Mental health is an issue seldom talked about in our country in the wake of violence.
However, we had a mental health situation close to home make national headlines last week when Scott Stockert, a Dickinson man with a history of mental health issues, drove his pickup to Washington, D.C. with the alleged intention of kidnapping President Barack Obama’s dog, Bo.
He claimed to arresting officers that he was Jesus Christ and was planning to run for president.
The story went viral not only on The Press website, but on countless others throughout the world.
Millions got a good laugh out of it.
The comments section on our Facebook page were mostly humorous in nature. Yet only a handful of people brought up possible mental health concerns.
The situation wasn’t really something to laugh about.
WASHINGTON — A Dickinson man, who had a weapons cache in his vehicle and told U.S. Secret Service agents he was Jesus Christ, was arrested Wednesday in the nation’s capital on weapons charges after agents were alerted he was there with the intention of kidnapping the Obama family’s pet dog.
Scott Stockert
Scott Davy Stockert, 49, told Secret Service agents he drove from Dickinson to Washington alone in his Dodge Ram pickup truck. He brought with him guns, ammunition and other weapons, according to court documents.
He made a series of bizarre claims to the arresting agents, including that he was Jesus Christ — and that it could be verified by his license — that John F. Kennedy and Marilyn Monroe were his parents, and that he planned to run for president. He said he was in Washington because he was going to the U.S. Capitol to advocate for $99 per month health care.
“You picked the wrong person to mess with,” Stockert told agents, according to the court documents. “I will (expletive) your world up.”
Stark County Sheriff’s Major Ray Kaylor said Stockert’s family approached their office on Wednesday morning asking for help in locating him after they’d received text messages stating he was in New York City, and that he was driving to Washington with the intention of kidnapping Bo, President Barack Obama’s Portuguese water dog.
“He said his plan was the kidnap the president’s dog, Bo. He felt the dog was being neglected,” Kaylor said, adding Stockert’s texts said nothing about harming the dog.
Bo (L) and Sunny, the Obama family’s new puppy, are pictured on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington in this photo released on August 19, 2013 by the White House. A North Dakota man who allegedly plotted to kidnap one of the Obama family’s pet Portuguese water dogs was arrested with guns and ammunition at a downtown Washington hotel and is facing a weapons charge, The Washington Post reported on Friday. REUTERS/Pete Souza/The White House/Handout via Reuters
Dustin Monke 