XPost: alt.survival, alt.politics.guns, alt.politics   
   XPost: alt.politics.democrat   
   From: cop-killer-obama@msnbc.com   
      
   (CNN)A group of volunteers dressed all in black, bristling with   
   semiautomatic weapons, are patrolling an Arizona highway that   
   has seen nearly a dozen shootings in recent weeks.   
      
   Their mission: Helping authorities solve a rash of shootings   
   along a busy stretch of Interstate 10 in downtown Phoenix and   
   elsewhere in the Arizona capital.   
      
   They are a stealthy bunch, all dressed in black. They claim 17   
   members, including men and women of different races. They can be   
   spotted stalking above highway overpasses and patrolling nooks   
   and alleyways around Interstate 10.   
      
   The founder goes by one name, Bolt, for security reasons, he   
   says. He jokingly calls the group "guardian angels on steroids."   
      
   Authorities believe some of the shootings may be the work of   
   copycats. Two additional shootings along roadways elsewhere in   
   the capital late Thursday morning could be someone trying to   
   emulate the earlier shootings. On Friday, police were looking at   
   another report of shots fired, this time on I-17, reported CNN   
   affiliate KNXV.   
      
   A man was being questioned in connection with the spate of   
   shootings Friday, according to the Arizona Department of Public   
   Safety. He was arrested on a charge of marijuana possession, but   
   has not been charged in the shootings, the department said.   
      
   "He is not our prime suspect," DPS spokesman Bart Graves told   
   CNN on Saturday.   
      
   "We've been getting a lot of tips and a lot of leads," he said.   
   "It's fair to say some of those resulted in us locating and   
   talking to him. It is our hope that one lead leads to another."   
      
   The latest incidents are being investigated as separate   
   shootings.   
      
   Graves said some incidents involved the firing of bullets, and   
   pellets were used in other. He described one shooting as a road-   
   rage incident.   
      
   "We frankly don't know if this is the result of one person or   
   not," he said.   
      
   Arizona state troopers spokesman Tim Case has acknowledged at   
   least 11 confirmed shootings in and around I-10 in less than two   
   weeks, not including what he called "numerous reports this   
   morning of other vehicles with damage."   
      
   Bolt Force wants to help.   
      
   "We're out here to prevent someone from getting killed or hurt   
   seriously," Bolt, who says he founded the group five years ago,   
   told CNN. "We've been fortunate so far ... it's only a matter of   
   time."   
      
   The volunteers said they are military veterans, bounty hunters   
   and former law enforcement officers.   
      
   They say they are usually on foot patrol in areas where crime is   
   high. While other people find satisfaction in bowling, reading   
   or knitting, Bolt Force members say their interests lie in   
   fighting crime. They do it on a volunteer basis. All of the   
   members have other day jobs. And they say they are in contact   
   with police.   
      
   When asked what they would do if they actually witnessed the   
   freeway shooter, Bolt said: "First thing, we're gonna call our   
   Department of Public Safety contact immediately. And I guarantee   
   you there's gonna be people around here so fast you couldn't   
   even blink."   
      
   Some people praise the effort. But law enforcement officers and   
   the capital's mayor worry that group members could be mistaken   
   for snipers.   
      
   "We are not vigilantes," Bolt said. "We're an armed volunteer   
   crime-fighting force. But we do not go above the law."   
      
   DPS officials said they have been in contact with the group to   
   make sure officers know where its members are.   
      
   Arizona's DPS chief hasn't yet called the spate of shootings a   
   case of a serial sniper, which could imply someone staking out a   
   perch to selectively target people. Nor have authorities given   
   any indication that they have a suspect in mind.   
      
   But Col. Frank Milstead, the DPS director, has called tracking   
   down the person responsible "job one," a sentiment echoed by   
   Arizona's governor.   
      
   Doug Ducey ? @dougducey   
   The safety of Arizonans is our number one priority. If you have   
   ANY information about the I-10 shootings call @Arizona_DPS at   
   602-644-5805   
   9:22 AM - 10 Sep 2015 · Phoenix, AZ, United States   
      
   "This is our top priority in our administration," Gov. Doug   
   Ducey said. "I'd ask Arizonans to remain alert and aware. And   
   we're going to find who's doing this and bring them to justice."   
      
   New round of shootings after break   
   The first shootings were reported on August 29, when bullets hit   
   three vehicles -- an SUV, a commercial tour bus with no   
   passengers, and a passenger car -- as they traveled along I-10.   
      
   There were two more shootings over the subsequent two days, then   
   a break until the shootings apparently resumed on Sunday. Since   
   then, two box trucks, two pickups and a passenger car were   
   struck, as well as a tractor trailer -- the latest incident on   
   Thursday morning.   
      
   Milstead said then that some of the motorists didn't immediately   
   realize their cars had been shot, thinking the loud noise they   
   heard was an object on the highway that hit their vehicle.   
      
   Bullets struck seven of the vehicles. The others were hit by   
   projectiles that authorities are still trying to specify.   
      
   The good news is that none of these shootings has been fatal. In   
   fact, there's been only one related injury: A 13-year-old girl   
   whose right ear was cut late last month when a bullet pierced   
   the windshield of the SUV in which she was riding.   
      
   But Milstead told CNN that luck may not hold out if this   
   continues, which is why Gov. Ducey referenced the shootings   
   while tweeting that "the safety of Arizonans is our number one   
   priority."   
      
   "All of these acts are potentially lethal encounters," Milstead   
   told CNN on Wednesday. "When you're shooting into a moving   
   vehicle with unwitting occupants, (it could be) lethal."   
      
   Official: Find shooter 'before someone is ... killed'   
   Arthur Roderick, a former assistant director for the U.S.   
   Marshals, noted the Phoenix shootings appear different from the   
   October 2002 Washington-area sniper attacks that he helped   
   investigate.   
      
   For one, the fact that multiple weapons are apparently being   
   used in this case differs from the single gun in the Beltway   
   sniper case. And the latest shootings are more localized and not   
   across several states.   
      
   The more confined area could be a plus, with Roderick telling   
   CNN, "They're able to concentrate all their efforts in that one   
   particular area."   
      
   That's what authorities are doing in Phoenix by utilizing state   
   police, local departments' SWAT teams, FBI resources and highway   
   surveillance cameras to keep an eye on the area.   
      
   As to the motivation and who is responsible, Milstead said, "We   
   don't have a suspect in mind yet."   
      
   "But we will find who this is. ... And hopefully, we get to them   
   before someone is seriously injured or killed."   
      
   http://www.cnn.com/2015/09/12/us/phoenix-arizona-i-10-shootings/   
      
       
      
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