Toughest 90-Year-Old Ever? Jay Leone Returns Gun Fire on Armed Burglar
Don't mess with Old Man Leone, you hear?
When Jay Leone of Greenbrae, California -- who happens to be 90 years of age -- found himself under fire by an armed home invader, he didn't throw his hands in the air and surrender. And when he was shot clear through the face, he didn't duck and hide.
"I told him 'Now it's my turn!'" said Leone. Then he proceeded to return fire.
"I said, 'F--- you, you son of a b-tch!" Leone told the Daily Mail. That "son of a b-tch," was none other than Samual Joseph Cutrufelli. Mr. Leone, a former Sheriff's deputy, actually hit Cutrufelli three times in the stomach before the two ended up wrestling on ground.
According to Leone's account of the tussel, Cutrufelli snatched Leone's gun away from him and held it to Leone's head. Cutrufelli pulled the trigger in a clear attempt to keep Leon from seeing 91, but the weapon had already run out of bullets.
"He took the gun and put it to my head - click! And that was the end of that. He ran away." said Leone.
It was at that point that Leone realized he had been shot during the earlier firefight.
Cutrufelli shot Leone clear through the face. The bullet entered between Leone's jawbones and exited the back of his neck, miraculously, without hitting any vital organs.
Leone appeared in court with a bandage over his gunshot wound to testify against Cutrufelli. He provided evidence meant to help the judge decide whether Cutrufelli should be charged with robber, burglary or attempted murder.
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I wish I was obscenely wealthy. I'd ensure that Mr. Leone lived with all the comforts of a king for the rest of his life.
What happened to the gun used to shoot Leone in the first place? Did Cutrufelli drop and misplace it when Leone returned fire and hit him?
I'm guessing Leone used a five-shot snubby (a popular off-duty piece among cops of his generation). I wonder whether more bullets would have kept Cutrufelli from charging him, or whether he would have ended up grabbing a still-loaded gun. (I.e., was there a pause between the shooting and the grabbing? Clearly, Cutrufelli didn't know the gun was empty; did Leone count his shots so as not to click on an empty chamber?)
Shots to the stomach are not the best hits, but snubbies are difficult to shoot fast and accurately, so maybe Leone did well, considering.
I think Cutrufelli should be charged with armed robbery, malicious wounding, and 2nd degree attempted murder (if such a thing exists in California). That is, he didn't go in there planning to do a murder, but attempted it in the course of the robbery when he faced resistance.
Good questions all. I agree about the five-shot snubby. He may not have kept on under the hammer, a good safety precaution in a revolver. He probably aimed for the center of mass, another good idea with an inaccurate weapon at close range.
No matter what the charges turn out to be, I suspect that this perp will not see the outside for some years.
If freedom means anything, it is the liberty to tell others what they do not want to hear.
modern revolvers have no problem with all cylinders being armed and ready. The hammer makes no contact with the firing pin UNTIL the trigger is pulled and the transfer bar raises up so that the hammer hits the bar and the bar hits the firing pin.
Secondly, I challenge anyone here who doubts what a snubby can do to come to the range for some quick draw and accuracy testing against any gun you carry. I can draw and fire in 1 second and certainly well enough to hit better than the stomach.
This old guy, bless him, is just a bad shot. Simple as that.
For a man of 90 years I think his aim is damn good.
For anyone using a snub-nosed revolver right after they have been shot, it was damn good. Even if he didn't realize at the time he'd been shot, his body knew.
If freedom means anything, it is the liberty to tell others what they do not want to hear.
Your statements show a lack of knowledge about any of this. First of all, you have no idea what weapon was actually used. It has been all speculation. Given his age, it is entirely possible it was no a modern weapon. Secondly, despite the design, there have been cases of modern firearms discharging when dropped.
Then your childish boast tells me that you have never been in a true combat situation. In the USA, per the FBI files, the average police handgun combat distance is under 3 meters and they still miss a lot.
I think your "skills" are a product of your fantasies if not an outright lie.
If freedom means anything, it is the liberty to tell others what they do not want to hear.
I've found more detailed accounts elsewhere, and it was indeed a 5-shot Smith and Wesson revolver. This makes it quite likely that the gun had a one-and-seven-eighths inch barrel and a twelve pound double-action trigger -- which is quite difficult for most people to shoot accurately. (Not that it's ever easy to shoot straight while you're being shot at.)
However, these models are _extremely_ reliable not to go off when dropped.
When you read of modern handguns firing when dropped, these are typically semi-automatic pistols that are cheap, malfunctioning, or of obsolete design. (Most quality double-action revolvers have been drop-safe for a century; semi-automatic with pistols these internal protections were uncommon until the 1980s. Sporting rifles and shotguns are especially dangerous even today -- I don't know whether _any_ of them are designed to be drop-safe.)
I agree with almost all of what you say. Nonetheless, "extremely reliable" does not mean "never". Try attending a CCW course or, if you can afford it, a course at the Gunsite Ranch in AZ. I have a close friend that teaches a CCW course and he would not recommend totally trusting any safety feature.
If freedom means anything, it is the liberty to tell others what they do not want to hear.
New policy (for your group): A different human from the writer will, from now on, read (and correct) all copy before it is submitted for public consumption. Sheesh.