I live in North Carolina now, and generally, I like the state: good barbecue, Buckminster Fuller lived here, Cheerwine, and we’re one of the only 72 states to have the cardinal as our state bird. But then I read about this allegedly drunk idiot outside Charlotte, NC who police say shot at the people who tried to help him when his car was stuck in snow, and it makes me cringe.
On Friday, in Catawba County, just outside of Charlotte, at about 5 p.m., Marvin Jacob Lee was driving, when he spun out on the ice. Generally, North Carolina drivers aren’t that used to driving in icy and snowy weather, so this isn’t too surprising.
Also not surprising is that several people stopped to help—since I’ve been here, I’ve been impressed with, generally, how friendly and helpful people are. A truck with three men stopped, and some people living in the neighborhood the car was in came to help as well.
When the people came into contact with Lee, they found him belligerent and apparently intoxicated in some way, so they wisely decided to back off, and called police for help. As they were calling, Lee pulled what the Charlotte Observer described as an “automatic pistol” and started shooting.
To, you know, protect himself from all the generous acts of assistance and kindness. The people who attempted to help ran, but one bullet struck 26 year old Jefferson Heavner, who fell to the ground.
According to reports, still feeling threatened by attempted selflessness, Lee got out of the car, stood over the prone man, and shot him multiple times. The man police say he killed, the man who was trying to help him, was a father. A single father.
Lee returned to the car, and was passed out when deputies arrived. Eventually, a SWAT armored vehicle arrived and officers physically dragged the bastard out of the car.
There’s a memorial fund for the poor guy who got shot for the crime of being a helpful person, if anyone is so inclined.
Sorry to ruin everyone’s day with this grim reminder that there’s still some awful people out there, and some of them are armed. I think it’s still worthwhile for people to help each other, and assholes like this are really quite rare, but, of course, be careful.