Man charged with fatally shooting friend through protective vest ... on a dare

Associated Press
Posted December 15 2004, 1:49 PM EST

OROFINO, Idaho -- A man has been charged with involuntary manslaughter for fatally shooting his friend through a protective vest on an apparent dare, police said.

Alexander Joseph Swandic, 20, died of a gunshot wound to the heart Monday after donning a protective vest and asking David John Hueth, 30, to shoot him, police said.

Hueth initially told police that Swandic's wound was self-inflicted, but later admitted to the shooting. The two had apparently tested the vest by propping it against a dirt bank and shooting it twice, police said.

Police said the vest was designed to protect against grenade fragments, not bullets.

Swandic was pronounced dead at a local hospital following the shooting.

Hueth faces a preliminary hearing on Dec. 27. If convicted, he faces up to 10 years in prison.

 

Ah, the joys of growing up. What would youth be without shooting a friend on a dare? It's like wearing Depends so you can drink a lot of alcohol without visiting the restroom, only to realize that Depends are intended only to prevent leaks. Or so I've heard.

 

While that sucks for his family, its good for the rest of us. Gotta keep that gene pool high.

 

isn't this what happened with that hunting shooting in Minn?

 

i dont' think that one was a dare...

 

:shakes head:
I feel bad for the family.. but what the damn., how dumb can someone truly be?
When i read these stories on web sites about how some people die i just cant stop being amazed by the stupidity of some people these days. If one of my friends ever put on a vest and said shoot him to see if it works.. i'd unload it and pistol whip him for about an hour hoping that it smacked some sense into him.

 

give those guys some credit. they had the sense to test the vest on top of some dirt first before they tried it on themselves. surely, that's an indication of some level of intelligence...

 

Recently there was a kid (17) in my county who got in his car after a basketball game with three of his friends and floored it. Driving erratically he sideswipped a car, sending them off the road, then passed a car illegally (no passing zone) and hit a SUV head on. Needless to say the kid is dead, the friends were in serious condition and the SUV driver had minor bumps and bruises.
Now my question is... how old is too old? I mean you can be put to death in most states at 17 for capital crimes. Everyone (well, not me) is mourning for this kid because he was a "stupid youth" but seriously, he almost killed 4 people. How old do you have to be in order to be considerded a deranged maniac, instead of a stupid kid.

 

idaho? no udaho!

 

This was just plain STUPID.