Irvine police shoot armed bank robber and innocent bystander

that's what a recent OC register headline should have read. instead, it said, “Irvine hospital worker accidentally shot by police.” confused by the difference? me, too.

as this article describes, last Friday, a man was reported to have robbed the Wells Fargo Bank at Barranca and Creek at knife-point. at knife-point! as the man tried to flee, police fired on the man and shot him in the hand. however, in the process, the police also shot an X-ray technician working at her desk in a local medical building. this is where I come in.

the building in which this technician works is the building where I currently go for physical therapy. I was in fact in physical therapy on Friday, but I left at approximately 11:15, and it seems that the police chase started around 11:20. in all likelihood, as I was biking by the bank, the suspected robber was inside, carrying out his activities at knife-point. at knife-point!

there are two aspects about this episode that I find most disturbing. first is the way the event is reported in the OC register. I’m not for promoting a culture of fear, but would like to know when an armed bank robbery occurs less than 5 miles from my home. however, looking at the headline, it sounds like there was some accident in the ER or something. the news is that the police shot this woman in the process of chasing down an armed bank robber, an important fact very down-played by the headline.

the second disturbing part is that I had to have one of the assistants at physical therapy today ask me if I was there for the excitement on Friday before I found out about the robbery and shooting. granted, I am less than diligent in following the news, but I don’t live in a cave, either. again, I’m not for promoting a culture of fear by reporting on every robbery and homicide in east LA, but I do want to know when this stuff happens so close to the place that I call home.

oh yeah, and did anyone hear about the shooting in the Park West apartment complex this past winter? some guy was found lying on the side walk after having been shot. the only reason I heard about it is because my girlfriend was living in Park West at the time. and oh yeah, Park West is only about 2 miles from UC Irvine.

ah, the safety of a planned community.