SWAT prank calls in the news

[ravenmaddox]

This is like so much else where government keeps wanting to make new laws... there are ALREADY laws about the misuse of emergency services... if they can't catch the criminals and stop them now, how is making another law going to stop them?

I would love to hear one of these swatting calls. I would be willing to bet that anyone with a minimal education could easily figure out this was a prank. I think government needs to look into the people that are authorizing the sending of swat teams. They seem to me as much to blame as the person pulling the prank.

[rbcp]

12-Year-Old Charged in Hollywood Prank Call Case

"A 12-year-old boy accused of making prank calls that sent police swarming to the home of actor Ashton Kutcher in October and then to a Well Fargo Bank branch a week later was charged Thursday with four felonies."

Weird, I kind of thought they had the wrong guy since more celebrity SWATs have happened since they arrested this kid.  They're only charging him with the Ashton Kutcher SWAT and then another one where he sent cops to a bank, but they think he could be linked to others. 

ravenmaddox - If you search for "Little Hacker" swatting incidents, you'll probably find recordings of the ones he did.  I think maybe it was The Smoking Gun that posted clips of the calls.  He's doing a few years in prison for his phone stuff.  I think these newer ones are using relay operators, though, so there's not much to hear.  All the Xbox swatting was being done via relay.