A 63-year-old Houston neighbor was handed the shock of his life after he opened fire at a toddler’s birthday party, only to be hit back multiple times.
James Thompson was shot seven times on Saturday after initially opening fire during a quarrel with his neighbor Regine Murray and her friends, who happened to be celebrating her daughter’s birthday at their home in Houston.
Murray said to ABC13 that the incident began as ‘we were just outside talking and hanging out.’
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Surveillance footage shows the 63-year-old neighbor in an argument with Murray’s group outside her home, reportedly shouting about a dog as things began to go south.
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Thompson first opened fire when one of Murray’s friends threw a water bottle at him, and the mother of the little girl stated that ‘things just kind of unraveled really quickly.’
‘He just started shooting at everybody,’ she recalled. ‘People (were) inches away from getting shot in their head.’
After his gunshot, people were spotted tussling for safety outside Murray’s home, and it then led some members of her group to fire back at Thompson, striking him seven times.
Shortly after, police arrived at the scene and took Thompson into custody.
He was seen limping and could barely stand before he first appeared in court this week.
Thompson said to the judge in court, ‘Ma’am, I’ve been shot seven times.’
Murray revealed that her boyfriend was shot twice in the stomach during the incident, and it led him to undergo two surgeries in order to recover from his injuries.
Thompson’s neighbours have previously accused him of often showing threatening or menacing behavior in the past months.
Last year, records obtained by ABC13 revealed that Murray pressed charges against Thompson on four occasions, with two of those occurring on the same day.
The 63-year-old previously threatened to blow Murray’s ‘brains out’ as he waved a gun around, as per court records.
‘He talks to us every day, and he threatens to kill us, threatens to shoot us,’ Murray said this week.
‘We’re in fear for our lives, we’re terrified.’
In December, the Houston neighbor was sentenced to six months in jail on charges of making terroristic threats when he took a plea deal.
Reports indicate that on the same day he took the plea deal, prosecutors dropped three other threat charges and an aggravated assault charge against him.
Murray is hoping Thompson is placed behind bars for good after his actions on Saturday, as the 63-year-old neighbour did not serve his full sentence even accounting for his time served.
‘Praying and hoping that the judges and the DA will do something about it this time. It shouldn’t take someone to lose their life before he really goes to jail forever,’ she said.
Thompson faces three counts of aggravated assault for the shooting, and also a tampering charge for throwing his gun over a fence.
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After his arrest, he remained in custody but at a hearing this week, his public defender said Thompson “is eager to return to court so that he can clear his name and return to his restful retirement.”
James’ bond was set at $370,000.
