Stay tuned to meet a
woman who survived the tragedy
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that most people die from.
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My name is Jason Bradley,
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and you're
watching Urban Report.
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Hello and
welcome to Urban Report.
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My guest today is Esther Smith,
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a woman with a
personal testimony.
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Welcome to Urban Report, Esther.
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Thank you. Thank
you for having me.
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Oh, no problem.
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So, we want to
jump into your testimony
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but we don't want to jump
in too soon to the mid of it.
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Tell us a little bit
about your upbringing,
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where are you from.
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I was born in Louisiana.
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Okay. And raise there as well.
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My father is a pastor
and my mom is an author now
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and a stay at home mother.
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I have...
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I'm one of three
siblings, I'm the youngest.
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Okay.
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And yes, it was
pretty normal family
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and just the four of
us living in Louisiana.
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Okay. Now were
you raised Adventist?
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I was.
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My father is an Adventist pastor
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and has been all of my life
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and I was raised
with all of the principles
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that we are accustomed to
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and alongside the customary,
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you know, do
good to everyone else
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and golden rule type of things.
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Okay, okay.
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So they really instilled
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the Christian
values in your life.
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Now you didn't
always live in Louisiana.
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Didn't you move from
Louisiana or something?
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Yes.
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When my brother and I got older,
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we went to college out of state,
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and so but my parents
still live in Louisiana, yes.
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Okay, what
college did you attend?
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I actually attended
Oakwood University in Alabama.
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Yeah, okay. I went to Oakwood.
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Yeah, it's almost
like a family tradition.
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My grandparents went
there, my parents went there
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and now my
brother and I went there.
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I went there for my undergrad.
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Okay, okay.
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Now what was it like growing
up as the baby in the family?
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Oh, you know, people say
that growing up as a baby
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in the family get
away with everything,
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that is not true at all.
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I was definitely
guided and protected more
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so than my brother was, I think.
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Even though, he kind
of had free range in a way
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and when I was growing up,
my father kind of was like,
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well you know you're kind
of more gentle and delicate,
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let's kind of guard you
from the evils of the world.
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So growing up as a baby in
the family was, it was fun,
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but definitely interesting.
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Okay, okay.
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I too, I'm the
baby in the family.
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Oh, cool. So I can relate.
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So tell us a little bit
more about your journey.
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What took place, there
was something in your life
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that took place,
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an accident if you will.
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Tell us a little bit about that?
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Yes.
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Well, it was my junior
year of college and prior to
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because we had
families staying in Alabama,
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it was my junior year and we...
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before that every break
we kind of stayed in Alabama,
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and my parents would
drive up for the holidays
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and we spend that time there.
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But this particular
Christmas, we decided...
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my brother and I
have to drive home.
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And so we did that,
it's about a seven hour drive
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and that's fine.
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So we packed up
all of our things
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and got in my
little car and drove home,
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and on the way home
was when I discovered that
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my brother had
purchased a gun...
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Really. And oh, yeah.
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It was...
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Why do you think?
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Did he feel that he needed a gun
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or what was he
trying to be cool,
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what do you think it was?
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Well, I asked him
because given the way
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that we were brought up
and our parents raised us,
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it was
extremely out of character
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to do such a thing.
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And so I asked him, "You
know why do you have this,
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why do you need it, or
what are you doing with it?"
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And he told me, "Well, you know,
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you haven't been watching
the things in the news lately,
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and he went on to
talk about, you know,
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just the things that
are happening politically
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I guess with police
and African-American males
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and the situations
that have constantly
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seem to appear in the media.
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And he went on to talk about
how scared he was about that
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happening to him too.
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And me being I guess
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more in the line of
my parent's thinking,
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I was like "Whoa!
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God protect us, why
would you need a gun,
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why would you need a
weapon," and it's almost
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the biggest handgun
that you could actually get
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is a 45 caliber pistol,
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and these types of guns are used
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to kill deer and animals,
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it's a huge bullet,
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and that really
kind of heavy weapon.
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Yes.
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And you know it's
bit of an argument
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that went on within
the car talking about
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why he would need that
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and why it was in
my car specifically.
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Yeah, and it seems
like, if there is a fear of
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what's going on
with the police...
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It doesn't seem like
having a gun or owning a gun
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would help the
situation with the police.
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Yeah, definitely not.
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I tried to convey that
to my brother and you know
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just saying "Okay, I understand
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where you're coming
from with that fear, you know
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that's a very real fear
for African-Americans now.
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I understand
where you're coming from
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with that but on the same
hand, if you have a weapon
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they're more incline to be,
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more proactive as
oppose to saying okay,
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we're gonna ask
you a few questions
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as to why you have that.
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So I told him either way
your logic is completely flawed
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so...
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And how did he take that?
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Well, as I said
it was an argument
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and so it's kind of
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lighthearted talking
about it now but in the moment
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it was a very real
conflict happening in my car
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and I couldn't
understand why he would do,
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why he would purchase it,
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why he would
actually go out and buy one.
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And he was saying "You know,
I have the proper training,
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I went through the
classes and everything.
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I have a license, I've
done everything legally,
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this gun is
legally in my procession,
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and guns don't
kill people, people do."
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And I have a problem
with that statement too,
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but that was his logic behind it
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and we continue the
ride home and, you know,
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put the gun back in
the glove compartment
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but that was a
challenging moment for me
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between my brother and I.
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Yeah, I can only
imagine because it sounds to me
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like he felt very
strongly about owning a firearm.
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So what happened, what
transpired in that car?
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Well, when we got home
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I immediately went
to tell my parents like,
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he has a gun,
like, this is terrible,
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take it away from him.
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And my parents have
always taught my brother
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and I to use our own
minds to use the logic
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that God gave us and come
up with logical conclusions
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to situations in life.
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And so my parents
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didn't immediately
repossessed the gun from him,
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they wanted to see why he
thought that he needed one,
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what's the real purpose
behind this kind of thinking,
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and where did it originate.
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And so it was that
Thursday that we drove home,
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Friday we had more
discussions as to why he had it,
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again getting pretty heated.
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And then
Saturday, we went to church
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and my father preached.
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And on the way to church,
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I discovered that the
gun was still in my car.
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And so I talked to him
about that and he decided that
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he wanted to show our godbrother
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that he'd gotten the gun.
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And so after church
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on our way home
he decided to do that
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and my godbrother
was sitting in the car
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in the seat...
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Well, my brother was
sitting in the seat behind me,
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my godbrother
sitting opposite to him
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and my godsister
sitting in the passenger side.
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And I'm driving home
and so my godsister and I,
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we convinced them that
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hey having the
gun out in the car
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with all of us
driving is not smart at all.
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Absolutely.
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So we need to put that
gun up, put it on safety,
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and put it away.
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And so they understood
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that was probably
the smarter thing to do.
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Yeah.
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And my brother
moved to put the gun away
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and disable it
and disassemble it
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and he managed to get the
bullet clip out of the gun,
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but he didn't remember
that there was a bullet
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in the firing
chamber of the weapon.
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And you know a lot of
guns these days are build
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with a hairline trigger.
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I learned later
that actually means
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that it only needs very
little pressure to go off.
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And the gun did go off,
00:10:18.88\00:10:21.42
his finger kind of
brushed the trigger
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and it went off directly
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into the center
of the driver seat,
00:10:27.26\00:10:29.36
where I was sitting...
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Where you were.
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Wow! Okay.
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So you're driving your car,
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you just got out
of church, right?
00:10:34.86\00:10:36.20
Yeah.
00:10:36.23\00:10:37.57
You're driving the
car, you're headed,
00:10:37.60\00:10:39.07
where were you
headed, back home?
00:10:39.10\00:10:40.44
Back home, yeah.
00:10:40.47\00:10:41.80
Back home from church
00:10:41.84\00:10:43.17
and your brother
pulls out the gun
00:10:43.20\00:10:44.97
to show your godbrother
00:10:45.01\00:10:48.24
and then you talk
them out of it like it's,
00:10:48.28\00:10:51.71
you know, this is a bad idea.
00:10:51.75\00:10:53.52
He goes to take the
clip out and everything,
00:10:53.55\00:10:56.75
forgets that there
is one in the chamber,
00:10:56.79\00:10:59.79
goes to put it up, and
accidentally shoots you.
00:10:59.82\00:11:02.76
Yeah.
00:11:02.79\00:11:04.13
He shot me and...
00:11:04.16\00:11:06.66
it is unlike any other
feeling I have felt before.
00:11:06.70\00:11:10.40
Yeah, what is it,
what did it feel like?
00:11:10.43\00:11:13.13
Well, initially it feels like
00:11:13.17\00:11:17.04
someone has just
hit you very, very hard
00:11:17.07\00:11:21.74
and the only thing
that I have ever likened it
00:11:21.78\00:11:24.38
to was being hit by steel bat.
00:11:24.41\00:11:27.35
It's the only thing that
I could actually think of
00:11:27.38\00:11:30.52
that could have
00:11:30.55\00:11:32.05
such a velocity to hit you with.
00:11:32.09\00:11:35.29
And I couldn't...
00:11:35.32\00:11:38.39
the breath is like not from you
00:11:38.43\00:11:40.93
and it's very,
00:11:40.96\00:11:45.70
it's almost very
weird to describe
00:11:45.73\00:11:48.54
because it's not
a normal feeling,
00:11:48.57\00:11:50.04
it's not a
natural feeling, and...
00:11:50.07\00:11:54.01
I remember knowing
instantly that I was shot,
00:11:54.04\00:11:57.51
knowing instantly.
00:11:57.55\00:11:59.65
Just because my
car is very small
00:11:59.68\00:12:02.32
and it was the...
00:12:02.35\00:12:05.39
And the windows were up
and so when the gun went off
00:12:05.42\00:12:08.66
it...
00:12:08.69\00:12:10.16
The sound in the car was massive
00:12:10.19\00:12:12.86
and it was deafening, and...
00:12:12.89\00:12:15.26
knowing instantly that
I had sustained a bullet.
00:12:15.30\00:12:19.10
Man.
00:12:19.13\00:12:20.47
And so did you
wreck the car like what...
00:12:20.50\00:12:23.41
I mean you got
shot so it seems like,
00:12:23.44\00:12:27.04
there is a possibility that
you could have wreck the car,
00:12:27.08\00:12:29.21
what happened, did you pull over
00:12:29.24\00:12:31.21
like what I mean...
00:12:31.25\00:12:32.58
Well, my first thought
was "Oh, God I'm driving,
00:12:32.61\00:12:38.45
I don't know how I'm
gonna stop this car."
00:12:38.49\00:12:40.59
And so what I did,
what I knew initially
00:12:40.62\00:12:43.76
I had to was either
try to stop the car,
00:12:43.79\00:12:46.06
I'm going about
60, 65 miles an hour.
00:12:46.09\00:12:49.00
And I know that I have
to bring this car to stop.
00:12:49.03\00:12:53.60
And so I try to bring the car,
00:12:53.64\00:12:58.07
I tried to put my
foot on the pedal,
00:12:58.11\00:13:00.18
but I realized that
I'm going in between
00:13:00.21\00:13:02.44
the gas and the break,
00:13:02.48\00:13:03.81
and I can't function
properly to bring my foot down
00:13:03.85\00:13:07.62
on to the break pedal
00:13:07.65\00:13:09.18
and to literally save
my life, I couldn't do it.
00:13:09.22\00:13:11.99
Yeah.
00:13:12.02\00:13:13.36
And so I go to
00:13:13.39\00:13:17.53
and I'm thinking,
okay, so I can't seem
00:13:17.56\00:13:19.93
to put my foot on
the pedal, I have to...
00:13:19.96\00:13:22.66
My next option is to
00:13:22.70\00:13:24.03
stop touching the
accelerator at all
00:13:24.07\00:13:26.20
and hopefully it
will slow down by itself.
00:13:26.23\00:13:28.37
And it did that,
thank God, it slowed down
00:13:28.40\00:13:31.81
and we were able to kind of
coast to the side of the road.
00:13:31.84\00:13:36.61
And while I'm trying to,
while I'm having these thoughts
00:13:36.64\00:13:39.91
to myself like, okay,
I have to stop the car,
00:13:39.95\00:13:41.85
I have to try to
not kill everyone else.
00:13:41.88\00:13:45.39
My brother,
there's chaos in the car,
00:13:45.42\00:13:48.02
everyone is screaming,
my godsister is in tears,
00:13:48.06\00:13:51.79
she can't compose herself
and everyone is screaming,
00:13:51.83\00:13:55.03
"Oh my God, what
happened, what happened?"
00:13:55.06\00:13:56.43
Because I had screamed,
"You shot me, you shot me."
00:13:56.46\00:13:59.73
And so everybody is trying
to verify that information.
00:13:59.77\00:14:02.17
Wow!
00:14:02.20\00:14:03.54
And so...
00:14:03.57\00:14:05.71
I'm bringing the car down
00:14:05.74\00:14:07.08
and my brother is
trying to figure out
00:14:07.11\00:14:08.94
what happens, he
actually bends me over
00:14:08.98\00:14:11.51
to see whether or not
he'd actually shot me.
00:14:11.55\00:14:15.52
And so he does
00:14:15.55\00:14:18.35
and sees that
my clothes are torn
00:14:18.39\00:14:20.86
and there is you know
this bullet sized hole
00:14:20.89\00:14:23.32
in the back of my clothes and...
00:14:23.36\00:14:26.39
because I got shot on...
00:14:26.43\00:14:29.36
in my back two-and-half
inches from my spine.
00:14:29.40\00:14:32.20
Whoa!
00:14:32.23\00:14:33.57
- Yeah. - Whoa!
00:14:33.60\00:14:34.94
And so he leans me over
and he sees that you know
00:14:34.97\00:14:38.81
I was shot in fact,
00:14:38.84\00:14:41.48
and so he jumps
over me to stop the car.
00:14:41.51\00:14:45.48
So he's sitting in my lap
and he's stopping the car,
00:14:45.51\00:14:48.88
he brings the car to stop
00:14:48.92\00:14:50.25
and everybody
pass out of the car
00:14:50.29\00:14:52.15
and they're panicking,
00:14:52.19\00:14:54.66
and you know,
in our little town,
00:14:54.69\00:14:56.62
in our little country road
their weren't cars on the road.
00:14:56.66\00:14:59.49
And so my brother
is sitting in the road
00:14:59.53\00:15:03.97
and he is rocking back
and forth with his head
00:15:04.00\00:15:07.60
in his hands and he's
screaming "What have I done,
00:15:07.64\00:15:10.07
what have I done, oh my God,"
00:15:10.11\00:15:11.44
and everybody is not
sure what to do exactly.
00:15:11.47\00:15:14.68
And I remember at this time
just feeling kind of sleepy,
00:15:14.71\00:15:19.81
I instantly felt sleepy
after the car was stopped.
00:15:19.85\00:15:25.22
And I remember knowing that
we have to get to the hospital,
00:15:25.25\00:15:30.76
we have to get to the hospital.
00:15:30.79\00:15:32.43
That's what needs
to happen right now.
00:15:32.46\00:15:34.60
And so a little
deliberation goes on
00:15:34.63\00:15:37.70
and then everybody
kind of figure outs a way
00:15:37.73\00:15:39.73
to make that
happen including moving me
00:15:39.77\00:15:42.77
to the backseat of the car.
00:15:42.80\00:15:44.44
- Wow. - Yeah.
00:15:44.47\00:15:45.81
So they drove you to
the hospital and call 911,
00:15:45.84\00:15:50.18
no ambulance or
anything like that?
00:15:50.21\00:15:51.85
Well, they did
called 911 on the way
00:15:51.88\00:15:56.05
but our little
town has one hospital
00:15:56.08\00:16:00.62
and the ambulance at
that time was somewhere else
00:16:00.66\00:16:03.63
and they were
too far to get to us
00:16:03.66\00:16:05.56
and so they said, you know what,
00:16:05.59\00:16:06.93
you guys are just
gonna have to drive here.
00:16:06.96\00:16:09.30
And so that's
what we ended up doing.
00:16:09.33\00:16:11.47
But on the backseat of that car,
00:16:11.50\00:16:13.87
in the backseat
00:16:13.90\00:16:15.97
once my brother had
moved me and we were making
00:16:16.00\00:16:18.84
the desperate
drive to the hospital.
00:16:18.87\00:16:21.34
I had one of
the clearest moments
00:16:21.38\00:16:24.58
with God that I've
ever had in my life.
00:16:24.61\00:16:27.02
Yeah.
00:16:27.05\00:16:28.65
So tell us about that?
00:16:28.68\00:16:30.02
Yeah.
00:16:30.05\00:16:31.39
I, you know,
00:16:31.42\00:16:34.02
a lot of the things
that we experience in life
00:16:34.06\00:16:36.19
is kind of TV
influence, I believe.
00:16:36.22\00:16:38.06
Yes.
00:16:38.09\00:16:39.43
And so here I was in
the backseat of the car
00:16:39.46\00:16:42.16
just knowing that I'm
going to choke to death
00:16:42.20\00:16:47.27
and drown in my own blood.
00:16:47.30\00:16:49.90
And all my life
there have been two things
00:16:49.94\00:16:53.74
that I feared the most.
00:16:53.78\00:16:55.61
One was getting shot, and
the other one was drowning,
00:16:55.64\00:16:59.25
and I faced both of
those things in one day.
00:16:59.28\00:17:03.35
And so I'm laying in
the backseat of the car,
00:17:03.39\00:17:07.12
and I just know,
00:17:07.16\00:17:10.03
I just know that I'm
gonna choke to death.
00:17:10.06\00:17:11.66
I just know it.
00:17:11.69\00:17:13.03
And because I'm
not sure what was hit,
00:17:13.06\00:17:16.23
I'm not sure what was damaged.
00:17:16.26\00:17:18.87
And so I'm praying on
the backseat of the car,
00:17:18.90\00:17:22.57
"Lord, I know you
didn't bring me here
00:17:22.60\00:17:24.97
to three days home,
00:17:25.01\00:17:27.31
it's the third day home,
00:17:27.34\00:17:28.88
I know you
didn't bring me to die
00:17:28.91\00:17:31.55
in the backseat of my own car.
00:17:31.58\00:17:34.52
And desperately
praying, and I'm trying to
00:17:34.55\00:17:38.29
nothing could come to my mind,
00:17:38.32\00:17:39.65
and I'm trying to
remember the Lord's prayer,
00:17:39.69\00:17:41.69
and it doesn't come fully,
00:17:41.72\00:17:44.26
I remember I think the
first couple of lines of it.
00:17:44.29\00:17:47.20
And I'm praying and I hear
00:17:47.23\00:17:51.73
the clearest voice
and the most calmed voice.
00:17:51.77\00:17:55.37
In my head I'm
going kind of crazy
00:17:55.40\00:17:59.17
with all of the
different thoughts
00:17:59.21\00:18:00.54
of what can happen.
00:18:00.58\00:18:02.38
Did this actually happen to me?
00:18:02.41\00:18:04.75
And the voice I
remember like it was yesterday
00:18:04.78\00:18:07.98
what it said, it said
00:18:08.02\00:18:11.52
"This isn't for
you, this is for him,
00:18:11.55\00:18:14.59
you are going to be okay."
00:18:14.62\00:18:17.13
Wow!
00:18:17.16\00:18:18.49
Yeah.
00:18:18.53\00:18:19.86
Wow!
00:18:19.89\00:18:21.53
Now we have some
pics, that's powerful.
00:18:21.56\00:18:24.80
We have some pictures
00:18:24.83\00:18:26.27
of when you
went to the hospital,
00:18:26.30\00:18:29.60
we want to put those up now.
00:18:29.64\00:18:30.97
And just tell us what's going on
00:18:31.01\00:18:33.51
in those pictures?
00:18:33.54\00:18:35.54
Well, in this first picture here
00:18:35.58\00:18:39.65
I think this was
right after my surgery,
00:18:39.68\00:18:42.35
when we got into the hospital.
00:18:42.38\00:18:45.49
My mom took those pictures
00:18:45.52\00:18:47.36
and here you can
see I'm hooked up
00:18:47.39\00:18:49.96
with every kind of
tube you can imagine.
00:18:49.99\00:18:52.29
And under those blankets, I
have tubes all over my body.
00:18:52.33\00:18:56.33
Here the doctors
actually removing those tubes
00:18:56.36\00:18:59.00
which is kind of more terrifying
00:18:59.03\00:19:00.74
than having it put in,
00:19:00.77\00:19:02.10
because you can actually
feel those tubes being removed.
00:19:02.14\00:19:06.37
Here I was actually
learning to walk again,
00:19:06.41\00:19:10.55
I had to...
00:19:10.58\00:19:11.91
You can see
there in the picture,
00:19:11.95\00:19:13.28
there is a
walker that I was being
00:19:13.31\00:19:16.18
taught to use again
with the physical therapist
00:19:16.22\00:19:20.16
there in hospital.
00:19:20.19\00:19:22.59
Now this one,
that's you're getting out.
00:19:22.62\00:19:26.36
Yeah, this is me going
home finally on Christmas Eve.
00:19:26.39\00:19:29.40
Wow!
00:19:29.43\00:19:30.77
You got out on Christmas Eve?
00:19:30.80\00:19:32.53
- Wow. - Yeah.
00:19:32.57\00:19:33.97
Wow.
00:19:34.00\00:19:35.34
Now how did this
event affect your family?
00:19:35.37\00:19:39.41
How did this and how
did it impact your brother
00:19:39.44\00:19:42.04
because you were in the backseat
00:19:42.08\00:19:43.41
and you heard
the voice and it said
00:19:43.45\00:19:44.78
this is not for
you, this is for him.
00:19:44.81\00:19:47.68
How did that impact
your bother and your family?
00:19:47.72\00:19:50.49
I know your parents
had been devastated.
00:19:50.52\00:19:53.52
Well, yes, it was the most,
00:19:53.56\00:19:57.26
I'm sure it's the worst
thing that a parent can imagine.
00:19:57.29\00:20:01.36
I got... Once we
got to that hospital,
00:20:01.40\00:20:03.37
there were two surgeries
that I had to go through
00:20:03.40\00:20:05.90
and a list of injuries
that included a collapsed lung
00:20:05.93\00:20:09.50
and damaged punctured
liver and bruised ribs
00:20:09.54\00:20:13.74
and you know,
all sorts of things
00:20:13.78\00:20:15.78
and I woke up from
surgery on Wednesday
00:20:15.81\00:20:19.01
actually four days later.
00:20:19.05\00:20:20.72
And so my parents and
my family were heartbroken,
00:20:20.75\00:20:25.92
you know, and my brother
wouldn't leave the hospital,
00:20:25.95\00:20:30.03
you know, you
have visiting hours
00:20:30.06\00:20:31.66
and he said
00:20:31.69\00:20:33.03
"I'm not going until she's okay,
00:20:33.06\00:20:35.70
until she's all right."
00:20:35.73\00:20:37.20
But in the long run I think
00:20:37.23\00:20:40.74
it strengthened our family,
00:20:40.77\00:20:42.47
because it's
literally the worst thing
00:20:42.50\00:20:45.54
that a family could
even conceive happening,
00:20:45.57\00:20:49.78
brother shooting a sister
00:20:49.81\00:20:52.35
and being raised the way
00:20:52.38\00:20:53.95
that we were raised
00:20:53.98\00:20:55.32
and having the
sort of foundation
00:20:55.35\00:20:57.29
that my parents
gave us is not something
00:20:57.32\00:21:00.72
that you would
ever think would happen.
00:21:00.76\00:21:02.62
But it was the hardest thing,
00:21:02.66\00:21:05.49
it was the hardest
thing going through
00:21:05.53\00:21:07.60
and living through,
00:21:07.63\00:21:09.46
and even to this day
00:21:09.50\00:21:11.57
my brother has a hard
time talking about it.
00:21:11.60\00:21:13.60
But I think on the
long run getting through it
00:21:13.64\00:21:17.14
and moving past
it and watching us
00:21:17.17\00:21:21.01
all grow and kind of
cling to each other after that.
00:21:21.04\00:21:24.28
It definitely help
to build stronger bonds
00:21:24.31\00:21:27.58
and in a way
00:21:27.62\00:21:30.89
that only God can
create, we're better for it.
00:21:30.92\00:21:33.15
Yeah.
00:21:33.19\00:21:34.52
So that's how you
guys are coping today,
00:21:34.56\00:21:36.22
like you're stronger.
00:21:36.26\00:21:38.06
You know they say tragedy brings
00:21:38.09\00:21:39.69
people together typically,
it brings people closer,
00:21:39.73\00:21:43.06
but that is extremely
tough, and I can only imagine
00:21:43.10\00:21:46.90
how frightened
you must have been,
00:21:46.94\00:21:49.04
but how comforting
that voice must have been
00:21:49.07\00:21:51.67
when you were in
the backseat of the car.
00:21:51.71\00:21:55.31
What is that you
really want people
00:21:55.34\00:21:57.15
to take away
from your testimony?
00:21:57.18\00:22:00.38
Well, as I said there
are two things in my life
00:22:00.42\00:22:03.85
that I was
absolutely afraid of happening,
00:22:03.89\00:22:07.06
being shot and drowning.
00:22:07.09\00:22:08.82
And in one day
00:22:08.86\00:22:11.29
I had to face both of
those things happening to me.
00:22:11.33\00:22:15.06
And you know there
is a text in the Bible
00:22:15.10\00:22:19.13
that talks about
00:22:19.17\00:22:22.70
the weapons that
come against that...
00:22:22.74\00:22:25.97
the weapons that are
formed would not prosper."
00:22:26.01\00:22:29.21
Okay. Yeah.
00:22:29.24\00:22:30.65
For some reason it's
not coming right now.
00:22:30.68\00:22:32.48
That's awesome in the
song too that I've heard,
00:22:32.51\00:22:34.35
no weapons formed
against you will prosper.
00:22:34.38\00:22:36.89
Yeah.
00:22:36.92\00:22:38.25
Yeah, but God doesn't say
00:22:38.29\00:22:41.62
that the weapon
won't be fired in my case
00:22:41.66\00:22:45.79
and so what I would want someone
00:22:45.83\00:22:49.53
to take away from my testimony,
from my family's testimony,
00:22:49.56\00:22:54.07
ultimately would be
that God keeps his promises.
00:22:54.10\00:22:56.60
Yes.
00:22:56.64\00:22:57.97
And no matter what we face,
no matter what we go through,
00:22:58.01\00:23:00.68
even the worst thing
00:23:00.71\00:23:02.04
that you can
imagine happening to you.
00:23:02.08\00:23:04.15
God is still there just
like he was there seconds
00:23:04.18\00:23:06.92
before that happened to you.
00:23:06.95\00:23:08.55
And so when God
promise us something,
00:23:08.58\00:23:13.29
we can grab hold on to that
and cling to it for dear life
00:23:13.32\00:23:18.86
and I think that
is a powerful thing
00:23:18.89\00:23:22.66
that we face
especially in a time
00:23:22.70\00:23:25.27
where you're
afraid for your life
00:23:25.30\00:23:27.14
or even the smallest thing,
00:23:27.17\00:23:29.27
maybe you're having a bad day
00:23:29.30\00:23:30.67
but God says that
he will always be there
00:23:30.71\00:23:33.04
with us by our sides,
00:23:33.07\00:23:34.54
holding us through
and keeping us together.
00:23:34.58\00:23:36.95
And so that's what
I would want someone
00:23:36.98\00:23:39.25
to take away from my testimony.
00:23:39.28\00:23:40.85
God is absolutely real
00:23:40.88\00:23:43.25
and he
absolutely cares about you
00:23:43.28\00:23:45.49
and he keeps all of the promises
00:23:45.52\00:23:48.02
that he gives to us.
00:23:48.06\00:23:49.89
Yes, that's beautiful.
00:23:49.92\00:23:51.86
Now there were no
legal ramifications
00:23:51.89\00:23:54.50
or anything for
your brother or anything,
00:23:54.53\00:23:56.83
I mean it was accident you know,
00:23:56.87\00:23:59.67
but there is no type of
legal accuse or anything?
00:23:59.70\00:24:02.40
You would think so but no.
00:24:02.44\00:24:05.47
They asked about
00:24:05.51\00:24:08.44
whether it had been
preconceived in a way
00:24:08.48\00:24:12.78
or he hadn't done it,
00:24:12.81\00:24:14.15
if he had done it on purpose
00:24:14.18\00:24:15.52
in which case I
would need to file,
00:24:15.55\00:24:17.65
lots of paper work
with the police department.
00:24:17.69\00:24:20.22
But you know once we established
00:24:20.26\00:24:22.82
that it was in fact an accident
00:24:22.86\00:24:24.66
and he did not
mean to do that at all.
00:24:24.69\00:24:27.56
There was no legal ramifications
00:24:27.60\00:24:30.03
that my brother succumb
00:24:30.07\00:24:31.40
to other than
having his gun taken away
00:24:31.43\00:24:33.94
and filing a police report
00:24:33.97\00:24:36.27
with the police
department in our town.
00:24:36.30\00:24:40.98
Now, it was pretty quickly
done on that side where we said,
00:24:41.01\00:24:45.25
well, you know it's an accident,
00:24:45.28\00:24:46.88
it definitely was
not meant to happen
00:24:46.92\00:24:48.98
and so no, not on that
00:24:49.02\00:24:52.75
and it wasn't too
complicated on that end.
00:24:52.79\00:24:54.82
Okay, okay.
00:24:54.86\00:24:56.62
And so what's his
take on owning a gun now,
00:24:56.66\00:25:03.53
because those
fears with the police,
00:25:03.57\00:25:06.84
his reasoning,
those fears still exist?
00:25:06.87\00:25:09.70
Yeah.
00:25:09.74\00:25:11.07
So what is his take
now on owning a firearm?
00:25:11.11\00:25:15.01
That's a good question.
00:25:15.04\00:25:17.58
Well, it's an interesting
thing because the reason for...
00:25:17.61\00:25:21.35
His reason for
actually getting a gun
00:25:21.38\00:25:25.29
is only getting worse.
00:25:25.32\00:25:26.65
You know, there are
things that are happening
00:25:26.69\00:25:28.32
all over the nation now.
00:25:28.36\00:25:29.69
Absolutely.
00:25:29.72\00:25:31.86
But now he wouldn't get a gun.
00:25:31.89\00:25:36.36
Now I think, now he realizes
00:25:36.40\00:25:39.80
the God's capability in a way
00:25:39.83\00:25:44.54
to protect us in a way
00:25:44.57\00:25:47.24
because he had a first,
00:25:47.28\00:25:49.21
a front row seat
to God's protection.
00:25:49.24\00:25:52.25
And so my brother even though
00:25:52.28\00:25:57.12
he had a real reason
for wanting to get one,
00:25:57.15\00:26:00.89
flawed though it may be,
00:26:00.92\00:26:03.66
I think he more,
00:26:03.69\00:26:05.33
the way that he looks
at the situation today
00:26:05.36\00:26:09.16
is to just try to
keep yourself in line
00:26:09.20\00:26:11.63
and not get in those situations
00:26:11.67\00:26:14.57
where it might lead us
00:26:14.60\00:26:17.41
one of the more
typical incidents
00:26:17.44\00:26:19.11
that happen in America now.
00:26:19.14\00:26:20.88
I think he's
just trying to be even
00:26:20.91\00:26:24.15
and level across
the whole board with it
00:26:24.18\00:26:26.41
and not use weapons of any kind.
00:26:26.45\00:26:30.42
Yes.
00:26:30.45\00:26:31.79
Well, I can't even,
00:26:31.82\00:26:34.32
I can't imagine what
it would feel like...
00:26:34.36\00:26:37.69
One of my brothers
actually was shot too,
00:26:37.73\00:26:40.33
he got shot four times
00:26:40.36\00:26:42.00
and had just
missed his spine as well.
00:26:42.03\00:26:44.20
So I can relate in that sense
00:26:44.23\00:26:46.53
but I can't even imagine
what it must have felt like,
00:26:46.57\00:26:50.41
what it must have been like,
00:26:50.44\00:26:51.77
like being that
close to death feeling
00:26:51.81\00:26:56.58
like you might potentially die.
00:26:56.61\00:26:59.05
It's utterly
terrifying, it's terrifying.
00:26:59.08\00:27:04.65
You know when people,
00:27:04.69\00:27:06.02
when you have that kind
of moment on television,
00:27:06.05\00:27:08.12
if you're watching a show
and someone is close to death,
00:27:08.16\00:27:11.56
you know it's a television show,
00:27:11.59\00:27:14.26
but you also think,
00:27:14.30\00:27:15.63
oh, I wonder what
that person is feeling.
00:27:15.66\00:27:17.37
Yes.
00:27:17.40\00:27:18.73
I think
depending on the situation,
00:27:18.77\00:27:20.10
but definitely with my situation
00:27:20.14\00:27:21.94
it's absolutely terrifying,
00:27:21.97\00:27:24.01
because you
know, it's so sudden,
00:27:24.04\00:27:26.51
you don't think
that it would happen,
00:27:26.54\00:27:29.18
but we can depend on God always.
00:27:29.21\00:27:31.75
And it's definitely
strengthened your relationship
00:27:31.78\00:27:34.48
with the Lord, correct?
00:27:34.52\00:27:35.85
Absolutely, absolutely. Yeah.
00:27:35.88\00:27:38.15
Man, you have a
powerful testimony.
00:27:38.19\00:27:40.96
I hate that you
had go through that
00:27:40.99\00:27:43.12
and experienced that
00:27:43.16\00:27:44.49
but I'm glad that
as a result of it,
00:27:44.53\00:27:46.66
it strengthened
your relationship
00:27:46.70\00:27:49.46
and you've grown tremendously
00:27:49.50\00:27:52.30
and your brother
has grown as well,
00:27:52.33\00:27:53.77
and it brought your
family closer together.
00:27:53.80\00:27:55.84
Thank you for coming on.
00:27:55.87\00:27:57.21
Thank you for having me.
00:27:57.24\00:27:58.57
And thank you for watching.
00:27:58.61\00:28:00.01
Well, we've reached
the end of another program.
00:28:00.04\00:28:02.14
Join us next time
00:28:02.18\00:28:03.51
and remember it just wouldn't
be the same without you.
00:28:03.55\00:28:06.11