Darwin Candidates

 On February 3, 1990, a Renton (Seattle area) man tried to commit a
 robbery. This was probably his first attempt, as suggested by his
 lack of a record of violent crime, and by his terminally stupid
 choice:

   1. The target was H&J Leather & Firearms, a gunshop;

   2. The shop was full of customers, in a state where a substantial
      fraction of the adult population is licensed to carry concealed
      handguns in public places;

   3. To enter the shop, he had to step around a marked King County
      Police patrol car parked at the front door;

   4. An officer in uniform was standing next to the counter, having
      coffee before reporting to duty.

 Upon seeing the officer, the would-be robber announced a holdup
 and fired a few wild shots.  The officer and a clerk promptly returned
 fire, removing him from the gene pool.  Several other customers also
 drew their guns, but didn't fire. No one else was hurt.

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 Derrick L. Richards, 28, was charged in April in Minneapolis with
 third-degree murder in the death of his beloved cousin, Kenneth E.
 Richards. According to police, Derrick suggested a game of Russian
 roulette and put a semiautomatic pistol to Ken's head instead of a
 revolver.

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 MOSCOW, RUSSIA -A drunk security man asked a colleague at the
 Moscow bank they were guarding to stab his bullet-proof vest to see if
 it protected him against the knife.....  It didn't and the 25-year-old
 guard died of a heart wound.  Isn't it good to see the Russians
 getting into the spirit of the awards.  

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 Jacques LeFevrier left nothing to chance when he decided to
 commit suicide. He stood at the top of a tall cliff and tied a noose
 around his neck. He tied the other end of the rope to a large rock. He
 drank some poison and set fire to his clothes. He even tried to shoot
 himself at the last moment.  He jumped and fired the pistol. The
 bullet missed him and cut through the rope above him. Free of the
 threat of hanging, he plunged into the sea. The sudden dunking
 extinguished the flames and made him vomit the poison. He was
 dragged out of the water by a kind fisherman and was taken to hospital,
 where  he died ... of exposure!!!

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