Diren Dede was genuine, generous and a good friend, several Big Sky High School students and soccer teammates shared Monday.
“He was always just that perfect friend to hang out with,” said Dana Kowachek, a teammate.
He also was a heartthrob with a contagious laugh.
“All the girls loved him,” said Sierra Lenox, a friend of Dede’s.
The 17-year-old enjoyed playing pingpong and soccer, outdoor activities and sharing his culture with his host family and other students at Big Sky, where he was enrolled as a junior. He was open-minded, friendly, loved Sprite and dreamed of traveling the U.S. in an RV.
Early Sunday, the German exchange student’s life was cut short when he was shot inside a Grant Creek garage on Deer Canyon Court.
Residents of the home told police they heard someone in the garage; the 29-year-old male resident went out the front door and shot Dede in the garage. Markus Hendrik Kaarma faces a felony charge of deliberate homicide.
Dede’s host family declined to speak about the incident, but said the events don’t mesh with the boy they knew.
Randy Smith and Kate Walker were only supposed to serve as the “welcome family” for Dede last summer. However, after only a few days, they asked to keep him throughout the school year because of the immediate relationship they forged, Walker said Monday.
“We just really bonded with him really quickly,” she said.
Often, the three would talk about politics and Dede’s Turkish culture, which the teenager identified with more strongly than the German culture he was raised in, she said. He introduced his host parents to Turkish coffee, food and music.
“He was just so easy to talk to,” Walker said.
Once while at the mall, Dede met another man who spoke Turkish. The duo had a spontaneous conversation full of chitchat and about their travels, said Chance Maes, a friend and neighbor in the Grant Creek area.
“And that was the happiest he’d been here,” Maes said.
The conversation was a testament to Dede’s pride in being Turkish, Maes said.
Dede never took his time in the U.S. for granted and was hardworking, just like his family, Walker said. His father is a cab driver, while his mother works in a coffee shop and Dede was raised in a working-class section of Hamburg, Germany.
Through video chat conversations, it was clear that Dede, his parents, two older sisters and numerous cousins were close, Walker said.
“He took it very seriously that they were giving up something for him to be here,” she said.
***
A soccer fanatic, Dede often played the game with friends on the Xbox, as well as for Big Sky’s varsity team.
His first day in Montana, Dede made sure to get a physical and make it to soccer practice, then hiked to the “M” with his new teammates.
“He rallied,” Walker said.
One game, Smith captured a sequence of events on his camera that he said sums up Dede.
A player from the other team faked out Dede, and it was easy to tell from his facial expression that Dede wasn’t pleased.
Dede determinedly chased down the other player and got the ball back, Smith said, while his friends nodded in agreement that the story sounded like something he would do.
“He always would go 100 percent,” said Maes.
“He’s also just so enthusiastic about everything,” teammate Kowachek added.
When a group of friends went cliff jumping, Dede was the first one off the edge, said Zack Plasmier, who transferred to Big Sky in the fall and quickly formed a friendship with Dede through soccer.
Although soccer took up much of his time, Dede was able to travel to Hawaii through the exchange program and became friends with another exchange student who came to visit from Ohio over spring break. He also was able to travel with his host family to Yellowstone National Park, where he photographed grizzly bears and other wildlife alongside Smith.
***
Music was another passion of Dede’s, and it wasn’t unusual to hear Turkish pop videos playing as several students watched on the computer in his classroom, Jay Bostrom said.
Bostrom, who was Dede’s soccer coach, Spanish teacher and mentor, remembered him as having a tough exterior but really being a teddy bear.
“He was also one of those people who was concerned about the little people,” Bostrom said.
Class discussions about other cultures were enriched with Dede’s insights into social and political issues such as immigration and racism, Bostrom added.
On the soccer field, Dede was a quiet, no-nonsense leader, Bostrom said.
“He was just an absolute leader by example,” he said.
Voters unanimously gave him all-state honors after the fall season.
“And that came from his tenacity,” Bostrom said.
On the field or in the classroom, people always knew where Dede stood.
“There’s no doublespeak in his world,” Bostrom said.
Friends also appreciated his genuine nature.
“He truly cared about your conversations you have with him,” said Carley Lane, a fellow soccer lover and friend.
“He was just a great kid, always smiling, happy,” Smith said.
“He will be missed,” Walker said. “He will be sorely missed.”
(113) comments
Oh boy, Treyvon Martin: Part II.
Treyvon was a worthless criminal who got what he deserved as did this Turk (NOT 'German'). You don't want to get shot? THEN DON'T BREAK INTO ANOTHER MAN'S HOUSE!!! Nobody put a gun to his head and forced him to break in multiple times. He did it because he wanted to do it. Someone should have told him that this wasn't Germany, we don't coddle criminal thugs who commit illegal acts against us. How did this homeowner know that this Turk criminal wasn't there to commit bodily harm to him or his family? This absurd pandering over this thug is beyond comical. Have they shown us pics from when he was 12 and holding a fish (or a kebab in his case) yet, lol? No sympathy for this Turkish criminal, just as I have no sympathy for Black criminal Treyvon Martin. AND STOP CALLING HIM A "CHILD". He was NOT a "child", he was a 17 year old man who knew better but CHOOSE to rob (and who knows what else had the homeowner not been armed) this guy's property. Some folks are acting like this Turk's criminal behaviour was just "kids stuff", but I don't recall breaking into other peoples houses and robbing them all hours of the night when I was 17. Maybe that's "kids stuff" in Turkey or in the black part of town, but not here! And YES, this man had a right to shoot this habitual criminal (God knows what illegal acts he committed with his fellow Turkish immigrant thug friends in Germany before he arrived in the USA).
All the liberals complaining are only doing so because they live in rich gated communities that never have any kind of violent crime, so they have no clue what they are even talking about and their opinions should be ignored...
It's amazing that everyone assumes that the foreign exchange student broke into the Kaarma's garage to burglarize it. For Pete's sake, Kaarma and his common law wife left the garage door open. How do you know that the student wasn't walking home when the wind blew his hat into their garage? Or a lost animal ran into the garage? How do you know the Kaarmas didn't invite him?
The bottom line is nobody knows why the student was in the garage. The student can't tell his side of the story because he is dead.
I posed a question several hours ago............maybe I missed the answer. Was this the kid's home neighborhood or was he out cruisin'?
WHY is a 17 year old allowed to be out at 12:30? WHERE was the HOST FAMILY? Were they negligent? It appears so. It's a tragic story. Missoula is a dangerous and lawless place. Why would the HOST FAMILY allow a teenage boy to be out at that hour? Wasn't the HOST FAMILY supposed to be caring for this young man? Why would they let a kid out at that hour?
It's tragic. AVOID MISSOULA at all costs.
I'm a little bit ashamed that when I was a teenager we did a little "garage shopping", which to us meant poking our heads in open garages and looking for a case of cheap beer to steal. Wrong, yes. Like most kids, I outgrew that. I'm really glad that I didn't get my head blown off before I had the opportunity to become an adult, become educated and become a productive member of society. It makes me sick to know that I live in the same town as the ignorant hate-filled trash that posts on this forum so regularly.
Hi, I'm your neighbor. Stay out of my garage at 12:30 in the morning and we will get along just fine. Nothing hateful at all, just protecting what is mine.
I think it would behoove the vast number of posters here defending both sides of this tragedy to keep in mind, if past history serves as any guide, in the Missoulian's rush to get out the sensational story it's ability to get facts correct is about (generously) 25%. Until we know all the true facts, holstering the knee-jerk reactions and judgments would seem prudent. Why don't you instead debate the disinterest in property crimes by the MCSO and MPD such that some frustrated homeowner might take this drastic action after repeated unsolved burglaries, and that high school kids believe they can burglarize homes with impunity. Both groups are being failed by law enforcement, IMHO.
Bavarian,
It's my pleasure to inform you that violent crime has dropped significantly since you were here. Gun ownership has increased, however.
These FACTS can be found on the FBI website.
Also, since you left, the supreme court has affirmed that gun ownership is an individual right. The facts may not fit your agenda, but they are still undeniable facts, nonetheless.
Saying the 2nd amendment doesn't apply as times change would be equivalent to saying the 1st amendment doesn't apply to radio, television, Internet, etc... Or that the fourth amendment doesn't apply to cars.
The dead kid was a trespassing thief, end of story.
One thing the so called Germans on here don't know, is that in Missoula there is a game played at "certain high schools". Kids go and break into homes and garages to loot alcohol and other items. It's just "kids being kids" until somebody defends their property.
Then it's hands across America for the thief.
Missoulians are traditionally bad parents, they don't enforce rules, teach their kids the wrong values and entitlements. It's why their football teams are soft just like most of the kids from there. It's no surprise these "parents" are supporting a thief over a property owner and setting yet another bad example for their children.
I am afraid that premeditated murder will put the homeowner away for his crime. It doesn't matter what the situation was, he was out to murder someone and he will pay for his crimes.
I'm stating right now, if anyone comes on my property to steal from me they will be shot. Is that premeditated? All uninvited guest pose a threat to me and my family. I'm not out to murder anyone.
Typical of these one synapse brains, he first tells us he's eager to murder someone, then tells us he doesn't want to murder anyone.
Didnt know you were there, where is the video?
You have no way of knowing what was in Kaarmas mind, nobody does, we are not mind readers. You are just knee jerking to a story in the newspaper......a news paper that is morally void and cranks out headlines to promote their political beliefs instead of actually practicing journalism. The headlines on their website already have this kid convicted and in America you are innocent until proven guilty.....at least for a little while longer.
That could be me sitting in jail. At the end of the day, this kid paid the ultimate price for trespassing and having intent to steal. I hope kids everywhere take notice of this story and wise up. One thing is for certain, there is no way in helll that anyone would be walking out of my garage at 12:30 in the morning uninvited. I've never needed a cop in my life and i sure wouldn't sit around waiting for one while some was in my garage stealing from me. Even if I didn't have a gun handy, I would have beat this kid into pulp for stealing from me or anyone else for that matter. I hope his buddy who ran away is prosecuted to the full extent of the law too. I did a lot of stupid things when I as a kid but at age 17...come on! The Missoulian painted a pretty nice picture of this guy but in the end he was a criminal plain a simple.
Well okay! The jury and judge may now go home. Case closed! Don't Care has spoken! Plain and simple, minded.
If the facts turn out to be as thus far reported, namely that the garage door was purposefully left open to lure someone in, and the shooter did not attempt to find out who was in the garage but fired into the dark, the dead body or bodies here could just as likely have been one more seven or eight year old children as that of a 17 year old teenager. We are not told when this couple went inside after deliberately leaving the garage door open as a lure, but it is not hard to imagine a couple of little neighborhood kids being unable to resist the temptation to take a peek inside, or even hide from other kids inside the garage. They would have been dead today, and I do wonder what the reaction to that would have been. That they got what was coming to them for being allowed out of the house after dark? I note that there are no comments to the story about the Billings guy who shot his own teenage house guest for having quietly gone into the garage to make a phone call so as not to disturb the homeowner. It looks as if that victim will live so that he can hopefully find a safer and saner place to stay while attending his seminary school.
This is a totally sad situation. A young man is gone forever. He should not have trespassed in someone else's home especially at that hour. Perhaps he was a part of a ring of young people who have been in a rash of theft. The owner should have first called the police especially since he and has family were not confronted by the intruder personally. I remember when taking Hunters Safety Classes, it was emphasized to know your target and beyond. The owner was obviously in a rage and material things meant more to him than common logic. And, the wife...an oxymoron to be a First Re-sponder and participate in an entrapment, then assisting and comforting the victim. It is not only sad but a totally insane situation. I pity the parents of this boy, and his family. No one wins here, and it is also fodder for the anti-gun opponents.
As a German citizen I am appalled but not really surprised and my heart aches because of that.
In the early 1980s I spent quite some time in the US and lived in Bozeman, Mt., for a while. Even though I was not used to assorted weapons in private households, I found the people and the atmosphere very relaxed, friendly and peaceful.
But that was before 9/11 and before G. W. Bush. Since then, things seem to have deteriorated. My impression is that paranoia and violence are a growing problem, not only in the US, but particularly there. I cannot understand anything like the castle doctrine.
Some of you may now cite the Second Amendment. It certainly had its right and justification at the time it was initiated. But the world changes continually, and things have to be put on a trial, if they dont serve their original intention any longer. Or if it causes greater harm than benefit.
Greetings from Bavaria.
Hey, Bavaria, let me remind of a few other things, like Bosnia and the Ukraine. We have a different kind of violence, we don't have civil wars and stealing whole countries. Perhaps because we're hard on people stealing stuff from garages it never escalates like it does in Europe (Poland, Czechoslovakia, and the list goes on).
Bavarian,
Nothing has changed. I have been around the world and back. I lived in Europe for 10 years. I was born and raised in Montana. As a child, I was taught that if I kick my ball in to the Neighbor's yard, I had to go knock on the door and ask for it back or else I could be shot. I was taught to ask the property owners before I cross their land to fish in the river. I was taught to always treat everyone and their property with politness and respect because you never know how an argument or disagreement may end. The homeowner commited premeditated murder in this case but don't think Montana has changed since you were here because it has not. Our gun rights are there for a reason and they shall not be removed. We all just have to follow some common sense rules to avoid being on the wrong end of a gun.
If every young man, who does something stupid was shot, this planet wouldnt be overpopulated and I wouldn't be sitting here writing a comment!
No kidding. Besides, stupidity is not a young man's game....I see plenty of old men doing things I would deem less than intelligent.
you have to understand, walking into someone's garage in the middle of the night is not just a stupid thing, it is a threat to a homeowner. whether or not this homeowner was an idiot himself has nothing to do with it, put in in another situation with a single mom at home in her garage in the middle of the night and these two walk in, would you all be so protective and understanding of these young men walking into her garage? NO, you would not. It all depends on the situation.
The people of Missoula have a home in Grant Creek that will be vacated. The Children of Grant Creek are playing in a terror zone.
families are grieving in Missoula and in Germany! The story made international news.
I've read both articles regarding this shooting and the comments. One question I have is was this Dede"s neighborhood or was he far astray from his home? If he was away from his usual "turf", that implies intent. The courts will decide this case and my opinion is just that, an opinion. I totally support the castle doctrine, but, in this case, a 911 call should have been first and then stand by to protect family and property.
I could vomit reading the comments here. Why are americans living in the wild west. You have stupid laws! No one is allowed to kill other people. And the german kid had no weapon. Why didnt the house owener call the police?
I never felt save in the US because I knew that every idiot could have a weapon. The chance to get shot in the US is 40 times higher than in Europe.
The voices that are making everyone sick here are a vocal minority. They're so few in number it might explain why their so angry and fearful. Their gun-filled utopia of wild west shoot outs and vigilante justice is a fantasy world where only a few desperate people remain. The rest of us have evolved.
Only 40......we need to get that number up!
If you want to decrease that number get criminals to stop committing crimes....like the "garage hopper"
bye bye, don't let the door hit ya on the way out! Don't like our country? GET OUT! 99% of gunowners in this country are responsible. Do not lump us in with the 1% of idiots. Every country has them.
So why doesn't the missoulian write stories about the background and life of everyone who does something illegal? Just because he was a popular soccer player makes this sad and OK? if it had been a juvenile delinquent who was on parole, everyone would be cheering the homeowner on.
I meant to say probation. I do not agree with how the homeowner baited his garage. That was wrong. However, deden and his buddies should not have been garage hopping that night at 1230 in the morning. The intent behind garage jumping is to steal alcohol from peoples' garages so there was an intent for theft. I just get so fed up with people feeling sorry for popular people who do things wrong. Everyone makes bad choices but when its a juvie who has been in and our of detention, no one cares about their story...they have a story too.
There's no evidence of any intent to steal anything, so that just a totally unsupported guess you bring up here. And even if - don't you think the death penalty for garage hopping is a bit, hmm, excessive? Like, "cruel and unusual punishment"?
Its not a guess. It is what they and many highschoolers are doing these days. I didn't say he deserved to be shot either.
"if it had been a juvenile delinquent who was on parole, everyone would be cheering the homeowner on. "
Perhaps you would. I wouldn't.
I'm not cheering anyone on. Thanks for checking.
I wasn't checking. But thanks for thinking that I was.
Thanks for assuming then.
The people of Missoula have a home in Grant Creek that will not be sellable. The children of Grant Creek are playing in a terror zone. People have PTSD from this terror.
The host family is traumatized. Families are grieving. A promising life has been lost.
My condolences to all parties involved.
It would make no difference to me. This "home owner" had no reason or need to shoot a young man that was in his garage. He should have called 911. He could have held him there until the police arrived. He said in his own words that he wanted to kill a kid, well he did just that. I could care less if this young man or any other had a criminal record or not this mans family was not in danger and that is the only reason to shoot someone. Even the police can't shoot someone for trespassing.
I don't give a *hit if this man feared for his life or not. Five major safety rules of gun ownership. 1. Treat every weapon as if it were loaded. (Obviously he knew it was...) 2. Keep your finger straight and off the trigger until you intend to shoot. (Obvious he intended to shoot the whole time...) 3. Never point a weapon at anything you do not intend to shoot. (Again, he intended to shoot the whole time.) 4. Keep your weapon on safe until you intend to fire. (Hmmm... sensing a trend here...) 5. ALWAYS BE AWARE OF YOUR TARGET AND ITS SURROUNDINGS!!!! If this man was following all of these rules, as any gun owner should, this tragic and reckless MURDER would not have happened. This man is guilty. He was not defending his home, he was killing a kid, on purpose no less. A child people. A CHILD!!! If this man did not know well enough to take cover and wait until he could identify his target and his target's threat level before opening fire, then he should not have owned a gun in the first place.
I am a proud gun owner. I support responsible gun ownership. I also support taking responsibility for your actions.
My heart goes out to this family.
May this poor child rest in peace.
May the world learn a lesson from this travesty.
I doubt it. We never do.
this is a 50/50 guilty. The kids should not have been sneaking on to someone else's property in the middle of the night, they were in the wrong. the homeowner should not have been setting traps, he could have held the kids with the gun and called the cops to come and arrest them. we all know there is a lot more to the story, but please understand the boys were also just as much at fault. they are not sweet little angels.
That foreigner got what he deserved. Too bad his friend didn't get shot too.Gun control is hitting your target.
No one deserves to be killed by an ignorant american.
@ democide--you are one sick person who should seek some professional help ASAP.
I suspect he's only trolling. Like those "just 4 the lolz" perverts.
LOL! have to laugh at this one because I do love the "Gun control is hitting your target". genius!
Dear everybody.
I first of all want to send my compassion to the family who lost a son, brother and cousin.
May whatever god they pray to give comfort to them.
Second of all, in the name of the german people, I want to apologise for the germans (except justanotherguy) posting the old nazi paroles in an american newspaper, knowing that in Germany nobody listens to them any more. I feel ashamed about the generalization they are bringing over turkish-german citizens, claiming them to be thieves and rapists.
I am a Hamburg citizen, living in the same area as Dede used to. There is no such thing as turkish gangs marauding the streets at night. We do have certain incidents of street crime, but there is absolutely no evidence that the majority of those are being done by turks. In general, the few acts of violence are caused by drunk or drug-using people which are having all sorts of nationalities (guess what, most of 'em are german).
There surely are numberous people in Germany who are trapped in between the cultures. Especially young folks with a migration background are being taught one culture by their parents and another one in school or free time, which would cause confusion to anyone of us. But where is the problem? Sociieties never have been melting pots, they always have been more like a salad: You get mixed with the other ingredients, but you keep your own flavour.
My third point adtresses to the people calling Dede a thief and a burglar. Please do not judge somebody without knowing all facts. Did he steal something or was he intending to do so? We all don't know. As justanotherguy wrote, an open garage in Germany oftenly leads to people just checking if things are alright.
I hope that people will try to have a more differentiated view on this incident, as there are several things that really seem unclear to me. And this includes the question, if maybe the marksman was just another gunslinger who was waiting for a chance to use his weapon.
I can't imagine that anyone appreciates that the castle doctrine (which is highly questionable as such) is being abused by setting up traps to kids who are getting killed afterwards.
Thanks for your attention.
Thank you for this comment and greetings from Bavaria.
In America we don't check to see if our neighbors are alright apparently. I won't be doing that for certain. I also won't be returning any purses or wallets I see lost either, they will just stay lost. It could all be a trap I suppose so why bother?
I was always told to try and learn the basics of other country's laws before going there. Trespassing in the USA is against our Laws. Also, that 'kid' looks pretty big and strong. He looks more intimidating then Karmaa.
the sharpshooter claims not to have seen who or what was in his garage - so the size of the kid obviously didn`t matter there, did it?
What else did they tell you "to try and learn"?
I am from Wuerzburg in Germany and I have never been to your country. As far as I can tell, there are some serious cultural differences that could possibly be the reason for this tragic event.
Many things, that happen in your country, I really have issues to understand. Wuerzburg is a city of about 130.000 people living there, but I never have heard of a fatal incident with a gun involved in a perimeter of about 50 km from where I live. You should understand, that this is something that happens very rarely in Germany - I do not know if it is because of gun control or not, I really don't... and this is not what my question is about. Of course there is violence in my area, but mostly brawls and seldomly knifings - most murders have a family-based motive. By the age of 16 years juveniles are allowed to go out at night, and with very few exceptions it is not dangerous. Things like that happen so rare that the "Tagesschau" (a germany-wide newscast similar to your CBS-news or something like that) reports regularly about this incident, since it happened.
I do not want to judge you people or your laws. I just want to understand, what I am reading in so many comments in this or other articles that are about self-defense or the right to protect property? About 10 years ago, my sports-shoes were lying around in the locker room of my training hall and they were stolen. Of course I was annoyed back then, and I really would have liked to punch the thief in the stomach for that, which I probably wouldn't have done even if i caught him in the act... perhaps I just would have yelled at him. It resulted in me, being more careful with my stuff and locking it away from then on - problem solved. I myself value life more than things and I could not think of any reason to kill somebody for stealing... but maybe it 's different in your country. Perhaps you are being robbed so much or live in a society full of violence, that you need to defend yourself by killing. In either way, you live in a very sad place.
In my country, it is not considered a crime to trespass a property, even at night. And if the door is wide open when you go in it's not a burglary. There could be reasons, why you would approach someones property, even at night... for example, my car broke down and I need help ect. In fact, an open garage door would be so unusual, that someone MIGHT be inclined to check, what 's up, just out of curiosity. I myself would not even have an inkling of a clue, that I might die, if I do so... on the other hand, if I would be the owner of the property, I would not assume the worst and think of an armed assault, because of the reasons mentioned above. Why is that so different in your country, from your point of view?
Well, then maybe you should stay there and not visit again because if you or anyone comes near my family on my property uninvited you will be sorry. EVERYONE is a threat! you cannot trust anyone today. We have many evil, rotten to the core people in America, and we will continue to protect our families with guns because in this country if you take away our right to protect our children, you are just giving the killers the right to murder them. How anyone could let a stranger into their homes at any time of day is beyond me. If you visit our country you had better be prepared to know our laws about trespassing or pay the price.
Thank you for trying to make me understand. Well, as I have stated, I haven't been to your country before, nor do I intend to go there. It was just beyond me, why things like that seem to happen so frequently in the US.
When what you say represents even 1 percent of your total population, then I'm actually fine where I live and I do not wish to visit your country. It really seems like living in hell, a place full of hatred and fear.
Only due to folks like madtaxpayer. Most here in the US are nothing like her and welcome foreign visitors with open arms. Please don't allow her to represent the majority of us, as we are not even similar. Anger breeds anger.
@DoNotLieToMe:
Of course not. I would never assume, that most of your folk share the same opinion. But even a minority can be very dangerous, especially when they are allowed to carry guns. As some people of my kind have already written below, there's also hatred and contempt in my country and they would also pull the trigger carelessly, if they were gunowners. So I am very happy, that these folk are not allowed to carry guns.
Does the setting up of traps also fall under the category of selfdefence?
Something reeks foul!
if they were decent kids, they wouldn't have been out at midnight stalking people's homes, ya think? I didn't try to rob people when I was a teen, I didn't stalk people's houses when I was a teen. These "kids" are guilty.
I'm so terrible for protecting my family. fine, think what you want. I'm not out shooting people, I am only protecting my family from intruders. nothing wrong with that.
Mad, you are always threatening to leave unless things are done exactly the way you want them in MT, so go, it's definitely time. You scare me more than any teenage punk walking around with his friends "looking for trouble" (my parents always said). We had them in my day and guess what, many of them grew up to be fine citizens, including me. I hope your children don't believe that EVERYONE is a threat. They might just take it upon themselves to eliminate those school "threats" someday. After all, they've heard at home how you take care of that.
I sincerely do hope he won´t come to Germany. We don´t need people like that or some of the Germans distorting the truth about Germans with a foreign (Turkish) background.
yes, we do have many evil and rotten people here. Also, incredibly rude. This would be one of them. You apparently live with a great amount of paranoia.
I am from Germany. When i was i child my grandmother told me stories about street robbers. That was interesting because things like that happend in the middle ages and where completly unkown in germany at that times. Now street robbery is daily business again. Guess who are this robbers. Turkish immigrants in the same age like that kid. If you go to another country you make yourself familiar with the laws and rules there and respect them. Everyone in germany knows that if you go uninvited into an american home you allways have the risk to get shot. (its in the news all the times to prove that you are still gun nut stupid cowboys) Turkish boys get raised in a complete patriarchy where they are tought from childhood on that they are the greatest and they make the rules and nobody else. That works perfectly in germany because we do not have guns to defend ourself and violence was for decades just something you could see in TV from other nations but nearby never experienced yourself. In youre country you have guns and the allowence to defend youself. Be glad about it.
Excellent comment.
Excuse me, but this is typical every-day unreflected German prejudice. Of course you will find offenders with a Turkish background. But you will also find offender from Romania, Bulgaria, Serbia, Kosovo, Poland, Russia, Ukraine, Georgia (Europe), etc. etc.
And last, but not least, you will find offenders who are German and nothing but German. In fact, the vast majority of criminals in Germany are Germans.
And you can apply this to any given country: the majority of crimes are committed by citizens born and raised in the respective country.
Yes, I agree. Some. But it is NOT unreflected, it is an empirical value, a probability. And it is nice of you to remind me how many multinational offenders there are in Germany (and even nicer that the majority of crimes are still committed by the people in the majority). But it is no prejudice that people of Turkish origins are committing disproportionally many crimes (not so much as Arabs, statistically, I will give you that, and maybe, the Romanians will come close soon).
That's some solace?
Fact is, you should not trespass and break into other people garages/homes at night. Maybe it was a tragic mistake. Maybe it was not. But the homeowner is not to blame.
Best wishes from a Prussian.
As a German citizen I am appalled but not really surprised and my heart aches because of that.
In the early 1980s I spent quite some time in the US and lived in Bozeman, Mt., for a while. Even though I was not used to assorted weapons in private households, I found the people and the atmosphere very relaxed, friendly and peaceful.
But that was before 9/11 and before G. W. Bush. Since then, things seem to have deteriorated. My impression is that paranoia and violence are a growing problem, not only in the US, but particularly there. I cannot understand anything like the castle doctrine.
Some of you may now cite the Second Amendment. It certainly had its right and justification at the time it was initiated. But the world changes continually, and things have to be put on a trial, if they dont serve their original intention any longer. Or if it causes greater harm than benefit.
Greetings from Bavaria.
Oops, this somehow landed in the wring thread. Sorry.
I'm so sorry this young man ever was allowed to come to America. It didn't turn out well for him, More importantly, his bad behavior destroyed the lives of an American family who apparently was being robbed for the third time in two weeks. Your actions have repercussions. He was being given so much by this great nation, America, and this is how he choose to repay us, by robbing a young family. The Missoulian should be ashamed of itself for publishing some mushy sentimental nonsense about this kids life, all kids are great, until they fall into a life of crime or addiction. He's put a bad stain on the Foreign Exchange Student program. My prayers are with the family whose lives he ripped apart. Why weren't those snowboarders prosecuted for MURDERING that woman when they trespassed on Mt Jumbo and started a landslide? Why is it Missoula likes to only prosecute the victims, not the criminals?
Why are you the only one confusing the two?
I hope you will never been allowed to come to Europe!
I've been to Europe, I wanted to see where my relatives were slaughtered during WW II.
Not a “German“ but a Turk:
„Dede’s Turkish culture, which the teenager identified with more strongly than the German culture he was raised in“
And that exactly is the problem Germany is having with the Turks — they don’t want to be Germans, they want to stay Turkish even in the 3rd generation. And that’s how they behave in our country. And obviously they do so abroad.
we have right wing geniuses like Wilhelm, but they seem to be an endangered species.
So they are trying to diversify (i.e. spead their beliefs globally)!
Yup. Such jerks are a big embarassment for the rest of us. Well, ok, Germany ain't perfect, neither.
As a German "dyed in the wool" I am ashamed of comments like that of Wilhelm.
Dude, shut up. Your either a Turk pretending to be German, or some self hating anti-white "antifa" scumbag. This Turk thug broke into this man's house late at night looking to rob (and God knows what else, considering the sadistic violence the Turkish community is involved with against the German population in Germany). This thug got what he deserved and if he broke into my house, I would have used my .357 magnum revolver and sent his criminal behind back to Turkey in a body bag.
I am from Germany. I wish the law and order from U.S in Germany. We have here with a great part of the turkish immigrant people a total crime problem ( turkish gangs, head kicking, drugs, honorkillings, islamism). The gooders sell the german culture.
Diren Dede didn't have a criminal record and nobody claimed he's been part of a crminal gang. So, your comment is very much offtopic. Doesn't have anything to do with this case.
I hope that people wont believe this nonsense. By the way: the majority of crimes committed in Germany are committed by true-blood Germans.
sounds like a great kid so why was he breaking and entering, a felony, a waste but I am sure there is more to this story, a justified shooting in the laws he broke in to a private home folks!
He didn't break in, the garage was deliberately (!) left open. And according to some news reports, he only sought a more private place to do a cell phone call. Hey, how about checking for more informations instead of jumping to conclusions based on false assuptioms?
HE WAS TRESPASSING YOU IDIOT! I DO NOT CARE IF YOU ARE ONE INCH ONTO MY PROPERTY YOU ARE CONSIDERED A TRESPASSER. ESPECIALLY AT 12:30AM AT NIGHT!
Thank you! wow there are still some there with brains, I was beginning to wonder since everyone here is protecting the trespassers!
How about GOING TO THEIR OWN HOME! It's the middle of the night, what were these kids doing wandering around a neighborhood? They asked for it. No sympathy whatsoever. You do not go on to other people's property in the middle of the night. That is considered a theat to my family.
No,it seems he walked into a trap! When you break in, you have to break something ( a door or a window) before you enter, don`t you?
The gentleman who executed the kid must be very proud of himself - same is probably true for his spouse.
The marksman will be glad to see that his valiant deed is supported by so many well meaning neighbours.
America, where are you heading? Who or what is leading you astray?
I'm heading to "mind your own business and stay off my proprty, I don't trust you" That is what this country has turned us into. You think after the killing of gradeschoolers in CT that we are going to trust anyone ever again? I sure don't.
Sounds like the perfect young man. I wonder what compelled him to become a thief?
You've never made a mistake? Never trespassed? Never stole? I'm happy that no one decided to take your life because of your childish mistakes.
It is not a "childish mistake" to show up in someone's house or garage univited. What part of "they could have harmed my children, wife, husband, family" do you people not understand? It has nothing to do with objects being stolen as much as family being harmed or killed! Don't you get it? Jeeze, the ignorance around here. you NEVER take a chance when it comes to protecting your children! NEVER!
The sharpshooter was not trying to protect his children, he was setting up a trap (in this case) for a child.
Unless you are a t roll you should go and see a specialist.
Uh huh? I understand you've never been a child. And as for "they could have harmed my family" - that's utter nonsense, too. It really takes a paranoid mind to see a serial killer in every teenager.
If this homeowner is charged with murder for protecting his family, it's time for me to move away from Montana, because this state obviously cares more about the criminals than the lives of innocent families.
where could you go? Sudan?
When will we ever learn that violence breeds violence?
The homeowner is a murder. There is no discussion.
What criminals? There's no evidence whatever the victim had any criminal intentions (it may not even be trespassing under MT code, if there are no warning signs). He just happened to be in the wrong place at he wrong time. Well, I guess, regarding your ugly cynical attitude towards human lifes, other Montana folks won't miss you. Godspeed.
He was not protecting his family he was protecting his money and pride. He should be charged with premeditated murder. And yes please leave, it is people like you that give this country a bad name. Maybe try reading the charging document then if you feel the same way seek help.
why did the kids try to rob him? he may have set a trap (just heresay), but are you saying the kids were right? the teens are of no fault? bottom line is, they were where they were not supposed to be. period.
"GRAY" they were not there to knock on his door and ask him to be their friend, they were IN HIS GARAGE!!!! That is a threat in my book, I don't care what he did to "lure" them in, they had no business being there!
Please start packing. I will help you load your family truckster and even provide gas money for your departure. You threaten Missoula with this regularly. When will you actually do it? Never would be my guess.
Where do you get the idea he was a thief? There's lots of possible explanations why he was in the open garage. For instance, maybe he had been out with his friend to play soccer, and their ball rolled through the driveway. Or they noticed the purse in the garage and Diren wanted to alert the residents about that. That friend has now reported to the police, we probably will read about the real explanation soon. One thing's for sure, that open garage burglary trap was a deadly misunderstanding waiting to happen. You don't need much fantasy to come up with all kinds of potential victims: A lady next door looking for her cat, a drunken neighbor mistaking the garage for his own, a homeless guy looking for shelter, a cop on neighborhood patrol...
Apparently, Kaarma didn't spent one reasonable thought about what could go wrong with his plan. And because of his trigger happy madness, a promising young teenager is dead now. This SHOULD trigger a different reaction than "blame the victim", imho!
An open garage is not an open invitiation to enter. If someone has a question or a ball rolled into a garage, you politely walk up to the front door and knock. you DO NOT enter a garage uninvited, that is no different than entering a home univited. If I drive up to someone's house to pick up an item I am buying from them or for any other reason and their garage is open I go knock on their front door, or I stand in their yard and wait or in my car and wait or I call them and let them know I am outside waiting, I would NEVER enter someone's garage. It's called respect of someone's private property. Americans grow up knowing this.
Don't be ridiculous. Ring up the residents at half past midnite? That's idiotic. Anyway, apart from that there are legal reasons to enter someone else's property, to act against clear and present danger, for instance, a minor case of trespassing shouldn't lead to a death penalty. Not even in the US.
"gray" did this man know they didn't have a weapon? NO! did this man know they were not going to beat him? NO! why do you think it's ok for anyone to just walk up your driveway in the middle of the night and walk into your house or garage? are you kidding me? idiots. bet you'll think twice when someone breaks into your house and threatens to kill your family. It's always the ones who have never had it happen to them who are the bleeding hearts of the criminals! YOU ARE A CRIMINAL WHEN YOU SHOW UP AT A STRANGER'S HOUSE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT WITH THE INTENTION TO ROB THEM! A little common sense, kay? wait, Missoulians don't have any common sense!
For all we know the gun happy nutcase called for the young man to come into the garage. Seriously, it makes more sense than some of the stories.
This perfect young "german" student grew up in notorious Hamburg Altona, where turkish gangs are a great problem. They are specialised in drug dealing, raping and robbing and are very proud of their turkish culture and supremacy. Knowing perfectly well, they have nothing to fear from authorities, they even thread police with violence proudly wearing t-shirts "F*** Cops!".
The dead Student seemed not to be german at all. He felt turkish, thaught turkish and loved everything what was turkish. His happiest moment in US was meeting another turkish man!
Growing up in a turkish community or ghetto you learn from the beginning to despise german or european culture and feel superior. So many of these people feel not guilty at all to take what they need from the inferior. They also have learned to camouflage their identity and behave completely integrated and adapted.
Nice case (that's ironic, it's rather an ugly one!) of "guilt by association" you present here. Just because some youths of Turkish heritage participate in small scale criminal youth gangs, Diren Dede, a teenager without a police record, who has left the best impression in Missoula, must have deserved to be killed? That's really one of the most shameless attempts at blaming the victim ever! D'oh.
I fully agree.
This is full of unreflected and primitive prejudice. As a German I will not leave this uncommented.
Notorious Hamburg, a major city with almost twice the population of Montana within its city limits alone, experienced 12 deliberate homicides in 2012. Safe and from my perspective rather rural Montana managed 22 during the same time (according to Hamburg official police statistics and MTIBRS online reporting).
Larry, that doesn`t really matter.
How sick must a society be that defends atrocities like the one reported?
What makes people like you tick?
Are those right who claim that the IQ of arms owners can be meassured by the number of weapons they possess multiplied by ten?
How perverted have we become?
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