Boy's Rampage at the Zoo

Many kids throw a fit or temper tantrum when they're upset, but this one went over the line. Waaaay over:

A 7-year-old boy broke into a popular Outback zoo, fed a string of animals to the resident crocodile and bashed several lizards to death with a rock, the zoo's director said Friday.

The 30-minute rampage, caught on the zoo's security camera, happened early Wednesday after the boy jumped a security fence at the Alice Springs Reptile Center in central Australia, said zoo director Rex Neindorf.

The child then went on a killing spree, bashing three lizards to death with a rock, including the zoo's beloved, 20-year-old goanna, which he then fed to "Terry," an 11-foot, 440-pound saltwater crocodile, said Neindorf.

The boy also fed several live animals to Terry by throwing them over the two fences surrounding the crocodile's enclosure, at one point climbing over the outer fence to get closer to the giant reptile.

In the footage, the boy's face remains largely blank, Neindorf said, adding: "It was like he was playing a game."

That is one angry kid who needs professional help, pronto: http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/asiapcf/10/03/australia.zoo.carnage.ap/index.html - Thanks Tiffany!


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Hey, Violet, I was skimming past and saw your comment. As I said, I know nothing about the case you mentioned. It happened in the USA. The one I quoted happened in Canada. Three different countries. Different jurisdictions, possibly different circumstances, different rulings.

Zombie points were completely outside of the scenario - robbing a bank. Nicholas' point was irrevelant - it wouldn't matter so much what the kid's intentions were, he shouldn't have gotten that far in for so long.

Yours was really the only valid example, but I don't have enough info about it to discuss it.

As for stating unequivocally, take a look at all the other unequivocal statements about the boy's state of mental health - a lot of amateur psychologists passing judgment simply by reading an article about the kid's behaviour.
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Hey Ted, if you're still around...

I'm not arguing the philosophical merits of your position. I'm just giving a nearly identical case and legal findings as a counterpoint to it. You seemed, in your original post, to state unequivocally that the zoo in these situations is responsible. I have no problem with your arguing that the zoo SHOULD be responsible, but there is legal precedent for the opposite.
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It would have been better to hear about his "rampage" and it ending badly for him.

Say for example, while trying to feed an animal to the croc, he gets eaten as well..

No excuse for this type of behavior.
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"Re: Ted"?
Are you talking to me or about me?

If the zoo has security that lax, then you only prove my point. It would be like one of those chicken-wire outfits that really doesn't take very good care of its animals, and probably should be shut down.
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Re: Ted --- The kid went to the zoo with the intent of killing the animals and feeding some to the crocodile. He wasn't there on an outing with his parents during visiting hours; he sneaked in after it had closed for the night. Although the security cameras taped him, his small size allowed him to get through the perimeter undetected. He set off no alarms, and his activities were discovered only in the morning when the zookepers showed up for work. A police investigation located the boy afterward.
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