Aurora gunman told aunt he'd never go back to prison

The Aurora man who fatally shot a Virginia state trooper before being shot and killed himself recently told his aunt he would fight it out with police before ever going back to prison.

James Brown III, 34, had a long and violent criminal history, court records show, long before he opened fire Thursday at a crowded bus terminal in the capital city of Richmond, killing the trooper and injuring two civilians.

His aunt, Edith Brown, of Aurora, said she helped raise Brown. He lived with her for much of his life, when he wasn't incarcerated, until December, when she said she asked him to leave her ranch house in a subdivision on the city's east side.

"It was time that he left home to be an adult," she said Friday in a telephone interview with the Daily Herald.

Edith Brown said she talked to her nephew within the past week and "things were good."

She said there are no family connections in Virginia and she doesn't know why her nephew was there.

Virginia State Police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said authorities believe Brown was traveling alone from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Chicago with a layover in Richmond at the time of the shooting.

Trooper Chad P. Dermyer, 37, died after being struck multiple times, according to Virginia State Police Superintendent Col. Steven Flaherty. Two bus passengers who were also shot - a 21-year-old woman from Wingdale, New York, and a 41-year-old woman form Jacksonville, North Carolina - suffered injuries that were not life-threatening, according to a news release.

Edith Brown said her nephew served several prison sentences on weapons, drug and battery charges, but told her his prison days were over.

"He didn't like it there. He said he was never going back," Edith Brown said Friday morning. "He said he would fight it out before he ever wound up back there."

Investigators don't know what sparked the shooting. Dermyer had been participating with about a dozen other troopers in a training exercise at the bus station when a brief encounter with Brown quickly turned violent.

State police spokeswoman Corinne Geller said Dermyer and Brown spoke for about two minutes before Brown suddenly pulled a .40-caliber Beretta semi-automatic pistol from his waistband, "turned into him and fired multiple shots."

Brown was then shot by other state troopers nearby and went back toward a restaurant area before he could be taken into custody. He died at VCU Medical Center.

Dermyer was dressed in a fatigue-style uniform and was not wearing a protective vest, the superintendent said.

The gunman's weapon was recovered at the scene, along with 143 rounds of additional ammunition in his possession, according to a news release.

Edith Brown said her nephew was a "troubled young man who was adored by many" and frequently tried to help the homeless.

He was known to have angry feelings toward law enforcement, she said, and was "intrigued by people who got into shootouts with police."

"Look, he had a background. And his dealings with police were not always upbeat and positive," Edith Brown said. "But he served his time for those things and was trying to assimilate back into society.

Her nephew most recently was sentenced to 2½ years in prison in 2012 after he was convicted of domestic battery and aggravated battery of a pregnant woman.

Kane County court records also show he served prison time between 2003 and 2011 after being convicted of aggravated discharge of a firearm, distribution of heroin, possession of weapon and body armor by a felon and multiple cases of battery.

The shooting on Thursday drew a small army of law enforcement officers in tactical gear and dozens of cruisers and emergency response vehicles to the bus station, in an area that includes a minor league baseball stadium and a variety of commercial establishments and restaurants.

Najee Wilson, 18, of Newark, New Jersey, said his bus was pulling up to the station when he heard three gunshots and saw people running out of the building.

"We heard a lot of people screaming," Wilson said. "It definitely was a scary experience."

Wilson, who was en route to Atlanta, was among about 200 travelers waiting to board buses at a staging area set up a few blocks from the bus station after the shooting.

Leigha Schilling, who was between stops on her bus trip from New York to South Carolina, said she was smoking a cigarette outside the station Thursday when she heard banging. She went back inside briefly and saw people lying on the ground and what appeared to be blood on the floor. A security guard ordered her to get on the floor, but she ran back outside, and then heard several shots, she said.

"I was terrified," she said. "I didn't know what was going on."

Vincent Smith was working at the U-Haul Moving and Storage facility next door to the Greyhound station when he heard sirens and saw police cars buzzing by.

An officer stopped in and ordered him and his co-workers to stay inside and lock the doors until told it was safe again, Smith said. By late afternoon, he said he had been locked inside for about an hour and a half.

City Councilwoman Reva Trammell called it "the saddest day in the city of Richmond."

"State troopers doing their job and innocent people shot," she said. "Why? This was a senseless act."

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe echoed her sentiments in a statement: "This is a loss that impacts us all. It should inspire prayers for the family, friends and fellow troopers who are mourning tonight, and gratitude for those who protect and serve."

Roughly 50 officers from the Richmond Police Department went to the bus station to assist state police, Chief Alfred Durham said.

He said law enforcement officers have become the target of "folks out there with evil intentions."

"It's unfortunate these are the days we're living in, where folks want to harm law enforcement," Durham said. "We just want our officers to end their shifts and to go home to their families."

Greyhound issued a statement Thursday afternoon saying the Richmond bus station would be closed "until further notice."

Dermyer, the father of two children, was a native of Jackson, Michigan, and a former Marine who had served on the force in Jackson and Newport News, Virginia, Flaherty said.

Aurora Police Chief Kristen Ziman said her department has received "limited information" into the ongoing investigation.

"Our hearts go out to the Virginia State Police and the family and friends of those lost in this tragic incident," she said in a news release.

• Daily Herald staff writers Robert Sanchez, Marie Wilson and Erin Hegarty and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Gunman's criminal background

James Brown III of Aurora was incarcerated for much of the past 13 years before being killed Thursday in a police shootout in Virginia. Here's a look at his criminal background:

• Oct. 29, 2003: Brown is sentenced to 10 years in prison for aggravated fleeing and eluding police, aggravated discharge of a weapon and delivery of heroin. He is released on parole on May 12, 2006.

• Nov. 6, 2006: Brown is sentenced to 5½ years for possessing more than 15 grams of heroin. He is released on parole on Nov. 14, 2008.

• April 3, 2009: Brown is sentenced to 2½ years for intimidation. He is released on parole on Feb. 2, 2010.

• April 11, 2012: Brown is sentenced to 2½ years for aggravated battery. He is released on parole on March 18, 2013, and ultimately discharged on March 19, 2014.

Source: Illinois Department of Corrections