Karma...

That's not karma.  That's sad.  They were juveniles, albeit bad ones, but did they deserve to die?  Really?  Wow.  

Now, I will agree that the parents should be held accountable as well, but they did not deserve to die. 

The police probably responded the best they could at the time (as they do in the overwhelming majority of cases).  That they will be second guessed for not doing enough, or doing too much, or doing it wrong, is kind of.....meh, to me.  That just comes with the job.

I agree that it's horrible that these kids died.

Tomorrow, and the next day, and the day after that something else that's horrible will happen, along with all kinds of great and wonderful things.  It's life, not karma.

Not sure what else the police officers could have done.  But I really don't know the story.

I do disagree with holding the parents responsible to the point of jail time.   I've been robbed more then once.  Last time was at our current home in a somewhat quiet community.  Everyone is pretty sure it's a kid a few streets over who is a junky.  If it is the kid do I want to kick his , yes.  Do I hold his parents responsible, no.  Here's why, IDK if his parents are like everyone I know in our community.  Hard working people who are trying to raise their kids right.  Or maybe the parents are junkies also.  I couldn't hold someone who is a good person responsible for their kid being a thief so how could I do it for the ones that aren't trying.  It can't be a selective thing so I don't know how you could put parents in jail for the stuff their kids do. 

Very sad story with no easy answers.
Did the kids deserve to die for the crime they did?  Of course not.  Did they deserve to die because they ran from the police?  Of course not.  Did they die because they committed a crime and then opted to take a high risk approach and run from the police?  Yes, they did.
The responsibility is not on the police, it's on the kids who made the decisions that they did.  You could make the same argument for kids street racing or bungee jumping.  They made a series of decisions that had potential bad consequences and they rolled 7's.

As for the police not helping, I wasn't there so I can't offer a judgement.  I do know that Cops have a LOT of extra weight on their bodies, so I suspect that even a strong swimmer would have a difficult time keeping him or herself above water let alone lugging an unknown risk criminal who just fled from them.
We as triathletes recognize the swim panic challenges and we train for swimming in open water.  Do we even know the cops could swim at all?

As for holding the parents accountable, that's a big giant mess that could and would never fly in America.  If you can arrest the parents for the crime of their child then what else can you do?  Wouldn't it be better if we had the state tell parents how to raise and discipline their children even before they become criminals?  I mean, if it saves one child!!! 
In America there are VERY bad parents and I am of the belief that 95% of the woes of our society is because of poor parenting.  If parents raised loving, respectful, well mannered, polite, and hard working kids then we would have very few societal problems.  Yet, every parent has the constitutional right to be a crappy parent if they want to as long as they don't cross the line into the abuse realm.  I don't like it and I'd LOVE to change it, but it just can't be done at the government level in a free society.

Let me be clear. 

I do not hold the LEO responsible.  They made a call based on the situation and their own safety.

Secondly, about the parents being held accountable, some great points have been raised.  I withdraw my suggestion for the reasons raised.

How do you define parent?  What if one parent is raising the child?  What if there's a step parent?  What if there's joint custody?  What if they're adopted at 14?  Do you punish the biological parents 80% and the adoptive parents 20%?
I know what you're saying in spirit, but legally there's absolutely no way on earth you can create legislation to punish a parent for the actions of their child in cases like this.

If you want to save your kids (or any kids) it is imperative that you know who they are friends with and who they run around with.  It's more important than any lesson you think you can teach them.  Who they run with will begin to define them in the eyes of society.......once they are defined, and know they are, it's a very short bus ride to joining in whatever activity their circle of peers is up to.

Not really a religious thing, but our Pastor always says "show me your friends and I'll show you your future".

There's a lot of truth in that because we tend to always gravitate to those around us, good and bad.  If you hang out with successful business owners you tend to work that way.  If you hang out with the barely employed party crowd, then guess what you become.

I posted this on my FB feed yesterday not to get a pat on the back but because I think too often we do and say things in the heat of the moment that cannot be reversed.  It feels like this thread is the appropriate area to bring it up because I believe it has relevance.

Be Careful!!

Only a few of you know that 2 weeks ago while out on a ride with the South Chicago Wheelmen a car came very close on my left side, a passenger leaned out of the car and lightly touched my shoulder. To say it scared me is an understatement but I was also angry at the time. I have a Garmin VIRB camera and was able to clearly capture the youth's face as well as the license plate.

I called the local police department and initiated an investigation that night. At first I was thinking of pressing charges, throwing the book at them. That is until I heard who did it. They were kids. 16 and 17 year old kids. They are all honor roll students, heavily involved in clubs in and out of school and were just doing it for fun, not meaning to harm anyone.

I am thankful I did not post the photo's on Facebook. I'm also purposefully withholding exactly where this occurred. They had a brain fart, albeit a potentially dangerous one. Nothing more....nothing less. Who among us HAVEN'T done something stupid at that age. I know I can't, right Sam and Chuck?

I am now working through the detective to see if we can get these youths to our race in June in an attempt to humanize us. Show them who we are and why we do what we do. Ideally we can turn what could have been a horrific situation (if I had been 6 inches to my left and they hit me I would have gone down at 20pmh and possibly taken another rider with me) into a positive one and maybe have some good ambassadors on the road in that community.

I also learned a valuable lesson in that I could have potentially ruined these young people's lives by putting a photo on social media where all of their information could have been looked up. It could have been permanent. Maybe it would have crept up in future searches and caused colleges and universities to question whether they should accept this youth. I don't want that.

Remember, we are all in this together.

Well said and nice job.

I always feel so bad for people that get caught up in heat of the moment crimes (victims and perpetrators).  As an example, road rage crimes that result in death and very long imprisonment are usually done by really good people that have a momentary lapse of judgement in the heat of a high stress situation.