A Johnny Northside Salute To "Big Iron." What He Was Doing At Thomas Ave. N. Shooting Scene?

Blog post and photo by John Hoff

Information posted by anonymous commenters is like Forest Gump's "box of chok-lits" where "you never know what you're gunna get." Sure, maybe the information is good, but maybe it's just made up.

Yet some anonymous information about the recent Thomas Ave. N. shooting turned out to be very good indeed, and was subsequently confirmed by a reliable source. The short and stocky man pictured above is named Dave S., and his job is to round up fugitives who have skipped out on their probation. Which naturally begs the question...

What was "Dave S" or "DOC Dave" doing at the scene of the recent Thomas Ave. N. shooting? JNS blog doesn't have that information quite yet but this much is certain: it's not standard procedure for Department of Corrections fugitive hunters to show up at murder scene investigations. There is clearly a reason for THAT.

But consider, if you will, how oddly prescient a random YouTube musical link might be. The good neighbor who provided me pictures of the shooting scene was struck by the "big (expletive) gun on his hip" which reminded me of the old Country Western ballad by Marty Robins, "Big Iron." So, just for the heck of it, I linked to that song...thinking all the while the guy in the photo was some kind of well-armed security guard.

But he's not. He hunts fugitives. And, notably, "Big Iron" is about a law enforcement official who goes around hunting fugitives. Weird. That's just weird.

Having no more information about DOC Dave at this point, all I can do is wish him well on his mission, which I intend to do with a musical salute and the posting of these song lyrics:
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To the town of Agua Fria rode a stranger one fine day
Hardly spoke to folks around him didn't have too much to say
No one dared to ask his business no one dared to make a slip
for the stranger there among them had a big iron on his hip
Big iron on his hip

It was early in the morning when he rode into the town
He came riding from the south side slowly lookin' all around
He's an outlaw loose and running came the whisper from each lip
And he's here to do some business with the big iron on his hip
big iron on his hip

In this town there lived an outlaw by the name of Texas Red
Many men had tried to take him and that many men were dead
He was vicious and a killer though a youth of twenty four
And the notches on his pistol numbered one an nineteen more
One and nineteen more

Now the stranger started talking made it plain to folks around
Was an Arizona ranger wouldn't be too long in town
He came here to take an outlaw back alive or maybe dead
And he said it didn't matter he was after Texas Red
After Texas Red

Wasn't long before the story was relayed to Texas Red
But the outlaw didn't worry men that tried before were dead
Twenty men had tried to take him twenty men had made a slip
Twenty one would be the ranger with the big iron on his hip
Big iron on his hip

The morning passed so quickly it was time for them to meet
It was twenty past eleven when they walked out in the street
Folks were watching from the windows every-body held their breath
They knew this handsome ranger was about to meet his death
About to meet his death

There was forty feet between them when they stopped to make their play
And the swiftness of the ranger is still talked about today
Texas Red had not cleared leather fore a bullet fairly ripped
And the ranger's aim was deadly with the big iron on his hip
Big iron on his hip

It was over in a moment and the folks had gathered round
There before them lay the body of the outlaw on the ground
Oh he might have went on living but he made one fatal slip
When he tried to match the ranger with the big iron on his hip
Big iron on his hip
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(Some folks wonder why I post random musical links in my text. The answer is simple: so readers can perform random dancing)