That bizarre reaction of family members of the St. Petersburg teen accused of shooting that undercover cop is still reverberating in that community. But the implications are disturbing for all of us.
To recap: Two undercover detectives — on high alert because of a rash of convenience store robberies, some violent — took note of three suspicious teens. Their suspicions were confirmed when two of them covered their faces, went inside a Suncoast Exxon gas station, and robbed it at gunpoint.
They were confronted outside. Accounts vary – but not this part: one of the officers was shot four times. James Seay, 18, of Gulfport is accused of being the shooter.
Seay’s relatives reacted as if Seay were the victim.
“If you were dressed undercover – they are not in uniform – and you grab my arm, I’m going to defend myself, too,” asserted the suspect’s sister. Presumably, the suspect was downright lucky to have been packing heat when his arm was grabbed.
The suspect’s uncle, the Rev. Daryl Seay, upped the rhetorical ante.
“I think it’s just as much their fault as it is the boys,” noted Rev. Seay.
Indeed, the Rev. really said that.
And now a 42-year-old married father is in serious – but stable – condition after taking four bullets in the aftermath of an armed robbery. Worse yet, some folks apparently think he had it coming.
How disgusting is that? Moreover, how worrisome is it for police officers and law-abiding residents of St. Petersburg — already troubled and frightened by a mini crime wave — to learn that this sort of criminal rationalization is also preying on their community?