Friday — April 16, 2004

Shootings
change Bellevue
residents’ views

‘Some adults take things
teenagers do way too seriously’

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"It’s part of a trend. People who didn’t lock their cars or their doors are locking them now."

— GLENN BRANEN, Glenn’s Grocery owner

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By GREG MOORE
Express Staff Writer

On the block behind David Santistevan’s house in Bellevue, two homeowners are putting up stout wooden walls around their yards. It’s not that they have anything specific to fear from the man accused of shooting two teenaged boys last month, they said—it’s just that the incident reminded them that their home could use a little more protection.

"This thing with the kids getting shot was a random event," said homeowner Frank Glahn. "There’s still a good sense of community here, but it’s a little different than it used to be. You used to know everybody in town was safe, and if they weren’t, you knew who that was. Now, you just don’t know who you can trust."

He points out that a neighboring rental house has had three different tenants in the past year. He has nothing against them, he said—he just doesn’t know the residents.

Santistevan, 46, was bound over Tuesday for trial in 5th District Court in Hailey on two counts of attempted murder.

Santistevan is accused of shooting the two Bellevue teenagers during an argument in an alley following an earlier incident at an intersection involving an ATV the boys were riding. Marshall Hooten, 19, remains in critical condition at St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise. Tyrel Peak, 15, who was released from the hospital last week, testified at the preliminary hearing Tuesday, April 13.

Santistevan is being held in Blaine County Jail on a $1 million bond.

For a town of only 1,300 people, the March 29 shootings came uncomfortably soon after the shooting deaths last September of Alan and Diane Johnson, allegedly by their daughter, Sarah. Many Bellevue residents seem to share Glahn’s view—that Bellevue’s still a peaceful and safe little town to live in, but fast growth, combined with the recent incidents of violence, have made them a little wary.

"It’s part of a trend," said Glenn Branen, owner of Glenn’s Grocery, a long-time hub for local chit-chat. "People who didn’t lock their cars or their doors are locking them now."

Glahn’s wife, Barbara Glahn, said she isn’t worried about her own safety, but she is concerned about that of her two teenaged children. She said she doesn’t let them go out after 9 p.m.—an attitude she said she didn’t have through most of the 35 years she’s lived in Bellevue. Part of the problem, she said, is the more evident drug use in town. She said she’d like to see more police officers on the streets.

Branen said the most common attitude among patrons who discuss the recent shootings is disbelief that someone could have tried to kill two kids over a minor argument. On the other hand, he said, he’s heard the opinion expressed that people no longer treat each other as respectfully as they used to, and that occasional violent reactions are an inevitable result. That lack of respect, he said, is seen as particularly common among teenagers.

Brenan said the shootings are viewed as inexcusable, but added, "It’s kind of felt that the kids did irritate him, pressed him to do that. I’ve heard people say, ‘Well, I sure hope the other kids around town learn something from that.’"

He said he was recently talking to the father of a teenager who told him many teens now believe they can get away with acting however they please, without fear of retribution.

"Kids feel that an adult can’t touch them, and you can’t," Brenan said.

Not surprisingly, a very different view was expressed by about eight teenaged boys skateboarding at the Hailey Skate Park. Most of them said they know Hooten. If the shooting incident offers any lessons, they said, it’s that adults should learn to be more tolerant.

"It’s just messed up that something so small, like riding around on an ATV, could get someone so mad," said Ketchum resident Klint Matthews, 18. "Some adults take things teenagers do way too seriously. It’s not from everybody, but certain people just find stuff to be pissed off about."

The youths said problems develop mainly from adults’ reactions to their newly invented sports, which are often done in public places. Those include skateboarding, scooter riding and the newest—freestyle walking, which involves doing stunts with special slippery shoes. On Baldy, 15-year-old Martin Osgald said, incidents of rude behavior are often unjustly blamed on snowboarders.

"My teacher thinks all snowboarders are drug addicts," added Hailey resident Larry Olsen, 15.

An 18-year-old who declined to give his name said his first reaction to hearing about the shootings was, "Wow, this valley’s turning into a bunch of psychos." Still, he said, the Wood River Valley remains a more easygoing place than is Boise, where he’s going to school.

One of Stantistevan’s neighbors also said that despite the shootings, he believes Bellevue’s a much safer place to live than most towns.

"I don’t think I’ll move," he said.

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