The 230 comments overwhelmingly support the good guy with a gun. Among them:
"Liberals are not going to like reading this. They hate when law abiding citizens have guns and kill the bad guys."
www.stltoday.com/news/local/crime-and-courts/man-shoots-kills-robbery-suspect-during-violent-crime-spree-in-st-charles/article_31011371-4d41-5b63-815b-027d9fe163b2.htmlMan shoots, kills robbery suspect during 'violent crime spree' in St. CharlesJanelle O'Dea 8 hrs ago
ST. CHARLES — A St. Louis man on a bathroom break at a QuikTrip here shot and killed an armed robber early Saturday.
Police said the robber was on a “violent crime spree” across three St. Charles gas stations.
The QuikTrip customer, identified only as a 26-year-old man from St. Louis, stopped around 3:20 a.m. at the gas station at 2260 First Capitol Drive to use the restroom and make a purchase, St. Charles police said in a release. The man was on his way back to his vehicle in front of the store when he saw a black SUV pull up abruptly.
St. Charles police on Sunday identified the deceased man as Lance M. Bush, 26, of St. Louis. Police said Bush was homeless.
Police would not release the name of the customer who killed Bush, saying St. Charles County prosecutors will review the case first to determine if the killing was justified.
The customer saw Bush inside the station holding a knife to the clerk’s throat. The customer got his 9 mm handgun from his vehicle, entered the store, and confronted the suspect, police said.
Bush grabbed his backpack, told the man, “I have something for you,” and walked toward him, police said.
The customer then fired several times. Bush fell to the floor. The customer and the clerk, who were uninjured, both called 911, police said.
Bush was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead, police said.
Police said they believed Bush was responsible for two other crimes just prior to the QuikTrip incident.
Just before 3 a.m. Saturday a suspect entered an On The Run convenience store at a Mobil gas station at 1401 South Fifth Street and announced a robbery. He held a knife to the throat of a clerk, 43, while she opened the cash register, according to police.
The suspect then pushed the clerk to the floor, stole money from the cash register and dragged the clerk toward the rear of the store asking where the safe was. When the clerk couldn’t open the safe, he dragged her back to the front counter to open a second register. This suspect also fled in a black SUV.
The clerk had knife cuts on her left wrist, right hand and neck, and was taken to a hospital for non-life-threatening injuries.
Around 3:15 a.m., with officers en route to the On The Run, a call came in for an alarm at Midtown Phillips 66, 524 First Capitol Drive. Officers found broken glass and began investigating it as a burglary.
Investigators determined the black SUV was a 2013 Toyota Highlander, reported stolen in an armed robbery on July 15 from the 13500 block of Riverport Drive in Maryland Heights.
Items believed to have been stolen from the burglary at Midtown Phillips 66 were located in the vehicle, police said.
Police declined to release surveillance video from the three gas stations.
Bush's criminal history includes a pending felony property damage charge in St. Louis County. Charges said Bush was a former employee of the Applebee's restaurant at 11077 New Halls Ferry Road and that on March 30, he began smashing several stacks of dishes and tossing frozen food when the restaurant's manager told him his final paycheck wouldn't be available for several days. Police said he caused an estimated $6,000 in damages.
Bush also had citations in St. Charles municipal court earlier this year for driving on a revoked license, trespassing and stealing. The address listed on the trespassing and stealing tickets is for the Ameristar Casino. In addition, Bush had a March 2 larceny citation in St. Louis County at a convenience store in Earth City.
................................
................................
