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Title: In Missouri, City Asks What Made Killer Snap (fiery opponent of City Hall snaps)
Source:
New York Times
URL Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/09/u ... i.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&fta=y
Published: Jul 2, 2008
Author: SUSAN SAULNY and MALCOLM GAY
Post Date: 2008-07-02 02:53:42 by Ferret Mike
Keywords: None
Views: 100
Comments: 5
KIRKWOOD, Mo. — The day after a gunman opened fire at City Hall, killing five people before the police fatally shot him, residents of this affluent suburb southwest of St. Louis struggled to come to terms with what they called the unthinkable. And the question on everyone’s mind was: What caused Charles Thornton, a friendly town gadfly known as Cookie, who for years had been a fiery opponent of City Hall, to snap? A contractor who routinely ran afoul of the authorities, Mr. Thornton was well-known and had an openly contentious relationship with the town government, particularly those who worked in code enforcement and zoning. Beyond that, however, people described him as affable. Mr. Thornton had hundreds of dollars worth of outstanding fines for violations and had twice been arrested for disorderly conduct at City Council meetings. He appeared to have hit a tipping point 10 days ago, when he lost a free-speech lawsuit against the city stemming from the two disorderly conduct arrests. “A lot of people are in denial; they can’t believe this has happened,” said David Bennett, senior pastor of Kirkwood United Methodist Church, after conducting a prayer vigil attended by roughly 500 people in this city of 27,000. “We needed to come together and remind ourselves that this is not who we are.” The authorities said Mr. Thornton arrived at City Hall around 7 p.m. on Thursday and encountered a police officer, Sgt. Bill Biggs, in a parking lot. Mr. Thornton shot Sergeant Biggs, then retrieved the fallen officer’s service revolver and entered the Council chambers yelling, “Shoot the mayor!” Once inside, he turned his guns on the assembled crowd. Three city officials — Councilwoman Connie Karr, Councilman Mike Lynch and Kenneth Yost, the public works director — and a police officer, Tom Ballman, were killed in the chamber. Sergeant Biggs died in the parking lot. Mayor Mike Swoboda was wounded and remains in critical condition at St. John’s Mercy Medical Center in Creve Coeur, Mo. A newspaper reporter, Todd Smith, was also wounded and was in stable condition at a hospital. Ms. Karr had been busy in recent weeks planning a mayoral bid and was regarded as a top contender. Mr. Lynch was a zoning specialist whom friends described as gentlemanly and sociable. Mr. Yost was responsible for enforcing the ordinances related to zoning. A former Kirkwood police chief, Dan Linza, said Officer Ballman was a polished young man with a positive attitude. Mr. Linza said he also knew Sergeant Biggs, a former professional cowboy, and said the sergeant had been looking forward to the day when he could raise cattle and have a quiet life in the outdoors. “You’ve just got to grieve with these people,” said State Representative Rick Stream, a Republican who represents this area, mirroring the disbelief of many. “I just couldn’t believe it was Cookie that had done this. He was such a friendly guy. Obviously, he had some problems with the city, and for whatever reason, he just snapped.” For years, Mr. Thornton had feuded with the city, saying it excessively ticketed his company’s vehicles and harassed him by saying he lacked proper permits. A former Kirkwood mayor, Herb Jones, said he knew Mr. Thornton from his tenure and had attended Mr. Thornton’s wedding reception. While he once admired Mr. Thornton, Mr. Jones said, he had noticed that Mr. Thornton was unwilling to play by the rules. “He was running a commercial building business in a residence with heavy equipment and running afoul of the law,” Mr. Jones said. “It escalated into all sorts of problems from that. He was not willing to abide by the rules that apply to the whole community.” To Mr. Thornton’s family, however, he was a persecuted man who felt he had been deeply disrespected by a city he loved. “He tried to peacefully resolve issues,” said Mr. Thornton’s brother, Gerald Thornton, 54. After the shootings, Mr. Thornton said he had found a note on his brother’s bed that read, “The truth will win in the end.” Just one line, unsigned. Only after growing frustrated did his brother become violent, Gerald Thornton said, adding “He chose to do a first strike against the enemy that would be overwhelming.” Mr. Thornton was black, and several residents of Kirkwood’s poor and mostly black Meacham Park neighborhood said Friday that the attack at City Hall was a sharp reminder of the racial division they say has plagued the city for decades. They were not willing to condemn Mr. Thornton, a Meacham Park resident, for what he had done. “We are grieved, we are sorry, but they share in the responsibility,” Ben Gordon, a black man from nearby Webster Groves, said of city officials. “Cookie Thornton is to me a hero. I don’t condone murder. But as long as there is this separation, you’ll see more of this.” Mr. Gordon spoke at a standing-room-only meeting in Meacham Park that had been called to talk about the killings. While no one else at the meeting was as outspoken as he, many expressed a frustration with what they called a double standard for black and white residents of Kirkwood. They said they thought Charles Thornton lost his tolerance of that reality. “Cookie had anguish built up in him for the neighborhood,” said Charles Reynolds, a childhood friend. Others in the city did not give the Meacham Park residents much support for their theory. “They were all dedicated public servants,” Mr. Jones, the former mayor, said of the victims. “They were all very caring people, and Mr. Thornton, who we’ve known since he was in high school, felt he was being ill-treated by the city. That was not the style of the city or the Council members. They did not go into these types of things heavy-handed. It was unbelievable that Cookie Thornton thought he was being persecuted.” Mr. Thornton had a long and troubled history with authority including one 2002 incident in which a St. Louis County judge found him guilty of the assault and battery of Mr. Yost, whom Mr. Thornton killed on Thursday. But most of Mr. Thornton’s legal battles involved violations of city ordinances. He is named in as many as 15 cases in St. Louis County for violating such ordinances, like operating his construction business without the proper permits, and for numerous traffic-related infractions. A longtime critic of City Hall, Mr. Thornton was often disruptive in Council meetings, referring to Kirkwood as “having a plantation mentality,” according to court filings. Though the Council considered banning him from future meetings, it decided against such a step. In May 2006, the police removed Mr. Thornton in handcuffs from a Council meeting and later charged him with disorderly conduct, according to court filings. He sued the city, saying his removal from the meeting had violated his civil rights. Last week, a federal judge ruled against Mr. Thornton.
Residents of Kirkwood, Mo., gathered Friday night for a prayer vigil across from City Hall.
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#4. To: Ferret Mike (#0)
What prompted you to post this?
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