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A Baptist Youth Pastor Murder/suicide - Lancaster Baptist Church


Pastor Matt

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Such a sad story. Unfortunately, these type of stories will bring out the crazies. 

 

 

 

http://theavtimes.com/2014/01/21/victim-suspect-idd-in-fatal-car-to-car-shooting/

 

 

Victim, suspect ID’d in fatal car-to-car shooting by M. Dilworth •   

January 21, 2014

LANCASTER – Authorities have identified the victim and the suspect in the fatal car-to-car shooting at a stoplight in Lancaster Sunday night.

The victim has been identified as Lancaster resident Erik Peter Ungerman, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.

The 34-year-old was sitting in his car at a red light on West Avenue K and 20th street West, when a gunman pulled alongside him and shot several rounds into the vehicle, Sheriff’s homicide detectives said.

 

Ungerman was struck multiple times in the upper torso and pronounced dead at the scene, and witnesses saw a silver vehicle speeding away after the shooting, officials said. Read our previous story here.

The alleged getaway vehicle and its driver were found Monday morning, according to Lancaster Sheriff’s Captain Pat Nelson.

“At about 6:30 am [Jan. 20], deputies responded to a medical call of a man slumped over the wheel of a car over at 37th Street East and K-12. When they arrived, they found a 40-year-old male who was deceased from what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound,” Nelson said. “Deputies recognized that the vehicle matched the description of the vehicle from the shooting and called the homicide detectives… They came back and they were able to link this deceased suicide victim with the murder victim,” Nelson continued.

The murder suspect/suicide victim has been identified as 40-year-old Jeremy Whitman of Lancaster, according to the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office.

Nelson said the suspect and the victim in the car-to-car shooting knew each other.

“It appears at this point that the shooting was as a result of some type of dispute that they had,” Nelson said. “It definitely was not a random shooting, and there’s nobody waiting at stoplights to shoot cars up.”

Those that knew both victim and suspect said the two men were best friends for many years, and the incident was a shock to many.

“Erik was an awesome man who I was in love with for nearly two years, and Jeremy Whitman was our Sunday school teacher from Lancaster Baptist Church,” said Ungerson’s former girlfriend Tiffany Martin. She said Ungerman worked at DirecTV as an installation technician.

Whitman, up until last year, was an employee at Lancaster Baptist Church, and he was also a youth pastor intern at the church many years ago, according to LBC Associate Pastor Tim Christoson.

“He was my friend and brother in Christ and a former employee,” said Christoson. “We’re requesting prayers for his immediate family and for his extended family.”

Both deaths are still under investigation. Anyone with information on either incident is urged to contact the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500. To remain anonymous, call Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477).

 

http://theavtimes.com/2014/01/21/victim-suspect-idd-in-fatal-car-to-car-shooting/

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Here is Chappell's response. I am curious what others think about this. http://www.paulchappell.com/2014/01/23/remembering-a-dear-friend-jeremy-whitman/

 

1) Is too much emphasis being placed on Jeremy Whitman?

2) Should more emphasis from LBC be placed on Erik Ungerman?

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I wondered about the other guy?

I am not particularly for or against Chappel, I thought that both these guys had been involved there in the past -IF that is so, it seems a bit strange to only mention Whitman - unless there will be another separate comment on Ungerman.

In any case, this is a tragic event no matter which way you look at it. :(

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Here is Chappell's response. I am curious what others think about this. http://www.paulchappell.com/2014/01/23/remembering-a-dear-friend-jeremy-whitman/

 

1) Is too much emphasis being placed on Jeremy Whitman?

2) Should more emphasis from LBC be placed on Erik Ungerman?

I think it's sad that nothing has been said about Erik. If he was in Jeremy's Sunday School class, as the girlfriend said, then he also attended the church. He was the victim (even if they were disputing and Erik was in the wrong...shooting him was not the answer) but, while that article does not intend to do so, it seems to uplift the shooter. I know they are grieving over what happened to Jeremy, but it would be nice if something was said about Erik as well.  Maybe Chappell just didn't really know Erik.

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I think it's sad that nothing has been said about Erik. If he was in Jeremy's Sunday School class, as the girlfriend said, then he also attended the church. He was the victim (even if they were disputing and Erik was in the wrong...shooting him was not the answer) but, while that article does not intend to do so, it seems to uplift the shooter. I know they are grieving over what happened to Jeremy, but it would be nice if something was said about Erik as well.  Maybe Chappell just didn't really know Erik.

That was my first thought also. I think he did not intend to sound like he is uplifting the shooter, but the articles comes across that way.

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I didn't read the articles but my husband found something that said the victim had his funeral costs provided by his job or something like that.

 

It's possible the shooter's family is in dire need right now, and have been struggling for awhile, and they are having a harder time right now than the family of the victim?   Was the victim married with kids?  (Sorry, don't feel like reading any more articles on it.)   

 

It does seem like he should probably do something a little more quietly for the shooter's family, but then, these days, you can try to do something quietly and it will end up on front page news anyway.

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I looked at some of the comments on the news story, and Chappel's mob are being roasted for not loving and supporting Whitman in some unmentioned struggles.
Maybe Chappel is responding to that?

Doesn't change previous comments in this thread.

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