As the nation was still reeling from the schoolyard shooting in San Diego, it must have been disturbing for Philadelphians to learn that they can be threatened by guns even in their cars, that most sacrosanct of realms. News reports told of the sentencing of a gun-toting patent attorney, Jeffrey Spangler. Judge Gerald Corso sentenced him recently to up to 23 months in jail for simple assault and reckless endangerment. We all know how pedestrians are supposed to behave. They are expected to wait meekly on the sidewalk until the flow of cars comes to a halt.
Proper pedestrians allow drivers who are especially pressed for time to speed through a red light.
Conscientious pedestrians make eye contact to gain permission to step off the curb. No, Jeffrey Spangler is hardly a nice guy and certainly not a well-behaved pedestrian. The driver, according to Spangler's account, had threatened to follow him home and put a bullet in his head, but that is beside the point. After all, Spangler did wield a gun, a .357 Magnum at that, against an unarmed driver. But wait a minute.