Friday morning feel good stories.

| October 12, 2018

From Clallam County, WA

Sgt. John Hollis said a road rage incident led to Steve Thompson of Joyce, 62, telling deputies he shot Garry Edwards of Joyce, 46, in self-defense with a 9mm Springfield XD handgun.

The Clallam County Sheriff’s Office likely will recommend assault charges against Edwards.

“The facts and circumstances available to us at this time suggest [Thompson] acted in self-defense,” said Chief Criminal Deputy Brian King.

King said Tuesday that investigators have more questions and that the incident remains under investigation.

Edwards suffered a single gunshot to his upper left arm and chest, Hollis said. King said Edwards, who was initially transported to Olympic Medical Center, was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

Edwards was listed in satisfactory condition Tuesday morning, according to hospital personnel. King said deputies attempted to interview him and his wife Monday.

The shooting was reported at about 4:50 p.m. Monday on the 100 block of Whiskey Creek Beach Road, about 18 miles west of Port Angeles off state Highway 112. Four deputies and one Lower Elwha Klallam Tribal police officer arrived at the scene at about 5:10 p.m.

When they arrived they were met with a chaotic scene that involved a vehicle that had been run off the roadway, a man who had been shot in his left bicep and several people and vehicles in the road.

King said Thompson was released because it appears he acted in self-defense, though the investigation will be forwarded to the Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for a charging decision.

King said the incident appears to have started with Edwards’ belief that Thompson had been trespassing on his family’s property while hunting.

“Somehow Edwards received word Thompson was trespassing,” King said. “That’s something we’re still going to be working on.”

King said that investigators are checking GPS data for Thompson’s vehicle to determine where he has been in the past few days.

He said that Thompson said he was hunting on Merrill & Ring land in the area. It is currently muzzleloader elk season and a black powder rifle and hunting equipment were found in Thompson’s vehicle, according to King.

King said there’s no evidence that shows Thompson was trespassing Monday, but said he is suspected to have trespassed in the days prior.

Edwards’ adult son told investigators that Thompson had trespassed in the past and that Edwards went to confront him.

“It’s still our position that even if an individual is trespassing, it does not justify the events that transpired, regardless of if they were trespassing or not,” King said.

Thompson told investigators he was driving back to state Highway 112 when Edwards’ vehicle stopped in the middle of the road, blocking him.

Thompson said he drove around the vehicle and that Edwards followed him, eventually passing him in a no passing zone and sideswiping him, causing Thompson to lose control of his vehicle.

King said damage to Thompson’s and Edwards’ vehicles was consistent with Thompson’s claim that Edwards forced Thompson off of the road.

“According to Steve’s son … by the time Steve opened the door … Garry was at the door and started punching him and assaulting him,” Hollis said.

“After being rammed off the road and this guy attacking him, he was in fear of his life,” King said.

Thompson suffered bruises and cuts to his face, officials said.

From COLORADO SPRINGS, CO

Police in Colorado Springs say a homeowner shot and killed an apparent burglar over the weekend.

Investigators determine 30-year-old Houston Malachai Cookson was trying to break into a home Saturday night. A woman called 911 while her husband confronted Cookson with a gun.

Responding officers found Cookson on a rear patio suffering from a gunshot wound to the torso. Cookson later died of his injuries.

Officers determined Cookson had items that had been stolen in an unrelated incident.

Police Lt. Howard Black tells KKTV it appeared the homeowner was protecting his residence and family. Colorado law allows a person to kill an intruder in self-defense.

Category: Feel Good Stories

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HMC Ret

Happy Birthday, United States Navy, 13OCT1775.

Go Navy, Beat Army

Tallywhagger

Sheesh, Edwards had so many alternatives to deal with a potential poacher or trespasser than going berserk. Sounds like he deserved to be shot. If Edwards has any firearms, they’re likely to be gone, very soon.

As to Thompson? You go looking for trouble, you’ll probably find it. He could have called the police or appropriate authorities, himself, against Edwards.

If payback is a bitch, we may not have heard the last of these guys.

Just guessing but I doubt if either of these guys are Elks as in B.P.O.E.

Deplorable B Woodman

Hatfields, meet McCoys.

Claw

Malachai (Amish?) Cookson (DOT) 28 x 3 = 84

Ex-PH2

Houston Malachai???? That has to bring a bodacious Name Scrabble score.

That Washington elk hunt story sounds like two guys who had it in for each other before anything happened.

Claw

Hmmm, somehow the Whiz Wheel missed out on including the Christian name of Houston into the scoring, so add another 30 points bringing the overall DOT score up to 114.

TAH Name Scrabble (Home Version)™® regrets the omission.

Ex-PH2

Why, thank you, Claw!!

26Limabeans

“muzzleloader elk season”

Elk are listed as “Dangerous Game” in the advertising for the .444 Marlin.
Of the two Moose I have taken with that rifle, I would say neither would have gone down quickly without the help of my partners follow up Savage in .308.

Elk are big rugged animals.
Hats off to the hunter with a muzzle loader that has the nerve to light that fuse.

Tallywhagger

Back in high school days a friends father got a .444 for deer and bear hunting. His first time out with it he ended up with a serious laceration from the scope slapping him above his eye.

I don’t remember if I ever shot that one. I had a strong preference for 30.06 and then added a .308 to the locker, still have them and still love them. Still looking a deal on a 30.30

bigjohn

Did you ever shoot a .60cal coal fired rifle?

Claw

Wonderfully brilliant orange sunrise this morning as the heat tab cracks the Tetons.

Kinda frosty on the old punkin as the current temperature is a bracing 22° as the kids are waiting at the school bus stop.

CCO

Twenty-two degrees on October 12? Yikes! Elevation?

Claw

Not very tall at all (just a tad over 4700 feet) here in the Snake River Plain.

Cold front coming in for over the weekend, so the scud was pushed out leaving a nice clear crisp overnight.

Ex-PH2

Yeah, we even had a little frost on the pumpkin last night with an overnight low of 30F in the northeastern Midwest.

Oh, yeah – the calico showed up for dinner last night and breakfast this morning, and I let her into the house. Made two cans of cat food disappear like a Hoover in use. She asked to go back outside, but she’ll be baaack!