Source: Times News (March 12th, 2015)

Church BurglaryA Southwest Virginia man is facing several charges for allegedly attempting to break into the First Presbyterian Church in Gate City.

Roscoe Ray Sexton, 39, of 206 Gatewood Apartments in Gate City, was arrested on Wednesday and charged with burglary, resisting arrest, assault on a police officer and destruction of property.

Weber City Police Chief Phillip Lane said he was on his way back to Weber City Wednesday afternoon after having one of his officer’s patrol cars serviced in Gate City. He said someone exiting the parking lot of Eastman Credit Union flagged him down.

“They told me someone is up at the church acting strange. They said he’s been to the doors and is acting like he’s trying to jimmy the doors,” Lane said. “At that point, I pulled up into the credit union parking lot and sat and watched him for a couple of minutes. At first, I thought, here it is broad daylight….this has to be somebody with the church. He had his back toward me and I could tell he was working on the doorknob. Then, after a couple of minutes, he turned and I could tell he had what looked like, from that distance, a small pry bar and I realized he was trying to get in the church.”

Lane said he called for backup and drove across the street to the church.

“I got out of the car and he looked around at me and kept working. I hollered and tried to get his attention,” Lane said. “I saw that what he had been using to try to pry open the door was a large screwdriver. I asked him what he was doing and he staggered a little bit. He walked over to the edge of the steps with the screwdriver still in his hand. When he did that, I pulled my gun and told him to stop. I kept asking him what are you doing. He put the screwdriver in his pocket and continued to come down the steps toward me. I kept telling him to stop, with my gun on him. My thoughts, at that time, was there was one of two things he was going to do – either he was going to run away or run toward me.”

Despite repeated requests to stop, Lane says Sexton continued to come toward him and estimates he got within eight to 10 feet of him, at which time Gate City’s police chief, Scott Fink, arrived on the scene.

“When I got there, the suspect was walking toward Chief Lane, but then he took off running down the hill toward the post office,” Fink said. “We chased him about 150 to 200 yards toward the post office. Several back-up units did arrive – the county, another Gate City officer. He ran down the hill and fell several times. He even ran into the side of a police car and still didn’t stop and got up and ran again.”

Fink said Sexton eventually had to be Tasered twice. But, considering he was wielding a sharp, 12-inch screwdriver — and allegedly considered suicide by cop — it could have ended much worse.

“(Sexton) told me he was hoping Chief Lane would’ve shot him. It came very close to someone losing their life and Taser deployment probably did save his life,” Fink said.

Fink said Sexton was combative, belligerent and resisted arrest.

“He had to be transported to the ER because, going into the jail, he hit his head on the door facing. He was released from the ER within about an hour,” he said.

As of Thursday afternoon, Sexton was being held in the Kingsport City Jail awaiting extradition back to Scott County.