Good Samaritan Killed by Driver He Tried to Aid: Cops

Marvin Lee accused of opening fire on would-be rescuers
By Polly Davis Doig,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 24, 2016 7:33 AM CST
Good Samaritan Killed By Driver He Tried to Help
Marvin Lee   (Catawba County Sheriff's Office)

It happened hundreds or thousands of times Saturday: A car spun out in icy conditions in North Carolina amid the blizzard blasting the East Coast. But when three Good Samaritans stopped to help the hapless driver, police say they found 27-year-old Marvin Lee, who, as Catawba County Sheriff Coy Reid puts it, "They thought he was drunk or on dope and said ‘let’s just call the law and let them deal with it." But even as the men were making that call, police say that Lee produced an automatic pistol and opened fire, reports the Charlotte Observer.

The three men ran, adds NBC News, but one was hit. Reid says Lee walked over to the fallen man, 26-year-old Jefferson Heavner, and shot him "numerous times," killing him. Lee returned to his car, reports the Observer; when police arrived and ordered him out, he failed to respond. A SWAT team later ascertained that he had passed out. He awoke as police removed him from the vehicle, police say. Reid says he'll face homicide charges. (More Good Samaritan stories.)

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