Posted on 02/06/2002 8:40:01 AM PST by Travis McGee
Boy's action 'justifiable'
11-year-old shoots, kills assailant
By GWEN O'BRIEN
Tribune Staff Writer
SOUTH BEND -- When Tony D. Murry held a box cutter to Sue Gay's neck Monday night, Gay's 11-year-old adopted son ran upstairs at the home at 1348 N. Huey St. and grabbed a gun.
"He hit the bottom of the stairs with the .45 and stood ready stance with the gun," said Gay with feet spread apart and her hands outstretched as if holding a handgun.
The boy shot one round and hit Murry, 27, in the chest, even though the man was shielding himself with Gay. "I don't know how he did that. One shot and he got him. He's my little hero," Gay said of the grandson she adopted.
The fifth-grader may not have been just a lucky shot. This is a family that knows guns. "Before his dad died, they'd go target shooting. He knows they're not toys and not something to mess with," Gay said.
Ironically, it was guns that Murry may have come for in the first place. "Murry demanded all the weapons in the house. Gay's late husband was a weapons collector and Murry knew of the collection," said St. Joseph County Prosecutor Chris Toth, who said this was a case of justifiable homicide.
Gay said her daughter, who is the boy's biological mother and currently in prison, was acquainted with Murry. Murry, or "Casper" as Gay knew him, would come by every couple of months to ask about Gay's daughter. The two never dated, according to Gay.
"I'm not sure where they met. Probably in South Bend when she was off on one of her drug binges," Gay said. In an arrest in November, Murry listed "drug dealer" as his occupation, according to booking records at the St. Joseph County Jail.
"I'm upset because she put us in this position. She didn't send him (Murry) over here, but he was one of her acquaintances. I'm more mad at him though," Gay said.
Murry had been inside Gay's house before Monday night and she trusted him. But this visit was different. "I know he was drunk. At first he wanted me to buy him booze. Then he wanted me to drive him home. I don't leave my house after dark," Gay said.
Gay said Murry had been at the house for about a half an hour. She said she asked him to leave at 8 p.m. because she needed to go to bed. She normally leaves for work at 3 a.m.
"He got irritated and asked for a drink of water. When I was in the kitchen he held the razor knife (box cutter) to my son's throat and said, 'This is not anything personal,' " Gay said.
Then Murry rushed up behind Gay and held the box cutter to her throat, she said.
"He told me, 'Take me to where the guns are.' He pushed me through the kitchen and into the front room," Gay said. Gay stopped at the love seat, put her left foot on it and pushed back on Murry, she said. "I pushed up so he couldn't push me forward any more, and I tried to push his hands down off my neck but he had a tight grip. I called for my son to say 'call 911,' " Gay said.
That's when the boy appeared with the gun. Murry ducked his head behind Gay's small frame. Some of his torso was left unshielded.
"I'm looking down the barrel of a gun that's in an 11-year-old's hands. I knew that if he pulled that trigger I was going to die," Gay said.
But Gay was not hit. She said they didn't immediately know Murry had been shot. "Casper went for the front door, turned the handle and went out of the house. My son ran to me and set the gun down. I hurried up and locked the door and called 911," Gay said.
South Bend police found Murry, of 2009 W. Linden Ave., outside the home. He died in the emergency room at Memorial Hospital.
"The young man reasonably believed his mother and himself to be in danger of dying. It was clear to us this was a justifiable homicide," Toth said. "He did what he had to do. That's an unfortunate burden for an 11-year-old to have on him," he said.
Murry had a criminal history. Between 1993 and 2001 he had several misdemeanor arrests. Murry had a theft conviction from 1994 and a conviction for attempted theft in 1993, which was treated as a misdemeanor. Murry had been convicted of unarmed robbery for which he received a four-year prison sentence in 1997. At the time of his death, Murry was charged in two Class D felony auto theft cases pending in St. Joseph Superior Court. He was scheduled to appear in court Feb. 26 for a possible guilty plea.
Meantime, Gay said after 23 years at 1348 N. Huey St., she is putting the house up for sale and moving with her son out into the county, where her fiance lives.
Gay said the boy is doing well since the shooting. "He's proud of himself. He feels bad he took a human life. But he didn't want to lose me. He lost his dad three years ago to a heart attack," Gay said.
The best bumper stick I've ever seen is: "Gun Control means using BOTH hands."
True- hope (but don't know) that I would do as well. good job.
My only point was the .45 has an undeserved reputation for recoil- the low velocity round, large frame, and large slide make it a pretty comfortable gun to shoot, even for kids and petite females.
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Stay well - Stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown
Please note I did not say teach them to shoot but an officer or two taking this young man to the range some Saturday may be a very positive influence. He will not be able to discuss this very much in a school envirornmet as it would probably violate a zero tolerance rule.
Stay well - Stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown
what the heck is a .250? A Savage .250?
First off, a .45 really doesn't have that big of a kick. As someone already mentioned, the design of the frame and weight make if very manageable and the boy only had to worry about getting off the first shot in which he was a success. Blackpowder is also a slow burning powder and it's hard to give them a punishing recoil unless the design of the buttstock is poor. You could bookmark the bang list here or go to some of the other shooting boards for some more advice. There is a book called "The Complete Guide To Guns and Shooting" by John Mallory that I think is excellent. I have a copy and I wish I owned it twenty years ago. It would have saved me a lot of trouble.
The absolute nastiest, rankest handgun I ever shot was a straight-blowback Astra in 9mm. Straight-blowback 380s are a close second. Just a fast, hard slap to the hand, with no unlocking mechanism to lengthen and soften the recoil cycle. Each shot was a stinging agony.
OTOH, I fired 50 rounds of .44 magnum with no problem. It was THE NEXT DAY that my hand and wrist paid the price.
I know it's a big problem in our city too. My wife recently started working in the public schools and she's getting a real eye opener. She had been praying for one of the boys (elementary school) and one day he said to my wife out of the blue: "you are my momma in God's way" broke my wifes heart.
There are so many. We all need to be involved.
yup- I'd rather shoot hot 357s out of my 2" taurus than .380s out of my girlfriend's Gaurdian .380-no fun at all.
It's a sad story when we go to people's houses and they tell their kids "don't you talk to them (police)" "don't you trust them either."
What is it with box cutters and criminals these days?!?
Is there some box cutter kit they send off for out of 'Criminal of Fortune' magazine.
Totally agreed.
Stay well - Stay safe - Stay armed - Yorktown
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