July 5, 2007
Fireworks-Related Injury To Punk Band Drummer At Dolores Park Yesterday
Picture of Roisin Isner from KLC Production's site
Sorry, folks -- we've been sitting on this one because we wanted to make sure it was true . .. and then the Chronicle beats us to it (as they rightly should). At least we can now tell you what we know.
Roisin Isner, who is a drummer in a punk band called Tinkture, was the victim of a stray firework at Dolores Park last night. The Chron article is unclear about what type of firework it was or who may have done it -- but there is a letter purported to come from Isner's father floating around the Internet that fills in (at least his opinions on) those details. For now, the article at least confirms that Isner was seriously injured by a stray explosive that detonated near her right hand.
We were sent copies of this note purported to be from her dad by at least five readers. We warn you that we've been unable to verify that this was written by Chris Isner, so unfortunately it must at this point be taken with a grain of salt. We've written to Mr. Isner, asking him to verify and for further comments. We understand that, even if on the level, he's got much weightier things to worry about than speaking to SFist. But for now, we'll reprint the letter for you in its entirety. Even if the letter isn't valid (and we're inclined at this point to think it is), the point it makes is indeed an important one: if you have any information on who may have perpetrated this crime, please contact the police immediately. Maiming a young girl -- and, indeed, inflicting an injury ending her music career -- is a sad, serious thing.
(Letter follows after the jump; we've edited it slightly for language)
Hello,I am Roisin's father. July 4th, Roisin and friends were in Dolores Park
watching fireworks. Some stupid piece of shit threw an M60 at them. It
landed on Roisin's right hand and blew it apart. She will undego surgery
later this morning but it doesn't look good. Most likely she will lose her
index finger; second and third fingers will also be permanently impaired and disfigured. Needless to say, her musical career is over.I want this f**ker. Media attention will help flush him out. People know who did it and I'm offering $20,000 for a name. Please do whatever is
necessary to get the story out. Do so and I will reward you as well.Thank you,
Chris Isner
|
okay i feel like if this were in the park then people would have seen it happen, and that even if they didnt see who actually set it off, they would've had a general idea of the direction it came from. even a little thing such as "all the people to her left saw/heard it over head" gives little clues. and if it came from outside of the park (like from the ppl who shoot them off in the school yard of mission) then id bet she's SOL
It didn't happen here in San Francisco, but 3 or so folks stepped over a woman who was lying on the floor of a convenience store stabbed and bleeding the other day - oh yeah, one person stopped to take a photo of her with his/her cell phone. What the heck, people?!? You're not observing television fiction - step up and help each other out.
That's so awful & heinous. I hope they catch the jerks.
Reading about this on Yelp! makes it sound like some dude was walking around throwing M-60s nearby a lot of folks on the 4th.
where's the thread on yelp? get it to the investigating officer so they might get a description so we can catch this piece of shit and stuff an m60 up his ass
i can verify it definitely happened in the park due to seeing emergency vehicles on the scene at approx. 10pm.
i live in the mission and had a large number of friends who were in the area at the time, it seems like more information is slowly coming out. i've heard of at least two people coming forward so far, one person has been circulating more information attached to the initial letter that has been going around describing who she thought was the suspect.
multiple people must have seen who did it, its just a matter of them coming forward.
Don't even worry, if the police manage to catch the perpetrator (and that is a big if for the SFPD), DA Kamala Harris will manage to screw up the prosecution.
hey el,
just for your information, we have 1100 fewer police officers than a city our size and complexity should have, so give them a break. i seriously doubt they are the one's not wanting to hire more.
take it up with your friendly neighborhood supervisor that doesn't want any police on the street bothering their constituents.
IF the tales from Yelp are correct (and that's a big IF) and a dude was walking around throwing M-60s in the general direction of lots of folks at Dolores Park, I cannot understand why no one had the urge to round up some other guys to clobber this jerk and take the explosives away from him until police could arrive to properly take care of him. I knew San Francisco was a more intelligent and peaceful type City, but the guy was throwing bombs at you basically - come on kids!
Yelp thread: http://www.yelp.com/topic/YmTe4zuKvbsJ249bHhu0Sw
no way in hell this would have been it's own posting if this girl wasn't a white hipster in the mission. no fucking way. maybe maybe maybe it would have been in the blotter. maybe. you guys can keep ignoring these kind of postings or keep responding with snide little comments but but it's true and you should address it.
"I knew San Francisco was a more intelligent and peaceful type City, but the guy was throwing bombs at you basically - come on kids!"
I was thinking the same thing. It's a tough call because if someone decides not to tackle the guy b/c it's not practical or it's too much of a physical risk, that's OK in my book. But if they don't do it because "hey, this is SF, we let people do their own thing, man" - that's just ridiculous. I think we do tend to tolerate anarchy a little more around here. There needs to be limits to that.
um, it was a 16 year old girl...is that really a white hipster?
@ 10
Yes, you're right. Clearly, SFist's readership has no interest in such a story, thus the lack of commentary and traffic on this story. And we certainly weren't bombarded with reader emails yesterday asking us to update the situation.
Oh, wait -- yes we were.
This is not something that just happened and has been resolved. This is something that, as citizens, we can assist with should we keep our eyes and ears open. It's an ongoing story, and it's even more timely and newsworthy due to the 4th of July angle.
There, it's addressed.
OK, the hipster bashing is fun and all, but let's keep it on the Josh Wolf thread, okay? Someone got badly hurt for no reason, and that's newsworthy particularly after July 4.
Assholes like the perp of this crime are why you can't buy fireworks in SF. Whoever did this needs to pay.
I was about 15 feet away from her when it happened --my ear is still ringing--after I heard and felt the explosion I heard her screaming for someone to call 911 and she was standing and holding her wrist up in the air, all her fingers were ether gone or disfigured and black--I have never witnessed anything this traumatic in my life--my thoughts go out to her and her family
re: "white hipster"
let me get this straight.
your logic is that because of the incident's location and precocious, talented (and caucasian...for shame) victim = "white hipster girl in the mission," no one -- not the authorities, not the public, not her parents, not her friends -- should even care, analyze or even SPEAK of a 16 YEAR OLD GIRL GOING TO A PUBLIC PLACE TO WATCH FIREWORKS ON THE FOURTH OF JULY AND COMING HOME WITH ONE LESS HAND, just because with so many uncivilized nuts running free in SF it's simply to be expected?
...
Hi,
This is a relative of Roisin. She is as okay as she can be after her first of many surgeries last night. The letter did come from her dad, but we have an idea who may have thrown it now. Thanks to everyone who have been praying for us. This is difficult for her, but it seems like with rehabilitation, she may have use of her fingers, but one, again. Ro is a fighter, and if anyone can make it, she can.
i would bet anything that everyone who responded to #10 is white. and to #10 i say to you, sfist is racist and they will never admit it or do anything about it. just stop reading, it's not for poc and they want to keep it that way.
As cool as it would be to turn this into a knock out, drag down over social hierarchy in the lower right quadrant of the City, let's rein it in folks.
This girl is going to hear this a lot in the coming weeks, so let me be the first: If Rick Allen can rock sans left arm, you can do it sans a couple of fingers. Get well Roisin!
@ 18 --
ATTENTION ALL WHITE PEOPLE: STOP HAVING OPINIONS.
Also, genius, you ARE #10, so stop sockpuppeting. Geez, how transparent.
REPOSTED FROM THE KILLJOY PAPERS
VIA LAUREN:
Please read this and if you know anything do the right thing.
I was there with a group of friends and some mothfucker threw an M60 at us up on the ridge and shook the whole fucking ledge. It landed about 5 feet away and our friend Billy had to throw him down the embankment after he approached us waving an empty 40oz bottle b/c we were pissed for almost being blown up. There were HUNDREDS of people siting right where he tossed it. I highly suspect that this is the same piece of shit that blew a girl's hand off in the post below. He was blowing M60's off everywhere and picking up the shells after the fireworks had ended.
Here's the description I remember. If you see someone matching this description on or with this bike, call the cops:
White male. mid 20's. about 5'10". i tihnk that he had a dark newspaper boy cap on, and his mesenger bag was black with red and black plaid across the flap. His bike was a medium blue fixed gear with black wheels. It also had some white stickers covering a bunch of the downtube.
First of all, I'm glad to hear that Roisin is doing as well as can be expected and that there's progress in finding out who did this.
And in response to the troll who keeps crying racist (even though you don't deserve a response).
Like most publications, if you're interested in writing for SFist, send a query to the editor. People of all demographics are welcomed -- it would be nice to add some variety to our generally "pasty, hip, and young" complexions.
Writing for SFist is non-paid, and its driven by people who continually step up and write about what they know. We can each only do so much. (If we were paid, full-time journalists, that would be another story.)
So, step up, people!
As a matter of fact, both comments 10 and 18 come from the same Oakland IP address; I assume that the commenter's reason for having a conversation with himself is that nobody else wants to participate. And as a reminder: off-topic discussions and crazy accusations are better-suited for the SFist forums.
@9,11
Yes history in hindsight is 20/20. Why do you blame the people of SF for this? Nobody at the park had complete information about the situation. Also, many people were probably not paying that much attention. It was a holiday and I imagine people were drunk and stuff. I have a hard time believing that this wouldn't/couldn't happen anywhere else just because SF people "tolerate" anarchy more or that SF people don't have a backbone (see yelp thread). It totally sucks that Roisin got hurt and I hope that the police catch the jerk who throw the firework but blaming the city for this is stupid.
Leanne, I couldn't agree with you more.
Putting a slight spin on a few of topics discussed in this thread, did the "mid-20s, bike messenger" appearance of this guy effect the way people responded in the first X minutes he was throwing M-60s into crowds of people at the park? What if he was wearing a turbin? What if he was a person of color? It is just something interesting to ponder ... I don't know the answers to any of these things, but I do believe we all have our own biases. It happens in hiring all the timing ... unconsciously and not necessarily for racist reasons. I think it has more to do with folks projecting themselves and their like of themselves than it does racism. "He seems similar to me, so he should do a good job - hired!"
Just a discussion point to pivot off of ... I'm not calling anyone racist or anything like that.
I'm glad to hear that it sounds like the victim will possibly regain use of most of her fingers. Also glad to hear that they may just catch the guy ... no leniency.
"White male. mid 20's. about 5'10". i tihnk that he had a dark newspaper boy cap on, and his mesenger bag was black with red and black plaid across the flap. His bike was a medium blue fixed gear with black wheels. It also had some white stickers covering a bunch of the downtube."
Sounds like this dud who drinks at Pops all the time... well, that's mostly his bike description. This guy has a bear, and wear a beanie usually. Also I know nothing about his bag. But yeah, sounds like this Pops Bar regular. He is also one of the guys in that group that was fighting all Father's Day afternoon in the park.
23
Matt this is nothing new. Can't you block the guest function?
Just delete the offensive comments.
We try to delete libelous comments when they're brought to our attention (we don't police every comment thread), but if we blocked everything offensive from SFist, there wouldn't be much site left.
This is what happened:
It wasn't a single M-80 that the dude threw. It was some firework that had built-in propulsion with a loud report, which is what got that poor girl's hand. It's something that was meant to be fired straight up into the air and then explode. The idiot actually didn't throw it into the crowd, he just threw it in a way that it would land well before anyone. But, when the propulsion kicked in, it went straight in to the crowd.
It was a completely tragic, but almost random. For the propulsion could have ignited in any direction, including right back at the idiot who threw it. No such luck. It exploded in the crowd, who had no time to react since it came from behind.
Right after that, two or three guys from the crowd ran screaming towards the picnic table, just up the hill from the restrooms, where it came from. There were two guys squaring off from the picnic encampment, a heavy black guy wearing white and a white guy, 6 feet tall, wearing an Oakland A's cap.
The guy with the A's cap threw it.
He bolted pretty fast with two friends when the cops showed. The guy with the newsboy hat that people mention was lighting off fireworks and generally being a drunk asshole, but the dude in the A's cap threw it.
It doesn't make a difference in the world, and it's completely that tool's fault, but for what it's worth he didn't maliciously throw an M-100 into a crowd of people trying to hurt someone. If there was no propulsion aspect to the firework, it would have landed and exploded 50 feet away from everyone.
Still, fucking awful.
All the eyewitnesses commenting here should make statements to the cops. The alleged dude who threw it can surely be charged with reckless endangerment.
does anyone know the hospital where roisin is staying? i don't know her, but i'd really like to send her a get well card or something.
That's a great idea - I'd like to send her some words of encouragement at least.
don't remember the A's cap, but did see the guy light the thing and throw it. white, black hair, young.
it was a long fuse, indicating one of the bombs that should go up in the air. he threw it in to an empty area and it did indeed skip at least 3 times before heading into the crowd. not sure if that was b/c of propulsion or an accidental too long throw.
all i can say is anyone who was near the exploding fireworks was at grave risk of death or injury. i was sober and shocked to see families near the huge illegal fireworks display enjoying the good "patriotic" times. there where hundreds of people near the area where the accident happened. it was a party. people where tossing bombs everywhere in the park, mostly in the lower levels where the accident happened.
i live in this 'hood, like a dose of civil disobedience now and then, but was shocked to see spectators and bomb-tossers alike drink it up and ignore the obvious dangers.
made me think of burningman, where people die for doing dumb things or being at the wrong place at the wrong time. at least they get out of liability by posting "death or dismemberment" on their tickets. bet the City gets sued over this one!
sad, unfortunate accident. wish i got a good look at the tosser, though i doubt he had a clue that he was being reckless.
the whole population of dolores park was being reckless that night.
thoughts and sympathy to the victim.
only an asshole lights explosives in a crowd
this is why those fucking things are ILLEGAL
and I hope they prosecute this guy for terrorism
and as for commenter #10: do us all a favor and eat an m80 for dinner so you can finally get the blowjob you so desperately need on the down low!
all you folks that were there, please search flickr for photos with dolores park and 4th of july in the keywords. see if you recognize this asshole.
Hey, suckafree, I do hold my supervisor (Daly) responsible for the understaffed SFPD. But I also recognized that the police have pretty much given up on enforcing laws in SF. Yes, it's complicated and they're not the only ones to blame. The DA, the Board, and the Mayor all own a piece of the breakdown of civil society in this town. Even if this jerk is caught, we all know that nothing much will happen to him. It is ridiculous, but that is the current reality in SF. Condolences to the family and I suggest that if the cops can ID the perp, you consider a civil liability case against him.
This is a real tragedy, just awful, and I hope that the perps are caught and punished to the full extent of the law, and that she has a miraculous recovery.
But parents out there, please let this be a wake up call to you! You need at least basic medical insurance for your children. I know it is expensive, but if you need to do without something to afford it, do so! According to the sfgate article, this girl goes to a private school that is $17,000 a year, but is not covered by medical insurance, and I think that something is wrong with that scenario. Of course that information could be incorrect, and I hope it is for her sake.
I see that her father is offering $20,000 for a name as well.
Please understand that I am completely sympathetic to her plight, but as I said, perhaps this can serve as a wake up call for others.
This year the bombing lasted only from about 4:00PM to about 11:00PM in the Mission; much less than last year when it went on for several days... maybe all the bombers went to Dolores Park.
I swept up paper casings from M-80s all up and down the street on July 5. At least my immediate neighbors made an attempt to clean up their mess.
Why are there are so many of the big fireworks going off each July 4? They are illegal in the US.
Here's something from fireworksland.com:
"Real "M-80s" and real "cherry bombs" are illegal in the United States. They have been illegal in the U.S. since the year 1966. The reason they are illegal is because the U.S. Congress passed a law in 1966, called the "Child Protection Act" which specifically made them illegal. It is illegal to sell, possess or use them anywhere within the United States jurisdiction. The punishment for selling, possessing, or using actual M-80s or "cherry bombs" within the U.S. can be severe. The potential "fun" or "entertainment value" that you might think you would get from using one of these devices is definitely not worth the risk of substantial fines or even imprisonment."
what do you do for a living el greco? how would you like it if your boss expected results from you while you were 2/3's understaffed? how much would you get done on a daily basis? what if your boss told you to leave the folks in the worst part of town alone and accused you of making poverty a crime for messing with them?
get my point?
After living across from Dolores Park for 12 years - I can't count how many times I have called the cops regarding illegal fireworks. they NEVER show up - not even the dirt bike cops. Next year you watch - SFPD will be out in full force - dirt bikes and all.
Holy shit they got him!
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/07/11/BAG9RQV65Q3.DTL&tsp=1
It's just basic procedure anymore for action to take place... something bad always has to happen before something gets done to fix these things. Sad but true.