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Who's right, Besen or Bridges?

By tlambert on June 18, 2003.

Tom Spencer believes that I have essentially destroyed one of Lott's core arguments and wonders why pro-gun people continue to support him.

There are two contradictory stories about what happened at the Appalachian Law School:

  • Besen said that Odighizuwa set his gun and a clip on a light fixture about four feet off the ground before Bridges arrived.
  • Bridges said that he aimed his gun at Odighizuwa and then Odighizuwa "throwed his weapon down".

Note that they contradict each other about what Odighizuwa did with his gun. If Besen is correct and Bridges arrived after Odighizuwa put his gun down, then Bridges may not have seen what Odighizuwa did with the gun.

I asked Rick Montgomery (the Kansas City Star reporter) what the police report said about where Odighizuwa's gun was found and he told me that it agreed with Besen's account. This suggests that Bridges arrived after Odighizuwa had put his gun down and Bridges imagined or invented the details of what Odighizuwa did with the gun.

I also note that Besen doesn't seem to have any motive to lie here, while Bridges' story makes his role in the affair much more important.

So the most plausible theory is that the Bridges' gun did not have a significant role in the affair, not that media bias suppressed its role.

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Appalachian

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