Depositions collected in shooting case
by Lisa Neff. Islander Reporter
Attorneys involved in the case of the man accused of shooting Island businessperson Sue Normand collected depositions from potential witnesses last week.
Witnesses Bruce Henke, Alison Colisia, Maureen Kirker, Gerald Kirby and Holmes Beach Police Department detective Sgt. Teri Davis and Officer Mike Pilato were asked by Koenigs’ public defender to give depositions, according to documents at the Manatee County Courthouse in Bradenton.
Koenigs has pleaded not guilty to one count of first-degree aggravated battery with a firearm, three counts of first-degree aggravated assault on law enforcement with a firearm and one count of third-degree aggravated assault with a firearm.
Police maintain that the defendant entered Island Mail & More, 3230 E. Bay Drive, Holmes Beach, shortly after the store opened Dec. 5, 2007, and shot Normand, the storeowner.
Henke, an Ohio attorney and Island visitor, was in the store at the time of the shooting and administered first aid to Normand until professional rescue workers arrived minutes later.
He had stopped at Island Mail & More to ship a package. In an interview with The Islander, he remembered waiting for Normand to conduct business with a man wearing a hood.
Henke remembered hearing a “pop” and Normand scream, “I’ve been shot.” Henke rushed toward Normand, who had fallen to the floor, and the shooter ran from the store.
Koenigs was arrested on the Gulf shore in Bradenton Beach. He was injured when, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, he ignored calls to drop a gun and instead raised the weapon.
Koenigs has remained in custody since the day of the shooting, first at a hospital in St. Petersburg and then at the Manatee County jail.
Normand, who suffered a shattered hip, underwent surgery at Bayfront Medical Center in St. Petersburg and then was transferred to a rehabilitation center in Sarasota for 10 days.
After weeks in temporary lodging on the Island, Normand returned to her Holmes Beach residence - readied for a wheelchair and walker - last month.
Meanwhile, the fundraising effort continues to assist Normand, who lacks health insurance, with her medical expenses.
Organizers of a bingo night at the Annie Silver Community Center in Bradenton Beach collected donations for the Sue Normand Relief and Recovery Fund in late February.
Then on March 8 supporters at Crosspointe Fellowship, 8605 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach, held a rummage sale.
To support the fundraising effort, Normand’s family has launched www.supportsue.com to collect money via PayPal contributions on the Internet. Also, the Anna Maria Island Chamber of Commerce, 5313 Gulf Drive, Holmes Beach, is raising money through donations to the Bay of Dreams fund. |
