Guest guest Posted November 19, 2006 Report Share Posted November 19, 2006 Posted on Sat, Nov. 18, 2006 Relatives of slain OC pair sue family of deceased killer Associated Press SANTA ANA, Calif. - The surviving family of an Orange County father and daughter shot to death last year by a rampaging neighbor in a cape and helmet who later turned the gun on himself are suing the killer's family, a support-group Web site where the man left messages and the dealer who sold him the weapon. Vernon , 45, and his daughter , 22, were shot and killed on Oct. 29, 2005, when 19-year-old Freund burst into their house with a 12-gauge shotgun, authorities said. Vernon 's son escaped out the back door, and Vernon's wife was at work during the shooting. They are now seeking damages for wrongful death and emotional distress in a lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court this week. The lawsuit claims that Freund's parents allowed their son to have a gun, failed to supervise him and failed to warn neighbors about his potentially violent personality. The suit contains similar accusations about WrongPlanet.net, a Web site for those with Asperger's syndrome, a neurological disorder characterized by poor communication and social skills. A week before the killings Freund, who suffered from the disorder, said on the site that he planned to " Start a Terror Campaign to hurt those that have hurt me. " The Web site's founder Plank said last year that moderators had attempted but failed to make contact with Freund's parents. Attorney Barry Novack, who filed the lawsuit, said it was the combined neglect of several people that brought on the shootings. " In various ways, these people are responsible for what happened, " he said. " This was a preventable incident. " Both Freund's parents and Plank declined to comment on the lawsuit. The suit accuses the gun dealer, Saddleback Valley Gun Center, and its owner Hueneman of selling a firearm to a teenager with a mental disorder. Hueneman said Freund's background check came up clean. " I checked with the state, and they told me to sell it to him, " Hueneman said. " How am I supposed to know that he was a mentally disturbed teenager who was on prescription medication? " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 How did the site admins try to contact the parents of this kid? Was it possible to call local police or did they not know where he lived? I'm kinda in the dark about how forum sites work from the admin end. If someone posted messages that made the admins nervous on this site, what would you do? Parents must be more aware of what goes on with their kids and this boy must have shown signs that were readable even if they knew nothing about what he was posting on line. How did he store a gun in the home without them knowing? I give my kids privacy but their rooms are subject to my rummaging through (mostly looking for laundy under the beds) at any time. Kim > > Posted on Sat, Nov. 18, 2006 > > Relatives of slain OC pair sue family of deceased killer > Associated Press Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 How did the site admins try to contact the parents of this kid? Was it possible to call local police or did they not know where he lived? I'm kinda in the dark about how forum sites work from the admin end. If someone posted messages that made the admins nervous on this site, what would you do? Parents must be more aware of what goes on with their kids and this boy must have shown signs that were readable even if they knew nothing about what he was posting on line. How did he store a gun in the home without them knowing? I give my kids privacy but their rooms are subject to my rummaging through (mostly looking for laundy under the beds) at any time. Kim > > Posted on Sat, Nov. 18, 2006 > > Relatives of slain OC pair sue family of deceased killer > Associated Press Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted November 20, 2006 Report Share Posted November 20, 2006 Re: WrongPlanet.net sued. " How did the site admins try to contact the parents of this kid? Was it possible to call local police or did they not know where he lived? I'm kinda in the dark about how forum sites work from the admin end. If someone posted messages that made the admins nervous on this site, what would you do? " I am not going to bash at WP for this. He is a young boy with good intentions. (Either 19 or 20 now). My one comment would be that the WP board is so big that the mods don't always catch everything, and that is where the problems may be. When the actual event happened, the following article was published: http://news.monstersandcritics.com/northamerica/article_1058975.php/Cal ifornia_killer_posted_messages_for_help California killer posted messages for help Nov 1, 2005, 14:45 GMT printer friendly email this article ALISO VIEJO, CA, United States (UPI) -- A 19-year-old Southern California man who went on a shooting rampage, killing two people before himself, had posted appeals for help on a specialty Web site. Freund of Aliso Viejo put on a dark cape and paintball mask Saturday and entered a neighbor`s house with a shotgun and shot , 22, and her father, Vernon, 45. He then shot at a house across the street and tried to fire at a neighbor, but the gun jammed. He walked home and killed himself with a shot to the chest. The Los Angeles Times said Freund was afflicted with the neurological disorder known as Asperger`s syndrome, a variant of autism that hampers people`s ability to interact socially. He posted messages in October on wrongplanet.net, a specialty site for people with Asperger`s that he had suicidal thoughts and had bought a shotgun, the newspaper said. Members of the online community tried to reassure Freund and offer suggestions. 'People at our site tried to contact his parents, but apparently there are a lot of Freunds in Orange County,' said Plank, 19, founder of the site. There are 38 Freunds registered to vote. Copyright 2005 by United Press International As to what we'd do...our hands are somwewhat tied. We have IP addresses and personal information which we can use to track people to a certain extent, and we can give this information and these addresses to the police department if necessary. The OTHER thing to do is to not let members here pick on other members and to kick out those who cause trouble. I have seen people get suicidal on three other major boards, and the admins doing nothing to stop it. I have gotten slammed on other boards for my strict policies, but if it saves members here a lot of bad feelings and trauma, I am willing to get slammed elsewhere. Tom Administrator Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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