“The Florida Highway Patrol said Episcopal priest William Adams was driving a red Chevrolet Corvette when he attempted to brake check a Chevrolet Silverado pickup that he said was closely following his vehicle,” charlotteobserver.com reports. “Brake check”? Episcopal priest driving a little red Corvette? Can this story get any weirder? Of course . . .

The driver of the pickup attempted to go around Adams’ vehicle, prompting Adams to allegedly point a Glock 22 at the pickup, reported the web site ChristianToday.com.

Adams told investigators that the pickup drew alongside him and the passenger screamed at him and threw a soda at his car. He was arrested under a $15,000 bond, according to a web site for the Martin County jail . . .

Adams confirmed to troopers that he had a weapon, but said the gun was not loaded and had been kept under his passenger seat the entire time, reported the Asheville Citizens Times.

Who keeps an unloaded GLOCK 22 under the passenger seat of his ‘Vette? And if the religious leader didn’t wave his gat at the pickup, how did the driver and passenger know he had a gun?

Anyway, it’s a teachable moment. If you do get road raged, don’t pull your gun unless you’re facing an imminent, credible threat of grievous bodily harm or death. And probably not even then (driving away works well).

And if you are “forced” to show or point your pistol at an aggressor, get on the phone immediately, call the cops and report the incident. Amen.

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58 COMMENTS

  2. “Episcopal priest driving a little red Corvette?”

    How else is he gonna lure an underage boy into his Vette for ‘Choir practice ‘ tryouts?

    Sheesh…

      • I thought Episcopalian priests tended to be old, feminist, sometimes lesbian women. I’m kind of impressed to see an apparently red blooded male Episcopal priest. There are apparently Episcopalians in FL that aren’t SJW libs.

        Still, this was extremely reckless behavior on his part. His bishop definitely needs to have some words with him (as does the civil magistrate).

  3. “Adams told investigators that the pickup drew alongside him and the passenger screamed at him and threw a soda at his car.”

    Was it one of those high capacity, assault 2-liters I’ve heard so much about?

  4. Any time I see “Florida” in the first sentence of a news item, I just expect some weirdness.

    Sounds like the priest was…

    B)

    …an unholy roller.

  5. An Episcopal “priest” with a redcorvette…no vow of poverty?Actually from the description he may have been justified pulling his (unloaded?!?) gat. Definitely on my bizarro meter…

  6. Florida man stories have become so common that when I see one of the crazy headlines I no longer hope it’s not Florida. I hope it’s not my county.

    • Yeah, I have relatives in Florida and when I see these stories I also hope it’s not in their town. But sometimes it is! :O

    • I’lI hear wacky news stories on the radio or maybe read them online and later tell my wife about it.

      It’s become a running joke for me to ask her to guess what state and place the wackiness occurred in. Far more often than not, the correct answers are Florida and Walmart.

    • FL is filled with relocated azzholes from NY, NJ and Boston……. Same azzholes; different ZIP code…..

  7. A “turn the other cheek” moment. Avoid road rage at all costs, it’s a no win scenario whether or not guns are involved. But if someone tries to kill you it’s best to have a gun.

  8. Road rage, followed by lying to the cops? Seems like that priest might be in the wrong line of work.

    • So I feel the need to share this story. In february I bought one of PSA’s supposedly FN made top of the line cold hammer forged mid length AR barrels for $150. Put it in with no problems, headspace looked good. The damn thing did not run. Constantly failed to go into battery over and over and over. It got to one point that I tried mashing the forward assist to get the round in and when that failed I pulled the charging handle and it actually pulled the bullet out of cartridge and spilled powder all down my gun. I had to take it home and knock the bullet out with a cleaning rod. It took me literally months to get in contact with PSA and get them to take the barrel back. I bought a new barrel from a different company and the gun has run flawlessly ever since.

      Ever since that experience I have been very leery about their supposedly awesome AR barrels.

      • I’m not sold on Palmetto Arms anything. When Aero Precision and BCM sell uppers within 200 dollars of the cheapest of Palmettos offerings I figure I just shouldn’t take a chance.

  11. In Florida, it is unlawful to store a loaded firearm under the passenger seat, or in any other concealed location unless you have a CCW Permit, or it is “securely encased” in a glovebox, zippered pouch, snap holster, etc. He would probably be arrested even if he didn’t point it at anyone.

    • He SAYS it was unloaded.

      Which I assume was a lie along with everything else he said, of course.

  12. He was driving a Little Red Corvette? If Prince was still alive, I’m sure he’d approve.

  13. I’ve “readied” my Glock twice for insane drivers but never brandished it.
    I was blocked in both times so I was ready to defend myself. I feel like brandishing is similar to warning shots so I don’t plan to do either one. I’ll yell to someone advancing towards me with intent to do grievous bodily harm and if that doesn’t stop them, well, dude had a choice. I didn’t.

    • How many times do we read (here included) that a vehicle is a dangerous and lethal weapon? Regardless of whether your in a car or standing on your feet a full sized pickup against a vette could easily turn bad for the corvette. Like you Michael I have draw and readied many times but never brandished or aimed. Doesn’t mean he didn’t fear for his life or have an imminent threat. IMO

  14. Good reason to adhere to the first and second rules of Gun Club. If someone knows you have one, they can claim that you brandished, and it at least looks bad when it’s found.

    • Even if they don’t “know” you have one, they can claim you did.

      It’s a 50% chance they guess correctly, including color.

    • I have often wondered how long it will be until some douchebag calls the cops on an open carrier to falsely claim that the open carrier brandished for no reason. That is the one very clear possible downside to open carry.

      On the other hand, I wonder if open carry actually reduces your legal exposure to false allegations of brandishing? If you carry a concealed handgun, the only way that someone could know you were armed is if you actually brandished it. Thus, if another person reports you to police, the fact that you carry concealed is incriminating because the other person had no way of knowing that you were armed unless you actually displayed it. In other words you are going to have to provide some sort of legal defense for why you had your handgun in your hand and visible to the world.

      This is where open carry might actually be an advantage. Even if you did brandish your handgun, you could deny that allegation and it is your word against the other person since there is a legal explanation for how the other person knew you were armed. Unless there is video or a LOT of reliable witnesses that can corroborate the brandishing allegation, open carry might literally enable you to get away with improper brandishing.

      • Maybe it’s an incentive to carry an unexpected style of gun, too? Something that nobody making a false allegation would ever just guess? I’m thinking maybe a big, gold desert eagle, or possibly a little pink pocket pistol.

        • FInny you say that: my parents have a friend that recently coated his carry pistol’s frame hot pink. He had an incident a couple years ago where someone reported him to police on false accusations of brandishing. The cops didn’t believe it and nothing came of it. However, now he has a visually distinctive pistol. If someone claims brandishing or some other related claim, he can ask them (in front of the cop, recording the whole thing) what color the gun was.

  15. Brake check. The height of passive aggressive behavior. The perfect way to act when one is driving too slow in the fast lane and someone wants to go around.

    Oh to be judge jury and executioner for just one day! Please!

    • Hey if I’m in a packed fast lane and somebody runs up to my bumper I’m gonna brake check him. I leave at least 3-4 car lengths in front of me and if somebody gets withn a car length on my bumper he’s gonna get a brake check. Of coarse I do it with keeping my right foot on the gas pedal and apply just enough pressure with the left to get the brakes lights going but I don’t actually slow down any. It’s fun to see them react in the rearview mirror.

  16. They say road rage and violent crime are more common in the hot summer months. Could be true, but I don’t know for sure. If you’re a TLS member, or read some Texas papers, you may have heard about a guy in the Houston area who had the road rage recently.

    I don’t know who the original bad guy was. May have been a fender bender hit and run. The guy who felt wronged by the other proceeded to chase him down. Against 911’s advice to stop, wait for the officers, and provide the offender’s license plate number, the chasing driver instead whipped out a pistol and shot out the other motorist’s tire.

    When police caught up with them both, the shooter was arrested for deadly conduct.

  18. My approach to tailgaters is to only tap the brakes if they are so close I can’t see their headlights in the rear view mirror.

    Otherwise I pull over into the slow lane when safe and let karma take it’s course in the form of a radar trap, speed camera, or accident. It’s amazing how often karma catches up with a$$hats.

    • Tapping the brakes when they are “too close” is like poking somebody in the chest who wants by in a crowded bar. Just asking for trouble. There is a reason they are so close, primarily because (right or wrong), you are in the way. Be situationally aware in your car and get out of the way before they are on you!

      In many states, you are in violation for impeding traffic even if they are speeding etc.

      • On my daily commute it is very common for people to ride my butt in the slow lane. I set my cruise control at about 3-7 over the speed limit and mind my own buisness. Since I have a smaller car for my 90 mile round trip every day it is common to have Big Truck Bubba all on my butt. The thing is, my dual lense dashcamera points both front and rear and it’s all on video. Some day I’ll get to retire on some jackpot justice when some impatient road rager begs me too hard to own him, his truck, and his company in civil court.

        • You’re an a$$hat for blocking the left lane. GTF out of the way. Three to seven miles over the speed limit is your “gift” to the other motorists? Go back over to the Huff Post where you and your Prius belong.

        • Robert, what part of “slow lane” did you misunderstand?

          It looks like the hat is mounted squarely on YOUR a$$ here. Do have as little patience in driving in as you do in reading comprehension? You are the reason I run front and rear cameras in my car. I just may retire courtesy of your insurance policy.

      • I only tap the braked enough the lights to come on but not enough to apply the brakes. Speed zones are strictly enforced in my part of the world and I am not losing my license because some doofus is late. Speeding is considered by the plods to be more serious than obstructing traffic. Speed kills you know (sarcasm).

        It is usually some a$$hat in a Range Rover, Audi, BMW, or Mercedes Benz. If not one of those, then a young (usually P-plate) driver who is an accident away from a reality check.

  19. Priest driving a Corvette you say? Capturing all the souls for Christ who drive lesser cars..? I don’t think Jesus would approve.

    You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.
    5 Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”?
    6 But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.”
    James 4:4-6

    Somehow I think this guy has another definition for ‘humble’

  20. “And if the religious leader didn’t wave his gat at the pickup, how did the driver and passenger know he had a gun?”

    In the right areas, or around the right people, you could make a blanket statement like “he/she has gun”, without any actual knowledge, and likely not be wrong.

    You could probably tell more about people than you expect just by knowing where you are and knowing a few things about them.

    Here is a little game you can play someday to prove the point. Next time you’re doing a lot of driving around in different areas, try to guess the general age (teenager, mid-age, elderly), race, and sex of people in the vehicles in front you solely by the vehicle (type, model, appearance, age, etc.), the area, and how they are driving…

    You’ll be surprised how often you can get it right.

  21. So dude is in a vette and a pick-up is tailgating him. Why not just drive away/ – vette beats PU like rock beats scissors.

    • Was Rev. Ted Haggard a real Christian when he snorted meth and paid a male prostitute to pound his butt ?

  23. Another example of why a “cheap” defensive gun is good…. not saying this nut was right, he was not, but he could have thrown the dam thing out the window and avoided the whole thing…

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