airbags - for security and defense
dateline South Africa, April 1999
car-jacking is common in South Africa
and the law is permissive with liberal “self defense”
which allows “lethal action” for danger to personal property
because car-jacking is common in South Africa
security systems for cars have included
poison gas
acid showers
flamethrowers
and even automatic gunfire
but one security system used an airbag,
but it was located in the car roof
the driver had to disable the airbag
before starting the engine,
or else the airbag would inflate,
hitting the potential driver in the head
with enough force to knock them unconscious
that happened to resident thief Pieter Niewoudt
who, pistol in pocket, tried to steal this car
the airbag exploded
but Pieter thought the noise was gunfire
shooting at him for trying to steal the car
so he instinctively fired his pistol twice
while it was still in his pocket
one bullet hit his knee
the other lodged in the base of his penis
there was no report on if the airbag
ever hit him to knock him unconscious
Copyright Janet Kuypers.
All rights reserved. No material
may be reprinted without express permission.
|
