Former CNN Anchor & Concealed Carry Holder, Lynne Russell – Survives Shootout

By John R Lott

Lynne Russell
Lynne Russell
Crime Prevention Research Center
Crime Prevention Research Center

Colorado –-(Ammoland.com)- This case is getting some attention because Lynne Russell was such a public figure for so long.

But these types of dramatic stories, where as Russell says that her husband’s fast actions clear “saved her life,” are hardly unusual (see also here).

From Fox News:

. . . Former CNN and Headline News anchor Lynne Russell and her husband, former CNN reporter Chuck de Caro, were involved in a fatal shooting at an Albuquerque, New Mexico, motel, police told NBC News on Wednesday.

Albuquerque police said Russell was accosted by a man about 11:35 p.m. Tuesday (1:35 a.m. ET Wednesday) in the parking lot of a Motel 6 and was pushed into her room. . . .

The assailant was unresponsive when officers arrived and died at a hospital, while de Caro was wounded [three times] and was being treated at a hospital Wednesday. . . .

The man pushed her into the motel room just as her husband was coming out of the shower, she said.

“In the process, I recognized what I had seen before — I was a deputy sheriff for many years — that this guy was used to this,” Russell said. “I suddenly realized that it wouldn’t bother him at all to pull the trigger.”

Russell and de Caro — both described as expert shots — were legally carrying concealed handguns, she said. She said she offered to search her purse for something of value to hand over to the gunman — and slipped her gun into the purse, which she then handed to her husband. . . .

Russell said the man took de Caro’s briefcase over to the bed of the motel room and began firing at her husband.

“Chuck fired back, and it was a shootout,” she said. . . .

“The guy went down, and he was history,” Russell said. . . .

People Magazine has this:

“He wound up taking my husband’s briefcase, and instead of just taking it and leaving, he took it and went over and started firing at my husband. And Chuck fired back and it was a shootout,” Russell said. . . .

From the New York Post:

“It was a gun battle, and Chuck was bleeding heavily, but he didn’t stop firing because the man was firing on him, and he was looking for me,” Russell said.

De Caro was shot twice in the abdomen and once in the leg . . . .

De Caro, a former special forces officer who now works as a national security strategist, was “bleeding profusely” just after the shootout, Russell said. . . .

Some stories such as ABC News, NBC News, People Magazine, AdWeek, and even some of the foreign press such as The UK Guardian, Stuff (New Zealand), and the Canadian Broadcast Corporation (though in the last paragraph) mention that Lynne Russell and Chuck de Caro both had concealed handgun permits.  The local Albuquerque Journal had the point of them having permits in the first paragraph of their story.  The New York Times also used the Associated Press article that had it in it’s last paragraph.

But many others, including even CNN, somehow managed not to mention they had permits.

About Crime Prevention Research Center
The Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC) is a research and education organization dedicated to conducting academic quality research on the relationship between laws regulating the ownership or use of guns, crime, and public safety; educating the public on the results of such research; and supporting other organizations, projects, and initiatives that are organized and operated for similar purposes. Visit: www.crimepreventionresearchcenter.org

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frank martin

If liberals & progressives along with over half the democrats had their way they would rather the headline read something like this “News anchor & husband gunned down” then they would go on to say how we need more gun control which really means taking guns away from honest, law abiding citizens. The only thing that’s kept criminals in check is that they don’t know if their mark has a weapon to fight back with, Kennesaw GA is a great example of a city that had low crime rates then the city grew quite fast & crime was growing out… Read more »

codenamedave

So, a former deputy and a former SF officer…
that’s what we call a catastrophic failure of the victim selection process.

Skinwalker

My Prayers go to De Caro in his quick recovery and also his brave wife. Glad they carry guns and damn great job in terminating the low life bad guy. If they did not believe in the 2nd Amendment and carry guns legally, they both would be dead and this low life garbage would have tried to rape his wife and kill her to. Good riddens to this trash and hope he enjoy HELL.

RALPH

who the hell has a right to question a persons right to protect himself or herself this is a good ending for a very bad situation because the victim was prepared just caught off guard for a few seconds. the fact remains they were able and willing to protect themselves . results justice served…….

perry

I am going to start telling people that don’t want guns or want more gun control ,if they are worried about american dying just get rid of illegal immigrants .the best estimates are 4300 murder 11000 killed in car wrecks cause of drunk illegals.so the illegals are killing more americans than guns.just look up peter kings article on illeags and killings.

Bob Shell

A CNN employee with a gun? That in itself is odd And all of this talk about permits. A permit is a piece of paper showing that you had to beg for your right to defend yourselves. We have a few states that get it such as AZ and AK and just recently Kansas Since when does it make sense or a law abiding citizen have to get a momma may I/ slip to carry. Last I checked the bad guys don’t bother with such nonsense. More states need to wake up and allow constitutional carry.

Dawn

My exact thoughts? Motel 6? Doesn’t have a good reputation.
Luckily her husband was in the room to take care of things.
Swift recovery for him and best to her.

Woodrow Pea

Since when has Motel 6 had a bad reputation?

roy tolson

Why oh Why, were these to even at a NOTEL SIX?

Masteraceman

Its Motel 6 and they leave the lights on, but its lights out on that criminal, one less to worry about.

John

Why mention at all about permits, who cares? A thug tried to rob them and worse. The thug was justifiably shot dead. They were inside their motel room, and even that doesn’t make any real difference. All people no matter where they are or live should be able to protect themselves, permit or not. The bad; the good guy was wounded. The good; the good guy protected his wife and killed the bad guy. This helped save the state 100’s of thousands in incarceration costs.

Life Member

Mike

Well said John!

Rattlerjake

So if these two didn’t have a CCP would they have been killed because they couldn’t legally carry a weapon or they might be in jail for carrying concealed without a permit. Conceal Carry permits are ILLEGAL under the Constitution and any state, like mine, that requires them is in direct violation of the Constitution and is preventing many people from carrying because of expensive and ridiculous requirements to conform to these bs laws as well as requiring people to pay to exercise their rights.

Richard

AMEN !

TEX

Damn,I love happy endings. I sure hope that de Caro makes a full and complete recovery because of this dead scumbag.

RK

I think you need to change the headline in this story from “Former CCN Anchor & Concealed Carry Holder, Lynne Russell – Survives Shootout” to “Former CNN Anchor & Concealed Carry Holder, Lynne Russell – Survives Shootout”. Its CNN, not CCN….

Good article though. Thank you for all the work you do Mr. Lott…you are a strong defender of our civil liberties.