Columbus shooting: Man fires back after his SUV is stolen

Frank Lumpkin III, 50, of 3225 Cathryn Drive, has been released from jail on $2,500 bond, according to his arrest report.

He is accused of shooting a 16-year-old in the side with a 9 mm pistol at a gas station at 1538 Fort Benning Road, police said. Lumpkin's attorney, Frank Martin, said Wednesday he doesn't believe his client should have been charged in the shooting.

"I believe any reasonable person who hears all the facts would conclude that Mr. Lumpkin is the victim in this case," Martin said.

Lumpkin is the son of the late Frank Lumpkin Jr., a Columbus businessman for whom Columbus State University's Lumpkin Center is named. The suspect's sister is Muscogee County Probate Judge Julia Lumpkin.

Stolen on Sunday

It all started Sunday, when Lumpkin's wife's vehicle was stolen from outside the Circle K gas station at 3720 Macon Road. Tammie Lumpkin, 47, had parked her 2006 Lincoln Navigator outside the convenience store about 8:15 p.m. She left the car running because her springer spaniel was inside. When she returned to the parking lot, the car was gone, according to a police report filed the night of the incident.

The dog was found on Forrest Road near Avalon Drive, police said.

According to a police report, an officer located the stolen Navigator near Wade Street that evening. When he tried to stop the SUV, the driver sped away.

"Cpl. Talley discontinued his traffic stop," the report stated.

Martin said the stolen Navigator contained his client's home address and house keys. The following day, Lumpkin discovered his 2008 Nissan Titan had been broken into. It was parked in the garage at his Cathryn Drive home. A Smith & Wesson gun was taken, a police report stated.

"Fearing at this point he had been targeted by felons who were now armed and had keys to his home, Mr. Lumpkin felt it imperative to find the individuals and stop them before they possibly returned to his residence," Martin said in a prepared statement.

Shooting on Tuesday

Officers said Lumpkin, accompanied by three friends, was passing the station about 8 p.m. Tuesday, when he saw his stolen car with the youth and two others inside it. He pulled his car in behind the Navigator and approached the driver's side window. An argument ensued.

The driver of the stolen vehicle attempted to leave the scene and wrecked the SUV in the parking lot of the Fort Benning Road gas station. Martin said Lumpkin accidentally discharged his weapon during that escape attempt.

Following the wreck, the driver ran toward the back of the convenience store. Lumpkin followed and called for the suspect to stop.

"As was his right under Georgia law, Mr. Lumpkin attempted to detain the criminal, who in fact had a firearm as Mr. Lumpkin had feared," Martin said.

Lumpkin fired a shot, and the teen again took off, collapsing in a ditch, Martin said.

The teen was taken to The Medical Center, where he underwent surgery. He had not been released from the hospital as of press time.

"Mr. Lumpkin had significant contact with the police department prior to encountering the individuals in the stolen car and placed several 911 calls asking for assistance prior to confronting the armed individuals in his vehicle," Martin said.

The Columbus attorney also said Lumpkin spotted his stolen vehicle Tuesday parked in the driveway of a south Columbus house and called 911. By the time police arrived, the car was gone, Martin said.

Columbus Police Chief Ricky Boren said Wednesday that police were checking their log of 911 calls and had found calls reporting the shooting. They still were looking for earlier calls from the Fort Benning Road service station.

He said that under the circumstances in which the shooting occurred, police did not feel Lumpkin could be released without a court review of the incident.

"We felt like there was a violation, and we're not going to make that decision," he said. "We're going to have a court of review or a recorder or a superior court make that decision, or a grand jury."

No additional charges had been filed in this case as of Wednesday evening. The Columbus Police Department continues to investigate the shooting.