Assistant pastor Nehemiah Blessed Fischer, 35, died after getting shot by Oklahoma state troopers during a failed flood rescue. The police claimed that pastor Nehemiah Blessed Fischer pulled a gun on them and tried to drown an officer, while his wife, Laura Fischer, and brother, Brandon Fischer, said that he would never harm a fly.
Nehemiah Blessed Fischer, a pastor from Oklahoma, was shot and killed last week by state troopers. Despite the fact that the incident was caught on camera, the reason Fischer was shot is a mystery at this point – the police are saying one thing, while the Fischer family is singing a very different tune.
According to Oklahoma state troopers, they received a 911 call late Friday night, about two men, who were stuck in a flooded area with their truck. Troopers – Michael Taylor and Mark Southall – arrived on the scene, they found Nehemiah Blessed Fischer and his brother, Brandon Fischer, who were trying to get Brandon’s truck dislodged from a flooded ditch.
The pair was ordered to leave the area and move to safety on higher ground, but they refused. A dashcam video showed a scuffle between the Fischer brothers and the troopers, which eventually led to several gunshots.
It has been confirmed that Taylor, who has eight years on the force and Southall, who started working last year, fired their weapons. It is not known, who killed Nehemiah Blessed Fischer.
According to Oklahoma Highway Patrol spokesman Lt. John Vincent, the fighting between the four men continued off-camera, and that is when Nehemiah Blessed Fischer pulled a gun on the trooper and pushed him to the ground, prompting them to fatally shoot the religious man.
Brandon Fischer was arrested for assault and public intoxication. Both troopers, who have been placed on administrative leave, did recover a weapon belonging to Nehemiah Fischer at the scene.
Gary James, the attorney for the troopers, claimed that Fischer had a gun and during the struggle and held Trooper Southall’s head underwater. James said:
“They [Fischer brothers] might be great guys, I don’t know, but they’re obviously cursing state troopers and Nehemiah attacked the guy because when he gets up to him, it’s well enough lit that he knows he’s knocking a state trooper to the ground and on top of him. His brother Brandon has admitted that they were taking shots of Crown Royal up unto the time the vehicle is being flooded.”
Nehemiah Blessed Fischer’s father, J.R. Fischer, confirmed that he did receive a .380 handgun for his birthday, but claimed that his son would never hurt anyone.
J.R. Fischer thinks that his son was drunk and did not clearly understand the orders given by the troopers. Laura Fischer, who was supposed to celebrate her one-year wedding anniversary next month, said Nehemiah Blessed Fischer, who was an assistant pastor at Faith Bible Church in Tulsa, was a good man of God. She explained:
“He [Nehemiah] was the nicest person I’ve ever met. He was very giving. He made me want to be a better person.”
One of Nehemiah’s friends, Mike Haesloop, told The Guardian that the pastor is “not the kind of guy that’s going to pull a gun on anybody.”
“He’s more one that’s going to pray for you. I don’t get it. None of this is making any sense. I’ve known Nehemiah for years. Never known him to drink, never known him to do anything [wrong],” the pal added.
What do you think happened in this tragic incident?
