| July 22,
2005 |
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| Deputies
Exchange Gunfire With Man |
| Deal Hospitalized After Apparently Shooting
Wife, Self |
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A Connelly Springs man and
his wife underwent surgery this morning for gunshot wounds, after the man
reportedly shot her during a domestic dispute and later engaged in a gunfight
with a Burke County deputy.
Sheriff John T. McDevitt said investigators
are looking into the possibility that the chest wound sustained by Shane Joshua
Deal (left), 26, of 4777 Mineral Springs Mountain
Road, was self-inflicted. |
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| According to McDevitt, Burke deputies initially
responded to a domestic call between Deal and his wife, Natasha Mace Deal
around 11:52 PM last night. Deal had already left the residence upon deputies'
arrival. |
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| Around 3:54 AM this morning, telecommunicators
received a 911 call from Natasha Deal by cellphone, who would not communicate
with them. The woman is heard begging her husband not to kill her, the taped
911 call reveals. |
| |
| "One of our dispatchers called the woman back a
few minutes later, but she was unable to talk because he was apparently holding
her at gunpoint," McDevitt said. "Our dispatcher did a great job asking her
some yes and no questions, and was able to extract enough information as to an
address we could send our deputies." |
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| When deputies arrived at the home, they heard a
gunshot from the backyard area, said McDevitt. |
| |
| "Deputies tactically approached the house and
found the woman, who had been shot in the arm and upper side area," the Sheriff
stated. "Deal had ran from the scene, so a deputy seized the opportunity to
grab her and put her in a patrol car and drive her to safety while other
officers started searching for him." |
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| The woman was taken to meet an ambulance at
nearby Abee's Grove Church, and transported to Valdese Hospital where she
underwent surgery for her injuries. She is reported to be in stable
condition. |
| |
| During the search for Deal, deputies soon
encountered Natasha Mace's sister, Briana Buchanan, who lives behind the
residence. |
| |
| "She told the officers that Deal had just broken
into her residence by shooting through the back door, and then held her at
gunpoint. He was threatening to kill her and asked her if she called the
police," said McDevitt. "She was finally able to escape the residence and
approach officers." |
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| As deputies approached Buchanan's home, McDevitt
said they were fired upon by the man, who had left Buchanan's home and was
behind a maple tree. One deputy returned fire from an AR-15, firing five shots.
It is unclear how many shots Deal fired during the exchange. |
| |
| McDevitt said Deal and the deputies were about
120 yards apart and couldn't see each other, although the deputies could see
the muzzle flash from his gun barrel. |
| |
| There were verbal exchanges between Deal and
officers, McDevitt said. The sheriff stated that other deputies refrained from
firing their weapons because officers were in a potential crossfire situation
in the manner they were positioned. |
| |
| "Deal yelled that he had been hit, but we could
not initially approach him because of the darkness and the chance he was
setting a trap," McDevitt said. |
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| When deputies were able to approach Deal, he had
suffered a gunshot wound to the chest. The man reportedly was conscious and
talking, and able to answer questions by EMS personnel later. |
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| "A cursory inspection of Deal's chest x-rays
shows what appears to be birdshot, so the man may have possibly shot himself,"
said McDevitt. "We'll know more after his surgery is completed." |
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| Burke County Detective Lt. Charlie Morris said
the case is complicated and tedious because there are four different crime
scenes. The N.C. State Bureau of Investigation was contacted because of the
officer-related shoot-out. |
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| "Prior to Deal shooting his wife, it appears he
broke into the residence of Ricky Mace, who is Natasha Deal's cousin, and stole
the shotgun he used to shoot her," Morris said. "So we, along with agents from
the NCSBI, must process the crime scenes at Mace and Buchanan's residences, and
the locations where Deal and his wife were shot. |
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| Morris said Deal will be looking at numerous
charges, which may possibly include assault with a deadly weapon with intent to
kill inflicting serious injury, assault with a deadly weapon upon law
enforcement officers, first degree burglary and felonious restraint
(Buchanan), firing into an occupied dwelling, and breaking, entering and
larceny. |
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| "The officers showed bravery by rescuing the
woman and getting her medical attention when they had no idea where the suspect
was," McDevitt said. "Dispatchers also were stellar in their job performance,
which I feel helped to save her life." |
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| Also assisting the Burke County Sheriff's Office
and NCSBI in the case were the Valdese and Drexel Police
Departments. |
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| ************************************************************** |
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