A Pack, Not a Herd: Tourists in Costa Rica

Have attitudes changed since 9-11? Is a "Let the police take care of it" attitude a little less common than it was, or is this sort of resistance just getting a bit more news coverage? Perhaps both. And that would be a good thing.

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica (Feb. 23) - An American senior citizen killed an alleged mugger with his bare hands, and his traveling companions aboard a tour bus fended off two other assailants in the Atlantic coast city of Limon, police said.

A retired member of the U.S. military aged about 70 put suspect Warner Segura in a head lock and broke his clavicle after the 20-year-old and two other men armed with a knife and gun held up their tour bus, Luis Hernandez, the police chief of Limon, 80 miles east of San Jose, said Thursday. Segura was later declared dead, apparently from asphyxiation.

The two other men fled when the 12 senior citizens started defending themselves during the Wednesday attack....

The tourists left on their Carnival cruise ship after the incident and Hernandez said authorities do not plan to press any charges against them.

"They were in their right to defend themselves after being held up," he said.

Marianela Jimenez has the story on the AP.