TOLEDO, OH (WTOL) - Wednesday marked the 22nd homicide this year after a man was shot and killed in South Toledo after attacking a woman with a hatchet.
Neighbors who witnessed the chaotic scene describe it as something out of a movie. WTOL 11's Ida Tedesco spoke to neighbors who witnessed the incident.
"I heard a couple shots, you know? Then I heard the woman screaming and asking for help," said Calvin Smallwood.
It was Wednesday afternoon when Benjamin Hand witnessed Bernard Neyland attacking Lakita Wilson with a hatchet on the 700 block of Lodge Avenue in South Toledo.
"There were injuries on her arms, legs, head, face where he had hit her with the ax," said neighbor Mark Mason.
That's when Hand stepped in.
"The next thing I heard, I heard another scream 'Hey he's killing her!' Next thing I know I heard shots," said Smallwood.
Those shots came from Hand's gun, killing Neyland.
In a neighborhood where violent sprees like these are becoming more and more common, neighbors are just flat out sick of it.
"My son isn't even allowed to go no further than a block away. I don't feel safe with it. Now they're happening in broad daylight," said one neighbor.
In the court of public opinion made up of neighbors, most would agree Hand was in the right.
"He was justified because he saved somebody's life. Actually he's a hero."
As of right now, detectives haven't charged Hand. They're still working to determine if this is a justifiable homicide.
