Burglar shot by homeowner, run over by his accomplices...

[Rogue 9]

...twice. Courier & Press

Home invasion ends in shooting
Injured intruder run over by accomplices

By Gavin Lesnick (Contact)
Sunday, March 15, 2009

Awakened by the noise of a group of men kicking in his apartment door early Sunday morning, Derrick G. Murray rushed to retrieve the assault rifle he keeps in his bedroom for protection.

Only seconds later, he pulled the trigger, shooting one of the intruders in the leg and sending all of them fleeing from the residence they had just invaded.

Speaking Sunday afternoon on the front steps of the South Side house where it happened, Murray said his thoughts at that moment turned to his four children and how inaction might mean missing out on their futures.

"I just felt like 'I can't die right now,'" Murray said. "I got too many kids, I got too much to lose. I can't die right now."

The man Murray shot — identified by police as 26-year-old Derek Clark — was being treated Sunday in the intensive care unit at St. Mary's Medical Center, authorities said. The hospital released no information on his condition.

In addition to the gunshot wound, investigators said Clark was run over by his accomplices as they fled the scene in a gray Lincoln that had been parked outside.

Murray and two next-door neighbors said the accomplices actually ran over Clark twice before speeding off.

Unable to speak with Clark on Sunday, detectives still were trying to identify the other intruders and investigating the reason they targeted Murray's apartment at 421 E. Riverside Drive.

Murray told officials he did not recognize any of them and didn't know of anything that would have brought them there.

Evansville Police Department detective Sgt. Larry Nelson said Murray acted well within his rights in firing on Clark.

"He had a right to protect himself," Nelson said, adding no permit was necessary for Murray to keep the gun in his home.

It happened about 5 a.m. when Murray was the only one in the apartment, which sits on the southwest corner of Riverside and Elliott Street.

The children — who range in age from 2 to 7 — happened to be gone, visiting Mississippi with their mother, Murray said.

Had the children been home, Murray said he would have responded to the intruders with even greater force.

"It would have been a death sentence," he said. "You don't do that to a man when he's with his kids at all. It would have been much uglier. That gun held 60 rounds and I would have shot all 60 at them."

As it was, Murray said, he retrieved the gun and heard the men break through the door.

They claimed to be police officers but peppered their speech with slang and curse words that, along with the lack of lights outside, quickly convinced Murray they weren't.

The man identified by police as Clark was brandishing a handgun.

"Once I seen he had a gun and he was in shooting range, I just shot him," Murray said.

Invaders flee

The intruders immediately fled the premises, including Clark, who Murray said crawled out the door and into the street.

Murray waited a minute and went outside, pointing the rifle at the men as they tried to help Clark into the Lincoln, Murray said.

Seeing the gun, the men dropped Clark and got into the car. Murray said they drove over him once and then backed up and ran over him again before fleeing south on Elliott Street.

Murray said seeing that scene play out was what affected him the most.

"I don't feel sorry for him, but it's just ugly how they ran him over," he said.

The same was true for Murray's next-door neighbors on Elliott Street.

Katherine Vessels, 28, lives there with her boyfriend, their three children and her brother.

She didn't know anything of the circumstances that started the incident, but she saw the end of it.

"My brother woke me up and said there's a guy dying in the yard," she said, adding she then watched as the vehicle ran over him. "... I was shaking. It was tragic."

Questions linger

The reason the intruders targeted Murray's home was still under investigation Sunday. Nelson said officials aren't sure if the men "had the right house," but that investigators still needed to speak with Clark to learn more.

Murray said he didn't know, either, but that maybe they spotted his car — a 1984 Oldsmobile Cutlass outfitted with new features — and believed its owner might have money.

Whatever the case, Murray said Sunday he won't let it affect him. He said he's convinced the men on the loose won't return after what happened. After spending much of his day speaking with investigators, Murray said he was thankful to be alive and looking forward to reuniting with his family when they returned home later Sunday.

"I'm still breathing," he said. "I feel good. And I can see my kids when they pull up in a couple hours."

When you need help in seconds, the police are just minutes away. Chalk up another one for the right to keep and bear.