Posted on 11/24/2003 4:56:31 PM PST by Donaeus
There is new information about the events that led to the capture of double murder supsect Scott Eizember. Eizember is in a Texas hospital recovering from four gunshot wounds that came from a gun concealed by one of his alleged kidnapping victims.
Authorities with the Angelina County Sheriff's Department say they received a 911 call at about 7:30 p.m. Sunday night. The caller said a man and woman, now identified as Dr. Samuel Peebles and his wife Suzanne, came to his residence bleeding and needing help. The couple told the man they had stopped to help a stranded motorist in Arkansas and that he had displayed a gun and forced them to drive south.
The Peebles did not know the man was Eizember.
While driving through Angelina County, the Peebles convinced Eizember to allow them to use the restroom. That's when an altercation ensued between Dr. Peebles and Eizember at which point Eizember was shot four times. Dr. Peebles had been able to recover a handgun that was concealed in the minivan.
Eizember assaulted both Samuel and Suzanne Peebles before taking off in their van. He attempted to get help for his wounds at a grocery store, but an employee of the store called the Corrigan, Texas police department to report a man with gunshot wounds and carrying a weapon inside the store.
Authorities from Corrigan and Polk County were able to get a description of the minivan and eventually stopped Eizember, who told them he had been shot by an unknown assailant while his vehicle was stopped along the road.
Officers contacted paramedics, who treated Eizember at the scene. A pistol discovered by police was confiscated.
Eizember was transported to Memorial Hospital in Lufkin where he was treated for his wounds. It was at this point that it was learned of Eizember's identity and what had really happened.
The Peebles were transported to Lufkin Hospital where they are in stable condition.
It brings an end to the more than five week manhunt for Eizember, who faces two counts of first degree murder in the October 18th shooting deaths of A.J. and Patsy Cantrell of Depew.
He also faces one charge of shooting with intent to kill in the shooting of Tyler Montgomery and a charge of assault and battery with a deadly weapon in the beating of Montgomery's grandmother, Carla Wright.
An intense, three-week manhunt ended on November sixth when a thorough search of a wooded area near Bristow turned up nothing.
Then, Sunday morning, an elderly Depew woman discovered a man believed to be Eizember at a food pantry near the First Methodist Church. In her rush to escape, she left her keys in the door and her car was stolen.
It's believed Eizember took the vehicle and went east into Arkansas, where he kidnapped Dr. Samuel and Suzanne Peebles near Waldron, about 35 miles southeast of Fort Smith.
At about 2:30, Creek County authorities say Kathy Biggs, Eizember's ex-girlfriend, received a frantic phone call from a woman who said she was with Eizember and that he was coming to get Biggs. Police began tracing the phone calls, but before they could locate him, the shooting in Texas had taken place.
Creek County authorities are expected to go to Lufkin, Texas today.
Thank you for reporting Dr. Peebles' use of a firearm to protect himself and his wife for what it is--a victim successfully withstanding an assault by an armed assailant. The doctor's choice to defend Mrs. Peebles and himself with a handgun not only saved their lives; his actions precipitated the capture of a criminal who was a potential threat to all of us. I very much appreciate your unbiased coverage of this story. I hope that others will follow your lead and choose to report similar events based solely on the facts.
Absolutely! The other day a friend of mine was telling me about helping to foil a thief from stealing his friend's car in Dallas. They were playing pool and someone came in from the parking lot to say two individuals were breaking into the car. David (my friend) and his buddy went outside to discover a man and woman working on the car. As soon as the man saw them he fled but the woman stood her ground after finding a gun under the car seat. She began firing at David and the car/gun owner, the two of them were able to get to safety and retrieve the weapon of a third friend. He returned fired and hit her 3 times, all non-fatal wounds, thwarting her robbery attempt. The police arrived and told David's buddy that he should have killed the woman! Glad to see he doesn't have any more use for criminals than I do. (Both of the guns belonged to concealed permit carriers.)
You bet ! ...
AMW Bump
You guys do know what we do with those people here, right?
Texas and Arkansas have reciprocity WRT CHL's. Even if he doesn't I'll bet that unlike in certain Eastern jurisdictions, he won't be prossecuted for having the gun. (Of course having it isn't illegal in Texas, carrying it, even in your vehicle, is, unless you have a CHL, or are transporting the gun to/from a gun shop, the range, etc and it's unloaded an inaccessible or if you are "traveling") If nothing else, he (or the DA/Judge) can invoke the "traveling" defense, even if the travel was involuntary.
Stay Safe !
Thank God the Peebles did not suffer a similar fate. The only thing "wrong" with this article is that the dirtbag did not suffer the same fate as his victims. Now, taxpayers will have to spend obscene amounts of money for his healthcare, defense, gazillions of appeals and room and board. Feh!
Thanks for the ping, (((((Donaeus))))))
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