Dove of Peace

"Russell, you don't remember me but you let me go dove hunting on your place about 3 years ago so I'm not going to kill you."

Russell Washington was laying on the floor of his kitchen, ever the humorist he replied, "Well, now I appreciate that."

Russell rolled over and looked up into the face of Claude Eugene Dennis, one of the two escaped convicts that had left a trail of blood from McAlister, Oklahoma to Alabama and back. The other escapee was Michael Lancaster. He was sitting on the floor eating a sandwich. He pointed a shotgun at Russell and gruffly remarked, "You interrupted my sandwich."

Road blocks had been set up all over Bryan County and also in Marshall County. One road block was at the Junction of Hwy 32 and Hwy 70 which is 2 blocks from my house. My brother Richard and I took coffee down to those manning that road block about 2:00 A.M. We heard one old Highway Patrolman tell one of the young Kingston Police Officers, "Son, when they come through, there'll be dead bodies scattered everywhere." Those proved to be prophetic words just a few hours later.

Russell Washington was my Sunday school teacher at Abundant Life Temple Church in Durant at that time. He and his lovely wife, Julie, lived on the North side of the Blue River just north of Durant on the east side of Hwy 48. He, Julie and their two beautiful daughters, Jeannie and Amanda spent the previous night at the girls' Grandpa's (Garland Washington) house. They didn't feel safe since the convicts abandoned car had been found nearby.

On May 27, 1978 around 8:00 A.M., Russell and his hired hand, known as Buzz returned to the 162-acre ranch to feed the livestock. That night at a Full Gospel Business Men's Fellowship meeting at the Community Center on south 9th in Durant, Russell gave the following account:

We had driven past the house to the back of the barn. I walked to the house, went into the living room left the mail and went back to the barn. Ginger, the little family Dachushund stayed at the house and started barking. Buzz said, "Russell, I believe from the way she is acting there must be someone in your house." Russell replied, in his beautiful (Blue River English) "Naw, she's just wanting to be fed."

"Russell, I really think someone is in your house."

"Ah, you're just spooky."

"No, I really believe from the way Ginger is acting she is barking at a stranger."

"OK, let me get my 22 rifle out of the truck and I'll have a look see."As they entered the house Russell said, "You check the kitchen and I'll check the bedroom." Russell knew that no one was in the bedroom, because he would have seen them when he left the mail.

When Buzz walked into the kitchen Russell herd his say, "Hi, how you boys a doing?"

A reply came back, "Tell that old boy in there to put that rifle down and come on in here."

Russell laid his rifle down and just before he entered the kitchen he whispered, "Lord be with us."

When he stepped inside the kitchen, he was facing two guns. Lancaster was sitting on the floor eating a peanut butter sandwich and he's the one who snarled, "You interrupted my sandwich."

Russell was hoping that they wouldn't shoot him in the head. They cut appliance cords and tied Russell and Buzz's hands behind their backs. However, they failed to cut the telephone line. The fugitive took Russell's truck and headed to the highway. Russell had his hands free and was on the phone to the Highway Patrol before the men reached the highway.

The rest of this story is well documented, but you might want to think long and hard before you hang "NO HUNTING" signs all over your property.