Posted on 03/08/2009 10:38:10 AM PDT by Dr. Scarpetta
MARYVILLE, Ill. – Illinois state police say a man has shot a pastor to death and injured others at an church during a service in the community of Maryville.
Illinois Master Trooper Ralph Timmins says the man walked down the aisle during the early Sunday service at First Baptist Church in Maryville.
He said the man exchanged words with pastor Fred Winters and then pulled out a .45-caliber handgun.
Timmins said the man fatally shot Winters once before the gun jammed, then pulled out a knife and wounded himself.
Churchgoers tried to subdue the attacker and two of them suffered minor injuries.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
From the story:
He said he and other church members were praying for the gunman. "He's still alive, so there's still a chance for him to turn his life around and find the Lord."
Or to die and find his true master. Guess, I'm not as charitable as the folks at First Baptist, Maryville.
That or the mag spring was shot.
I thought of that as well, but it doesn't explain why the police haven't released his name. I guess it's possible he had no ID, and since no one at the church recognized him, the police do not yet know who he is, but it seems unlikely he wouldn't be carrying any ID. Even thugs generally get driver's licenses.
The hospital that people, including both the pastor and his killer, were taken to first is very close to the church, just 600-700 yards, with both on the same road.
Or the trooper was mistaken. Other stories, such as the one on Fox, indicate that Pastor Winters was shot 3 times, and 4 others were also shot, and that 2 had knife wounds. They report 5 others, in addtion to the Pastor and the killer, transported to the hospital.
If all that's true, the killer may have just shot the gun dry. Typical .45 has 7 round magazine, and if the magazine was not topped off after loading, then that's 7 rounds available. Rather than jamming, the slide may have locked back on an empty magazine.
It should all get sorted out shortly. At minimum they should have already counted the shell casing(s) lying about.
If this attack has an Islamic terrorist connection, you will hear nothing about it after today. If the shooter is a garden-variety lunatic with no politically correct motivations, for the next week or so you will hear news stories about how .45 caliber handguns are “too powerful” for citizens to be allowed to own. There will also be stories about how the killer, who probably has a long history of violent crime and/or mental illness, is a “typical American” who happened to have access to a gun.
Wow, Maryville is just North of me. I have a feeling these events are only going to get worse.
Secular Humanist Fundamentalist!
Someone needs to be tried and publicly hung. And, not allowing concealed carry should also bring chargers against lawmakers who propose such restrictions in violation of the 2nd Amendement. When are we going to get decent government? When???
Do you know what their responsibilities are?
It's better if the gunman just dies to spare the family the ordeal of a trial. Plus, it's possible that he'd be released early and be out on the street years from now.
Beautiful photo....
A Message About Today’s Loss (from the church’s website)
Today, a little after our 8:15 service began, a man entered First Baptist Church and fired several gunshots at our Senior Pastor, Dr. Fred Winters. Pastor Winters was taken to the hospital but died of his wounds.
Please pray for Dr. Winter’s family, our two brave members who were injured when they stopped the assailant, for the assailant himself and his family, and for our church members as they deal with this tragic loss.
In this day, where uncertainty seems to abound creating an environment in which people are vulnerable in doing things they might not do otherwise, one thing is certain, we, as human beings need a foundation upon which we can live our lives.
We at First Baptist Maryville, along with other Christian believers, share this conviction: that foundation is God’s Word. In the pages of the Book we call the Bible, we find the pathway for peace, hope, and a quality of living life despite what circumstances we find ourselves in.
To those who believe in the power of prayer, we covet your prayers right now.
Very good...
Our church also has people patrolling the parking lot, but I don’t know what other security measures they have.
I remember things like this happening in the 1970's. Sad as it is I don't think much has changed except that we used to only hear about things like this when it happened in our local area.
It broke my heart to see those smiling faces.
It is my firm belief that this man is with his Lord, now and the eternity he has before him in God’s presence far outweighs anything this world has to offer. Even that beautiful family.
That disagrees with the "5 others transported" to the local hospital (600-700 yards from the Church).
The St. Louis paper has a more recent story.
Police removed gun cases and a computer late this afternoon from the Troy, Ill., home of a man suspected of shooting Pastor Fred Winters at a church about two miles away.
Officials would not comment at the scene, but vehicle records show the home in the first block of Zachary Court is the address of Terry Joe Sedlacek, 27, who co-owns a Jeep Wrangler parked outside the crime scene.
Illinois State Police Director Larry Trent said earlier in the day that the vehicle, which was kept under guard, was believed to have been used by the attacker. Trent described the gunman as a 27-year-old who lives in Troy.
Trent declined to confirm the man’s name, pending filing of charges. But a source close to the case confirmed tonight that Sedlacek is the suspect.
...
The man exchanged a few words with Winters and then opened fire with a .45-caliber semi-automatic pistol. The first shot hit a Bible, sending paper into the air like "confetti," Trent said. One of three more shots hit Winters in the chest. Nobody else was shot.
...
Two church members wrestled the attacker down as he slashed them, and himself, with a knife.
I read that as he was being subdued by the two members of the Church, and slashed at them with the knife, and may have gotten stabbed in the melee, rather than deliberately stabbing himself. We'll see.
Sounds like a good plan. It make seem “over the top” until it’s needed. Better to have it and not need it...
I condemn Illinois, because a citizen isn’t allowed to carry a gun - only criminals.
But in this case I don’t know what better security could have done - he started squeezing off shots and the gun jammed. You’d be in condition yellow, see this guy going up, go to condition orange, then when he started shooting you’d be lucky if you could draw, rush and take a bead before it was over.
The news media will generally only release the names of criminals once charges have been filed.
With living victims, identification come when family releases the info. With deceased victims identification is after the family has been notified.
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