Florida Senior Shoots Thugs During Internet Cafe Robbery

Video at the site.

On another thread, some FReepers are already complaining that he put patrons in danger, that the robbers weren't really threatening anybody, that he's another George Zimmerman, etc. etc. etc.

In my opinion he did the right thing, and if everybody was willing to do the right thing there would be less hyperventilating and calling for the smelling salts when somebody does do the right thing.

I hope to goodness the DA doesn't charge him a la Zimmerman.

How long before Jesse Jackson & Al Sharpton stage a protest???

That guy is cool as a cucumber. He needs to be a greeter at those Wal-Mart stores in Florida.

That is what I call "Gun Control"

If they are complaining, they are probably not Freepers.

“Duwayne”, indeed. Video not needed.......

They just showed it on the local TV news.

He did the right thing. You never know what is going to happen in such a situation but you can’t remove all risks from such an event.

The only thing wrong with this story is .380. Really? Get a .45 so there’s no question. Other than that, good shooting!

Under Florida law, a person is allowed to use deadly force if he or she fears death or serious injury to themselves or others. As long as the person isn’t committing a crime and is in a place where he or she has a right to be, they are considered to be acting within the law.

Well, then George Zimmerman walks.

Some of 'em have been here awhile.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2907665/posts

Good shooting Citizen. Civilization thanks you.

Poor caliber selection, excellent execution.

Problem is, if you're going to the internet cafe in your shorts and T-shirt, you may well not carry the .45, and it's absolutely no use if it's home on the nightstand.

Even a small .45 is a heavy load in a pants pocket -- a .380 you won't even remember you have until you need it.

I can see both sides of this one, because I shot a rabid raccoon TWICE with a .380 -- it stopped him from charging at me, but it didn't incapacitate him. He ran away and I lost the trail at the creek (wet and hundreds of raccoon footprints). He wasn't going to live long in any event though (tremors and drooling).

On the other hand, I had the .380 in the back pocket of my jeans because I always have it there. I simply stepped out on our back deck to see what the funny noise was, and the so-and-so ran at me.

DIRECT LINK TO VIDEO HERE

I once shot a raccoon with a .45 auto. 3 shots all in the thorax and he still fought my dog for a minute of two. The coon was not rabid and they were hardball but a .45 isn’t always magic either.

I suspect if they had been hollow points or even 9mm HPs, the coon would have expired sooner.

Both punks play as innocent victims who are assaulted by evil old men...

Two men who attempted to hold up an Internet cafe were shot and injured by a patron of the business Friday night, according to the Marion County Sheriff's Office. Sheriff's officials said they got a call at 9:54 p.m. about an armed robbery at Palms Internet Cafe, 8444 SW State Road 200. When deputies arrived at the scene, patrons outside the business told them that two men in masks — one armed with a baseball bat and the other with a handgun — had barged into the business. The robbers told the approximately 30 patrons to get on the floor, and they demanded money.Officials said one of the patrons, Samuel Williams, drew his own handgun and shot

at the robbers, according to sheriff's officials.Both robbers began running toward the front door, and the patron fired several more shots as they fled.

The two men got into a car parked nearby and fled.

Not long afterward, deputies got a call about two men at a Marion Oaks residence who were telling people there that they had been shot while at Scott Carrigan Baseball Park on Southeast 17th Street in Ocala. Police Department officers went to the ball field but found no evidence of a shooting there, according to sheriff's officials.The two men were transported — one by helicopter — to Shands at the University of Florida in Gainesville. The Sheriff's Office identified them as Davis G. Dawkins and Duwayne Henderson, both 19. Dawkins has a Dunnellon address. His alleged accomplice has an Ocala address, officials said.Dawkins had a superficial wound in his left arm, but Henderson was shot in two places: his left buttock and his right hip

Locally, neither of the men have a criminal record, authorities said.

“I feel horrible. It doesn't feel good. It makes you think about life's decisions, and how you should live your life,” Henderson said in an interview with the Star-Banner at the jail on Saturday afternoon.Hours after his release from the hospital, Henderson, who talked about the pain he feels in his buttock and hip, said the plan was to “barge in, get the money and leave.” He said “he never expected anyone to be armed.”“The gun was broken and rusty and wasn't loaded. Nobody was going to get hurt,” he said, standing with crutches.

Retrieving the customers' phones was what he said was their “main priority.” That way, he said, the customers could not call law enforcement officials.Henderson theorizes the reason why he was caught off guard is because, when Dawkins entered the business, he busted a computer monitor with the baseball bat and “glass got into his face.”“He couldn't warn me,” Henderson said.

With the glass temporarily blinding his friend, Henderson noticed two women were behind the counter and he thought that was “fishy.” Turning around to see what the women were doing, Henderson said he was shot.“I turned around to run and my leg gave out. That was when I got shot. I hit the ground, and he was still shooting. I thought I was going to die,” Henderson said.Henderson said that, “by the grace of God,” his “leg came back.”

“I ran,” he said.

Henderson said he and Dawkins drove to a house to see a woman he said “is like a second mother” to him At the Marion Oaks residence in the 13000 block of Southwest 47th Terrace, deputies found what they believe was the getaway vehicle, a four-door black Nissan Sentra. The car was towed to the Sheriff's Office for processing.“I couldn't breathe. I had lost so much blood. I don't know what she did, but she revived me,” he said, likening the experience to coming back from the dead.The occupants inside the home called law enforcement, he said.

At the scene in Marion Oaks, a deputy and an evidence technician searched a large open grassy area across the street for evidence, which was collected and placed in brown paper bags.None of the residents or visitors there wanted to talk with a Star-Banner reporter.

At the Internet cafe, investigators collected a .45-caliber handgun they believe was carried by Henderson, which he confirmed in his interview.Henderson was charged with attempted robbery with a firearm and felony criminal mischief.

Interviewed at the hospital, Dawkins admitted to Detective Erik Dice that he took part in the robbery, according to sheriff's officials. The young man said he had the bat, which had been in his vehicle. Dawkins told the detective he was confronted by two people at the ball field and forced to assist in the robbery.Officials said Dawkins previously had worked for the cafe but had been fired.

He was arrested for attempted robbery with a firearm and felony criminal mischief and taken to the Marion County Jail. He declined to be interviewed by a reporter.Henderson said he met Dawkins through a mutual friend about four or five months ago, and that he usually hangs out at Dawkins' Dunnellon residence.Because Dawkins used to work at the cafe, Henderson said Dawkins told him there was “a lot of money there.” Both of them, he said, gathered the gun and bat for the robbery attempt.He said he went to Dawkins' place around 8 p.m. Friday night, where the plan was hatched.

Their actions frightened the customers at the Internet cafe.

“It was scary,” said Kristy Kuhn, a customer. “It wasn't my idea of a good Friday night.”

She said she had been sitting in the second row playing a game and heard loud noises and voices yelling, telling them to “put our wallets out and get on the ground,” Kuhn said.A few seconds after that, she heard gunshots. Kuhn said she hid underneath a desk.

Ruth and Neville Allison, also patrons of the Internet cafe, said they saw the incident unfold.

They said the robbers — one with a gun and the other with what looked like a bat wrapped in white tape — entered from the parking lot.The robber with the bat smashed one of the computers, the couple said. Then the robbers ordered everybody to get down on the ground and take out their wallets and whatever valuables they had.Williams — who declined to be interviewed — was sitting in the row nearest the door. He immediately took out his handgun, took aim and started firing, witnesses said.Neville Allison said the two robbers then tumbled out the door. The robber with the gun may have dropped his weapon, he said. Williams told Dice he was at the Internet cafe with his wife and was afraid the suspects were going to shoot somebody. He told the detective he was scared and that he began shooting at the men.Early Saturday morning, the business and its parking lot had been roped off with crime scene tape. Numbered evidence markers were outside next to sunglasses, a plastic bag and a blue bag.Also outside the Internet cafe and in front of neighboring businesses were numerous smaller markers to indicate drops of blood.

Inside the Internet cafe, a chair had been knocked over and a few more of the larger markers could be seen. The manager of the cafe declined to comment.Though Henderson said he doesn't blame Williams for shooting, he takes exception with Williams shooting at him while he was down.“I was down, and I'm not going to continue to shoot you,” he said.

UPDATE. The Internet cafe patron who shot and injured two men as they tried to rob the business will likely not face any criminal charges.“Based on what I have seen and what I know at this time, I don’t anticipate filing any charges,” said Bill Gladson of the State Attorney’s Office.Gladson said he has reviewed the security surveillance video from the cafe. While he still awaits final reports from the Marion County Sheriff’s Office, he said the shooting appeared justified.Samuel Williams, 71, who fired the shots, has a concealed weapons permit, according to the Sheriff’s Office. Under Florida law, a person is allowed to use deadly force if he or she fears death or serious injury to themselves or others. As long as the person isn’t committing a crime and is in a place where he or she has a right to be, they are considered to be acting within the law.Williams, who lives in Ocala, could not be reached for comment on Monday. But at least one of his 30 fellow patrons at the cafe wants to thank him.“I think he is wonderful. If he wouldn’t have been there, there could have been some innocent people shot,” said Mary Beach.

Beach was sitting in with her back to the door Friday night and didn’t realize what was happening until she heard shots.

“I heard pop, pop; then pop, pop, pop, all at once,” she said. “In the confusion I never really got to see his (Williams) face.”

Surveillance video of the incident was released on Monday by the Sheriff’s Office. It shows two masked men entering the Palms Internet Cafe, 8444 SW State Road 200, just before 10 p.m. Friday. One of the men had a gun.Williams was seated toward the back of the cafe dressed in a white shirt, shorts and baseball cap.

One of the masked men, identified as Duwayne Henderson, 19, comes in pointing a handgun at customers. The second man, Davis Dawkins, 19, is seen swinging a bat at something off screen, which was later identified as a $1,200 computer screen.As Henderson turns his back, Williams pulls out a .380-caliber semi-automatic handgun, stands from his chair, takes two steps, nearly drops to one knee, and fires two shots at Henderson, who bolts for the front door.Williams takes several more steps toward the door and continues firing as Henderson and Dawkins fall over one another trying to exit the building. The two eventually run off screen.Both men were shot by Williams. Their wounds were not life-threatening. Each was arrested hours later and charged with attempted armed robbery with a firearm and felony criminal mischief.

Henderson remained in the Marion County Jail late Monday in lieu of a $31,000 bond. Dawkins was released Sunday after posting an $11,000 bond.Internet cafes are regulated by the state. They offer sweepstakes entries, which are used to buy time on computer terminals that simulate casino-style games. The operations, which have sprung up around the county

On another thread, some FReepers are already complaining that he put patrons in danger, that the robbers weren't really threatening anybody, that he's another George Zimmerman, etc. etc. etc.

The only patron that appeared to be in danger was that woman who plodded right past the gunfire, hands over her ears. It made me wonder if she understood what was taking place around her.

My .380 is as large as I can carry without printing.

It's to get me to my battle rifle.

The .38 snubby that grandad carried when he preached has saved my life 5 times, loaded with snakeshot.

/johnny