Bat Man

Yesterday at work I saw something that didn't look right. A young man was carrying a baseball bat across one of our parking lots, and he was "on a mission". He would occasionally hide the bad under his clothes - and that's what really raised a red flag with me.

I alerted the campus police and he told me he'd find and challenge him. Well, the officer found him crossing another of our parking lots and stopped him. I found out later that this 18-year-old had recently lost his best friend and was grieving. He was unfortunately doing it in the wrong way - through anger. While talking to this young man, it was learned that several others jumped him earlier and he was going to even the score in a park adjacent to the campus. This, coupled with the loss of his best friend and a lousy home life, he was really laden with rage.

He was taken "downtown", and after evaluation will eventually be given a bus ticket so he can be with other relatives in another city. This is their preliminary plan.

It was obvious to the officer that this young man had some real problems. In a way I feel bad for him that I got the police involved, but I wonder what could have happened if I hadn't alerted authorities to a "suspicious person". Could have gotten ugly real quick. One guy with a baseball bat going up against several others? Someone could have been severely beaten or killed - on either side of the confrontation.

I tell myself that I may very likely have saved a life - either the bat-er, or one (maybe more) of the bat-ees. For that, I have no regrets. I hope this young man can eventually cope with his friend's death and get his life together.

I wish him well.

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