I heard this morning of the murder that took place in Blacksburg VA this past week. There were several other people in the Virginia Tech cafe when this happened, and while they called 911, none tried to stop the attack.
The opening scenes of Boondock Saints has the following excerpt of the priest’s homily: “And I am reminded, on this holy day, of the sad story of Kitty Genovese. As you all may remember, a long time ago, almost thirty years ago, this poor soul cried out for help time and time again, but no person answered her calls. Though many saw, no one so much as called the police. They all just watched as Kitty was being stabbed to death in broad daylight. They watched as her assailant walked away. Now, we must all fear evil men. But there is another kind of evil which we must fear most, and that is the indifference of good men.”
I understand wanting to stay out of another person’s business, but not trying to stop a murder is generally considered complicit agreement.
Every one of those folks in the cafe should be brought up on charges for not trying to do something – even had they been unsuccessful, at least an attempt would have been made.