Sherry McLain was scared of the black dude, James Crutchfield, asking her for a light. So scared, she pulled out her gun on him, causing him to run for safety.

I'm only glad she didn't pull the trigger. Other than that, she needs some lessons in when it's appropriate to brandish a weapon and when it's not.

"I have never been so afraid of anything in my whole life I don't think," McLain added. "This guy is the bad guy and I'm the one in handcuffs walking away." "There was no reason at the time for her to have perceive any legitimate threat," Sergeant Kyle Evans countered. "Certainly, pulling a gun on someone who just simply asks a question, who is not displaying a weapon, or displaying any aggressive behavior is not appropriate," Evans added. The black man, James Crutchfield, told police that he just bought some cigarettes and approached McLain for a light, notes The Daily News Journal. After McLain pulled her gun on Crutchfield, he ran back to the store and called 911. Crutchfield's story was confirmed witnesses and by a security video. He was at least ten feet away from McLain. However, McLain claimed that Crutchfield came towards her aggressively and was "hollering." Keeley Benoit told NewsChannel 5 that she, her small son and the boy's grandmother were targeted by McLain's gun as Crutchfield ran back to the store. "What are we supposed to do if we can't protect ourselves," McLain told the news station. "I'm 67 years old."

I'm going to speak slowly to Sherry McLain. Black people aren't scary. They're people. Ordinarily, people speak to other people, sometimes even strangers on the street, and it's not scary. It's certainly not justification for whipping a gun out of your bag and turning it on them.

[h/t Liberaland]