Citizens Take Law Enforcement Into Their Own Hands

The chases ended in different ways, showing the pros and cons of makingcitizen arrests. Twice, the suspects were caught. But in one case, thevictim giving chase was shot. The police will take all the help they canget, but not if it means people putting their lives on the line.

Christine Lucus, John Johnson and Brad Sims allegedly attacked and robbeda Fayetteville man. He later spotted and held them for police, usingan unloaded shotgun. In another case, a robber armed with a knife held upa woman at this pay phone in the Eutaw Village Shopping Center. Two greenberets chased the suspect across Bragg Boulevard and caught him.

Police charged George Wilcher with robbery and with forcing sex on a woman in a restroom at the same shopping center a week earlier.

"I don't feel like we did anything special other than what I would haveexpected of any other guy on the scene to have done for my wife or mydaughter," says Fort Bragg soldier Charles Spence.

Another Fort Bragg soldier ran after two robbers at the Express Stop, butone suspect fired and wounded the G.I.

Fayetteville police do not encourage citizens to give chase because thatcan make matters worse.

"You like to hear about a hero," says Lt. Katherine Guilette of theFayetteville Police Department, "and after the fact, when everybody'ssafe, you're like 'yeah, we got the bad guy and they helped us.' It'sfantastic. But again to have that opportunity for the violence toescalate or injuries to happen to others, even a bystander. If the suspectbecomes angry, who knows? If he could grab somebody, take somebody as ahostage because he knows he's being pursued by somebody, it can justreally escalate the crime."

That may have happened this week. After a man tried to rob a business, anemployee went looking for him. She saw him at a car wash, where he thenswiped a car to get away.

So, instead of giving chase, what should you do? Fayetteville police saycall them immediately and give the best description possible of anysuspects or getaway vehicles. In other words, play it safe and let thepros doing the pursuing.