"Incidents" in town
 

Anybody know why Water street was cordoned off yesterday and Nuttall Street was blocked off this lunchtime. Is it the heat.....God I`m becoming nosy!

Re: "Incidents" in town
 

The incident in Water Street yesterday happened at 4.30am, a bloke was beaten up very badly and is critical in hospital..........they have arrested the householder of the house he was found outside.

The incident on Nuttall Street involved a C.B. minibus, a van and 2 cars I don't think there were any serious injuries but there were a few carted off to hospital..........

Hope that has satisfied your noisiness for a little while lol.

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well it cured my nosiness for now ;)

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Last Updated: Sunday, 10 July, 2005, 14:54 GMT 15:54 UK

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Man quizzed after teenager death
Police are questioning a 49-year-old man following the death of a teenager in Lancashire.
A 19-year-old man died in Blackburn Royal Infirmary on Saturday afternoon after being attacked in Accrington hours earlier.

He suffered serious head injuries in the attack on Water Street.

Police said they have arrested a local man in connection with the incident and are appealing for anyone with information to contact them.

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Have you any idea who has died and who has been charged??

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Thanks Bob for the info I had been wondering about the Water Street incident myself.

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theres a lot more to the water street one.

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well thats everyone upto date now lol

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Any more news about this unfortunate incident?

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Does anyone know who this guy was? Its so close to home isn't it

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Am lead to beleve, according to work mates that attened scene, that the young man was well known to the police and that the householder has stated that he had broken in but not able to confirm any of this as the investagation will be well under way by now.

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well if the guy was defending his property then good luck to him

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What the hell is happening to what used to be a sleepy peaceful little town. Its getting more like Moss Side Than Moss Side.

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Accroding to Inspector Julian Platt, of Accrington Police, crime is on its way down in the borough. Two murders within a month - I shudder to think what it was like before the police decided to crack down on all this disgraceful criminality, don't you?

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The police are very good at making claims of this kind. Think they call it cuffing .If it can be cuffed or not recorded in the same severity as in a breakin with no theft would go down as damage only. Thus crime figures will decrease

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The murdered lad was my friends brother. We all know he was no angel but I don't believe he deserved to die. Although I wouldn't have thought the bloke who did it could do such a thing. This has affected a lot of people.

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if he was burgaling somones home then he deserved a good hiding its just unfortunate he died

sorry if i sound insesitive but my mother was burgaled by a 19 year old and now my mother is afraid to be in her own home even though it happened a few months ago and to be quite honest if i ever get my hands on him he will get a kicking he deserves as well

ime only going off what is posted here so i appologise if the reports are wrong but if he indeed was robbing someones house then then no one should be to blame but the person who decided to burgal somone elses home

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These youngsters don't seem to realize the stresses put on their victims. Many have sufferred heart attacks and most fear the same happenning again for the resr of their lives. If someone chooses to break in to a persons home they are making an assault on that persons privacy, as well as an assault on the mind of the occupant. So they should not be suprised when the housholder retaliates. Also lets face it, in the heat of the moment when you are suddenly confronted by a thug who has entered your home without your consent, your aim is to get one in before you become the victim, not oh dear I don't want to hit him too hard in case I really hurt him. Death is never desrved but when you put a person in terrible fear like this then I'm afraid you lay yourself wide open to whatever comes.

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Totally agree Fireman. When someone breaks into your house you do not know what their intentions are. They could be there to rob, they could be there to rape, they could be there to steal. Whatever the reason, the victim is unaware how far the invaders are prepared to go in pursuit of their crime. No blame should be attributed to a victim who kills someone in those circumstances. They shouldn't bloody well be there in the first place. If anyone breaks into my house, they had better kill me, otherwise they are going to get blown away.

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Although my initial reaction was horror at the idea of someone being beaten to death I have to agree that when a 19 year old youth breaks into someone's home that instils fear into the householder and an instinctive reaction to defend life, limb and property.

The burglar set out to burgle and as has already been said they have no idea of the long term effect they have on their victims. It isn't just the loss of property, it's the feeling of vulnerability. The burglary victim didn't set out to attack anyone. This is just the survival instinct coming out. When feeling threatened people tend to react to defend.

I sincerely hope the powers that be take a good look at the situation and we don't end up with a Tony Martin repetition here in Acccrington.

The loss of life is tragic but perhaps it will make other young thugs and burglars think again.

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I am led to believe that the man charged is one John Butterworth, Some of you may remember his father who lived opposite sacred heart church

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I have removed this post as it is probably wiser to wait until all the facts are heard before making any judgement.

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I've just read the telegraph and it makes no mention of a burglary attempt. It also says the murdered teenager (Daniel James Freeston) was found outside Mr Butterworths home.

Apparently Mr Butterworth is being charged in court today....

This could be interesting if it was an attempted burglary.

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Obviously, if it wasn't an attempted burglary I take back what I said previously. I was only going off what was printed earlier in the thread.

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It was Ber999T who mentioned a break in, although it had been said previously that there was more to this than had been reported.

No doubt we shall find out eventually.

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In the absence of fact it’s very difficult to form opinion. That said if someone enters another persons home uninvited, then within reasonable bounds that person has the right to defend his or her self, and his or her property.

If a life is taken in anger and evidence suggests that other methods of detainment where available then the chap in question may well become another Tony Martin. Again it depends on the level of treat that the alleged victim perceived at the time of the attack. Your first difficulty is deciding who is the victim? Just because the young lad was outside the property doesn’t necessarily mean he was the aggressor. The older chap may have misinterpreted the younger ones intentions.

The over riding fact is at this moment we just don’t know. If this young chap deserved a kicking for something he did fine but we have got to be reasonable, other than the one or the other mans life been at threat did he deserve to died, what’s more we must take care in our assumptions there are two families that are no doubt devastated by this as well as friends. Perhaps we should give them some thought and be aware that they may also be reading the contents of this thread.

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At the moment all this is just speculation and conjecture.......would it not be wise to wait until there is a fuller picture before we make comments or judgements....?

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thats exactly why ive kept out of this,when i know some facts i will form an opinion.

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looks like the burgalry story was not true although the person who mentioned it didnt say it was %100

[quote]

A 49-YEAR-OLD man was due to appear in court today accused of murdering a teenager.

John Butterworth, of Water Street, Accrington, was charged following the death of 19-year-old Daniel James Freeston.

Mr Freeston was discovered with a serious head injury outside Butterworth's home at 4.50am on Saturday and was taken to Blackburn Infirmary.

Mr Freeston, formerly of Cedar Street but believed to have been living recently in Oswaldtwistle, died on Saturday afternoon.

The street was cordonned off from its junction with East Gate, on Saturday, while forensic examinations were carried out.

Two police officers guarded the front and back doors into the house throughout Saturday.

Det Insp Ian Critchley said: "We cordoned off Water Street close to the junction with Eastgate in order to examine the street where we believe the man was assaulted. We have also examined inside the house in Water Street.

"We ask anyone who was in the Water Street area at the time of the incident to contact us with any information they may have."

Neighbours in Water Street said they were shocked to hear about the incident.

Stacey Rayner, 32, of Water Street, said: "I heard muffled voices coming from the street at about 4am on Saturday but I didn't hear anything else. When we woke up the street had been cordonned off from top to bottom and we saw the forensic officers.

"We automatically thought someone must have died.

"It's awful when something like this happens a few doors away. It's something you see on TV and don't expect on your doorstep.

"We haven't lived here long but we're already fed up of the problems on this street.

"We've had our car scratched and the man who lives at the house where the police have been has had an upstairs and downstairs window smashed during the past six months.

"We have seen the man who lives there in passing and he seems an okay bloke. He was already living there when we moved in and most of the houses on this block are privately-owned."

Another female neighbour, who did not want to be identified but has lived in the street for ten years, said: "The first I knew about it was when the police knocked at my door about 5.15am. I didn't hear anything outside and usually my dogs start barking if there's any noise.

"We've had windows broken before but nothing this serious. I know a man called John has lived in that house for quite a while and I think there was a younger man living there aswell recently."

Staff at the local Stanley Street Working Men's Club said the incident had been the talk of the club but no-one knew what had happened or who was involved.

[quote]\

Re: "Incidents" in town
 

When I posted my lot on this I was generalising I agree that the full facts of this particular case may well be some time coming to light, but it does not change my thoughts as I put in my post. When confronted by a stranger in a situation such as burglary you dont have time to ponder the situation. Self preservation takes a lead in your mind .

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okies this is what i meant in earlier post.#

http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/la...EWSACC0ZM.html

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I wasn't getting at anybody with this post......I just felt that it was premature to make judgements on the information that was available at the time.

I do agree that if you are in the unenviable position of catching a burglar in their actions, you should be able to defend your propery and yourself....and the law allows 'reasonable force'......however, there is no definition of what constitutes reasonable force.

Sorry if I have inadvertently thread wandered.

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i agreed with margaret,have to say a different opinion is NOT getting at anybody though some might disagree with that.

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I also agree with Margaret The family of the dead lad don't yet know fully what happened so apart from the accused none of us know what really went on. This was why I put up my first post. I do know the family are in deep in shock and are struggling to come to terms with it. In this respect my heart goes out to the family as they are the ones who are suffering right now.

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Whatever the lad did or didn't do.... there is a family out there grieving who deserve our respect.
Please let them grieve in peace.

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I statetd the facts as I was told ie "trying to break in" as that was the info I got off my workmate. Sorry if I have misled anybody.

Yes his family will be greaving for him and I send them my condoliences (if spelling bad sorry for that).

However if it turns out to be that the lad was about to do a crime, I have to say that if he had NOT[B] being trying to break in would he not still be alive?

The chap who is being charged now has to live with the fact that he has taken someone's life and he will have to carry that around with him. Maybe he was mistaken in trying to protect his home who can say!! but would you not try to stop someone from entering your home??

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Been talking about this today with people who work with mr butterworth... Still, no details have been released from the police. However, Mr Butterworth has been released on bail.

Margeret, I agree there is a family out there that is greiving. There is also a family out there that does not know what is going on. There is also a whole town that have not been told the facts or even what is known that may not be facts. Isn't it good that we have somewhere to talk about this??? I suppose we could all just say nothing and pretend that nothing happened. But something has happened, and we all know something has happened, why should we not talk about this?

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Roy.....it depends what you mean by talking.....talking in general is fine, but some of the posts have been just conjecture and supposition......and some have been pure rumour.
The only person who knows what went on is the accused man......his family is not served by gossip and rumour and neither is the family of the person who was killed.

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All I can say is that it is a shame for all people involved. No matter what this young lad was doing, he didn't deserve to have his life taken. Also there is a man that has to carry around with him the guilt of what he has done even if it was through protection. Personally we don't know exactly what went on and should just leave the rumours and gossip out

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ive heard the alleged victim was on an asbo and shouldnt have even been in the area

can anyone confirm this..?

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the alleged victim..............has gone!will wait for the verdict then comment?

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Will it be left to lie or will something else appear to drag it out further?

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So, a chap defends his home and property against a thieving scrote and ends up under a charge of murder for five months and now has to live away from his home town, he has to give up his home, his job and has had many of his personal relationships shattered as well as having to cope with the financial costs of moving and mounting a defence. And what now can he make of his life? How can he put a shattered life back together again and carry on - as he must?

We rail, not without justification, about the criminal having more rights than the victim. Speaking personally, my heart and my sympathies lie with John Butterworth. I have none for the thief; he got what he deserved. I am surprised that more members are not of the same opinion, especially those who have been on the recieving end of the attentions of burglars, con-artists and thieves.

Good luck in your new life John. I feel sad and ashamed that you were ever put in this position. I remember a young lad who had more disadvantages to cope with than I did but, who still managed to make me smile when I was down. I hope that you can find that strength and courage again and put all this behind you.

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Don't understand why this gentleman has felt it necessary to move away from the area, etc., surely his friends and neighbours will have been supportive in this incident and welcome back as a hero ? I'm sure, at the time, he did not intend to take this young man's life. It is surprising how much strength you call on, turning into the Incredible Hulk, when in a defensive position.
Was it fear of retribution from the burglars family ?

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Some would be made a misery by a minority so maybe the best option is to move away and start affresh.:(