Houston Chronicle, Jay Jordan:
Police in Amarillo shot an innocent man who helped foil a possible church shooting.
The shooting happened shortly after 9 a.m. Feb. 14 at the Faith City Mission, a faith-based outreach organization. Police said Joshua Len Jones, 35, of Amarillo, barged into a church building at Faith City Mission, pulled out a gun and was holding about 100 congregants and church staff hostage.
In the time between when police were dispatched and when officers arrived, a handful of churchgoers wrestled Jones to the ground. One of the congregants was able to grab Jones' gun.
Officers entered the building and saw the churchgoer holding the gun and opened fire, according to the Amarillo Police Department. The churchgoer was hospitalized in stable condition.
The victim, who spoke to ABC 7 Amarillo, has since been released and told the station he would do it all over again despite being shot by police.
"There were other people there," Tony Garces said. "I just took the gun away from him. I got shot. I got the bad part. It's life."
The weird part (which isn't weird at all): He started out as a good guy without a gun, but by the time the cops got there, he was the good guy with a gun, and the cops shot him because he was the guy with the gun.
Weird part #2 (which also isn't weird at all): I'm wondering if this is going to make NRA-TV.
At first I tho't they wouldn't wanna be anywhere near this one. But those guys are pretty remarkably good at selling, so I think we can fully expect a Turnaround.
"If Mr Garces had been appropriately armed, then the would-be shooter is the only one to have been shot."
But it still comes down to this: Gun violence in this case was thwarted by unarmed people - and we don't know that the perp really intended to shoot anybody in the first place.
"There were other people there," Tony Garces said. "I just took the gun away from him. I got shot. I got the bad part. It's life."
The weird part (which isn't weird at all): He started out as a good guy without a gun, but by the time the cops got there, he was the good guy with a gun, and the cops shot him because he was the guy with the gun.
Weird part #2 (which also isn't weird at all): I'm wondering if this is going to make NRA-TV.
At first I tho't they wouldn't wanna be anywhere near this one. But those guys are pretty remarkably good at selling, so I think we can fully expect a Turnaround.
"If Mr Garces had been appropriately armed, then the would-be shooter is the only one to have been shot."
But it still comes down to this: Gun violence in this case was thwarted by unarmed people - and we don't know that the perp really intended to shoot anybody in the first place.
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