given a ticket for two counts of assault and one for obstruction of an officer. The techie had been drinking, according to the police logs. A medic arrived to treat an abrasion to Murdock's forehead, and he was released so he could be taken to hospital.

A few hours later, on Sunday, December 27 at 2.40am, police were called again to reports of Murdock banging on the door of a neighbor at the very same block. A medic arrived to treat him for any injuries at the scene. Next, the cops took Murdock to the county jail where he was held in a cell.

Murdock was bailed later that day, on Sunday, after a bond, said to be $25,000, was paid. He died the next day."

-- The Register

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#356

Post by jessaustin » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:27 AM UTC

ricardobeat wrote: post #121

segmondy wrote: post #45

It really bothers me that traces of someone's existence can be wiped out with a mouse click, be it on twitter, google, facebook, or other sites. I read the tweets while this was going on, I was hoping he would find some other means to cope and raise awareness, and to hear that he actually went through with it. :-( I go to reread and see if there's anything I might have missed and his twitter page is gone as if he nev…

That is mostly a property of Twitter. It disallows crawling by archive.org, and very few others have the capacity to keep up with the massive amounts of data it generates.

Apparently there's a facility in Utah that archives all tweets. Unfortunately they have a fairly restricted API.

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#357

Post by sssilver » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:32 AM UTC

jimrandomh wrote: post #106

This was very recent, and the facts are not yet in. The best evidence we have to go on is his most recent tweets, captured on Pastebin ( http://pastebin.com/dX3VSPkM ). His Twitter account ( https://twitter.com/imurdock ) seems to have been deleted, which is extremely strange. Main notes: * He was repeatedly beaten by the police. He alludes to having taken photos of the injuries, and having been hospitalized, so this…

BTW the typos strongly hint at Dvorak.

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#358

Post by jessaustin » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:33 AM UTC

specialist wrote: post #292

jacquesm wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Canada has some of the worst and some of the best police officers that I've ever seen. City/local police: not so hot. RCMP on the whole probably the best police force that I've had contact with.

Often times, same dichotomy in the US. State Patrols are professionals, locals are bubbas.

Experiences differ. Local LEOs often play roles in crime prevention or investigation. In the states I've been recently, the state patrols are strictly revenue agencies. Life for the public would improve by their absence.

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#359

Post by jessaustin » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:35 AM UTC

gumballhead wrote: post #351

scrollaway wrote: post #52

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I should probably post this on a throwaway... but this hit somewhat close to home. A few years ago I was going through a very tough time. I lived in the UK at the time and went to california for a meetup. After even more personal crap happened, I went on a walk seriously considering suicide. Kept trying to call friends, family, nobody picked up, it was the hardest day of my life to get through. Next thing I knew I fo…

There is no situation that the cops can't make worse. Don't call the cops. Don't ever ever call the cops.

Cops are like regexes. Now you have two problems...

Re: In Memoriam: Ian Murdock

#360

Post by 0xcde4c3db » Thu, Dec 31, 2015, 6:36 AM UTC

hidroto wrote: post #350

knughit wrote: post #275

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Never call the cops. Police due two things: apply force and file paperwork. If you have a medical or person problem, the police are not who to call. Sadly, that meand you can't call 911 either, you have to find the phone number for MEDICAL support.

so 911 is not police, fire or ambulance in the US? what do you ring if you need firefighters or a doctor?

911 is police, fire, or ambulance. But which combination shows up is decided by the dispatcher, not the caller, so you can't call 911 if you want to be sure that police won't respond.