Dark Knight Copycat Crime
- Posted by Johanna on August 14, 2008 at 5:05 pm
- Category: LinkBlogging
In the Roanoke, VA, area, two teenagers defaced playing cards with “threatening writing” and left them at Wal-Mart and KMart.
[T]he teens admitted Tuesday during police interviews they were responsible for the cards, which they patterned after elements of The Dark Knight. Both were charged with conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism.
They’re currently in jail without bail. Has our society lost its sense of humor?
Update: They’re not the only ones. In Michigan, a young man in Joker makeup tried to steal a poster from the movie. He got a day a jail, an almost $700 fine, and community service.
August 14, 2008 at 5:17 pm
I think the reaction, justified or not, can be summed up in one quote from the comics: “I’ve heard it before…and it wasn’t funny the first time.”
August 14, 2008 at 5:44 pm
Yes. I’d say the sense of humour has been gone since at least the Adult Swim thing in Boston a couple years ago.
August 14, 2008 at 6:12 pm
Am I the first to say “Why so serious?” Doubtful.
August 14, 2008 at 7:05 pm
Crazy people who are looking for a crime to copy will always find one somewhere. The Dark Knight is simply the latest source.
August 15, 2008 at 12:08 pm
Playing Debbil’s advocate here, but say you were running a business and found one of those cards inside. Would you be laughing?
It’s easy to say, “They’re just kids” but it takes a bit of adult-ness to look at the situation, make some judgments about it and decide if the charges filed against them will be prosecuted or not.
August 15, 2008 at 1:56 pm
Mark, that is a good question. Since we don’t know exactly what the cards said, I think it depends on both the message and how familiar the finder was with the movie.
I mean, if I found one of those cards, I’d think, oh, some marketing group is trying another viral promotion tactic, not “ah! terrorists!”