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Wal-Mart case clearly separates criminal mind from that of law-abiding armed citizen
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Let’s get this up front: One does not walk deliberately up to an armored car guard, aim a handgun at his face and unintentionally put a bullet through his head; a bullet that strikes an innocent bystander.
But that is what 34-year-old Calvin Finley, one of four suspects in the brutal robbery/murder at the Lakewood Wal-Mart Tuesday, June 2 that left veteran guard Kurt Husted, 39, dead and customer Wilbert Pina wounded in the shoulder, is reportedly claiming in a court document that leaves one shuddering.
Armed citizens carry guns not to commit heinous acts like this, but to defend themselves, and their loved ones and other innocents in the event they happen to be caught in the middle of a vicious crime. There are thousands upon thousands of cases in which a legally-armed citizen has interceded or prevented a violent crime. The Wal-Mart robbery was not one of these, but it does demonstrate that violent crime can happen anywhere, at any time and also that bad things can happen to good people, no matter how many laws are on the books.
I discussed some of these cases in America Fights Back: Armed Self-Defense in a Violent Age, with co-author Alan Gottlieb. The Wal-Mart robbery/murder took place so fast, it is not likely an armed citizen would have been able to intervene.
Finley and three other suspects were rounded up within 24 hours of the heist, and the aftermath of this crime has garnered demands from talk radio hosts and listeners that if ever there were a case for the death penalty to be carried out in the event the accused are found guilty, this is it. One talk host even volunteered to perform the lethal injection, though some of his listeners were more inclined toward hanging.
Finley pulls out a handgun and within two seconds of pulling out the gun he points it at the guard’s face and fires. The guard, wearing a bullet-proof best, collapses after being shot in the face between his nose and upper lip. Finley then calmly turns and exits the store. - Pierce County court document
Finley should not have had the gun he allegedly used. With a criminal record in Washington and Wisconsin that included, according to the Tacoma News Tribune, more than 20 convictions that included several felonies, among them second-degree assault and residential burglary. He also violated a domestic violence protection order. Every one of those crimes is a disqualifier for ever owning or possessing any kind of firearm, and if this event demonstrates anything, it is the futility of passing such laws, and passing them off as some sort of panacea to crime.
But the “good news” if there is any: Finley now faces a charge of first-degree unlawful possession of a firearm. What do you bet that this charge has him just quaking in his shoes?
The Seattle Times quoted an unidentified former girlfriend of Finley’s who tearfully said she knew one day he would kill somebody, but expected herself to be the victim.
Arrested and charged with Finley are Tonie Marie Williams-Irby, 42, the Wal-Mart employee who allegedly masterminded this crime with her boyfriend, Odies D. Walker, 41. Also charged is a fourth alleged accomplice, 20-year-old Marshawn Turpin. Photographs of the three men appearing on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer’s website show Walker with an angry expression, while Turpin and Finley appear rather indifferent.
Coverage of this crime in the News Tribune, Times and Post-Intelligencer is first-rate.
Finley and Turpin face aggravated first-degree murder charges, plus charges of first-degree murder, first-degree robbery and first-degree assault. Walker and Williams-Irby face first-degree murder and first-degree robbery charges.
I knew he would kill someone someday," she said, "but I thought it would be me."- From the Seattle Times
If this bunch is guilty, the residents of Pierce County should sigh with relief that they are off the streets. The crime was so cold-blooded and alarming that it became a topic among armed citizens on the OpenCarry.org forum. This group promotes armed self-defense, and maintains a list of pro- and anti-gun businesses. Wal-Mart is on the pro-gun list.
According to a document filed by Mark E. Lindquist, chief criminal deputy for the Pierce County Prosecutor’s office, after gunning down Husted and making off with the loot, Walker and Williams-Irby “went on a shopping spree and ate out at the Red Lobster, where they spent approximately $175.” Alleged triggerman Finley went to a Fife motel and Turpin went to visit a girlfriend.
Williams-Irby attended company meetings where she learned the weekly and monthly income of the Lakewood Wal-Mart, the document said. She, Walker and Finley allegedly began planning the robbery and tried to recruit a man identified as Jesse Lewis to be the “triggerman,” but he declined. Lewis apparently told police that while he was with the trio, he saw three handguns, a .45 and two 9mm pistols, and also the Buick getaway car, which Walker told him not to touch (and leave fingerprints) because it was going to be used in the robbery.
I have seen the video tape of this murder, and there was no attempt to take that money peacefully. I did not see hesitation … this man was executed.” – Lakewood Police Lt. Heidi Hoffman
Walker was allegedly at the wheel of that car outside the Wal-Mart as Finley and Turpin went inside. Finley allegedly was slightly ahead of Turpin as they approached Husted. Finley pulled his gun, fired one round into the guard’s face. Husted, probably killed instantly, dropped to the floor and the papers allege that Turpin grabbed the money bags. Security camera images show two suspects leaving the store.
It will be up to the courts to decide what ultimately happens to the four suspects, but according to Lindquist’s Declaration for Determination of Probable Cause, this perhaps best represents what the authorities are dealing with:
“Finley told police that Irby-Williams and Walker received the larger cut because Irby-Walker worked at the Walmart. He was calm in the interview and admitted that he walked up to the guard and shot him in the face, but said the shooting wasn’t intentional.
“Finley has two prior felony convictions, Assault in the Second Degree and Residential Burglary.
“Turpin initially denied any involvement, even claiming it wasn’t him on the video. Eventually
Turpin admitted he was involved and it was him on the video. A detective asked if there was anything he would like to say to the family of the dead guard if he had the opportunity.
“He hung his head and said softly, ‘Sorry, I guess.’
“The detective said, “You guess you’re sorry? A man was shot dead for money.”
“I wouldn’t apologize. What would that do. He’s already gone.”
“If you would have gotten away with this,” the detective asked, “how would you have felt?”
“Bad, but, but I would have gotten over it because of the money.”
Visit with other Gun Rights Examiners:
For more info: America Fights Back: Armed Self-Defense in a Violent Age.
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Washington State ·
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Pierce County ·
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