Posted on 06/29/2005 9:04:57 PM PDT by SmithL
BERKELEY - Mike Tepper rode along Telegraph Avenue, past the spot where he nearly was killed early Sunday morning.
He noticed that blood stains remained on the street along with the skid marks made by the Chrysler used to run him over.
Those were sobering reminders of a harrowing incident that left Tepper, a freshman offensive tackle for Cal's football team, with a broken fibula, severe ligament damage and a dislocated tibia in his right leg.
The injuries seemed minor considering that Tepper had been run over twice. Berkeley police arrested Berkeley's John Ray Smith and Oakland's Calvin Kelly and charged them with assault with a deadly weapon, leaving the scene of an accident and resisting arrest.
Tepper and a friend, Cal senior volleyball player Camille Leffall, were crossing Telegraph at Dwight Way about 1:15 a.m. when a Chrysler pulled alongside them. "The driver said, 'Hey, babe, what are you doing?' to Camille," said Tepper, who is 6-foot-6, 330 pounds. "She said she wasn't interested. We kept walking, but we only got about five feet when the car pulled up alongside us into the crosswalk. They kept hitting on her so I stepped in front and said, 'Hey, we're going to meet some friends. Can we just get by?' "
According to Tepper and police reports, as Tepper and Leffall tried to cross behind the car, the vehicle shifted into reverse and headed toward them. "I saw the driver had his hand on the steering column and I thought that this guy was going to punch it," Tepper said. "So I hit Camille across the chest and threw her."
Although Tepper managed to toss Leffall out of the direct path of the car, the front, passenger side of the vehicle blasted into them both. The severity of the impact was lessened for Leffall because Tepper already had sent her sprawling backward.
"We both got hit, but Mike got run over," said Leffall, who suffered cuts and scrapes and an injured back. "It's a good thing he pushed me out of the way, because my body couldn't have handled (being run over). I probably would have had my foot amputated.
"It was really nice of him. He was trying to protect me."
Tepper wasn't so fortunate. "The car hit me, and I hit the ground, and the tire ran over my leg," Tepper said. "I looked back to my right, and the guy puts it in drive and runs over me again."
Again, Tepper's right leg was crushed under the tire before the vehicle drove off.
Fortunately for Tepper, Berkeley Lt. Arnold Lui was a block away in an unmarked police car. He called to get Tepper assistance and took off after the Chrysler.
Lui said the driver of the Chrysler turned off his lights, but after several blocks hit another vehicle. The driver and passengers ran from the vehicle, but Berkeley police managed to apprehend four of them. Lui said he wasn't sure how many people were in the car. Leffall said there were five. Only Kelly and Smith face charges at this time.
Although Tepper won't be able to play football in 2005 because of his injuries and subsequent surgery, he said a quick response by Berkeley police saved his life. "It seemed like only about 10 seconds before two cop cars were there," said Tepper, who was recuperating at his apartment in Berkeley on Wednesday. "I was in shock, and Camille was crying. I looked at my hand, and the blood was like wet paint dripping off. Camille was saying, 'I'm so sorry.' I was telling her, 'You didn't run over me.'
"From what the police told me, the guys who ran me over were not drinking, not on drugs. They were sober. What kind of people would do something like that?"
Tepper was transported by ambulance to Alta Bates Hospital. "The police had put tourniquets around my calf, and when the ambulance got there, a nurse was pumping morphine into me. They all did an amazing job ... they saved my life. It took doctors at the hospital about an hour to stop the bleeding because it had ripped a blood vessel that leads directly to my heart."
On Tuesday morning, Tepper had surgery. "They put a plate and nine screws into me," Tepper said. "I can't put any pressure on my right leg for eight weeks. Then they will take out the screws and plate. In November, I should be able to begin jogging. It will be 2006 before I can start running again."
Leffall still is suffering from back pain and emotional trauma. "I have to walk past that intersection to go to school, and it is really, really tough," she said. "I don't think they found all the guys who were in the car, so I am constantly watching my back. This has overwhelmed me ... the emotions you have. We are getting hit by cars driven by crazed maniacs. It takes away your sense of security."
Tepper's father, Gus Tepper of Cypress, said he will keep checking with the Alameda County District Attorney's office to make sure Kelly and Smith are prosecuted. Court dates for the two have yet to be scheduled.
Although "outraged" by the incident, Gus Tepper said he isn't surprised that his son acted in such a heroic manner. "I am proud of him," Gus Tepper said. "This could have been a very ugly situation. But in other situations, Mike has done the same thing. At parties, if some guy is getting picked on, Mike will get in the way."
"To tell the truth, I don't know how I did it," Tepper said. "I just reacted.
"I credit that to Coach (Jeff) Tedford. He teaches us how to be football players with class. He just doesn't teach us football, he teaches us character ... how to be men."
My guess is that the perps are black. If they had been white the liberal press would be shouting "hate crime" from the rooftops.
When you are that big are you still considered a pedestrian or are you legally a mobile building?
All kidding aside, this guy is the "man" and demonstrated that character, dignity, bravery and decency is not dead. This young man is most definitely a hero.
However, I have a question for him. What is a fine young man doing in the Peoples Republic of Berkeley? A man of such character, decency and goodness is just plain too good for that place.
I saw that interview this morning. Nice Guy.
I agree - I'm personally waiting for the Browning High Power in .45 GAP.
...and are they gutless cowards who have to confront others only when there is someone to back them up...or when they are in a vehicle they can use as a weapon because they are such a pathetic, weak little cowardly sh**s??
See my note about controllable. The .357 snubbies just magnify the recoil/muzzleflash problem. So does +P ammo in a regular .38. And again, the lighter weight weapons are extremely unpleasant to shoot. Most women won't practice with them because they are so unpleasant and even inside the Tueller Radius, they'll miss.
Again, a Glock 30 comes in a more effective caliber and has less felt recoil.
As for simplicity of operation, they are identical. Pull the trigger to make it go bang, no external safety levers. And with the Glock, you get more than 5 or 6 rounds for those times when there's more than three assailants (Kitty Genovese scenario). The trigger pull on a Glock is shorter and lighter than an out of the box revolver.
Most women will not notice the additional 15ounces or so in their purse, trust me on that.
My current carry is a BHP (of some sort) in 9mm. Not my favorite caliber in terms of effectiveness, but I can put all 17 rounds in someone's ten ring at 25 meters, which is what matters.
See my comments in post 126. .410 isn't a bad idea, but you still have to aim and it's pretty ineffective at longer ranges (sometimes you can see them coming).
Me, I like single action automatics.
Wife has the 23c .40.
At home my wife prefers her 870 shorty. Of course with our 115 pound German Shepard, she'll probably never need it. She's really part human, and wont even take a dump if someone is looking. I am talking about my dog here, not my wife. Its funny, I've seen grown men solicitor's walk half way up our driveway, and just hear our dog go off, and they do an about face, quickly heading for the next house.
"Viscious urban scum preying on naive suburban and rural kids."
It was terrible, officer! I was out walking and these thugs came over and covered us in goo!
I notice that extra pound, surely women would also.
I too am a believer in 'Glock Perfection', but they are not as simple to operate as a revolver. In a wheel gun, you don't need to worry about springs relaxing in magazines, or limp wristing.
The snubby gives the added advantage of being capable of firing from inside the purse or pocket.
The S&W J frames and Taurus 85 allow easy practice with .38 target ammo, easily controlled in the little snubbies. Load up with the +p for social work. I know plenty of women who carry and practice with the little snubs and don't complain.
My point is, don't eliminate a good practical solution for many shooters. Let the women go to the range and try them all.
That's pretty good shooting. I am only that effective at 50ft or less with my .357. Funny at 50' I can put four or five of six in the bulls eye, at 75 feet I can't even hit the target!
"...beat a white kid to death in front of Seattle police and their Chief..."
Yes, and thanks to our State Supreme Court's "if you didn't intend to kill him it really isn't murder" ruling, the little black dirtbag who beat Mr. Kime to death with a skateboard will soon be free and coming to a neighborhood near you.
Don't feel bad. Under the bending stress of an actual defensive shooting, many good shots are lucky to hit a torso at 25 feet.
USC and Cal will both be very tough this year.
You got that right.
Try shooting your revolver single action (i.e., cock it manually for each shot). Your hit percentage should go up. Double-action weapons are harder to shoot accurately at longer ranges, and they're slower to shoot - which is why I stick with single action automatics.
One is from Berkeley.
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