St. Charles honors school board president for saving lives
In the span of about 90 seconds, Steve and Diane Spurling's spring day stroll to the park with their dog became a nightmare of blood and gunshots. They weren't looking to be heroes. They just saw a neighbor who needed help.
That help likely saved at least two lives, St. Charles Police Chief James Keegan said Monday night. Keegan joined city aldermen in bestowing a citizen recognition award upon the couple Monday night.
The award relates back to the evening of May 3. The Spurlings strolled down the 400 block of Hunt Club Drive in St. Charles as they encountered a woman with a bloody and swollen face.
"She was just running down the driveway in terror," Spurling recalled. "She was so scared that she looked over at us, but I don't even think she saw us."
As the woman fell, the Spurlings raced over to help her up and assess her injuries. They all began walking away from the house as Scott J. Turyna, 65, exited his home to find his wife, Keegan said. He began trying to coax her back inside the house even as Diane Spurling continued to walk away with the battered wife, who was yelling that her husband had a gun.
"I didn't see it," Steven Spurling said. "He could have had it in his back or maybe a pocket. He was wearing a loose shirt. I assumed he probably just left it in the house. If you're going to go outside, the last thing you want to do is bring a gun. Then you just escalate everything. I started dialing 911 when I heard the first shot."
Spurling said he looked up to see Scott Turyna wielding a snub-nose .38.
"It took me a second," Spurling said. "It was like, 'Is this a dream? Is this happening?' He was probably four or five steps ahead of me at that point."
As the shots rang out, the Spurlings' 112-pound dog, which was still on its leash, lurched forward, yanking Diane Spurling to the ground.
"That's when I was like, 'OK, I've got to do something to stop him,' " Steven Spurling said. "I tackled him on the fifth shot. The gun wasn't very accurate, thank God."
Spurling wrestled the handgun away from Turyna and tossed it to the side. Diane Spurling and the wife then fled to a nearby home for shelter. Steven Spurling pinned Turyna to the ground until police came.
"The unselfish actions taken by Steven and Diane during this tragic incident prevented a far worse outcome," Keegan said. "(Turyna) had a total disregard for those around him and appeared determined to elicit great bodily harm to the victim or possibly worse. Their willingness to place themselves in harm's way in aid of a fellow citizen is greatly commended."
Turyna faces charges of attempted murder of a spouse, aggravated discharge of a firearm, aggravated battery and interfering with the reporting of domestic violence. His wife and daughter obtained an order of protection against him after the incident. His wife also filed for divorce.
Turyna faces a minimum 26-year prison sentence if convicted. He is free after posting $50,000 of his $500,000 bail. Police are monitoring his activity before trial via GPS.