Category: Feel Good Stories

From Port Orchard, Washington;

A man who shot an intruder in his yard last week told a Kitsap County sheriff’s detective that after hearing somebody bang on the windows of his house, he armed himself and went outside to confront the suspect, who appeared to be on drugs or having a mental crisis.

The homeowner said he shot at the man when he came around a corner and charged him, but didn’t believe he hit him. During the confrontation, the homeowner “bear-hugged” the suspect and took him to the ground, then ordered him to stay there until officers arrived. His wife and children watched from the doorway.

“He scared the daylights out of me,” the homeowner told a detective, according to court documents.

The suspect, 28-year-old Jeffrey Preston Ratcliff, was taken to a Tacoma hospital for surgery following the April 26 shooting and was discharged Tuesday morning. Deputies arrested him at his house in Port Orchard in the afternoon and booked him into the Kitsap County Jail.

From Atlanta, Georgia;

A teenager was shot and killed while attempting to rob someone in southwest Atlanta late Wednesday evening, according to police.

The shooting happened around 10:10 p.m. along Drummond Street near Joseph E Lowery SW.

Quindarious Billinger told police he opened fire on the suspect after being robbed and shot. The teen suspect was struck during the shootout and died as a result.

Billinger was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital. No word yet on his current condition.

From Fort Oglethorpe, Tennessee;

Fort Oglethorpe Police say the story began at the Wash Daze Coin Laundry, at 1868 Old Lafayette Road, shortly before dawn.

The citizen recognized [Shaun] Sisk as the Walgreens robbery suspect from last week, called police, and tried to keep Sisk from getting away.

But police say Sisk did get away. But not before the citizen fired his weapon. A release from the FOPD says, “The confrontation resulted in the citizen firing two shots from their personal firearm at Mr. Sisk, while during the incident the citizen perceived they were endangered by Mr. Sisk’s actions.”

Sisk then drove north, crossing into Tennessee, and crashing his car at that home on Frawley Road.

Other police departments from East Ridge and Chattanooga picked up the investigation there. Officers stayed on the scene for several hours.

Sisk was taken to the hospital, and released with non-life-threatening wounds several hours later. He was then booked on several charges in several jurisdictions.

From Clearlake, California;

Just after 11:50 p.m. Monday Clearlake Police Officers responded to a mobile home unit inside of Southshore Mobile Home Park, located at 5725 Old Highway 53, on a report that an unknown male suspect was banging on the home’s windows, was trying to get inside the home and claiming to own property inside, Joseph said.

While en route to the call, dispatch received updated information that an unnamed adult male resident of the home claimed to have shot at the suspect and that the suspect had since fled the residence on foot, according to Joseph.

Joseph said that the suspect, identified as Montes, walked to a residence in the 5500 block of Cottage Avenue, where he was contacted by police and medical personnel.

Montes, who Joseph said was suffering from a single gunshot wound to his lower abdomen, was transported by ambulance to Adventist Health Clear Lake before he was taken by helicopter to an out-of-county trauma center.

In a late Tuesday night update Joseph said Montes was still hospitalized in stable condition and is expected to survive his injuries.

The resident who shot Montes, whose name is being withheld, was in lawful possession of the firearm which has been seized pursuant to this investigation, Joseph said.

Joseph said physical evidence located and uninvolved witness statements tend to support the resident’s claim that he fired in self defense to protect the lives of he and his wife, who was also at home at the time of the incident.

From Newark, New Jersey;

An attempted robber is in custody after being shot by an off-duty cop in a Newark barber shop, Essex County Prosecutor’s Office officials said Wednesday.

The officer was a customer at a barber shop in the 400 block of Orange Street Tuesday when the incident occurred just after 9 p.m., officials said.

An attempted robbery, armed with a handgun, went into the barber shop when the off-duty cop fired his weapon, according to officials.

The injured attempted robber fled and was pursued by officers responding to the robbery, officials said.

The person was apprehended, and a gun recovered, a “short time later” in the 1100 block of McCarter Highway, more than a mile from the barber shop.

The attempted robbery is being treated for the gunshot wound, which was described as non-life threatening, officials said.

From Greenwood, Indiana;

Just before 6 a.m. April 14, a resident reported to police that [Darin J. Byerley, 42] had broken into his house in the 200 block of Lawnwood Drive in the Briarwood neighborhood, west of U.S. 31, between Main Street and Fry Road.

The resident told police Byerley got into his garage, and then came into his home. He had confronted Byerley with a gun, firing one shot that missed and went through several walls of the home. The resident then got a bat, striking Byerley several times, and then sprayed him with mace, according to the Greenwood Police Department report.

The resident then dragged Byerley through the house and out the front door onto the porch. When police arrived, they found Byerley sitting inside one of the resident’s vehicles, bleeding from a head wound, the report said. He was taken to a hospital for treatment and was later released. Police found Byerley’s hat and glasses inside the home, the report said.

When police spoke with the residents, they said Byerley would not speak, and only growled at them, and he would not leave the home, the report said. Both residents were concerned the man would return to harm them, the report said.

Byerley told police he uses methamphetamine at least weekly, and did not remember the incident, the report said.

From Hattiesburg, Mississippi;

The clerk told police the suspect walked into the store, pulled out a knife and demanded money from the register. When that didn’t work, the suspect reportedly grabbed the clerk by his jacket and demanded money again.

Moore said that’s when the clerk pulled out his own knife and told the suspect to leave.

The suspect left the scene on foot, and responding officers found a knife in the store’s parking lot.

From Worcester, Massachusetts;

When the homeowner saw the man walk into his yard, he said he got a handgun and went outside to confront him, police said. While escorting the man off his property, witnesses said they heard the man threaten to shoot the homeowner and reach for his waistband, prompting him to open fire.

The man who was shot, later identified as Zackery Bailey, was taken to the hospital with two non-life-threatening gunshot wounds. While at the hospital, officers found out that Bailey had an outstanding arrest warrant for his arrest on a breaking and entering charge.

The homeowner, who is a licensed gun owner, was interviewed at police headquarters and treated at the hospital for injuries sustained in the fight.

From Sterling Heights, Michigan;

According to police, the victim had arrived home from work and let his dog outside to relieve itself when he was approached by an unknown man who stuck a gun in his face.

The intruder forced the man back into the house. When the two were inside, the intruder struck the man in the face with the gun.

Police said the intruder then grabbed a pillow case and stuffed it with several of the victim’s items, including jewelry and a cell phone. He also grabbed the victim’s car keys and went outside toward the victim’s Jeep.

The victim, who police said has a license to carry a concealed pistol, ran to his closet to retrieve his handgun.

As the intruder fled in the victim’s Jeep, the victim fired several shots, striking the vehicle. One of the gunshots crashed through another resident’s bedroom window, but the occupant was not struck.

The bloodied victim received medical attention for minor injuries.

From Raleigh, North Carolina;

Police said around 2:40 p.m., a victim heard a noise near their garage and went to see what was going on. The victim was met by a suspect who was attempting to pry open the garage door with a crowbar.

When the suspect attempted to attack the victim, police said the victim shot at the suspect, who then fled on foot.

Police said it’s unknown whether the victim [or the suspect, depending on your point of view] was struck by gunfire.

Also from Raleigh;

According to police, a 28-year-old man attempted to rob a woman in front of a bar on Thursday.

WTVD-TV reports, the 23-year-old fired her weapon to keep the man from attacking her. He was later identified as Jonathan Tyrone Peace.

He sustained a non life-threatening gunshot wound to the chest.

The woman stayed on scene until police arrived.

“So I went down there and talked to the young lady. I asked her was she all right,” said witness Lavern Robinson. “She said yes. She said she was walking down the street, he came up and approached her. They started a conversation, and he grabbed the pocketbook and somehow – ain’t no somehow – she shot him.”

From Southworth, Washington;

Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a report of someone trying to break into a home on SE Scatterwood Lane, off Southworth Drive, at about 2 a.m. Thursday.

The caller reported hearing a loud banging sound on windows on the lower level of his home, according to a statement from the Sheriff’s Office. The homeowner, who had a handgun, also reported hearing yelling outside the house.

When he opened the door, the 28-year-old man allegedly charged at the homeowner and pushed him. According to the statement, the homeowner fired one shot at the 28-year-old man, who continued to try to enter the home while yelling “Let me into your house.”

The man eventually collapsed at the threshold of the door, where Sheriff’s Deputies found him, according to the statement. Deputies reported that the man was soaking wet, shaking and had scratches on his face and arms.

The suspect was taken to St. Joseph Medical Center in Tacoma with non-life threatening injuries, according to spokesman Scott Wilson.

Good news in Yakima, Washington;

No criminal charges will be brought against three Yakima residents involved in a violent home invasion that led to the death of two suspects last weekend.

“It is clear that the homeowner in this horrific event was defending himself and his family from intruders who had unlawfully entered his home and were attempting to rob him at knifepoint,” Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney Joe Brusic said in a news release Friday evening.

From Charleston , West Virginia;

A man was confronted by a homeowner when he broke into their home on Smith Road in Charleston Thursday afternoon, and police say Joseph Buckland didn’t stop there.

Charleston Police say that once Buckland took off from the first home he hit on Smith Road, he broke into two more homes while the residents were inside.

Officers eventually found him hiding at a home on Birch Tree Lane.

Anthony Whitlock was home when he heard a commotion.

“I kept hearing this thudding noise so I wasn’t sure what was going on,” Whitlock told WSAZ.

He armed himself and started to check out the house.

“I came down the basement steps onto the landing and there was a guy trying to get into our basement door here,” Whitlock said.

Whitlock described coming face to face with Buckland as he wrestled with the door.

“The first thing that runs through my mind is, I don’t know this guy from Adam so I don’t know what he’s doing trying to get into our basement, I don’t know if he’s whacked out on anything, I don’t know if he’s armed,” Whitlock said. “I don’t know if maybe he knows the tenants that lived here before me and is trying to come find them … I don’t know what’s going on.”

Whitlock yelled and scared Buckland off.

Charleston Police say he was found hiding in a closet inside a home, also on Smith Road.

Police say the homeowner fired shots. Buckland escaped and ended up at a house on Birch Tree Lane.

“All of these other homes are all families, you know. Everybody up here has kids of different ages, there’s a couple of older people that live up here, and that’s another reason we thought this neighborhood was going to be a lot safer and apparently it’s not,” Whitlock said.

From Lansing, Michigan;

A female caller told 911 an armed man had broken into the residence and was fighting her husband, police said. The woman and her husband, both injured, were found outside the home when officers arrived, they said.

The pair, police said, told them they fought the man and were able to escape outside as officers arrived. Police said they entered the home and found the alleged home invasion suspect dead.

Both homeowners were taken to a local hospital to be treated for non-life-threatening injuries, police said. No arrests have been made, they said.

From St Louis, Missouri;

St. Louis Police Chief John Hayden said the off-duty officer was with three other off-duty officers at the Bomber O’Brien’s Sports Bar, located at 4621 Beck Avenue. Around 1:30 a.m. Friday, the off-duty officer and the suspect got into a confrontation, during which the suspect fired shots at the off-duty officer, striking him in the wrist and arm.

After being shot, another one of the off-duty officers returned fire, striking the suspect in the lower extremities and shoulder.

The suspect and off-duty officer were taken to the hospital for treatment. Friday morning, police said they were both listed in stable condition.

From Raleigh, North Carolina;

A robbery suspect was shot and wounded when his intended victim fought back and opened fire on him in downtown Raleigh, authorities said Friday.

Jonathan Tyrone Peace, 28, has been charged with common law robbery in connection with the incident Thursday in the 300 block of South Blount Street around 3 p.m., police said. He suffered a gunshot wound to the chest and was rushed for medical treatment to WakeMed. Information about his condition was pending.

Police said Morgen Matthews, 23, was walking on South Blount Street when Peace tried to rob her. She fired her weapon to stop him from attacking her, police said. She remained on the scene until police arrived, authorities said.

From Chicago, Illinois;

A retired Chicago police officer shot and killed a man who he said was trying to carjack him Wednesday night in the Bridgeport neighborhood, police said.

The suspect who died was shot in the upper body several times and police said his two accomplices were arrested.

The suspects picked a retired Chicago police officer to carjack just before 7:30 p.m. in the 2900-block of South Shields Avenue.

The retired officer in his 60s was either in or out of his vehicle on the street when he was approached by three men and one of them had a gun, police said. The retired officer managed to fire shots at one of the three who tried to take his car, police said.

That suspect was taken to a local hospital in critical condition, where he later died. The suspect has been identified to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office as 20-year-old Lazarick West of Chicago.

From Fayetteville, North Carolina;

A Fayetteville convenience store clerk opened fire Wednesday night one two masked men who came into the store carrying a gun, police said.

The shooting occurred shortly before 10 p.m. at the Five Star BP gas station, at 2101 Cedar Creek Road, police said.

A woman who was staying a a nearby motel was leaving the convenience store and saw two masked men running inside, so she called 911, according to the store owner, who identified himself only as “C.J.”

Clerk Bassam Albareti, 29, saw on the store’s security camera two suspected robbers coming in and pulled out a gun, the owner said. Albareti fired several shots through the glass that enclosed the counter, hitting one man in the leg, the owner said.

The would-be robbers dropped their gun and fled. The owner said the gun wasn’t loaded.

“One of the suspects actually went to a residence somewhere in the county and called 911, saying he had been shot,” said Sgt. Shawn Strepay, spokesman for the Fayetteville Police Department. “Throughout the course of our investigation and the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office investigating that [911 call], we were able to tie everything together and determine that, even though he was calling 911 saying he had been shot, claiming he was a victim, he was actually the suspect in our case.”

The caller was identified as David Glenn Perry, 19, of Stedman Cedar Creek Road. He was being treated at Cape Fear Valley Medical Center.

The second suspect was identified as Noah Lee Rowsey, 19, of Bullock Court. He was being held in the Cumberland County jail under a $50,000 bond.

Both men face charges of robbery with a dangerous weapon and conspiracy to commit robbery with a dangerous weapon.

The store owner said he allows his employees to carry weapons to protective themselves. The employees have permits, he said.

An update to the story we wrote about the other day in Memphis, Tennessee when a lady scared off a robber with a warning shot;

Surveillance footage of the exchange went viral when thousands of people shared the story and video across social media.

A Memphis mother was watching the news and recognized the robber as her 20-year-old son, Derriontay N. Perry.

She did not hesitate to call the police. Officers arrested her son without incident on April 25.

Perry is charged with aggravated assault and aggravated robbery.