Boys jailed for stoning death

[cali]

Reuters - 1 hour 59 minutes agoLONDON (Reuters) - Five boys, some as young as 12, were given custodial sentences on Friday for stoning to death a pensioner as he played cricket with his son.

The schoolboys, one of whom was just 10 at the time, had attacked 67-year-old Ernest Norton at Erith Leisure Centre in Kent in February 2006.

The Old Bailey heard that the five belonged to a local gang called "The New Estate" and were part of a larger group of up to 20 who began abusing Norton and his 18-year-old son James.

Norton was verbally abused, spat at and then pelted with a hail of stones and pieces of wood. He died of a heart attack after being struck twice on the head and face with stones, one rock the size of half a brick shattered his cheekbone.

He died in front of his son.

<snip>

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20071019/tuk-uk-britain-stoned-fa6b408_1.html

Good. I'm glad they were jailed. They deserved it.

[_testify_]

1. WTF

Put their fucking parents in jail as well.

[cali]

2. tempting, isn't it? n/t

[Selatius]

3. Shitty parenting, indeed. n/t

[mvccd1000]

4. It's getting crazy over there!

There are so many potential causes... I'm fond of the "gun ban = more crime" argument myself, but I've heard people argue that it relates to immigration, the economy, and just the breakdown of society in general. Whatever the cause, it seems like there are more and more stories like this coming out of the UK every week.

How could someone even think about doing that to another person?!?