Ding-Dong-Ditch Shooting: Michael Bishop Of Louisville Charged With Shooting 12-Year-Old Over Prank

A Kentucky man has been charged with attempted murder after he shot a 12-year-old boy in the back for ringing his doorbell during a game of Ding Dong Ditch.

Jason Eberle of Louisville, was playing the game, which involves someone ringing a doorbell and running away, on Monday night with friends. The New York Post reports that after the kids rang 56-year-old Michael Bishop's bell he came out onto his porch armed with a shotgun and opened fire, hitting Eberle in the back and shoulder.

Bishop was arrested and has been charged with attempted murder. The Louisville Courier Journal reports that he was released Tuesday night after posting $10,000 bail.

Eberle was hit in the shoulder and the back and suffered two collapsed lungs in the incident. He is currently being treated in hospital where his condition is described as "improving".

Eberle's uncle, Bart McMahon, told Kentucky's WLKY "It's outrageous, it's intolerable and that's why we have prisons for people who can't confine their behavior within the bounds of law."

"If he was so bothered, the best thing for him to do would have been to call the parents or yell at the kids. [The shooting was] not a self-defense maneuver; that is nothing but a flat-out assault on an innocent child."

Neighbor Wayne McDowell, speaking to WHAS11 described the horrific state of the boy's injuries.

"[Eberle] probably had 200 [shotgun pellet wounds]. Looked like he took 75 percent of the blast and his head was bleeding to where they had to hold towels on it. It wasn't good, just make you sick."

Comments

[loadedswagg]

07:06 PM on 07/27/2011

In that sense, I would've just shot my gun in the air. That would probably scare them off.

[AllKindaCuckoo]

02:17 AM on 07/01/2011

I don't have all the facts and although it's a little hard to believe a sane guy would shoot at someone like this - there are a lot of unstable hotheads. He's a nut and will get what he has coming to him. I just wish the DA was consistent and prosecuted cops that do the same thing - b/c around these parts, as long as you're a cop and claim officer safety, you'll walk. All the hothead psychos need disarmed and arrested if they hurt people.

[jtj7292]

02:28 PM on 06/30/2011

Putting blame on this kid is pretty disgusting. Yes he was not behaving properly but most kids do not behave properly 100% of the time. You can be all high and mighty and say you never did this sort of stuff but it really does not matter. Shooting a 12 year old is horrible and unnecessary for any situation.

[Dragonflymagick]

08:13 AM on 06/18/2011

Bottom line, if you teach your kids to respect other people and their property, tragedies like this wouldn’t happen in the first place. Reading the comments it frightens me the number of people who are defending games like "Ding Dong Ditch" as harmless (and "innocent" as the article says)....not taking into account that it's trespassing and harassment at the very least.

[PhineasGage730]

08:49 AM on 06/18/2011

You're an !diot. And something tells me (seeing zero fans) this is your second profile. The one where you put how you really feel. Which is very sad seeing how anonymous this already is.

You're a cow@rd. And not that smart.

[Dragonflymagick]

09:40 AM on 06/18/2011

@Phineas
Actually I work with inner city middle school children and am quite educated as to how they can behave when unsupervised by parents.

Being realistic in the ways of the world and realizing that the man with the gun is NOT the only one to blame in this situation doesn't make me ignorant or a coward by any means.

PS...Having no fans also could mean that this is a NEW profile and I don't live on message boards like apparently, you do. I didn't give my opinion as part of a popularity contest. In fact, I don't even read this newspaper. This article was linked from another one I read about this story and I created a profile so I could give my opinion. You don't like it, that's your choice, but like everyone else on here, I'm allowed to have one. Get a life and get over yourself and your whopping 75 fans. .

[Dragonflymagick]

08:50 AM on 06/18/2011

PS...if the kids were just "innocently" walking by that night, how was he able to shoot him in the back from his porch in the first place? Was the kid walking sideways? More likely, running from his property.

[Cagnazzo82]

01:41 PM on 06/27/2011

So if your car ever breaks down and you're looking for help, you can expect a shotgun pointed at your face in that neighborhood in Houston?

You're defending that?

[hrv]

03:40 PM on 06/17/2011

I live in this neighborhood and I know the parents. The kids were not on the mans porch. They were passing by the house on the sidewalk. It was only about 930 at night when this happened. Yes, the night before, they rang the mans doorbell. But this particular night no doorbell was rang. Now the man is saying he is "so upset" about the shooting. Why on earth did you shoot in the first place?!?! This is a well-off neighboorhood, not some area where you are scared for your life! I am a 29 year old woman and I run in this neighborhood alone around that exact same time every night! I'm not scared in the least bit, nor do I shoot 12 year olds! The parents knew where the kids were - but at that age do they need constant supervision? For all of you making comments of " I never did that as a child - I was taught better" : shame on you. I can GUARANTEE you were not the perfect little angels that you think you were. This young man was wrong for annoying his neighbors, but did not deserve to be shot. Both of his lungs collapsed, he's had his colon operated on, he's now breathing with a tube down his throat, and is in constant pain 24/7. Next time you want to say something negative, think about the pain this boy will have to go through the rest of his life.

[HawaiiSteve]

05:33 PM on 06/17/2011

Let me be your second fan! Sounds like this Bishop is a disturbed individual, not surprising that he is armed. I hope he spends the rest of his life in a good mental care facility, and is kept away from ALL children. He is a menace that needs to be contained.

[Dragonflymagick]

08:46 AM on 06/18/2011

"The parents knew where the kids were - but at that age do they need constant supervisio­n?"

No good comes of 12 year olds aimlessly wandering the neighborhood at 930 at night. Don't they have a curfew? What do you think kids do these days unsupervised, play tiddlywinks?

I don't think he should have been shot, though I also don't think he would be suffering and in pain if he respected his neighbors and their property and was properly supervised. The man with the gun is NOT the only one to blame here.

[HawaiiSteve]

04:26 PM on 06/18/2011

"I don't think he should have been shot..." What, you really need to THINK about that? This is a no-brainer. Use yours.

[HawaiiSteve]

04:23 AM on 06/17/2011

I particularly like the comments that start off with "I'm not saying he should of shot the kid, but..." and then they go on to a long explanation condoning the actions of this lunatic. I just hope they are not parents. Patience, tolerance, and love are probably the three most important skills you can have in raising a child. These clowns would probably 'bust a cap' in their kids for getting bad grades!

[Dragonflymagick]

08:15 AM on 06/18/2011

Why don't we add teaching our kids respect of other people and their property, and tragedies like this wouldn't happen in the first place.

[Gal Friday]

06:40 PM on 06/23/2011

Yes.

[HawaiiSteve]

04:10 AM on 06/17/2011

I am absolutely astonished by all the posters here who actually condone the shooting of a child in the back!! There is NO EXCUSE for shooting anyone in the back, especially a child. Anyone posting here who approves of this action is a low-brow coward and a disgrace to humanity!! I'll say it again just so there is no misunderstanding. If you approve of this man's assault in any way, YOU ARE A COWARD!!

[TFlint]

07:30 PM on 06/16/2011

The gun lovers are out in force today, defending the American right to shoot children.

[jwlane83]

12:33 AM on 06/17/2011

Whoo! Way to distort it!

[Jaosn McAllister]

01:25 AM on 06/17/2011

Glad to hear there are "smart guns" now. Ones that think for themselves, make their own decisions, and pull their own triggers. Get serious.

[Pollytiques]

06:01 PM on 06/16/2011

The kid wasn't "innocent" but that was WAY too extreme.

[John David Galt]

05:24 PM on 06/16/2011

Yes, shooting is un-called-for and then some, but I can sympathize with the homeowner for being annoyed, and the "solutions" in the article don't work (usually the homeowner doesn't know whose kid it is and can't outrun him).

I'm thinking of installing sprinklers over my porch, maybe with dye in the water, to put a stop to the little b_____ds in my own neighborhood. That at least is reasonable, and just might be enough to stop it.

[jcalton]

05:07 PM on 06/16/2011

" the best thing for him to do would have been to call the parents"

Was their name and number on the back of their shirts? Louisville has 750,000 pop. That's just a clueless statement--we don't live in Mayberry anymore where 55 year olds are all friendly with every kid in their town.

4-6 teenagers on your porch is not always harmless. If it was dark, you wouldn't even know they were kids.

I'm not saying you should shoot anyone in the back running away, but I'm saying I can see a case to be made that it a reasonable man might have been afraid. [Which would be a great reason not to open the door, incidentally.]

There is also a known tactic of thieves to ring your bell and if you don't answer, to burglarize your house. If they are caught, they simply say "Oh, we were just ding-dong-ditching. Ha ha. Just kids. Sorry."

We don't know any of these facts currently--other than that he shot the kid in the back. This may be more a case of negligent/involuntary homicide than attempted murder. Since he doesn't live in Texas, he's guilty of SOMEthing. But we love to assume we have all the facts and convict as soon as the first story breaks.

[Dragonflymagick]

08:20 AM on 06/18/2011

I agree with you....Maybe this has happened every night for 3 months, or maybe his house/yard had been vandalized or there HAD been a break in recently. We don't know what set him off. Seriously.

[jcalton]

02:00 PM on 06/18/2011

Of course we never have all the facts in a story unless there's a full unedited video or a dozen witnesses or something along those lines. I'm just speculating about what his defense is likely to be, and how reasonable it is going to sound.

I'm not defending his actions here, I'm just saying that from what facts we do have, this really doesn't sound like they're going to get him for murder if he mounts any defense at all. I assume the prosecution would get better results (but prefers the publicity) with some form of manslaughter, or other lower level of homicide, although I'm not familiar with Kentucky's penal code.

I remember a few years ago some guy shot somebody just for turning their car around in his driveway. Maybe this is the same type of senile/paranoid "get off my lawn" old man waiting to turn loose on an innocent person. We just don't know.

We never do.

[missingwmd]

04:14 PM on 06/16/2011

well parents think of every prank you or your friends pulled as a child and tell your kids not to ever pull those pranks themselves. Between zero tolerance in schools, the criminalization of mis behavior even down to kindergarten ages, and people with guns in their homes and short tempers childhood is a minefield.

[nightfly4257]

03:25 PM on 06/16/2011

He will be defended by NRA, why else would need a shotgun beside hunting. Beside he was protecting his property, his door bell.

[vault dog4]

01:25 PM on 06/16/2011

If Bishop had been a cop, he would have gotten off scot-free!

[CynthiaKMiller]

03:43 PM on 06/16/2011

Oh BS, he would not get off if he was a cop. That's an ignorant thing to say. If anything, he would be punished even MORE for being a cop and making such a stupid move, because he would have been trained in the law, which states you cannot shoot someone unless it's in self-defense and your life has been threatened.

[Tx Marko]

01:37 PM on 06/19/2011

Bzzzzzzzzt!! WRONG !! Cops always get off....

http://www.theagitator.com/2010/04/20/ding-dong-ditcher-killed-by-cop/

[AllKindaCuckoo]

02:18 AM on 07/01/2011

BS nothing. The same thing just happened and it's much more egregious. The cop was off duty, grabbed his gun, ran outside and ran the kid down far away from his property, and shot the kid -and didn't even lose a few days without pay. He claims the kid went for his gun (convenient) but there shouldn't have been a gun in the first place. Call it ignorant all you want - you're the one unaware of the facts.

[Feminism is dead]

11:41 AM on 06/16/2011

15 minutes after you read this, your ire will subside regarding this story.
1 week from now, the kid in question will recover.
4 months from now, this man will be sentenced to spend the rest of his life in jail, at a taxpayer cost of at least $28k a year
6 months from now, the insurance payout will quadruple anything this man could have earned in a lifetime.

Getting shot in the back, for being a dumb 12 year old, just made him a millionaire. This will only encourage more dumb kids to do it, and more dumb people to shoot back.

[prayforpeace]

03:22 AM on 07/19/2011

GET REAL. YEH MY CHILD WANTS TO GO TO A DOOR AND HOPE TO BE SHOOT. ARE YOU SERIOUS OR JUST THE SAME AS THE SHOOTER. IF SO YOU DONT NEED A GUN EITHER.

[loadedswagg]

07:03 PM on 07/27/2011

You are blinded hopelessly by peaceful illusions. I thought this was okay now that the kids see, oh s***, DDD= get shot. Won't do it. And they will hold that oath for the next couple generations when everyone forgets about it. Who is to say now they won't shoot themselves and frame old people?

Oh and yeah, I hope you are taking care of you 'child' properly, like the parent of the lung collapsed boy up there. Oh wait. You don't need to watch him 24/7, but don't let him outside at 9:30..