Montana prison escapee shot to death by police in Walmart parking lot

Occurred July 5, 2013.

Onlookers overlooking the scene of the Billings Walmart shooting

(UPDATED - see below) 42-year-old Dean Randolph Jess broke out of Montana State Prison.  He was spotted in a stolen vehicle in a Billings, Montana, Walmart parking lot.  When police arrived, they blocked his exit from the parking lot.  This is when Jess pulled out a gun and fired on police.  Police fired back, hitting and killing Jess.

From an article, with video of the scene and interview with police.

A sheriff's deputy driving back from Laurel swung past the West End Wal-Mart and saw a green Jeep Rubicon leaving the parking lot. Linder said that officer and two others who quickly joined him positioned their vehicles to block the Rubicon. 

Linder arrived on the scene shortly thereafter and said he could see the man in the Rubicon holding a pistol in front of his chest. Linder said the deputies shouted at the man repeatedly to put the gun down and get out of the vehicle. 

At one point, Linder said, one deputy shouted "Don't do it!" 

"At that time, shots were fired," Linder said. 

Just one deputy fired multiple rounds from his Glock 21 .45-caliber handgun, striking Jess an unknown number of times, Linder said. Deputies then broke into the Jeep and pulled Jess from the vehicle. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Linder said the deputy, who was placed on leave pending an investigation of the shooting, evidently thought Jess was raising the gun in his direction. Linder said he was behind the deputy when the shooting happened and couldn't see where Jess's gun was at that point. 

"The deputy felt that his life was in danger," Linder said.  

King Avenue West was shut down for several hours during and after the standoff. 

Witnesses at the scene said at least six deputies surrounded the Jeep, and after several minutes of shouting at Jess to drop his gun they tried to smash out the Rubicon's windows with their batons, without success. 

Witnesses thought they heard four shots. 

“Everyone was pointing guns at the car and then I heard ‘Get out of the car. Get out of the car. Get out of the car,’" said one bystander who was stopped at the intersection right behind the sheriff’s vehicle that pulled Jess over. "But the guy didn’t move. Then they started breaking the glass and then pop, pop, pop, pop." 

Immediately after the shots were fired, Jess was pulled from the vehicle and set on the ground, where he was motionless. The hatchback of the Rubicon was opened to reveal camping equipment and what appeared to be fishing waders.  

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.


UPDATE (7/9/13):  The officer who shot Jess is identified as Lieutenant Shane Skillen.  See HERE for news video of the shooting and aftermath.

Update (4/16/14):  The officer who shot Jess, Lt. Skillen, has been cleared of wrongdoing during the inquest.  It's clear that Jess intended suicide-by-cop.  He was shot four times by Skillen before dying.

Wanted robber shot dead by police in Arkansas Walmart parking lot

Occurred July 3, 2013.

Scene of shooting at Rockport Walmart

Brandon Rennie Turner, 34, had just robbed a convenience store in Hot Spring County, Arkansas.  He was already a wanted man for robbery and attempted robbery, and was a high-risk sex offender.

He was spotted by police and pulled over in the parking lot of a Walmart supercenter in Rockport, Arkansas, just outside of Malvern, Arkansas.

A shootout occurred between Turner and the police officers, and Turner was killed.

From an article:

It was a normal Wednesday morning at the Wishbone General Store until Turner walked through the door.  

"While I had my back turned, he had cocked the gun like he was ready to shoot," explains store clerk Blanca Carrillo. She says as she handed over money from the cash register, a customer walked into the store. 

"He pretty much saved my life. If he wouldn't have came in he would have shot me," Carrillo says.  

After robbing the Wishbone, and leaving behind a terrified clerk, police say Turner took off down Highway 84 toward Malvern.  

After the robbery, officers were told to be on the lookout for Turner and his white Toyota Tacoma 4x4.  

He was also wanted for attempted murder and robbery in Hot Springs, and police say Turner was also a high risk sex offender.  

When Rockport Police stopped Turner in the Walmart parking lot near Malvern, police say he fired a shot at an officer.  

That's when police say the officer fired three times and Turner was killed. 

(a related article)

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Minnesota man purchased rifle and ammunition from Walmart for use in murder plot against ex-wife's husband

Occurred January 6, 2013.


John Edwin Bemis III purchased a .22 rifle and ammunition from a Walmart store in Hermantown, Minnesota, which was then used by his ex-wife, Marie Majerle, in a murder attempt that they had plotted together, to kill her current husband. 

After purchasing the gun and ammo from Walmart, Bemis carefully instructed Majerle on how to use the gun to murder the husband, how to dispose of the gun, and how to get away with him and their 14-year old daughter.  He also attempted to shave off the serial number.

She attempted the murder, but only wounded the husband

From an article (bolding added):

The complaint said Bemis, Marie Majerle and their daughter traveled to the Miller Hill Mall in Duluth. Bemis left them and went to the Super Wal-Mart Center in Hermantown, where he purchased the .22-caliber ammunition and returned to the mall. 

Back at the residence, Bemis allegedly continued the conspiracy by showing Marie Majerle how to load and unload the rifle. He showed her that it was a semi-automatic rifle and could be fired more than one time by simply pulling the trigger. He then showed her where the safety was before he went into the basement and drilled the serial numbers off the rifle, the complaint said. 

Marie Majerle said Bemis placed the rifle in the vehicle she would be driving. She said he advised her where to discard the rifle after the shooting and to take a change of clothes so she could burn the ones she was wearing after the shooting. 

According to the complaint, Marie Majerle told investigators that Bemis had a job opportunity in Arizona and the only thing preventing him, Marie Majerle and their child from leaving was Richard Majerle. She also told investigators that she was convinced Bemis would have killed Richard Majerle because he had made comments about possibly conducting a drive-by shooting of the victim as he went to work or at his home. 

Police viewed a Wal-Mart surveillance video showing Bemis purchasing the ammunition found in Marie Majerle’s car after the shooting, the complaint said. Investigators said they also found the clothing she was to have used if her attempt to kill Richard Majerle had been successful. 

According to the complaint, during Tuesday’s interview with investigators, Marie Majerle said she had decided not to kill Richard Majerle when she went to his home but instead to shoot and wound him. However, she said, when she opened the door to the sauna and pointed the gun at the victim, he flinched in a manner that resulted in the gunshot striking him in a location (between the neck and shoulder) she had not anticipated.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Fight in Virginia Walmart parking lot leads to shot fired

Occurred June 22, 2013.


A fight in the parking lot of a Walmart in Chesapeake, Virginia, led to a shot fired.  Luckily, no one was injured.

From an article:

According to police, one shot was fired around 8 p.m. outside the store on Grassfield Pkwy.  No one was hit by the bullet. 

A NewsChannel 3 viewer says the shooting sent people running and customers were told to move to the back of the store. 

Police are still looking for the shooter.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

Pennsylvania man shoots and kills girlfriend with shotgun shells purchased at Walmart

Occurred May 21, 2013.


Gregory Twyman, 44, posted a picture on Facebook of shotgun shells he had purchased at Walmart the week before and announced his plans to kill his girlfriend, in Chester County, Pennsylvania.

The next day, as he planned, he shot his girlfriend, Jamica Woods, several times in the torso with his shotgun.  He then called 911 to turn himself in.

From an article (bolding added):

"Jamica Woods was a kind and loving mother," District Attorney Tom Hogan said in a statement. "This crime was a cold-blooded execution. We will seek justice for Jamica's death."
Woods was killed by several shotgun wounds to her torso. 

In Hogan's notice of intent to seek the death penalty, he says Twyman has "a significant history of felony convictions involving the use or threat of violence to the person," an aggravating circumstance in support of a death sentence. 

The day before the shooting, Twyman posted a photo of a shotgun shell he bought at Walmart on his Facebook page. 

A friend asked what it was, and he identified it as a shell, according to court documents. 

The friend said: "I'm calling the ATF on your ass now...LOL...." 

Twyman wrote: "Gon be too late." 

Another friend wrote: "CIA FBI ATF u know snitches be lurking amongst us on here… lol." 

Twyman replied: "Once I handle my business I don’t give a f---!" 

Then, on May 21, authorities say, he called 911 and said: "I need the police, I just shot my girlfriend."  

The prosecution's death penalty notice will be formally entered when Twyman is arraigned on Thursday.

From another article and news video (bolding added):

Chester County District Attorney Thomas Hogan called it a "premeditated and cruel." 

"This was not an argument, this was a pre-planned execution," Hogan said. 

Hogan said that Twyman took his time to reload the shotgun to deliver a second shot. 

Twyman, 44, told police that after weeks of fighting he decided to shoot Woods, 37, with shotgun shells he bought "last week at Walmart." 

Police say Twyman predicted the shooting on his Facebook page. The day before the homicide police say that Twyman made his Facebook profile photo a shotgun shell and the banner photo of his own shotgun, according to the affidavit.

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Police officer shoots and kills child abductor in Oklahoma Walmart

Scene of shooting at Midwest City Walmart Neighborhood Market

Occurred June 17, 2013.

(UPDATED: see below)

Sammie Lamont Wallace, 37, entered a Midwest City, Oklahoma, Walmart Neighborhood Market store, and then abducted a 2-year old girl from a shopping cart, where she had been shopping with her mother.  He then put a knife to the toddler and went to the back of the store, counting down.

Police responded, and when it was clear that the man wasn't backing down and was likely to harm the child, shot him and killed him.

Wallace had a long rap sheet of violent acts, including a shooting, armed robbery, and threats to kill others.

From an article:

A child, 2, was plucked from her shopping cart and held hostage at knife point. The man who took the little girl was identified by police as Sammie Lamont Wallace, 37. Officers said Wallace threatened the child's life and began a countdown in the back of the store. Shoppers and employees were evacuated as police began to negotiate with Wallace, who made unintelligible demands. 

Police officers who responded to the incident just after 3 p.m. first started to negotiate with the hostage-taker in the dairy section of the store, 7520 E Reno Ave. Attempts to talk ended as Wallace began to count and held a knife to the child's body. A Midwest City police officer shot Wallace dead. 

The grocery store reopened Tuesday morning. Twenty-four hours after the incident, there were more questions than answers. 

Midwest City Assistant Police Chief Sid Porter said it's not clear why Wallace targeted a child that he did not know. 

Police have not released the name of the child, her mother, or of the officer who shot Wallace. The child was uninjured, Porter said.

The district attorney and prosecutor says that the officer's actions were heroic and justified, so likely the shooting is ruled as justified.

(a related article and news article, also here)

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.

UPDATE (7/3/13):  The mother of the girl who was held hostage spoke out about the incident:

"I was literally begging for my daughter's life," Alice Keating told NBC of the terrifying abduction while shopping at a Midwest City store with her two girls, aged 2 and 12, late last month. 

When she turned her back on her children for a second, police say, wanted felon Sammie Wallace snatched her youngest Zoey from her shopping cart and casually began making his escape. 

When Keating realized what was happening and turned to face the man she says he flashed a knife held up to her little girl. 

"He said really quietly, 'Hey little mama, you see this knife?'" Keating recalled. 

"I did not maintain my composure. I was completely freaked out," she said. "I wanted to reach out and grab her but he had a knife. There was nothing I could do but stand there and beg for her life."

.

Alaskan man shoplifts wiper blades and fires shots in Walmart store

Occurred June 18, 2013.


22-year old Wesley Weinburger was caught shoplifting wiper blades from an Eagle River, Alaska, Walmart store.  When confronted, Weinburger then fired multiple shots and fled.  He was later arrested.

Luckily no one was injured.

From an article:

According to Myren, Weinburger was first confronted by Walmart employees who accused him of concealing a set of $20 wiper blades near the front check-out area. Weinburger allegedly pushed past the employees and ran toward a set of locked entry doors, firing multiple shots. Myren said Weinburger then turned around and ran out of the store through a set of unlocked doors. 

Police using K-9 dogs located some of Weinburger's clothing in a neighbor's yard, and he was apprehended at home a short time later.

According to another article, Weinburger fired the shots in order to break through a locked exit.  Upon getting outside, he apparently took off his shoes and pants for some reason during the getaway.

Walmart.  Save money.  Die faster.