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News & ArtsThursday, September 9, 2010
Crime / News Regarding the Woman Attacked with Acid Last Week in Vancouver, WA
Posted by David Schmader on Thu, Sep 9, 2010 at 9:13 AM
- KATU.com
From the just-published Last Days:
MONDAY AUGUST 30 Today brought awfulness in Vancouver, Washington, where this evening 28-year-old Bethany Storro was getting something out of her car when a stranger approached to ask, "Hey, pretty girl, do you want to drink this?" then threw a cup of acid in her face. Details come from the Associated Press, which reports Storro was rushed to the hospital with severe burns and described her attacker to police as a black woman between 25 and 35, with slicked-back hair in a ponytail. Lucky break: Just prior to the attack, Storro had purchased a pair of sunglasses, which will be credited with helping to save her eyesight. On Thursday, Storro will establish her badassery by facing the press with her bandage-wrapped head to recount the horrific attack (described to MSNBC as "the most painful thing ever"), reiterate her refusal to let the assault "wreck her life," and express bafflement over her attacker's motives. "Was it a dare or did the woman wake up Monday morning and tell herself that today she was going to 'carry some acid in a cup and throw it on the first person I see'?" The acid-throwing psycho remains at large.
This evening brought an email from Slog tipper Greg, directing me to an unbylined story in the Vancouver Voice, featuring this (bolds mine):
in the course of my journalistic probe into the matter, I spoke to several people who claimed to have witnessed the incident. Two of them stated Storro was clearly alone when she dropped to the ground screaming. Alone. As in no one attacking her and especially no African-American female being in the area, let alone fleeing the scene after the attack.The two alleged witnesses are members of the park’s homeless crowd and only gave their street names, “Kiddles” and “Rajazz.” Several others in the homeless click at the park made similar accounts of the events of that night. They cited a fear of the police as the reason for not coming forward.
But then:
More traditionally [sic] members of society have also started to question key details of Storro’s account. A few employees of nearby businesses and one VPD officer also voiced concerns about certain details of Storro's version of events. Unlike me, the employees and officer are keeping their names and necks’ safe. Keeping their identities out of print was a required condition for them to discuss the incident with me.
And then:
For those that dismiss homeless people as lacking any credibility, remember it was a homeless man that first reached Storro and started to yell for help the night of the incident. According to The Columbian, even that good Samaritan denies seeing anyone matching the description Storro gave of her alleged assailant.
And then:
In addition to the lack of any public confirmation of the suspect’s existence, there are a few details of the incident that puzzle me.First, how clearly could could [sic] have Storro heard what her attacker said if she is partially deaf? As media reports have indicated, Storro had spinal meningitis twice when she was young that left her hearing impaired.
Second..
Read the whole thing here. As I said, the acid-throwing psycho remains at large. (And however this plays out, Bethany Storro's bad-assery remains unassailable.)
Originally posted last night, moved up to today.
2
So.... I might be missing something, but IF (big, big "if" still) it turns out that she fabricated the whole attack, how does her badassery remain unassailable. I mean, there'd probably be some litigation involved, w/ her looking to get rich by suing someone for dipping her goddamn face in a bowl full of acid. Maybe we've got different standards for badassery, but I'd say she's kinda a little bit more of a shitbrained idiot. You could say her shitbrained idiocy would remain unassailable (if it turned out to be a fabrication.)
Or am I missing something?
Or am I missing something?
3
2: There's something about dousing your own face with acid to make a point (whatever it may be) that's undeniably bad-ass.
4
"Several others in the homeless click at the park made similar accounts of the events of that night."
click != clique.
It's not even pronounced the same. Where do journalists get the high school diplomas from in modern times? Geez.
click != clique.
It's not even pronounced the same. Where do journalists get the high school diplomas from in modern times? Geez.
6
Well holy shit! Didn't see that one coming at all.
@3 No. Cutting your arm off because you are pinned by a giant rock is bad ass. Throwing acid in your own face in a desperate cry for attention is fucked up.
@3 No. Cutting your arm off because you are pinned by a giant rock is bad ass. Throwing acid in your own face in a desperate cry for attention is fucked up.
7
I was a little suspicious of her story from the start. Have you ever been to Vancouver, WA? There is, what, about 10 black women in the whole county. Why do fake victims always insist on blaming a supposed black assailant?
8
What @6 said...what "point" could she possibly be making? That she's a complete fucking psycho?
Too deranged and desperate to be badass.
Too deranged and desperate to be badass.
9
Wow, freaky story. But I think the guy's suspicions about whether she could have seen or heard her assailant sound pretty weak. Being in the shadow of a building at sunset wearing sunglasses does not render one blind. As to her hearing impairment, does she wear a hearing aid? Big question.
And his tone -- "how clearly could Storro have seen her assailant while wearing the now famous sunglasses?" -- sounds like he's watched one too many episodes of Columbo. But for his sake, I hope he's right.
@4: He also spelled discreet "discrete".
And his tone -- "how clearly could Storro have seen her assailant while wearing the now famous sunglasses?" -- sounds like he's watched one too many episodes of Columbo. But for his sake, I hope he's right.
@4: He also spelled discreet "discrete".
10
Cmon people, this happened in the couv. We all know this was some kind of revenge for a meth deal gone bad.
11
I have to admit, I've spent time in Vancouver, WA several times, and each time I felt like throwing acid in my face after just a half hour or so.
12
@1 - Try to grocery store, vinegar contains acetic acid!!!111
"Acids" aren't nearly as exotic as they might sound, I imagine the acid used here was hydrochloric (HCl), easily purchased by the gallon at hardware stores as a concrete cleaner (among other uses). Sulfuric acid is also found in some brands of drain cleaner.
Do a google image search for "hydrochloric acid burn"...
"Acids" aren't nearly as exotic as they might sound, I imagine the acid used here was hydrochloric (HCl), easily purchased by the gallon at hardware stores as a concrete cleaner (among other uses). Sulfuric acid is also found in some brands of drain cleaner.
Do a google image search for "hydrochloric acid burn"...
13
double holy shit! "don't go there!" but you just went there, so there's no turning back now. being a person of color and having grown up near Vancouver, WA, i can tell you that the biggest thing that has been nagging me about this story is that if a mentally ill African American woman is the actual acid-thrower, there's no way Vancouver white folks would NOT have have noticed her, and immediately located her, even if she was just blowing through town and didn't live there.
14
@12,
That's crazy!!!111
And I still can't take my 3.5 ounces of saline solution for my contact lenses through airport security.
The terrorists have already won.
Sigh.
That's crazy!!!111
And I still can't take my 3.5 ounces of saline solution for my contact lenses through airport security.
The terrorists have already won.
Sigh.
15
plus, there aint nothing "bad-ass" about throwing acid on yer face and blaming a black person for it. F.U. Schmader.
16
I have no opinion on whether this woman is telling the truth or not but the not being able to hear her attacker argument is very weak. I have a good friend who is partially deaf and while it makes it harder for her to hear what I'm saying she can hear me and having had this condition since she was quite young is good at deciphering what people say. Partially deaf is far different from totally deaf.
17
This story just keeps getting weirder...
Part of me wants to believe the witnesses. But part of me thinks, "Who the fuck would be crazy enough to throw acid into their own face?"
Part of me wants to believe the witnesses. But part of me thinks, "Who the fuck would be crazy enough to throw acid into their own face?"
18
Umm, what happened to the cup? If she threw it in her own face, she'd have no way to get rid of the cup, so it should have been near her. If the cup was retrieved, they could check for prints on the outside of it. Did the victim wear gloves? If so, that is rather odd. If not, are any finger prints of hers on the cup? That would be suspicious. If the cup was not found by the crime scene, that would make the story likely true (whether or not the assailant was correctly identified is a different matter, but it would be evidence for an assailant), since the attacker could have carried the cup off with him/her. But I don't see any information given about whether the cup holding the acid was found at the scene of the crime.
22
Somewhere there is a tranny gay guy about to get an identity. Watch your pill stashes home sellers!
23
How crazy do you have to be to throw acid in your own face? Well, I'll answer that by asking another question: How crazy do you have to be to try to kill yourself by cutting your own throat? And yet I've seen that. There's some serious crazy out there in this world.
24
@18 (strong) acid burns don't immediately incapacitate, they take a few minutes to start damaging the tissue and causing pain. She would have time to ditch the cup. How she would know such a thing to plan such an event is an interesting consideration.
"kleek" hahaha
"kleek" hahaha
25
On second thought, the time delay could explain why she was "alone when she dropped to the ground screaming". Lady with cup was long gone by the time she realized it wasn't water and her face started melting.
27
@21 Yes, actually, that is how it's pronounced. Apparently it now has an alternative pronunciation that is the same as click, or so Dictionary.com tells me, but it's pronounced "kleek".
The "she's partially deaf" thing is a stupid argument. Witnesses not having seen the attacker is one thing, but dude, I'm assuming that the black woman, if there was one, was not exactly whispering. If I were throwing acid in a random stranger's face, I'd probably project enough for the hearing impaired to understand. Political correctness ftw!
But seriously, I've gotta figure that a crazy acid thrower is not in the best mental state, so might not be big on the whole "indoor voice" thing. Especially if they were outdoors.
The "she's partially deaf" thing is a stupid argument. Witnesses not having seen the attacker is one thing, but dude, I'm assuming that the black woman, if there was one, was not exactly whispering. If I were throwing acid in a random stranger's face, I'd probably project enough for the hearing impaired to understand. Political correctness ftw!
But seriously, I've gotta figure that a crazy acid thrower is not in the best mental state, so might not be big on the whole "indoor voice" thing. Especially if they were outdoors.
28
@21: Um, yes? It's French. "Kleek" is the normal pronunciation in the instances I've encountered it. Sort of how you pronounce foyer as "foy-YAY" instead of "foy-ER." And so forth.
29
At the bottom of the page, there's a link to mgriffith's blog (http://www.vanvoice.com/blog/mgriffith). I clicked through and could find no evidence of his first name. I only learned that info (Marcus) by doing a site search for "griffith."
So much for "Unlike me, the employees and officer are keeping their names and necks’ safe."
So much for "Unlike me, the employees and officer are keeping their names and necks’ safe."
30
@6 Cutting your arm off because you are pinned by a giant rock is bad ass.
Hiking alone in the desert proves you're an idiot.
Hiking alone in the desert proves you're an idiot.
32
Which is the more troubling sign for the future of humanity: a crazy woman throwing acid in her own face, or ostensibly sane people mocking others for pronouncing a word correctly? You make the call.
33
@30 - Even more idiotic, for me anyway, would be to give up the joy of hiking alone (sometimes even in the *scary* desert!) because I'm afraid of being the victim of a really freak accident, like getting my arm pinned under a giant rock.
...and now we're getting way off topic...
...and now we're getting way off topic...
34
Clique has adnerents for both pronunciations and the "eek: one is preferred by dictionaries, while the "click" one is preferred by the AP Stylebook and others. So folks, does "niche" rhyme with "sheesh" or "itch"?
35
If she did it to herself, should be fairly easy to trace where she got the acid from... not like you can pick up a bottle of the stuff at the grocery store.
(Now that I think about it, what kind of acid was it...?)
(Now that I think about it, what kind of acid was it...?)
36
Huh. A bunch of quotes from anonymous witnesses (who are anonymous because ???). I'm sure convinced.
38
@32, my original point was that the journalist in Vancouver spelled it wrong, not really about the pronunciation.
Not to take away from the story or anything, just a tangent.
Not to take away from the story or anything, just a tangent.
39
I'm also interested in Storro's background. All I could find out is that she's a Christian (thanks, Facebook).
40
I did think originally that the comment made to her rang untrue... If you hate someone enough to throw acid on them - would you call them 'pretty lady'? It seemed really odd to me. But I never would have guess that she did this herself. I hope that we get some closure on this... (either her getting definitively busted or the culprit caught).
41
@40: "Pretty lady" didn't stand out to me. It sounds like something you'd blurt out to capture someone's attention if you want them facing you when you throw acid at them.
Plus, really, somebody who throws acid at random strangers isn't thinking straight anyway.
Plus, really, somebody who throws acid at random strangers isn't thinking straight anyway.
42
If she did do it herself there is defiantly something she was hoping to get out of it. She probably will not get what she wanted and at worse she will be made out to be a liar. It may just be a desperate move of an unstable woman. I remember when I was a kid and I wanted a new pair of pants but my mom wouldn't buy them for me. So i cam up with the idea that if I shit my pants then I she would have to buy me some new ones. Well it was a bad-ass move but all I got out of it was timeout and a washed pair of shit stained pants.
43
As a public service announcement, just in case this acid-throwing thing catches on - I did some studying of the acid attacks so unfortunately prevalent in some countries (Pakistan, Bangladesh, a handful of others). Should a psycho throw acid - or any other liquid in your face - get fresh water on it immediately. If you can dilute it fast enough, the damage is greatly minimized.
There's a huge public campaign in countries where acid attacks are common to get this information out there.
There's a huge public campaign in countries where acid attacks are common to get this information out there.
44
@16 Seriously! Partially deaf doesn't mean "Hey, I can't hear a thing!" It may occasionally mean "Uh, speak up, please?".
I'm sorry, but I don't get what the motives would be for throwing acid on one's face. Again, people are crazy and do some weird shit, but I don't understand this slant (no pun intended) that people are trying to put on it that it's some sort of passive-aggressive racially motivated weirdness.
That said, I'm happy to eat crow if this is all some looney-bin ridiculousness and homegirl went Clearasil MAXXXX on her own face.
I'm sorry, but I don't get what the motives would be for throwing acid on one's face. Again, people are crazy and do some weird shit, but I don't understand this slant (no pun intended) that people are trying to put on it that it's some sort of passive-aggressive racially motivated weirdness.
That said, I'm happy to eat crow if this is all some looney-bin ridiculousness and homegirl went Clearasil MAXXXX on her own face.
45
The "pretty lady part" made me think that the acid-thrower resents attractive people, people with pretty faces. That would be a motive, but it would be a motive for a campaign of acid-throwings, not just one. This interpretation is partly inspired by Nip/tuck.
46
Since there have been three separate attacks on women in Washington state recently 1. Puyallup - black male suspect - acid thrown in woman's face - 2. the Storro case in Vancouver, black female suspect - and 3. Lakewood - black male suspect on bicycle throwing strange liquids at females - I would think that Storro's account would get a little more credibility.
47
Maybe she didn't have the money for a nose job, and she knew the resulting public sympathy would buy her a pretty new face.
49
@38 Late in response, but I definitely wasn't referring to you (I noticed the same mistake). I was addressing the "OMG, you pronounce it KLEEEK? You're a moron!" crowd. The French was the original pronunciation, but as you point out, they're both pretty much acceptable now. It just bugs me that people were mocking those who pronounce the word as it was originally and still is pronounced rather than the bastardization (however acceptable that bastardization might be)
But more importantly:
And now we find that it WAS self-inflicted. Damn. I'm a chemist, and have had my share of acid and base burns. Ouch. That woman is CRAZY.
But more importantly:
And now we find that it WAS self-inflicted. Damn. I'm a chemist, and have had my share of acid and base burns. Ouch. That woman is CRAZY.
50
Excuse me but what a self-serving B----. Is this the only way she can get attention? Is it that easy to get the whole world's attention by claiming it was an African American woman. She wasn't so mental as to know just who to blame it on. What about all the innocent people who were questioned by this nonsense? Resembles Emmit Till or that crazy Susan Smith. Just claim it was an African American and the whole world listens. Remorseful you say, how about she publicly apologize to all the African American women who were questioned, all the poor souls who donated money for her big lie. What about the countless hours law enforcement spent on this idiot?
Sympathy? She knew dog gone well all she had to say was that an African American did it and the whole state would be in an uproar. Credibility? She couldn't even tell a GOOD lie. I guess if this were 1920 the first black woman police saw with a pony tail would have been hanged.
Sympathy? She knew dog gone well all she had to say was that an African American did it and the whole state would be in an uproar. Credibility? She couldn't even tell a GOOD lie. I guess if this were 1920 the first black woman police saw with a pony tail would have been hanged.
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