Mark Saunders was a British barrister who struggled with depression and alcoholism. On 6 May 2008 he repeatedly fired a shotgun from a window of his home in Markham Square, London. When armed police arrived, Saunders fired at their vehicle (example pictured) and a siege began. Saunders fired twice more and police returned fire, slightly wounding him. Saunders then waved the shotgun out of a window in the direction of a group of police officers; seven officers fired eleven shots, of which at least five struck him. Saunders was pronounced dead at a waiting ambulance. An inquest was held where the jury returned a verdict of lawful killing, but found several flaws in the police handling of the incident. They did not consider that any of these significantly contributed to the outcome. They could not decide whether Saunders had intentionally provoked a lethal response ("suicide by cop"). In 2010, the Metropolitan Police created a unit of senior officers to manage similar incidents.

Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_of_Mark_Saunders

_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:

1782:

Construction began on the Grand Palace in Bangkok, the official residence of the king of Thailand. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Palace

1882:

Irish civil servants Thomas Henry Burke and Lord Frederick Cavendish were stabbed to death by members of the radical Irish National Invincibles in Phoenix Park, Dublin. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_Park_Murders

1941:

American entertainer Bob Hope performed his first show with the United Service Organizations, beginning a 50-year involvement with them. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Hope

1991:

Time magazine published the article "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" by Richard Behar criticizing the Church of Scientology, leading to years of legal conflict. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Thriving_Cult_of_Greed_and_Power

_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:

staid: 1. Not capricious or impulsive; sedate, serious, sober. 2. (rare) Always fixed in the same location; stationary. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/staid

___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:

Come holy harlequin! Shake the world and shock the hypocrite Rock, love, carry it away, turn it upside down. Let the feast of love begin, Let the hungry all come in, Rock, love, carry it away, turn it upside down.   --Sydney Carter https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sydney_Carter