HARD TO KILL Part 1

When most of us are stabbed, or shot several times, we're in serious trouble. Some folks come to mind for which these rules didn't apply.

Cops at the NPD were stunned when in walked a customer wanting an arrest made. He said he'd been drinking in Rabbit's and someone started signifyin' on him.

This was a sure preamble to trouble. Rabbit's was a juke in the infamous McDonald Quarters, a ghetto where most of Naples black folks lived then. It was a bloody bucket, a knife and gun club. The term signifyin' meant bad mouthing. He went on.

The signifyin' led to shoving and then our complainant, being a peaceful man, turned to leave. That's when he was hit in the back. And it hurt, too. Hurt so bad he went to his car to go home, but it was so painful to lean back in the seat, he'd walked to the PD.

It was probably a mile or so from The Quarters, which was in the River Park area, to the old PD on 8th and 8th South. This man must be serious.

He then began to try to reach around to his back, twisting and turning. Damn back itches, he complained. When he turned around, you could see why. Between his shoulder blades, next to his spine was a knife. A knife buried up to the hilt. It was a Texas Toothpick, a single-blade folder with a 5" blade. He was quickly eased into a chair and told not to move. And not to lean back.

EMS responded quickly and he was whisked off to the hospital. After x-rays, the knife was carefully removed. With stabbing wounds, where the blade is still embedded, you should always let trained medical personnel remove the blade. Frequently, more damage is caused taking the knife out than the initial stab made.

Incredibly, except for the skin puncture, there was no damage. Doctors said the blade came within millimeters of his heart. Essentially it hit a hole in his carcass. That same night, he walked out of the hospital with nothing more than a small patch on his back.

The Angels of Mercy must've been working overtime that night.