I bet you thought it was only the anti-maskers who were causing problems, huh?
Wrong.
A man was arrested in a Miami hotel the other day because he shot his guns 4 times in the lobby of a hotel. His reasoning? Hotel guests who weren’t social distancing.
According to several news sources, 29-year-old Douglas Marks was in the lobby of the Crystal Beach Suites Hotel. Veronica Pena and her son, who were registered guests of the hotel, were on a couch by the lobby elevator, waiting for another member of their party.
According to a statement Pena gave to the Miami Beach Police Department, Marks saw the woman and son and said, “You all need to leave. You all aren’t social distancing.”
Pena ignored Marks. She then heard him say, “Let me take care of them, I have two people not following directions.” It’s not clear who he was speaking to.
Marks repeated, “You all need to leave,” and he then fired “four warning shots” from what the son said was a black pistol. A witness shielded Pena and her son.
As per the police report, Marks was subsequently arrested. During his confession, he said that he thought he was being followed, told the front desk to call 911, and then fired the four warning shots. The hotel’s surveillance footage confirmed these details.
Marks was taken to Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, where he was charged with two counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, firearm use and display while committing a felony and discharge of a firearm in public. He was released on an $11,000 bond.
This isn’t the first time that someone took the law into their own hands. A few days earlier, a woman maced a couple at a San Diego dog park when they weren’t wearing masks…because they were eating lunch while watching their 3-month-old pug play.
Whereas most anti-maskers generally appear to be more rebellious, self-involved and stubborn in their response to masking, I think those who decide to become self-deputized “mask police” might have more going on in their heads. I mean, I have no qualms about asking strangers in the supermarket to pick their masks up over their nose (and I’ve done it several times), but I would never go as far as to shoot or mace them. Social distancing and wearing a mask are both very important, but there’s still a line that most (happily) won’t go over.
Feature Photo: Crystal Beach Suites Hotel
#stayhealthy #staysafe #washyourhands #wearamask
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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary
6 comments
The most disturbing part of that is you can go to a hotel, shoot your gun 4 times, and it’s only an $11,000 bond?
Alternative way to get adherence to a policy
While I’d say that a lot stricter measures need to be taken to enforce mask wearing, I’m not sure that firing a gun indoors is the right response. Personally I think the guy is not playing with a full deck if he’s talking to himself so that should be taken into consideration before condemning him, although I REALLY think that keeping him away from firearms is a prudent idea.
This guy obviously has some mental health issues and probably shouldn’t own a gun.
He’s lucky hw wasn’t shot himself – by the cops or someone else (Florida is a shall issue CCW state).
Woo ! This guy must know how to deal with guns. Horrible !