POLICE STORIES – “IT HAPPENED TO ME!”
While working the day shift on a Friday morning, at around 11:30am, the radio reported that there was a man shot in the parking lot of a small strip mall in the city where I am a police officer. As several other officers and I answered the call, another dispatch announced that there was a citizen on a cell phone relaying real-time information to the comms center, and that the citizen was following the shooter. The caller, who was next door to the business where the shooting took place, claimed that a man had walked up to an older male who was getting out of his car and had shot him at close range with a shotgun.
The caller stated that the shooter had then calmly walked across the street to a large discount store parking lot where there were several other citizens engaged in shopping and at risk of being shot as well. This courageous citizen voluntarily followed a deranged gunman while remaining on the cell phone with dispatchers, relaying vital information. Our officers responded in less than one minute, and immediately the airwaves were filled with officers relaying new information as well. The gunman began shooting into the air in an apparent attempt to frighten other patrons of the business, and then he turned on even more innocent citizens. In the parking area of this discount store, he calmly approached one middle-aged gentleman after another, adding three more victims to his list of carnage. One of our first responding officers pulled into the parking area and spotted the gunman walking in the opposite direction. In a well-intended split-second decision, the officer chose to attempt to end the shooting spree by running over the gunman with his patrol car. Maneuvering into position behind the shooter, the officer floored the accelerator; however, the madman heard the engine revving, looked over his shoulder and slipped between cars parked in the lot, effectively avoiding being stopped then and there. Realizing that the cavalry had arrived, with shotgun firmly in hand, the criminal stopped attacking citizens and took off at a dead run toward the rear of the discount store. Taking his attention away from other innocent bystanders …
