19-year-old man murders 21-year-old man and girlfriend over “fronted” marijuana

(Houston Chronicle) AUSTIN — A 19-year-old accused marijuana dealer told Austin police that he fatally shot a young couple from Houston in their condominium near the University of Texas last week to avoid paying the male victim thousands of dollars in drug money.

Police charged James Richard “Ricky” Thompson, from the Austin area, with two counts of capital murder in the July 21 shooting deaths of Stacy Marie Barnett, 22, and John Forest Goosey, 21, a young Houston couple that had just earned degrees from UT.

Goosey is the son of prominent Houston eye surgeon Dr. John D. Goosey. His mother is Claire Goosey, a breast cancer survivor known for her volunteer work in the community, said attorney and longtime family friend Gary Tidwell.

Barnett, who lived with Goosey, appears to have become a victim solely by being home when Thompson arrived, police said. There is no evidence that Barnett was involved in marijuana dealings or that she used marijuana, Spangler said.

During interviews with police, Thompson admitted that Goosey had “fronted” him substantial amounts of marijuana to sell and that he did not have the money to repay him, Spangler said. Goosey was “pressing” him to pay up, police said.

Friends don’t let friends “front” marijuana.

This is the result of a prohibited market.  Goosey couldn’t take Thompson to court to get the thousands he was owed.  Goosey and Thompson paid no business tax, applied for no license, and were subject to no regulations regarding the transactions involving thousands of dollars of goods.  Thompson can’t file for bankruptcy to escape an impossible debt.  And while Goosey and Thompson knowingly involved themselves in a criminal market, Barnett is dead because she was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time.

When’s the last time you heard of the convenience store clerk shooting the beer distributor because he was behind on his payments?