Harrison
03-17-2006, 02:35 PM
but some of us have nerves of steel during an emergency.
I found this story incredibly inspiring even though it ended sadly. To me, it also symbolizes what is the very best about our veterans, police officers and firefighters. God bless Harold Hatley!
Victim, 73, tried wrestling shooter down
By Stephen Curran
scurran@thetribunenews.com
Fri, Mar. 17, 2006
The most telling details of how Harold Hatley lived his life were captured on video seconds before he died.
When the shots that rocked the Central Coast started just after noon Wednesday, the former Unocal worker was dining alone at the Denny’s on Five Cities Drive in Pismo Beach.
Less than a minute later, he lay dead on the restaurant floor, shot four times.
Police and witnesses say the 73-year-old Korean War veteran was killed trying to wrestle gunman Lawrence Edward Woods to the floor.
Woods, a 60-year-old homeless man, is believed to have entered the diner at 12:04 p.m., muttering about a possible grudge with Mid-State Bank & Trust.
He then opened fire from a revolver and semi-automatic handgun before killing himself.
Those few details about Hatley’s last moments — captured by the diner’s surveillance camera — have helped provide some consolation to a family reeling from the sudden loss of a father of three and grandfather of six whose face was a fixture at several neighborhood eateries.
"He’s the kind of person who would do that for anybody," said son-in-law Cheo Serrano of Arroyo Grande. "He always tried to help people."
Hatley, along with fellow Grover Beach resident Frank Valesquez died at the scene.
In addition, Joe and Alice Mejia of Oceano were shot in the lower extremities and were released from Arroyo Grande Community Hospital later Wednesday.
The couple, speaking outside their home near the end of a cul-de-sac, said they were having lunch with Valesquez when the shooting occurred. They declined requests for interviews.
Hatley, who was divorced, retired from Unocal in the early 1990s and lived alone on Atlantic City Avenue for more than 25 years.
With more time on his hands, Serrano said, Hatley indulged his passion for motorcycles and flying.
He once owned a Harley-Davidson but later traded it for a Yamaha. The Harley, Serrano said, vibrated too much.
"I mean, he was 73, driving a motorcycle," Serrano said. "He was a friendly guy. Everybody liked him."
Neighbors, recalled a kindly man and dog lover who was always quick with a treat for local dogs.
Jewelry designer Barbara Neuman, who lived next door to Hatley’s tidy beige home since 1998, spoke briefly with him as she headed to work about 10 a.m. Wednesday.
She was surprised to learn he went for lunch at Denny’s.
Normally, Neuman said, the avid people watcher would have hopped on his beloved Yamaha to the buffet at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez.
Investigators on Thursday continued reviewing surveillance video at the restaurant, poring over each chilling detail in an attempt to better understand what may have motivated Woods. That tape has not been released.
Hatley, said Pismo Beach Police Chief Joe Cortez, may have prevented the bloodiest shooting in the South County community’s history from being even worse.
"It isn’t at all surprising," Neuman said. "It helps me in a way. Maybe it was God’s plan to have him die saving someone else."
I found this story incredibly inspiring even though it ended sadly. To me, it also symbolizes what is the very best about our veterans, police officers and firefighters. God bless Harold Hatley!
Victim, 73, tried wrestling shooter down
By Stephen Curran
scurran@thetribunenews.com
Fri, Mar. 17, 2006
The most telling details of how Harold Hatley lived his life were captured on video seconds before he died.
When the shots that rocked the Central Coast started just after noon Wednesday, the former Unocal worker was dining alone at the Denny’s on Five Cities Drive in Pismo Beach.
Less than a minute later, he lay dead on the restaurant floor, shot four times.
Police and witnesses say the 73-year-old Korean War veteran was killed trying to wrestle gunman Lawrence Edward Woods to the floor.
Woods, a 60-year-old homeless man, is believed to have entered the diner at 12:04 p.m., muttering about a possible grudge with Mid-State Bank & Trust.
He then opened fire from a revolver and semi-automatic handgun before killing himself.
Those few details about Hatley’s last moments — captured by the diner’s surveillance camera — have helped provide some consolation to a family reeling from the sudden loss of a father of three and grandfather of six whose face was a fixture at several neighborhood eateries.
"He’s the kind of person who would do that for anybody," said son-in-law Cheo Serrano of Arroyo Grande. "He always tried to help people."
Hatley, along with fellow Grover Beach resident Frank Valesquez died at the scene.
In addition, Joe and Alice Mejia of Oceano were shot in the lower extremities and were released from Arroyo Grande Community Hospital later Wednesday.
The couple, speaking outside their home near the end of a cul-de-sac, said they were having lunch with Valesquez when the shooting occurred. They declined requests for interviews.
Hatley, who was divorced, retired from Unocal in the early 1990s and lived alone on Atlantic City Avenue for more than 25 years.
With more time on his hands, Serrano said, Hatley indulged his passion for motorcycles and flying.
He once owned a Harley-Davidson but later traded it for a Yamaha. The Harley, Serrano said, vibrated too much.
"I mean, he was 73, driving a motorcycle," Serrano said. "He was a friendly guy. Everybody liked him."
Neighbors, recalled a kindly man and dog lover who was always quick with a treat for local dogs.
Jewelry designer Barbara Neuman, who lived next door to Hatley’s tidy beige home since 1998, spoke briefly with him as she headed to work about 10 a.m. Wednesday.
She was surprised to learn he went for lunch at Denny’s.
Normally, Neuman said, the avid people watcher would have hopped on his beloved Yamaha to the buffet at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez.
Investigators on Thursday continued reviewing surveillance video at the restaurant, poring over each chilling detail in an attempt to better understand what may have motivated Woods. That tape has not been released.
Hatley, said Pismo Beach Police Chief Joe Cortez, may have prevented the bloodiest shooting in the South County community’s history from being even worse.
"It isn’t at all surprising," Neuman said. "It helps me in a way. Maybe it was God’s plan to have him die saving someone else."