Murray's father talked briefly with O'Brien, and said that his son "often says things he doesn't mean and would back off if challenged about his words."
He's sick. He's been sick for about 10 years. I hope they find him.
A neighbor told O'Brien that Murray "was a loner who favored wearing a cape while walking around the neighborhood, often muttering to himself while punctuating his words with hand gestures."
He would just walk down the street, talking to himself.
We would notice every once in a while the State Police would be (at the Murray home).
My husband and I thought he had some problems but I didn't know someone like that would have guns.
Indeed, despite being mentally ill, Murray was evidently able to get a pistol permit in Saratoga County, which he used to acquire several handguns legally.
The Secret Service says Murray has at least eight registered firearms, "ranging from semi-automatic pistols to revolvers, some capable of carrying 15 rounds of ammunition, and all easy to conceal."
The extent to which Murray was affected by anti-Obama media of one kind or another is unknown, but some of the stuff he said at the bank suggests a connection.
Here's a report from the Salt Lake Tribune:
A bank employee told agents Murray asked her if Zions (First National Bank)was a solvent bank and talked about how the "mess" under Obama with the economy could end up in killings if people lose their money.
Murray returned on May 27 and asked to withdraw about $13,000 in bills no larger than $50 and in nonsequential order, court documents say. He allegedly said, "We are 94 million miles from the sun, and are in between the sun and moon, and the eagle that flies between them, and it's a giant step for mankind ... I have traveled thousands of miles to be here and know things that are going to happen ... the banking system will fail and people will die ... there will be chaos in the world."
Then, as a teller handed Murray his money, he allegedly said, "We are on a mission to kill the president of the United States."
Whether those are schizophrenic ravings, channeling talk radio Obama hatred, or a mad mixture of the two will not be known until his arrest (hopefully) and trial.
Several aspects of this story are interesting.
One is that an obviously mentally ill person was able to legally acquire several handguns, in a state that has more handgun controls than most.
The Secret Service believes that mentally ill Murray has AT LEAST eight registered firearms, all of them presumably handguns, since long guns do not require registration.
Another is the way that our current health care/insurance system deals with mental illness.
Generally, it does so badly, relying on family to care for mentally ill adults and try to ensure that they take their expensive medications.
Details about Murray related to this problem faced by millions of families are not available yet, but they presumably will be soon.
Another is the real value of newspapers. There are several good blogs in the Albany area, but none do the kind of basic door-knocking reporting O'Brien did about a national story with local implications like this.
The Times Union does, though it will be doing less of that if its billionaire owners succeed in cutting the newsroom, again, by about a third.
Ironically, O'Brien is the president of the Albany Newspaper Guild, which is engaged in a battle with the billionaires who own Hearst Corp. to maintain the integrity of the Times Union.
It is clear that Murray is much more a danger to himself, and to any police officer who confronts him, than he is to the President.
Hopefully, that inevitable confrontation will be resolved without bloodshed. |
