A lamb on the lamb

A career criminal John Thomas, turned himself in after being on the lamb for a month. He first caught the attention of Detective Nick Romano and Sergeant Craig Brier for suspicious activity in the parking lot of an auto-supply store in Jamaica Queens.  When the law enforcers approached Thomas in an attempt to question him he made a run for it.  As Romano and Brier chased Thomas he let off four shots, hitting Brier once in both legs.  After the massive manhunt spanning an entire month, the wounded 15-year veteran was relieved when John Thomas decided to turn himself in.  This uncharacteristic surrender comes as a welcome surprise to everyone, especially Brier’s mother who said she got goose bumps when she heard the news.  Now, Thomas faces charges of attempted murder, criminal possession of a weapon, and assault.

I felt the need to share this story because it is one of the few gun related situations recently that has ended positively.  I think that even though his actions were heinous, John Thomas has displayed a tremendous amount of honesty and honor by admitting his crime and subjecting himself to justice.  In my opinion Thomas should be rewarded for his honesty.  Perhaps the NYPD should employ him to hold a seminar on how to shoot suspects in the leg (a concept they haven’t quite grasped yet).  Maybe Brier can even add to the lesson by explaining how effective getting shot in the leg really was in stopping the criminal.