'Angel sent from God' serves up breakfast and wins surrender of gunman wan

[emad]

Police praise Atlanta mother's courage and negotiating skills

Suzanne Goldenberg in Washington
Tuesday March 15, 2005
The Guardian

The ordeal began with a gun in the ribs in the middle of the night. By morning, after a pancake breakfast, the man accused of killing four in an Atlanta courthouse rampage was offering to hang curtains in his hostage's flat, and she was an American hero.

Yesterday, Ashley Smith, 26, described by her family as a soft touch, a drifter between deadend jobs who couldn't earn enough to look after her own daughter, was hailed by police for her courage and negotiating skills.

Through the course of that night, she won the trust of a man accused in a rash of killings, bringing a peaceful end to a 26-hour manhunt.

Brian Nichols, the alleged gunman, was in a federal prison yesterday after surrendering peacefully to the authorities. He was expected to be formally charged with shooting dead a judge, a court reporter, a police deputy, and the subsequent killing of a customs agent.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/usa/story/0,12271,1438016,00.html

[elehhhhna]

1. If she were Muslim ,this would have a very different spin.

[chelsea0011]

2. Great for her, but...............

She asks for privacy during a media event and then dispatches her pastor to make the rounds on MSM. And at the same time releases what book she quoted from so as to get the author publicity. She was a brave woman but enough of the bible talk. How many people pray to god and jesus in moments of impending doom only to be doomed. This nonsense which the MSM is buying about Jesus coming to us in many ways is bullshit. How many people prayed in the World Trade Center? Jesus not good enough for them? Oh, I get it. We don't know his plan.

[sffreeways]

4. Nothing

fails like prayer

Brought to you by...

People for the American Way

[RaleighNCDUer]

3. From his point of view, he's on the run, the most hunted man in

America. He is scared and desperate because he has to know he's not getting out of this alive. His hostage stays calm, talks nice to him. He is calmed by her attitude, he is exhausted. She fixes him a good breakfast. "Thanks, doll, you're an angel." He begins to trust her so she makes an excuse that gets her out of the house to see to her kid. And she calls the cops, betraying him.

Moral? Angels lie.

I'm not making light of a tragedy, or her courage. But I am astonished that god always gets the credit when things go right, but none of the approbation when things go wrong.

If she was an angel, was the court steno a devil?

Give me a break.

[annarbor]

5. Very well put NCevilDUer!

Where was God when all hell broke loose at the courthouse?
I too have had enough of the double talk about God.
Ann Arbor

[donsu]

6. during her telling I wondered about the times she stopped to

scratch the back of her head. I didn't see the whole thing but she did this three or four times. she would be telling and then stop, move around and scratch the same spot on the back of her head. and I would think that her telling had just hit a kink she didn't want to report.

maybe her god talk is a front?

[CindyDale]

7. Personally, I find it inspiring that this woman who has so many problems

was able to escape and help bring an end to this situation.

I can't figure why anyone would be contemptuous of someone else's beliefs. If you don't share them, fine, but I still don't understand the ridicule.