For the past 3 weeks a troubled 26 year old member with a history of mental illness, has been hanging around the church. He would come into the building during the day and leaving windows unlocked, and would sneak into the building after midnight, and sleep in the attic which is entranced by the ladder by the stage. Apparently, he had been doing this for several months before being detected. In the last couple of weeks his situation escalated where he was becoming belligerent with people.
This morning at 6 am, the Stake President shows up to find chalk written graffiti all over the outside entrances of the church. He also finds the perp asleep on the couch in the foyer. With the SP 2nd counselor showing up they talk to the guy. 2nd counselor sees that he's armed with a 10" knife and a long two pronged barbecue fork. The Stake Presidency decides to tell the Bishop's to be on the lookout in case he disrupts meetings today, and if they see him in a meeting to call 911. (epic fail)
As the opening hymn is about to end, the known troubled young adult enters the chapel and sits in the middle, two rows from the front. After the opening prayer, the Bishop gets up and goes to the Stake Offices. I'm sitting on the right of the chapel, behind the Deacons, and get out my Blackberry and text a couple of other members to be on the look out for trouble. After the Sacrament, we pretty much have the guy passively surrounded, while the YW begin their program.
Unknown to us congregants, the Sheriff's deputies are on the outside of the Chapel, deeming it's best to wait to evacuate the chapel naturally after the meeting, hoping to avoid a situation. During the closing prayer, the HPGL, (a hard nosed sob if there ever was one) prompted the people on either side to vacate. The HPGL sat on the end of the pew for the prayer. As soon as the prayer is over the leadership, including me, surround the perp giving him his space, but asking him to leave. At this point he stands on the pew and pulls out the knife and prongs, and yells that he has a right to be there. At this point the Sheriff's Deputies come in and I'm trying to expedite the evacuation of the chapel. The perp decides to run for it across the top of the pews going front to back. 1,2,3,4 steps on top, and he falls hard, not two feet from our good friend. The people scatter like flies, and 6 cops have their guns on the guy, and the perp has his weapons in hand swiping the air trying to find a victim. I'm afraid at this point that he's going to harm himself. With guns pulled the cops issue warnings to no avail. With people still getting out of the chapel, Cop #1 pulls his tazer, and promptly shoots into the back of a pew. Cop #2 hits the perp, but the leather jacket blocks skin penetration, Cop #3's tazer did the job and got the perp on the ground. They handcuffed the guy, and took him away.
I was privie to the debriefing by the Stake President, and it was mentioned that the cops were prepared to shoot him, excepting two things. The cops were in a cross fire situation, and the lead cop said he didn't want to shoot anyone in a chapel. However, they said if the 3rd tazer wouldn't have worked they would have gone to deadly force with so many women and children around with a knife wielding assailant. It turns out the the perp had a hit list, with the YSA Bishop, and our Bishop as the first to go.
With the situation in California fresh on everyones mind, it was not a situation to take lightly. We did the whole 3 hour block, but it was tough going to be sure.
This morning at 6 am, the Stake President shows up to find chalk written graffiti all over the outside entrances of the church. He also finds the perp asleep on the couch in the foyer. With the SP 2nd counselor showing up they talk to the guy. 2nd counselor sees that he's armed with a 10" knife and a long two pronged barbecue fork. The Stake Presidency decides to tell the Bishop's to be on the lookout in case he disrupts meetings today, and if they see him in a meeting to call 911. (epic fail)
As the opening hymn is about to end, the known troubled young adult enters the chapel and sits in the middle, two rows from the front. After the opening prayer, the Bishop gets up and goes to the Stake Offices. I'm sitting on the right of the chapel, behind the Deacons, and get out my Blackberry and text a couple of other members to be on the look out for trouble. After the Sacrament, we pretty much have the guy passively surrounded, while the YW begin their program.
Unknown to us congregants, the Sheriff's deputies are on the outside of the Chapel, deeming it's best to wait to evacuate the chapel naturally after the meeting, hoping to avoid a situation. During the closing prayer, the HPGL, (a hard nosed sob if there ever was one) prompted the people on either side to vacate. The HPGL sat on the end of the pew for the prayer. As soon as the prayer is over the leadership, including me, surround the perp giving him his space, but asking him to leave. At this point he stands on the pew and pulls out the knife and prongs, and yells that he has a right to be there. At this point the Sheriff's Deputies come in and I'm trying to expedite the evacuation of the chapel. The perp decides to run for it across the top of the pews going front to back. 1,2,3,4 steps on top, and he falls hard, not two feet from our good friend. The people scatter like flies, and 6 cops have their guns on the guy, and the perp has his weapons in hand swiping the air trying to find a victim. I'm afraid at this point that he's going to harm himself. With guns pulled the cops issue warnings to no avail. With people still getting out of the chapel, Cop #1 pulls his tazer, and promptly shoots into the back of a pew. Cop #2 hits the perp, but the leather jacket blocks skin penetration, Cop #3's tazer did the job and got the perp on the ground. They handcuffed the guy, and took him away.
I was privie to the debriefing by the Stake President, and it was mentioned that the cops were prepared to shoot him, excepting two things. The cops were in a cross fire situation, and the lead cop said he didn't want to shoot anyone in a chapel. However, they said if the 3rd tazer wouldn't have worked they would have gone to deadly force with so many women and children around with a knife wielding assailant. It turns out the the perp had a hit list, with the YSA Bishop, and our Bishop as the first to go.
With the situation in California fresh on everyones mind, it was not a situation to take lightly. We did the whole 3 hour block, but it was tough going to be sure.
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