An American story

Jacob and Marie Kinsley walked from Moody’s Diner, into the November Galveston night, headed for their automobile, which was parked beneath a palm tree not five meters away, when a man stepped from a crouch between two decorative azalea bushes. The man pointed a pistol at Jacob. “Hand over your money, old man,” he ordered.

“What?” Jacob said, feigning confusion, stalling for time.

The man stepped toward Jacob and pointed his gun at Marie. “I said, hand over your money, or I’ll shoot the old lady.”

“Yes, yes. Of course,” Jacob said. “My wallet is in my back pocket.” He reached back with his left hand, while holding his right hand in the air. “Please do not hurt my wife.”

Marie looked at the robber, and then at Jacob.

“Hurry up!” the robber demanded.

“Yes, yes,” Jacob said. He wore a tan cotton windbreaker. Older people often need additional warmth from effects of an ocean wind. “I’m getting it.” He eased his hand over the handle of his .38-caliber revolver in the holster at the small of his back, then quickly pulled the revolver free, bringing it up and firing two rapid shots into the robber’s chest.

The robber gasped, and then fell, his backside striking the sidewalk, and then the back of his head hitting the hard pavement.

Neither Jacob nor Marie had noticed two people leaving the diner, nor had they seen the four people walking toward them, across the parking lot. At the sound of the two shots, the six people stopped in their tracks. The three women screamed, while the three men shouted words both ill-mannered and somewhat blasphemous. And then all six drew camera phones from pocket or purse and began recording the event unfolding, for posterity, or to show during conversation at work the next day.

The robber’s gun fell from his hand when his head hit the sidewalk. Then, he began gasping for breath. Jacob went to both knees to the robber’s right side. He saw the robber's shirt fluttering at one bullet hole. He pushed the gun out of reach and then looked up when Marie said, “I called Nine-One-One.” She glared at the bystanders. “They seem busy right now.”

“Good,” Jacob said. He looked at the robber. “We have bad news, and we have good news. You have two bullet holes in your chest. One has produced a sucking chest wound. The good news is, the army taught me how to help you.” He reached into his trousers pocket and brought out a small knife. “I am going to cut your shirt open.” He did just that, cutting the fabric from below the wounds, all the way to the top of the shirt. “Marie,” he said, “would you access your flashlight app and give me some light to work by?”

“Of course,” Marie said. Bright light shone on the robber’s chest. Both Marie and Jacob saw blood bubbling from one of the holes. Marie said to Jacob, “The operator says an ambulance is on the way.”

“You hear that?” Jacob said to the robber. “That is good news. Now, you are lucky in that before leaving our RV for dinner, we took our dogs for a walk. We carried poop bags. My wife has the bags in her purse.” He smiled. “They are empty, of course.” He looked up. “May I have a bag?”

“Here you go,” Marie said, handing a plastic bag to her husband. “The operator wants to know how he’s doing.”

“Oh, he’ll be all right,” Jacob said. “He’s bleeding a little, but the wounds are not through and through.” He flattened the bag and placed it over the wound. “Now,” he said. “That should stop air from going in. Otherwise, you might get a collapsed lung. We don’t want that.”

The robber looked at Jacob with frightened eyes.

Jacob said, “The EMTs will do a better job when they arrive. They’ll take you to a hospital, where you will be treated at taxpayer expense. After treatment, you will be questioned by the police. Most likely, you will be charged with several offenses. My guess is you are a frequent flyer in the criminal justice system, so, among other things, you will be charged with felon in possession of a firearm. Folks in Texas take that pretty seriously. I would suggest that you take whatever deal the state offers.” He gestured at the crowd of camera-users. “As you see, there are a whole lot of witnesses, almost all of which will be glad to let the police use their videos.” He smiled. “What will count most against you, though, is the testimony of your intended victims, my wife and me. Two law-abiding citizens on their way home after dinner.”

When the robber made no response, Jacob said, “One more thing. Don’t pick on older people. We are no longer fast enough or strong enough to whip somebody like you in a fight. So, we’ll just shoot you.”