“If He Moves Towards Me, I’m Afraid I’m Going To Have To Kill”
ORIGINAL STORY: NEIGHBORHOOD REACTION
A man is in custody Sunday night after police say he tried to break into a home on St. Joseph County’s northwest side.
It happened in the 51000-block of Portage near Brick Road.
Police say 28-year-old Cyrus Brown drove off the road and hit a utility pole on Portage. He then attempted to break into a nearby home.
When police arrived, they found an elderly female named Sandra holding the driver at gunpoint, awaiting their arrival. Sandra tells us she was scared to death and yelled at Brown to stay down. She says he begged her not to shoot.
“I would give her thumbs up and tell her to keep up the great work and I’m really proud of her,” Lanore Evins, Sandra’s neighbor, says. “He probably didn’t want anyone to know that happened to him. That’s probably a little embarrassing for him.”
“He was a little combative at first,” explains Sgt. Bill Redman, St. Joseph County Sheriff Department. “The officers had to wrestle with him to get him to comply with their orders. He didn’t mess with the homeowner though.”
Sandra is in the hospital with heart problems she says stemmed from the incident. She says her doctors say the situation caused too much pressure for her. But Sandra hopes her story inspires others to stand up for themselves.
“Doesn’t surprise me about any of us around here. We all fight what’s ours,” says Phyllis Barkley, Sandra’s good friend. “Don’t mess with the gray haired people! We still got a lot of fight in us.”
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