When is it appropriate to speak on your phone in your car? (Example below) I had the opportunity to speak at the Martin Luther King Jr. Public Library this past weekend. It’s an eight story library the city shares with San Jose State University. This library has the largest Beethoven collection outside of Germany and the 8th floor features floor to ceiling glass windows that overlook the city. One month before I spoke at the library, Joseph “Joey” Vicencio opened fire on the library from the parking garage directly across the street. One shot nearly hit San Jose State freshman Garrett Bruner as he sat at an eighth-floor desk facing the library’s front window. That near-miss fueled an attempted murder charge. Joey Vicencio, age 21, was charged with a felony for each bullet he allegedly shot. “Thankfully no one was killed in this case, but anytime someone shoots at an occupied building, the results can be tragic,” Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Marina Mankaryous said. Vicencio’s motive remains unclear. It appears he was a depressed man who intended to make the rest of the world suffer for his misery. Vicencio was holding a loaded magazine while hiding the gun in his waistband. He later told police officers that his intention was only to hurt himself (which really doesn’t explain why he was firing at the windows of the library). Ultimately, only 1 bullet penetrated the library windows. Vicencio used a semi-automatic handgun (based on the bullets and shell casings recovered at the shooting site). The actual weapon has not been recovered. If convicted, he faces a sentence of life in prison. Vicencio’s father, Jimi Vicencio, said his son had struggled with depression, which he said runs in the family and that Joseph had a “fascination with guns.” Jimi felt he was to blame for a dysfunctional home life that led to Vicencio and his brother being taken away from their parents as young children, and living in foster and group homes since. At the time of Joey Vicencio’s arrest, he was already being prosecuted for a felony concealed weapon charge stemming from a March incident at a San Jose group home. A group home employee wrestled away a 9mm semi-automatic pistol from him. Joey had an arrest for vandalism two years prior, at another group home, after a “rage” in which he damaged property. Police appropriately placed on an involuntary mental-health hold for evaluation after each charge, which barred Vicencio from legally buying or possessing a gun. Getting back to the original question: After I finished speaking at the library, the woman who identified the shooter asked to speak to me. (I will keep her name anonymous.) On September 20, 2019, she had finished her work shift and was in the 4th floor of the parking garage, when she observed a masked man carrying a gun coming up the stairwell. It started me thinking about the terrible situation she was in and the variety of choices she had to make.
As we spoke I could still feel the tremendous anxiety she felt over the situation, and I felt bad that we live in a world where self-centered people have a need to make everyone else suffer because they’re miserable. Flash forward to Halloween in San Jose. (While this story may not seem related, it is.) Brenda and I enjoyed Halloween night in San Jose. However, that afternoon San Jose police officers responded to a man walking down the street brandishing a gun. Officers asked the man to drop the gun. He refused. An officer shot and killed him. It was later discovered the man was actually holding a replica of a gun. In fairness to the officer, it looked real. See below: Witnesses of all races supported the officer on the news that night. There were no protests. People basically said we’re tired of the mass shootings. If he’s not going to drop the gun, then accept the consequences. Nobody wants any more innocent people killed. Despite that, I loved San Jose. We drove up into the mountains and looked down at Silicon Valley below. We walked Stanford University campus. At Stanford University, tuition, room and board is free for families with an income of less than $65,000 a year, provided they are accepted into the college. They want the smartest from all schools. The result is that the majority of the students come from public schools. San Jose has the highest percentage of millionaires and billionaires of any city in the United States. We ate amazing fusion food American/Mexican/Asian and enjoyed Palo Alto. San Jose is 36% Asian ancestry, 32% Chicano ancestry, 26 % white, 3% African American and 3% mixed ancestry. It was interesting to be in a Chicano community for Halloween and view the variety of “Day of the Dead” ofrendas. Since we were staying close to San Jose State University for Halloween, on every bus stop we met college educated skeletons, superheros, princesses, etc. waiting for a ride out to club. I even met a nice nun. I have to tell you, I spoke to this nun at the bar, surrounded by people. When I asked to take a picture with her, and even after, I didn’t realize she wasn’t wearing much on the bottom half. It wasn’t until the next day, when I looked at the picture, I realized. I thought about not including it, but I had to laugh at this, and I hope you can also. Thanks for listening, Frank This is one of those old songs, that was surprisingly open-minded for the era it was written. “Those Williams boys still mean a lot to me-- Hank and Tennessee. I guess we’re all gonna be what we’re gonna be. So what do you do with Good Ole Boys like me…”. Hank Williams was an alcoholic, and Tennessee Williams was gay. Hank wrote some great tunes and Tennessee as a great playwright. And Don Williams had a voice that’s as smooth as an ice cold amber ale.
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AuthorFrank F. Weber is a forensic psychologist specializing in homicide and sexual and physical assault cases. He uses his unique understanding of how predator’s think, knowledge of victim trauma, actual court cases, and passion for writing true crime thrillers. His Award Winning books include "Murder Book" (2017) "The I-94 Murders" (2018) "Last Call" (2019) and "Lying Close" (September 2020). Archives
April 2024
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