Authorities say “superhero” is putting his life at stake

May 4, 2009 10:45 GMT  ·  By
Ohio authorities warn Shadow Hare’s crime fighting should not be encouraged
   Ohio authorities warn Shadow Hare’s crime fighting should not be encouraged

A couple of days ago, one man became an Internet sensation as his story was picked by several media outlets and presented to the world. He is 21, has a slender body frame, and no physical training, yet goes by the name of Shadow Hare, puts on a mask and roams the streets of Cincinnati at night, fighting crime. As TMZ informs, the Ohio police is not happy at all with this unlikely “superhero.”

The paparazzi agency spoke with competent authorities about the so-called “superhero,” asking whether they condone his deeds or they’d arrest him if they saw him on the street dressed as Shadow Hare. The reaction was, as expected, that while the intentions of the unknown man are good, the way he goes about making them come to life is wrong. Moreover, going vigilante sends the wrong message to the world, especially since he’s not trained in any sports and, thus, puts himself in grave danger with it.

“Cops don’t think Ohio’s most famous spandex-wearing, 21-year-old, 97-pound superhero is ‘trained’ to fight crime. TMZ spoke with several Ohio officials who all seem to appreciate Shadow Hare’s intentions – but refuse to endorse his methods. While Shadow Hare spends most of his time battling evil in Cincinnati, the Chief of Police from his hometown of Milford (11 miles away), tells us, ‘He’s putting himself in jeopardy for something he’s not trained for... we don’t want people to get hurt. […] It scares me a little bit... vigilantes can cause police to lose control of a situation... and he could end up hurting things’.” TMZ writes.

Shadow Hare, as previously reported, refuses to reveal his real name and claims to fight crime using only legal weapons, such as a pair of handcuffs, a taser and a pepper spray. Obviously, he has no superpowers – quite on the contrary, he’s said to be very geeky-like. Just for the sake of argument, recently, he was admitted to a hospital after seriously hurting his shoulder while trying to prevent a man from beating up a woman.

Because all of the above, the Ohio police recommends people to “take necessary actions to help their neighbors,” while also reminding that enforcing the law is something that, well, only law enforcement should do. On the other hand, Shadow Hare seems unfazed by the criticism: a note on his MySpace page says he’s currently “updating” his costume and will continue to fight crime with the “improved” version soon enough. Keep an eye on this space for more on this.