This is an incredible video to watch, and it is a miracle that none of the innocents involved were hurt or killed. Mike Jones saved the day by taking out this animal with his pistol. There is another hero in this whole deal, and that was the woman with the purse that actually stepped up and tried to take out this nut case with her purse. Unfortunately though, the panel of men just sat there while this woman was courageously trying to stop this guy. Good on her and good on Mike Jones.
The other point about this is the amount of time this took to go down. Active shooters can do much damage in a very short period of time. It is the people and any security near by that will have the best chance of executing an escape or even stopping the shooter in those mad seconds. As you can see in the video below, the SWAT guys came in after the smoke and dust settled. Meaning, people have to think in terms of preservation of life and doing something about it, and not depending on law enforcement or some random hero to save the day. –Matt
Fla. shooting hero admired for his generosity
December 16, 2010By BRENT KALLESTAD
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The security guard credited with saving the lives of several Panama City school board members got back to his holiday role Thursday, working as Santa Claus on behalf of the poor children in his area.
Mike Jones, who is well-known locally as “Salvage Santa” for his work providing refurbished Christmas gifts for needy children, shot a gunman Tuesday after the man began firing at members of the Bay County School Board.
Jones had just arrived at the building before Clay Duke interrupted the meeting. After being hit several times, Duke shot himself in the head. School board members were not injured.
“I wasn’t there five minutes and I was in a gunfight,” Jones, 57, said at a news conference. “They said the gun battle lasted 13 seconds but it seemed like it was forever.”
Jones, a former school board member who serves as the school district’s security chief, said he was supposed to be on vacation but was in the building to be available to answer some questions during the meeting.