In character, Maurice demonstrates how the gunman waved the gun. - photos by Norman Grindley/Deputy Chief Photographer

He saw a dark dreadlocked man through the door glass. Suddenly, a pane of glass in the door broke, and the intruder pushed his hand inside and opened the door. He stepped in. Maurice, his sons, and a teenage friend of theirs were now face to face with the intruder, who brandished a gun.

Paul H. Williams, Gleaner Writer

"Bullet! Bullet!" is a popular current exclamation used by some people to express approval or disapproval. Yet, the story of the bullet has been around for decades. The bullet has killed millions, and thousands have defied its deadly pangs. Our own national heroine, Nanny of the Maroons, has allegedly caught a few with her backside. And, we wonder about her constitution, and that of Maurice Duhaney. For he, too, has a bullet tale - that of the missing bullet, the one that seemingly went into his neck, and disappeared. This is his story.

But first, let me describe the scene where the melodrama unfolded one night in November 2004: Gate from road, big concrete post on either side; steep driveway leading to carport grille; carport; step up through French door into TV room; living room.

Maurice and his pregnant wife drove into their St. Catherine residence, and left the gate and the carport grille open. They went inside the house, closing the door to the TV room behind them, expecting their sons, aged 16 and 19 at the time, to go to close the gate and lock the carport grille, as was customary.

Face to face

On their way, the young men saw a human figure approaching the carport. They rushed back into the TV room and closed the door. The younger son exclaimed, "The blood of Jesus is against you!" This rebuke, which is not used against members in his family, grabbed Maurice's attention, so he went to investigate. He saw a dark dreadlocked man through the door glass. Suddenly, a pane of glass in the door broke, and the intruder pushed his hand inside and opened the door. He stepped in. Maurice, his sons, and a teenage friend of theirs were now face to face with the intruder, who brandished a gun.

His son uttered again, "The blood of Jesus is against you!" This seemed to agitate the gunman, who was now waving the gun in a left-to-right-right-to-left direction. He was frantic, apparently deciding whom to shoot first. Maurice surmised that he was going to shoot his elder son, and would have none of it. He darted at the gunman, who pressed the trigger. Bam!! Maurice was hit in his neck!

No. He did not give up. He pushed the intruder, who fell backwards through the door into the carport. The bleeding Maurice was on top of him, holding him, holding on for dear life. By now, the gun had fallen from the intruder's hand, and he pulled a long ice pick from his waist. The younger son wrenched it away from him.

Maurice and the intruder tussled for a while in the carport. They were now at the carport grille gate. The intruder was more interested in making his escape; he wiggled out of his shirt. Maurice held on. He was unrelenting.

Maurice: "A decide sey regardless of what happen a holding on to him."

They were now rolling down the driveway, predator and injured prey, wrapped as a bundle. The struggle intensified. Maurice saw shadows and images moving around, images of people appearing and disappearing. He believed he was getting help. The yin and yang human ball finally reached a gatepost, against which Maurice planned to pin the intruder. But, Maurice was in trouble, as he began to lose control of the situation.

Maurice: "When a reach at the post is like all my strength left now, a feel real real weak." He cried out, "My God!" His God responded swiftly. For, in a twinkling, somebody dropped a building block on to the intruder's head. Clonk!

Having realised the predator was now wounded, Maurice released him from his clutch. The intruder shouted, "Murder, murder, murder, nuh kill mi, nuh kill mi, nuh kill mi!" He lay squirming on the ground until the police and neighbours came. Maurice was promptly taken to the Spanish Town Hospital, where the drama took on a twist of a 'miraculous' nature.

Doctors at the hospital were confused as to what had happened. Clearly, there was a bullet hole in Maurice's neck at a very dangerous spot, near a main vein. There was no exit wound and Maurice was conscious and talking. An X-ray was ordered. It showed no bullet in his neck. They were not satisfied. Another was requested, of the head. Still no bullet. Kingston Public Hospital beckoned.

There, Maurice underwent more examinations, tests and X-rays. The bullet was yet to make its appearance. After an entire day, the consultant and a team of doctors surrounded his bed to discuss the incident with him. The medics themselves talked about the probability of someone surviving a point-blank shot in the neck from a Luger. Having come to the consensus that it wasn't a common occurrence, one of them said to Maurice, "Stay close to God." They declared it a miracle and Maurice was immediately discharged, and advised to return as an out-patient should the need arise. It did not.

In hindsight, Maurice, who is a member of the Miracle Valley Apostolic Church, believes that his decision to pounce upon the gunman was stupid, perhaps.

Maurice: "Sometime when mi come back to myself I say 'why I do such astupid thing', but a never premeditate it, I just couldn't sit back and allow him to take my son like that." He did not, and he instead got shot, and lived to tell the tale. He strongly believe that it was his relationship with God that saved him. Maurice: "I'm a strong believer in God, extremely strong I believe that the Lord will protect me more than even a firearm, because if I did have a firearm it couldn't help me in this case, because the way the guy approach me I couldn't respond just (that) the Lord was on my side (and) make your children really know how to trust God for themselves."

A constant reminder

That's why Maurice has not replaced the broken glass in the door. It is a constant reminder of the goodness of God. So, too is the faint circular mark left by the bullet. And, the lesson to Maurice is: "Am just a little more careful like how to approach the gate, and close the gate . " He was also to learn another lesson about the mouth that he fed. The gunman turned out to be someone who had worked for him before.

While Maurice was receiving treatment in the Spanish Town Hospital, the gunman was also receiving treatment on the same ward. Two of Maurice's relatives confronted him and he apologised. He was actually a "brown, brown" young man wearing fake dreadlocks, and a mask. For his crime he was convicted and sentenced to 27 years. To date, the bullet has not been found, not in the house, not in Maurice's body, and he is still as frisky as a rabbit.

However, he has forgiven the man who could have killed him, and robbed his wife of a husband, and his sons, a father. He harbours no ill feeling against the convict, and would love to get the opportunity to chat with him. Maurice: "If I see him now, I would talk to him and encourage him to seek the Lord." In fact, he has recommended the mother of the convict's children to a friend of his for employment because "the children are innocent I don't want his children to come up to do the same thing because if they aren't raised properly they will end up doing the same thing."

- bludums@yahoo.com

Left: Spot on! "This is where the bullet hit me." Right: The faint circular mark left by the bullet.

Maurice Duhaney puts his hand through the opening created by the intruder after he broke a glass pane. The pane is yet to be replaced.