Deseret News | Reader comments: LDS missionary slightly injured in Salt Lake shooting

Reader comments
LDS missionary slightly injured in Salt Lake shooting

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Juan Figuroa | 11:09 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Wow. Three rounds, and only a graze. Fortunate kids.

Anonymous | 11:12 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I think it was more than good fortune at work here...

Anonymous | 11:19 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

That's weird that the missionary didn't report it. They lost a lot of ability to investigate it further.

Just glad they were o.k.

Comments continue below

stupid kid | 11:23 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

He could have prevented a future crime if he had reported it sooner. Makes me wonder what the real story is.

Anonymous | 11:38 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

This story sound hinky. They were shot at and didn't report it? Wouldn't you be absolutely TERRIFIED if you were grazed by a bullet? Could you help telling everyone?

I don't think this is the whole story.

MMM | 11:36 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Lets give some gun permits Utah!!! Im sick of these issues with guns here!!! Everyone can get a gun!!! It is the Cowboy way!

Vicki Doze | 11:43 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I'm glad everyone is okay, however I agree that the incident should have been reported right away. I'm wondering if they thought they would get in trouble for throwing snowballs at each other at 8:00 p.m.? Maybe they should have been in their apartments studying?

Maybe stupid kid, but... | 11:43 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

My bro had a gun held to his head as a missionary in Brazil (by the police, no less) and never wrote anything home about it for the same reason this missionary didn't--Mother would have *freaked*, and never would have slept for the rest of his time in the mission field. Yes the kid should've reported it but you can't blame him for not wanting to worry his mom.

Zell | 11:48 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Hey MMM, if you don't like it in Utah move to New York City where you can't have a gun as a law abiding citizen, but the criminals somehow still have them. Better yet move to Cuba, China, or India. Oh yes, in India if there had been permit holders the hostages might be living today. Sometimes its hard to live with liberty in a free state, but it's much harder to live without it!

Hinky? | 11:52 a.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Biggs, what does that mean, hinky?. I mean hinky, that has no meaning. I don't want you using words around me that have no meaning.

Dear "Hinky?" | 12:05 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

You've never heard of hinky?

It's in Webster's online dictionary. It refers to a suspicious report or story that one rightly questions.

See also "there's more to this story".

800 lbs Gorilla | 12:14 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

So 8pm on Saturday night, 1700 South West Temple, 3 gunshots, and 2 "victims" and nobody called police? Doesn't sound right. I guess you give the boys the benifit of the doubt but I think self inflicted makes more sense. Perhaps a little cover story of the one armed man in a blue hoodie?

RE: Dear Hinky | 12:15 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Watch The Fugitive with Harrison Ford. His comment will make more sense. It was a joke.

Re: Dear "Hinky?" | 12:16 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

In case you didn't know, what "Hinky?" blogged was a quotation by Tom Lee Jones from the 1993 movie "the Fugitive".

Bob | 12:17 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

hinkï¿½y [ hï¿½ngkee ] (comparative hinkï¿½iï¿½er, superlative hinkï¿½iï¿½est)

adjective U.S.

Definition:

1. not stable: unstable or subject to sudden change
hinky weather
My computer's been acting hinky.

2. strange: unusual in a way that is hard to describe
something a little hinky in his behavior

Frank | 12:20 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I too knew a missionary who was mugged at gunpoint and didnt tell his parents for the same reason, another who was knocked out by the butt of a gun, but that was South America.

I know | 12:21 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I was mugged at gunpoint in New Jersey as a missionary I never reported it or told mom until I got home. I completely understand. In New Jersey the would have no

To Anon | 12:23 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

May be more to the story--or not. But my son was stabbed on his mission and he didn't want to worry me either. His mission president notified us. He and his companion were set upon by several men--and a crowd watched and some even cheered! Missionary work is dangerous; you never know which crazies you may set off. In fact, I had a friend whose brother was murdered on his mission. However, preaching the Gospel has never been without danger--just read your Bible and see what happened way back when--and NOT in Utah, and before guns.

Re: Re: Dear "Hinky?" | 12:23 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Thanks!
I didn't remember the movie quote. I won't forget it now.

Next up:

Re: Re: Re: Dear "Hinky?"

veedub | 12:25 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

If this is really how it happened (and I wonder if it is) it wouldn't surprise me that the missionary didn't tell his parents. Both of our sons in different South American countries came down seriously ill on their missions and never mentioned it to us, for which we scolded them when they got home and learned of it, but in both cases they felt they were blessed with healing and didn't want to worry us.

But honestly, a shooting? Come on guys. This was a crime.

Matthew | 12:25 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I agree that it is very strange that the missionaries didn't report this to their leaders immediately. At that point they would have been instructed to call the police. Of course, immediately calling the poice would be the sensible thing to do, but we are likely talking 19 or 20 year old American males here. Common sense is sometimes in short supply when faced with an unprecidented experience. Not wanting mom to find out may very well have been the over arching factor. If so, at least his heart was in the right place, even if his head should have worked on it a little harder.

Anonymous | 12:26 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

While I served as a missionary, I experienced being shot at, attempted kidnapping, attempted rape, and never told my family either. I know my siblings experienced similar experiences. I am sure that my children have/will also.

you in the hood boyz | 12:26 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Attention Mission President:
1700 South and West Temple is one of the worst places in all of Salt Lake City. This neighborhood along with North Temple and most of State Street should be off limits to missionaries.
This is rare for Salt Lake, but none the less, you need to go the extra mile to keep these missionaries safe.

Re: I know | 12:28 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Just out of curiosity, what mission in New Jersey?

Boise/Pam | 12:34 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

How stupid of the missionaries not to report it. Hope they on the carpet for it. They might have saved someone elses life by promptly reporting it. Now someone else may die.

how does the shooter disapear | 12:34 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

come on, how does a guy rattle off three rounds in down town and no one notices? Were not talking about the viet-cong in the jungles of Viet Name here, were talking about right smack dab in the middle of down town salt lake. If the gun was a 9mm the noise is pretty darn loud.The missionaries not reporting this was even stranger unless they were doing something they shouldn't.

re: MMM | 12:40 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

The vast majority of criminals don't have gun permits; in fact, most of them don't even have guns that are registered.

DC banned handguns completely, and any criminal who wanted one could get a handgun. Some people live in this fantasy that guns are the problem.

RE: you in the hood boyz | 12:48 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Come on, are you serious about saying that this neighborhood should be off limits to missionaries? This is a very safe compared to the likes of some major cities rough areas...think Detroit, LA, DC, NYC, etc... My Brother served in DC and I can tell you it was a lot more scary then SLC.

Come on guys | 12:57 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Oh yeah, I'm sure they were doing something wrong. They were getting shot at, after all. I'm sure the guy had good reason.

Big Chief | 1:01 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Guns kill people like my pencil spells a word wrong. People kill people. The problem isn't the gun, it's the person.

Karl K. | 1:03 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I was hit by a bus when I was a missionary. The driver drove right up on the sidewalk. It was no accident.

mom | 1:04 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

They are kids and not fully cooked yet. People do a lot of dumb things while they are young. I think some are making more out of it that it was. Sometimes the simplest explanation is the truth.

K | 1:19 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Weird. The location. The not reporting it.

I don't see how their reporting it would have to involve their parents? Isn't there a rule for missionaries to be law abiding? It's a crime. Not to report is illegal, or at least immoral. They interferred with the police being able to properly investigate and may have lost evidence from the crime scene and other leads. Someone else might be in danger because of their lack of dilligence in reporting it. The bad guy would be jail by now.

Jeff | 1:24 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

And if the missionaries had reported the incident immediately, Iï¿½m sure we would still have people posting comments criticizing something they did. It is difficult to find people that will set aside their criticisms for a moment to at least express gratitude that the missionaries were fine. Does it take a tragedy at the scale of 9/11 to get people off of their high horses of omniscient criticisms? Of course, 9/11 didnï¿½t keep such critics off long; but for a brief moment there was unity regardless of faith, politics, or prejudices. Youï¿½d think humans would have more humanity than they do, especially when they have the luxury of pontificating as they do. I am glad the Elders are alive and well.

The Real "Hinky?" | 1:25 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I'm glad some of you were on the train for that quote.

But the people who didn't get it made it almost more funny.

re:mom | 1:41 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Ditto on your "not fully cooked" statement. I use that term often to describe my own teenagers and young adult children. I described myself "not fully cooked" at that age.

50/50 | 1:43 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I want to believe it but I am not sure. I guess you can tell by the wound that it was a bullet graze? I mean, if the only people that saw or heard this guy fire off a few rounds were the missionaries it makes me wonder if something else happened and they just made up the story. Very odd. And yes, 17th South and West Temple might be a rough area but it is not that bad. Get out and see the world my friend. Utah is a pleasant place.

bobby lee | 1:58 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

good article ...lots of less intelligent comments here..be safe missionaries ( of any religion )..

Air Soft | 2:11 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Air soft bullets dont count as a crime thats why they didnt report it sooner!

Re: I smell a cover up. | 2:12 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Sorry but not everything is a conspiracy theory....grow up. And your comments had no logical reasoning whatsoever. Crawl back under the rock troll.

To the critical | 2:31 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I doubt those who are so certain (must be a lot of psychics out there) that the missionaries are lying, actually read a lot of the comments on here by return missionaries who had similar experiences and didn't report it. I had two experiences on my mission I never reported. Not wanting to worry mission presidents and moms is a strong motivator. Sure, he should have reported it, but it is amazing how much we want to keep mothers from being afraid.

He's not a stupid kid | 2:34 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

1) He's not stupid. I happen to know him.
2) But I can't believe that weird guy would shoot at them.
3) I can't blame Josh for not calling, but knowing his mom, she's not that much of a worrier.

Watch how you phrase things. You don't know who's watching you.

Anonymous | 2:36 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I still don't buy it. I get not telling your parents because you don't want to worry them.

But a gunshot is not being ill, being ill in a foreign country is not the same as being so in Utah. And I bet for those of you who had missionary kids who didn't tell you what went on, that maybe you didn't hear of it but others they worked with did.

This is most unlikely of stories and the details sound suspicious.

If you don't know what you are doing "being grazed" and "being hit" feels very much the same. And you're in the US, on a busy street.

Doesn't add up.

missionary | 2:40 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

I was almost shot by a drive by in my mission. I was within feet of being hit. I was on my bike. I didn't stop, I just rode on.

A different time, I accidently rode infront of a man waiting to shoot another guy.

Both occations I never thought of calling the police. Things like that happen all the time in the mission. I had several companions that were beat up, held up at gun point, etc. I don't thing any of them called the police either. Its something that you can of expect.

LOL @ Re: I smell a cover up | 2:48 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Sarcasm, my friend. Learn it, love it, enjoy it.

My comments were obviously over the top and making fun of the obnoxious posters in here suggesting the missionaries were doing something nefarious. Obvious, apparently to everyone but you. I would explain my comments, but I think they may be a tad over your head.

All kidding aside, I hope that these two missionaries learn from their mistakes, and serve the people of Utah with all their hearts. Heaven knows we need it.

Anonymous | 2:50 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Was Paxico Burress in town? Anything could happen

To: I Smell a Cover Up | 2:49 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Funny!

Sad thing is, between the conspiracy-nuts and the Mormon/missionary-haters, many (most ?) people will not see the sarcasim in your post!

Smell Test | 2:51 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Something doesn't seem quite right. This doesn't pass the smell test. It reeks of a fishy odor. Why wouldn't they tell an authority sooner but then decide to four days later? Three rounds from close range and only a graze to one of them? The man just appeared and disappeared out of nowhere with only description being about 5' 10" and a blue hoodie?

No signs of the other bullets were found. No one else reported hearing gun shots. This has never happened before in Salt Lake City to my knowledge. My question would be, were these two missionaries the ones playing with a gun and an accident happened? Seems like the most plausible explanation to me.

suspicion | 2:56 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

Please, people, THINK about it! Of course he didn't want to report it. He was only grazed and his family truly would have freaked out. And have, now, I'm sure. It's not that suspicious!

Disgusted | 3:13 p.m. Dec. 18, 2008

It seems to me that this "Anonymous" guy is the type that just wants to belittle the Mormons. I bet he is a real loud mouth in a group. Can't you just imagine how embarrassed his wife (or date)must be when he starts to prove his IQ? I am assuming "A" is a "he", I doubt a woman would be as stupid.

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