If you act the superhero without superhero powers, you run the risk of getting hurt. This is a lesson Phoenix Jones from Seattle's group of Real Life Superheroes learned the hard way, in a recent altercation.
As we
also mentioned a short while back, Seattle is the home of the largest vigilante movement ever, with several superheroes patrolling the streets in masks and fighting crime.
Phoenix Jones is also among them: his favorite weapons for doing said crime-fighting include a stun gun and his wits – and, of course, his courage.
Over the weekend, Phoenix Jones thought he saw an altercation and he stepped in to prevent it from getting physical. In the process, he ended up held at gunpoint, while one man broke his nose,
Komonews reports.
“They were all swearing at each other and like about to fight,” Phoenix Jones says. He stepped in to break the fight – and ended up by being the victim.
“He starts swinging on me and starts an altercation with me,” he says of one of the assailants. The vigilante says he also called 911 – but still went ahead with his attempt at preventing the two from getting into a fight.
He managed to put one of the guys in a headlock and thought the other would just wait with him for police to arrive. The other, of course, had other plans.
He pointed a gun at his head, while the other man broke free from Phoenix's hold and kicked him in the face, breaking his nose. Both attackers escaped.
Police say that, while it's not illegal to act the superhero in the streets, this more recent incident should serve as warning of the dangers out there: you simply can't assume you're trained for these things.
“Don't insert yourself into those situations. If you see something, call 911,” Seattle Police Detective Mark Jamieson says, as per the aforementioned e-zine.
Perhaps Phoenix Jones too can learn a lesson from this.
“They insert themselves into a potentially volatile situation and then they end up being victimized as well,” Jamieson adds.
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