Category: Feel Good Stories

From Hillsborough, North Carolina;

Pastor Austin Brown was studying alone Thursday afternoon in Five Forks Baptist Church when he heard a noise.

He saw a strange car in the parking lot of the church, located in the rural northern Orange County community of Cedar Grove, and drawing his pistol from his pocket, he continued to investigate. As he rounded a corner, he found a man in the church office. He thought about his wife and baby daughter, who were due to arrive at any time, and the women decorating in the church’s fellowship hall, he said.

Brown, 27, said he doesn’t recall what he said to the man – later identified as Cory Vondell Bradshaw, 38, of 3135 Callaway Drive in Mebane. Bradshaw took off running when he saw the pistol, Brown said, and he followed, firing a warning shot and then two shots at the man’s car. As Bradshaw sped off, Brown returned to the church to call 911.

“Based on the (concealed carry) training they give you, they tell you when you have a legal right to defend yourself,” he said. “I didn’t want to hurt Mr. Bradshaw at all. I just wanted to try to prevent him from escaping, and the way I knew to do that was to disable his vehicle.”

Orange County Sheriff’s deputies, investigators, and K9 and civil process officers responded around 3 p.m. and began their search. A gunshot that hit the car’s tire left Bradshaw with a flat a few miles from the church. Deputies said he pulled behind an abandoned golf course on McDade Store Road to change the tire, and that’s where Sgt. Brandon Lassiter found him with the spare tire in hand.

Bradshaw fled on foot, leaving his car behind, Lassiter reported. Deputies began searching the woods and finding Bradshaw around 5 p.m. near the intersection of Carr Store and Compton Road.

From Hillsboro, Ohio;

Highland County Sheriff Donnie Barrera told The Times-Gazette at the scene on Powell Road, west of SR 73, that a man was fatally shot after he allegedly broke into a Powell Road home around 7 a.m. Friday.

Barrera said the man was armed.

One of the two elderly occupants of the home, both of whom were also armed, allegedly shot the intruder, according to Barrera.

Later, when authorities responded to the scene, another man was found dead in a vehicle down the road, apparently from a gunshot wound, Barrera said.

According to Barrera, it appears as though both men were together before the incident.

From St Louis, Missouri;

The man was delivering food in the 4600 block of South Spring when two suspects robbed him around 10:20 p.m., police said.

During the robbery, one suspect hit the 41-year-old victim on the head with a gun. The man then attempted to run back to his vehicle but one of the suspects fired shots at him.

After the shots were fired at him, the delivery driver, fearing for his safety, returned fire using his own handgun, according to police.

After shooting one of the suspects, the victim went back to his work and called the police.

One suspect was shot and pronounced dead at the scene. Police said they found a gun next to his body.

The second suspect is still at-large.

From Bakersfield, California;

A person who was shot in southeast Bakersfield Thursday morning retrieved a gun and returned fire, according to deputies.

The incident occurred at about 11:40 a.m. in the 600 block of Cottonwood Road, where deputies arrived to find a male shot in his lower back. He was taken to Kern Medical Center, deputies said.

Through witness statements and surveillance video, deputies discovered the male, after being shot at, ran into a business and armed himself, according to a Sheriff’s Office release. He fired back at the suspect, who fled on foot and had not been located.

From North Hollywood, California;

Undercover Los Angeles Police Department officers were investigating a series of robberies in the area when they spotted the suspect at around 4:25 p.m. on the 12000 block of Vose Street, according to Lt. Chris Ramirez.

Ramirez said the man jumped into a vehicle and attempted to flee. The suspect got out of the car after a short chase, at which point officers started shooting, Ramirez said.

Asked whether the suspect knew the people who had their guns drawn at him were police, Ramirez said, “Usually our detectives always identify themselves as police officers.”

Witnesses reported hearing around 10 gunshots with officers asking the suspect to show his hands.

The man was taken to a hospital, where he died of gunshot wounds, according to police.

From somewhere in Iowa;

William Rancourt was hunting with friends when a member of the group put his 12-guage shotgun on the ground. One of the hunting dogs then stepped on the trigger, firing the gun and shooting Rancourt in the back.

I’m sure that the dog knew what he was doing. Prosecutors should question him more closely.

From Clearwater, Florida;

A Clearwater homeowner shot a possible intruder leaving the suspect with life-threatening injuries. police say.

The shooting occurred at a Clearwater home at 1501 Cleveland Street, according to Clearwater police. It’s unknown if the incident occurred inside or outside the house. Officers are asking people to avoid the area. Cleveland Street is closed between the Glenwood neighborhood and Highland Avenue.

From Smithfield, North Carolina;

A Smithfield homeowner shot a man late Wednesday who had broken into his house, authorities said.

The homeowner told Johnston County deputies that he returned to 261 Ogburn Road at about 10:30 p.m. to find two people inside, and they opened fire on him. The man said he returned fire as the burglars fled.

Deputies found Jauquan Fontel Sanders, 21, of 504 Winston Circle in Selma, a short time later with a gunshot wound to his leg. He was taken to WakeMed in Raleigh for treatment.

From Calumet Township, Indiana;

Lake County sheriff’s police were dispatched about 10 p.m. to the residence in reference to a report of shots fired inside, according to a news release from the Lake County Sheriff’s Department.

Upon arrival, officers encountered the resident, who was standing outside. The resident told police two men with a weapon forced entry into his home, but his dog alerted him of a sound at the rear of the house, prompting him to arm himself with his handgun, police said.

The resident then told police he fired several shots upon seeing two men wearing black pants, black sweatshirts and ski masks entering through the kitchen, police said.

He said he believed he shot at least one of the suspects.

From Macon, Georgia;

Just after 1 a.m., three men entered the BP gas station at 1334 Rumble Road, according to a sheriff’s office news release.

As the clerk was stocking a drink cooler, one of the men went behind the counter and took money from the cash drawer.

The store employee confronted the robber, who pulled a gun, the release stated.

The attendant, who also had a gun, fired a shot but did not hit anyone as the men left in a dark-colored pickup truck headed toward Interstate 75.

From Wichita, Kansas;

A 31-year-old man was shot at least once in the upper chest at a house in the 5000 block of West Newell shortly after 9:30 p.m., a Sedgwick County emergency dispatch supervisor said. That’s just south of Central and a few blocks east of I-235.

The man who was shot was taken to a hospital in potentially critical condition, the supervisor said. He may have a second gunshot wound as well, the first responders transporting him told hospital staff.

Few details have been released about the shooting, but the supervisor said the man who was shot has also been identified as a suspect in the case.

From Tampa Bay, Florida;

The incident began about 12:15 a.m. in the area of 26th Avenue South and 13th Street South where Violent Crimes Task Force members noticed the suspect driving a black 2011 Honda Accord in a reckless manner, moving through residential neighborhoods at a high rate of speed, with the headlights off, and not stopping for stop signs or a traffic light.

VCTF members then attempted to conduct a traffic stop on the suspect’s vehicle in the area of 22nd Avenue South and 34th Street South, when the vehicle fled at a high rate of speed.

According to a media release from the sheriff’s office, VCTF members did not pursue the vehicle, but instead conducted surveillance. They “observed a bright flash and heard a sound similar to a gunshot from inside the vehicle,” the press release said. The VCTF members then saw the driver discard what appeared to be a handgun out of the vehicle.

VCTF members were able to perform a Precision Immobilization Technique (tire-deflation device) on the Honda at 22nd Avenue South and 22nd Street South. The driver, Brown, was taken into custody.

Deputies determined that while Brown was attempting to discard the handgun, he accidentally shot himself in the right thigh. VCTF members were able to recover the discarded handgun, which was previously reported stolen from a vehicle in the city of Largo. Largo Police Department was notified that the firearm had been recovered.

Brown was transported to Bayfront Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. After treatment, he was transported to the Pinellas County Jail.

A few weeks ago we talked about an off-duty cop who shot and killed a burglar in his home in Littleton, Colorado. Police were sure that Kerry Dean Hughes, the burglar had an accomplice. Turns out that accomplice was Jonathan Lowery who was out of prison on parole. Police locked down the case against him when his GPS ankle monitor turned him in – yes he wore his monitor to the burglary. Now he’s cooling his heels in the Arapahoe County jail on $100,000 bail.

From Yakima, Washington;

Police say an armed man entered the store demanding money. The clerk complied and the 25-year-old man fled in what was described as a Jeep Cherokee.

Minutes later, an officer spotted a vehicle that matched the description in a nearby alley. When the officer turned to investigate, the Jeep fled at a high rate.

Police pursued the Jeep for several minutes, and the chase continued on U.S. Highway 12. The driver, who was the sole occupant of the Jeep, began shooting at police, the release said.

The chase ended in the Tieton area, where the Jeep stopped near Beffa and Naches-Tieton roads and the armed driver got out to confront two officers, who fired at the man.

Aid was rendered after the man was struck at least one time, but he was pronounced dead. His name is being withheld pending positive identification and notification of next-of-kin.

Police say no officers were injured.

From Albuquerque, New Mexico;

Police found Serrano-Urais lying in the street with a gunshot wound to each leg.

During questioning at the hospital, Serrano-Urais told police a friend asked him for help robbing Warren Wild’s house and the two rode there on bicycles.

Police say Wild was alerted when he heard his dogs barking and, suspicious due to a recent robbery in which his bikes were stolen, went outside.

Wild told police he noticed the lock to the fence was cut and saw the bikes, recognizing them as the same ones stolen from him days before.

When Wild found the two men on his property, he fired a gun into the air before pointing it at both of them, according to the complaint. The two men ran, but Serrano-Urais tripped over some boards and fell.

Police say that’s when Wild “put the gun to his head” and told him “not to move or he would kill him.”

According to the complaint, Wild became distracted and Serrano-Urais fled, jumping over a fence as Wild fired at him several times.

Police say Wild planned to keep the gun on Serrano-Urais until officers arrived and only fired after Serrano-Urais stood up from the ground, scaring him.

After firing at him, Wild told police he heard additional gunshots and didn’t know he had hit Serrano-Urais in both legs until officers told him.

From Licking County, Ohio;

The Licking County Sheriff’s Office says Samuel Beskid entered a home in St. Louisville around 5 a.m. Sunday armed with a gun and a flashlight. Investigators say Beskid confronted the homeowner as he lay in bed, sparking an altercation.

Sheriff’s Capt. Chris Slayman tells The Columbus Dispatch the homeowner used his own weapon to shoot Beskid.

Slayman says the homeowner knew Beskid, and the home invasion was not a burglary.

No arrests have been made, and no charges have been filed.

Bobo sends us a link from Lenexa, Kansas;

Police said a man entered the store brandishing a weapon. An off-duty officer who just happened to be at the store at the time shot the suspect. That suspect has died.

Police said no one else was injured. Some shoppers at the store when the shooting happened had to be treated for mild ailments such as panic attacks.

The Kansas City, Kansas Police Department confirmed later Sunday that the officer was one of theirs.

There’s an update on a story which unfolded in Youngstown, Ohio this weekend;

A 19-year-old man who police said was shot trying to rob someone Saturday evening died over the weekend.

Tyler Kitchen of Youngstown is the city’s 22nd homicide victim of the year.

Reports said Kitchen was shot about 6:10 p.m. at Belmont Avenue and Wirt Street.

Chief of Detectives Capt. Brad Blackburn said two men agreed to meet Kitchen to buy a phone from him over the internet but Kitchen tried to rob them.

Instead, one of the men who is a valid concealed carry holder shot Kitchen.

From Silverton, Ohio;

The suspect accused of shooting an 82-year-old Silverton resident who authorities say returned fire in self-defense remains hospitalized.

Dwight Allen, 32, of Roselawn faces charges of felonious assault and carrying concealed weapons.

He is expected to appear in Hamilton County Municipal Court when he is released from University of Cincinnati Medical Center.

According to court records, Allen took a 9mm Ruger semi-automatic handgun and large knife concealed in a box to the victim’s Lillian Drive home on Saturday.

After the victim let Allen in, Allen brandished the gun and struggled with the victim, court records show. The victim was shot in the back trying to flee.

The victim was able to retrieve his personal handgun and fire it once to stop the threat, sheriff’s officials wrote in a sworn statement.

Allen was hit in the left shoulder.

Authorities found him in possession of lighter fluid and a mask, court records show.

From Arlington, Texas;

Police say an off-duty officer shot a suspected shoplifter near the food court at a busy Dallas-area shopping mall.

Arlington police spokesman Lt. Christopher Cook tells WFAA-TV the incident occurred late Sunday afternoon after a theft was reported at a store inside The Parks at Arlington mall.

Cook says the male suspect produced a replica handgun and was shot by an officer who thought the weapon was real. The unidentified suspect was taken to an area hospital. His condition is not yet known.

From St Louis, Missouri;

A man shot and killed a suspect during an attempted home invasion Saturday in a suburb of St. Louis, officials said.

The St. Charles Police Department told FOX 2 they were called to an apartment complex around 5:45 p.m. after the suspect broke into the home while the man and two children were inside.

The homeowner then shot and killed the man, who has not yet been identified by police.

Lt. Chad Fisk with the St. Charles Police Department told FOX 2 the children were not injured in the incident.

From Houston, Texas;

Four teens broke into a woman’s home at the Park at North Vista Apartment complex in the 300 block of North Vista, according to Harris County Precinct 4 Constable Mark Herman.

When the woman heard people inside her home, she opened fire, hitting one in the head. The wounded teen was flown to the hospital in critical condition, while the others fled and are still wanted, Herman said.

The woman is not facing any charges, but the case will be sent to a Harris County grand jury, which has become standard procedure in shootings.

From Youngstown, Ohio;

Police say at 6:15 p.m., they were called to the corner of Belmont Avenue and Wirt Boulevard and found a 19-year-old man shot.

An email sent to 21 News said the man was shot in the head.

It appears the man was attempting to commit a robbery and the robbery victim pulled out a gun, shooting him, according to police.

Police have not released the robbery suspect’s condition.

From Detroit, Michigan;

An off-duty Wayne County sheriff’s deputy shot and killed an armed man when he broke into her home in southwest Detroit, Detroit police said.

Police said the deputy was inside the home, on the 1400 block of Beatrice Street, when she heard the suspect kick in her door and enter at 1:30 a.m. Saturday.

The deputy told police she grabbed her weapon and fired shots at the male intruder, who was armed with a pistol and wearing a black ski mask, striking him in the chest and heart.

The intruder was pronounced dead at the scene.