Good Guy with a Gun #83: Carroll City, MS
Original incident: January 22, 2024. Tatted psycho is trying to break down your front door. You hide in a closet with your kids. He gains entrance by driving his truck through the living room wall.
These posts are based on our Good Guy with a Gun calendar. If you bought or received a calendar, contact me for a complementary subscription. Today’s post is substantially updated from the calendar version.
Mom and three kids are at home when this guy starts trying to kick in their front door. He was armed with a knife.
Mom was on the phone with her husband, who was working about 20 minutes away. They hung up. Mom grabbed the kids and a gun and ran to a closet while Dad dialed 911, describing the man and his pickup truck and letting the police know where his wife was hiding.
The banging continued as Mom prayed and the kids recited scripture. Then there was a pause — and an immense crash.
From the closet, Mom and the kids couldn’t see that 42-year-old Steve Lamar Goss Jr. had driven his truck through the wall and into their dining room.
Goss hunted them through the house, kicking in doors.
He found them in the closet. As he opened the door, Mom shot him in the arm.
That finally stopped him. He turned tail and fled in his truck.
Responding deputies saw his car drive past him going the other way and were able to stop him in the parking lot of a nearby Acy’s Store. He fled into the store, where police arrested him.
As it turns out, Goss was out on bond at the time for possession of a weapon by a felon. I don’t have information about his earlier criminal history.
His bond on the gun charge was revoked, and a federal grand jury indicted him for that crime. He was further charged with one count of burglary and four counts of attempted murder for the this incident.
Carroll County Sheriff Clint Walker later said:
We can all learn a lot from this family about the importance of having an emergency plan in place in our homes and, most importantly, the power of prayer. I thank the Lord for this father’s preparation, the bravery shown by the mother and children, and that what could have been a tragedy was transformed into a testimony of their faith in God.
Erratum
The calendar identifies the state as MI (Michigan), not MS (Mississippi). I apologize for the error. The M states always get me.
Sources
Primary sources
The Carroll County press release can be found at the Taxpayers Channel. (How do I do that in Substack? Anyone know?)
Local and national news
This story was very widely covered in several dozen outlets, but most of the stories were direct reprints of this one: Mother shoots home intruder to protect 3 children; sheriff commends her bravery.
WLBT 3 covered the initial story, the federal indictment, and the denial of bond.
WJTV 12 covered the initial story and the federal indictment.
Magnolia Live, the Clarion Ledger, the Miami Herald, KAKE news,
Local blogs the Taxpayers Channel, Jackson Jambalaya, and the Greenwood Commonwealth gave the story the news treatment.
Fox News covered the story, it appears — though it’s behind a paywall that I didn’t cough up money for — but don’t bother with the accompanying video. Though a woman in it talks about a home invasion she suffered through, it’s not this woman.
Talk radio coverage included 1510 AM/98.3 FM WLAC, and SuperTalk Mississippi Media.
Specialized media
Specialist 2A media coverage include Brandon Curtis at Concealed Nation, Tom Knighton at Bearing Arms, John Boch at The Truth About Guns, and Sean Holt at USACarry. Holt also discussed using closets as safe rooms; if that interests you, give him a click.
John Boch’s story was also posted by Illinois-based advocacy group Guns Save Life. I don’t know whether Boch is a member or if it’s just a reprint.
The sheriff's statement is awesome.