University Park man slain after dog urinates on lawn

articles.chicagotribune.com...

A former Marine who neighbors say obsessed over his University Park lawn is being held on $3 million bail, accused of gunning down a neighbor whose puppy urinated on the man's well-manicured grass.

Charles J. Clements, 69, had won the south suburb's beautification and lawn upkeep award but also was known for threatening people who dared to set foot in his yard, neighbors said.

Joshua Funches, a 23-year-old father of two, was walking his fox terrier Gucci in the 500 block of Landau Road on Sunday night when the dog lifted its leg and went on Clements' lawn, said Funches' mother Patricia, 53.

The two men began arguing, and at some point, Clements, a retired truck driver, pulled out a pistol and pointed it at Funches, a Crete-Monee High School graduate who drove a bus, said Will County Assistant State's Attorney Sondra Denmark.

Witnesses said Funches then said to Clements, "Next time you pull out a pistol, why don't you use it?" Denmark said. At that point, witnesses said they saw orange and white light and heard a loud noise. They saw Funches fall to the ground

Judge Marzell Richardson ordered Clements, who had no criminal history, held in lieu of $3 million bail Tuesday on first- and second-degree murder charges. He noted that Clements allegedly told Funches that he would be found innocent if arrested

I just don't understand what goes on in some people's minds. It's inconceivable to me that someone's lawn could be so important to them that they would take a life because of it.

What really gets me is that this man apparantly believes that he is going to get away with the act of murder. I don't know why he thinks he will be found not guilty. I would think that by him saying that, he is blowing any chances of an insanity plea. IMO he basically said I'm gonna kill you because I know I can get away with it, which IMO admits premeditation.

Such a shame that three children will be left withour a father (he was expecting another child in August), a mother without a son, a woman without her fiancee, because his puppy urinated on someones lawn

And then there's also the shooter's family that will suffer a loss because of his actions. Just a sad situation all the way around.


Edit for grammer



[edit on 5/12/2010 by chise61]

This gives gun owners and lawn lovers a bad name. You are allowed to defend your life. You are not allowed to defend your pretty grass.

reply to post by groingrinder


I couldn't agree more.

You know someone somewhere is saying you see that's why people shouldn't have guns.

Reminds me of 'The Burbs.'



"If I catch him, I'm gonna staple his ass shut!"

Originally posted by Kandinsky
Reminds me of 'The Burbs.'

"If I catch him, I'm gonna staple his ass shut!"

The same thought entered my mind, and it was on TBS (I think TBS) this Sunday!

Back on topic, the shooter should be locked up and the key thrown away. How awful and he was only 23 years old. I cannot think of anymore words to say except this makes me very sad.

and they say gang bangers kill each other over stupid things..

Never try and talk sense into a warrior. Warriors are trained to kill, not think. Run from the man with a gun, don't try and tell him anything. Some Marines pass the evil down the line, like the Nightstalker's Uncle. Trying to train soldiers to not have remorse never works. This Marine will probably regret his actions. If he does not he is insane.

reply to post by chise61
Sad story.
Man needs to go to jail for a long, long time. He had NO reason to bring a gun out onto his lawn.
Too late now, but the victim should have held his tongue. Not a particularly smart move, goading an angry man with a gun into shooting you.

I can understand the crazy lawn protector. Especially the elderly ones.

You spend your whole life in your home grooming your property and as the years go by your neighborhood decays and changes and bars go up on the windows and suddenly youre hearing sirens all the time when you had never heard them before and traffic picks up and they all drive faster and faster, and the taxes keep going up and up...

And your house isnt your house anymore. It's the last shell of your house you were able to hang onto. Your lawn isnt your lawn anymore. Youre bombarded with a slew of fees and forms and penalties just to keep living the way you always have.

It's a bitch to watch the world decay around you. Especially if you arent rich and cant just pick up and move.

I have never owned a house or my own land and I havent even lived very long but I still 'get it' having seen neighborhoods rot and listened to an awful lot of the stories the old folks tell.

And it seems like this rate of decay is getting faster. Now small and rural towns are experiencing it. Suburbs and the once 'nice' parts of cities are going to spit in merely a decades time.

He absolutely had no right whatsoever to shoot that guy. But I get where he was coming from. After a while you just get sick of tolerating other peoples crap. Seems like they all have an infinite supply of it. Whereas tolerance is pretty damn finite.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


I've never understood the people that scream at kids for stepping on their grass, unless it's new grass that can be damaged from people crushing it. Grass is meant to be walked on and you're not causing it damage by doing so.

I do understand what you're saying about decaying neighborhoods, but I watched news footage of this story and that neighborhood is not decaying, no bars on the windows, etc.

I can even understand where people would be tired of people not respecting the hard work that they put into their property. I just can't understand why someone would bring a gun out because someone stepped on their lawn, or their dog urinated on it. That's just going completely overboard.

Edit for spelling error

[edit on 5/12/2010 by chise61]

He should of just shot the dog at least the cops can relate to that and maybe go easy on him
www.abovetopsecret.com...

reply to post by 12voltz


It is not the dog's fault. The owner is responsible for watching him and not letting him use other people's lawns for a toilet. I am very careful about that when I walk my dog. She can piddle in the park, but not on people's lawns. If you correct a dog enough times, they will get the routine down. If you do not care, then they will not care.

Originally posted by groingrinder
reply to post by 12voltz

 

It is not the dog's fault. The owner is responsible for watching him and not letting him use other people's lawns for a toilet. I am very careful about that when I walk my dog. She can piddle in the park, but not on people's lawns. If you correct a dog enough times, they will get the routine down. If you do n
ot care, then they will not care.

I didnt say it was the dogs fault .I should of written( sarcasm) after the post ,i just assumed it was obvious if you saw the link.You sound like a very responsible dog owner ,good on you .

The 23 yr old basicly asked to be shot. He said if the guy was going to pull a gun, then he should shoot. And he did because the kid asked for it. If someone is pointing a gun, you don't say crap that will make then want to shoot you more. You shut up and listen and hope they calm the F down.




personally, I think the 23 yr old should have pulled his own gun and shot back in fear for his life(ie self defence).