Bonnie and Clyde and Clyde

by Pat Brown



Often we wonder what made one child turn bad, but how often do we wonder what made three siblings go bad? At the same time? The mother of the so-called "Dougherty Gang" must be trying to figure that one out right now.



The Dougherty siblings, two brothers and a sister, just decided to go on a crime spree–yes, a fully intended crime spree–otherwise they would have left the AK-47 at home. Lee Grace Dougherty, 29, and her two brothers, Dylan Dougherty Stanley, 26, and Edward Ryan Dougherty, 21, stole Ryan's girlfriend's Suburu Impreza (not exactly The Fast and the Furious) and took off from Pasco County, Florida, with mayhem on their minds.



Their mother may have a difficult time understanding why her kids are on a suicidal crime spree, but she should not have been surprised that they would commit crimes; between the three of her children, they have racked up twenty felonies including burglary, battery, and drug possession. Most recently, Ryan Dougherty had sent hundreds of sexual tests to an 11 year old, got nailed for it and was put on 10 years probation for sexual battery (probation after 13 felonies and being a child sex predator). Supposedly, he was upset that his conviction would prevent him from seeing his new baby days away from being born. I guess he figured cutting off his ankle bracelet, committing grand theft auto, and then firing 20 shots at a Tampa police officer who stopped them for speeding (luckily, police shot out his tires and not him), and then robbing a bank at gunpoint would improve his chances.



They took an undisclosed amount of money from the Valdosta, Georgia, bank firing their weapons at the ceiling, an AK-47 assault rifle and a MAC -10 or MAC -11 type machine pistol. They wore masks during the robbery, but considering they took the Ryan's baby momma's vehicle and she reported it to the police, their faces and a photo of the car are plastered all over billboards now.



One can kind of see the brothers going on a crime spree (even though brother Dylan has only one arrest for marijuana possession on his record). But what of Sis? Well, she seems to have her own set of problems. On her Flickr page, Lee states, "I love to farm and shoot guys and wreck cars." Two out of the three's pasttime seems to be less than healthy. The sister has five felonies, all of them hit-and-runs, and six misdemeanors. She had DUIs, attacked a police officer, and was supposed to be in a drug rehab program. She did have a job as a topless go-go dancer/stripper and was engaged to a 45-year-old professor who said, "She touched me in a way neither of my wives came close." I bet she did. But, unfortunately for her sugar daddy, I guess she just wasn't that into him. As he says, "I guess the wedding is off."



Mom has begged her children to give themselves up before someone gets hurt. She went on television on the condition her face not be seen (hey, wait, I can see her face; she is not going to be happy with that media outlet). I think the chances of the siblings surrendering is not too good. They texted Mom from the bank, saying, "There's a time for all of us to die."



What caused these kids to go bad and then completely lose it? It is difficult to say, but another sister died recently and also their father. Mom moved away from Florida, leaving the three criminal siblings to their own devices. They built a bunker (for what, we don't know) and, clearly, their lives were spinning out of control. Mom says, "Only Mom knows what good people you are inside." I am guessing they have not had much in the way of accountability in the past and a whole lot of excusing for bad behavior. I think these three know that they don't have much to offer the world or themselves and so are taking themselves out through suicide-by-cop. We can only hope they don't take anyone else with them.