"Armed citizen's quick thinking yields arrests" (Aug 11, 2005)

A citizen armed with a .44 Magnum stopped a suspected thief long enough for sheriff's deputies to make an arrest Tuesday morning.

The decision by Chuck Estes led to two arrests connected to a string of vehicle break-ins in a neighborhood near the intersection of Normandy Drive and View Ridge Drive, west of Lacey.

Estes didn't keep the gun -- a revolver with a 6-inch barrel -- pointed very long, he said. He holstered it immediately after determining the suspect didn't pose a threat, he said.

"I made it very clear to stay in the car and that he was not at risk and that I was not a threat," said Estes, 40, who has a concealed weapon permit.

It was about 4 a.m., and Estes was on his way to work when he noticed someone had sliced into his wife's convertible to steal her stereo and speakers. He didn't think he had time to deal with it right away.