From Jacksonville.com:
The 24-year-old grabbed a gun before going to help his neighbor who had been shot.
By Jim Schoettler, The Times-Union
When a neighbor screamed she'd been shot, Colin Bruley grabbed his shotgun, found the victim and began treating her bloodied right leg.
Tonnetta Lee survived Tuesday's pre-dawn shooting at her Jacksonville apartment, and her sister and a neighbor praised Bruley's actions. But his employers, the same people who own the Arlington complex where Bruley lives, reacted differently. They fired him.
Bruley, a leasing agent at the Oaks at Mill Creek, said he lost his job after being told that brandishing the weapon was a workplace violation, as was failing to notify supervisors after the incident occurred. He'd worked at the Monument Road complex since December and for the owner, Village Green Cos., since 2005.
Bruley said he was too shaken to call his supervisor immediately after the incident, which occurred just before 2 a.m., but planned to eventually do so. He also said he was acting as a citizen, not an employee, and shouldn't have been punished for trying to protect himself and others. He never fired the shotgun.
"I was expecting work to give me some kind of commendation," said Bruley, 24. "I was totally blown back. It was a crisis that most people don't go through."
Andrea Roebker, the company's director of public relations, said "We're not in a position to discuss any employment issues outside of [with] the employee.
She declined to comment further, citing confidentiality rules.
A complaint Bruley said was given to him by his supervisor Tuesday said he violated several company policies found in an employee handbook. Those procedures were also explained in a recent meeting and an e-mail, the complaint said. One policy prohibits any type of weapons being used in the workplace. The complaint cited him for "gross misconduct."
"Colin demonstrated extremely poor judgment in responding to this situation," the complaint said. "Colin's failure to immediately report this incident ... could have serious ramifications to the property, its associates and residents."
A police report said the shooting followed a domestic quarrel involving Lee, 24, and her boyfriend. Bruley said he was dozing off in his apartment when he heard Lee's screams. He said he then grabbed a 12-gauge shotgun he uses for protection and hunting.
Bruley said he found the woman bleeding heavily. He handed the shotgun to a neighbor, tied a tourniquet around her right leg and waited for police and rescue to arrive.
"I was kind of in a state of shock. I had blood all over my body," Bruley said.
After emergency officials took Lee to the hospital, Bruley returned to his apartment and tried to settle down, eventually falling asleep. He said he could have called his supervisor but didn't think she could do anything at the time. He said he was called into the office about 9:30 a.m., gave his account and then left. He said he was called back that afternoon and told he was fired.
Neighbor Kevin Courson joined Bruley at the crime scene when he saw Bruley had a gun for protection. Courson said he is incensed by the dismissal.
"Here was a guy trying to do a good deed. He wasn't trying to hurt nobody," said Courson, 31.
Erica Jenkins, Lee's sister, said Bruley should still have a job. Lee couldn't be reached to comment despite several messages left with her sister and mother.
"If it wasn't for him ... she could have lost her leg or died," said Jenkins, 19. "He put his life in jeopardy for someone else."
Bruley said he is considering contacting a lawyer about his dismissal, but will first look for another job and possibly another home. He promises he won't shy away from aiding others in need.
"If I'd lose my job again for helping some girl's life ... I'd do it over and over," Bruley said.
jim.schoettler@jacksonville.com, (904) 359-4385
I know this happened in FL but I just had to post this. How does someone come up with firing this guy as the correct action to take after this guy tried to save a girl's life.
It just boggles my mind how some people think.
A friend of mine lost his regular job and had to work in a convenience store to pay his bills. The only shift avaiable naturally was the night shift. The area was getting a little rough, so he packed his G19 under his smock. Sure enough, 3 months went by and 2 coneheads came in, one with a gun, one with a big knife, and were threatening to kill him and wanted the money. He killed the one with the gun, and only saw the rear end of the other guy as he fled and left his good friend bleeding on the floor. They never caught the other guy, but the dead bad guy had a violent criminal history as long as your leg. That night the regional manager was called out as the shooting was being investigated. His exact words were. "we're glad you're alive, but your fired." He also told him that he believed it was wrong to kill another person over money. He told the manager, he pointed a gun at me and said he was going to kill me. The managers response was, you're still fired.
These guys don't care about their employees. You're a warm body, doing a job to make them money. If you shoot someone, they worry about getting sued, But if you die....Oh well...... hire the next applicant. They only worry about their liability and covering their butts.My friend was cleared of the shooting of course, but he was also ALIVE!!!
How about the leaders who want to defund the police buy pay for private security? Why don’t people wake up to this hypocrisy??Now that sucks.
It's amazing that some people convince themselves it's wrong to use force for self-defense and yet are willing to call the police. What do they think the police are going to do, give the perp a teddy bear? They do violence by proxy, for those who are unwilling to do it themselves.
I myself used to have pacifist tendencies, but ended up realizing that it's fake unless you're willing to completely accept victimization. A true pacifist won't call the police, he'll lay down his head and accept the knife. Screw that.
For real so much divide right now this is nutsThat's absolutely amazing!
There should be Good Samaritian laws that protect employees and others from worthless employers like that.
Same ole political BS manIt's called stinkin' hypocrisy, and I don't think it's very "tactical".
That was also a good show back in the dayCalifornication
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