Two men, both seniors, got into an altercation at the Patagonia Senior Center on May 1 during the center’s daily lunch hour. Although a loaded gun was involved in the incident, there was no serious physical harm done to the two men or bystanders. The Santa Cruz County Sheriff’s department responded to a call for assistance, but made no
arrests at the scene.
Security camera video footage reviewed by member of the Senior Citizens of Patagonia Board of Directors shows how the altercation developed.
The two men were sitting at the same table. One man pushed the table toward another during a conversation and also threw water in his face. The second man then got up and violently clawed the first man’s face, who then pushed him against the table, whereupon the second man drew a loaded handgun from a holster.
The first man grabbed the second man’s wrist, thinking now that he was fighting for his life. He knocked the handgun from his opponent’s hand and threw him hard on the floor, thinking he still was armed. When he realized he was not, the fight ended. Soon after, another diner picked up the handgun and unloaded the bullets, then gave it back to its
owner. The sheriff’s office was called and a deputy took the gun and interrogated each man.
On May 11, the Senior Citizens of Patagonia Board of Directors decided that both men would not be given lunch at the Senior Center for three months. The town manager later put a no-weapons sign with the town’s logo on the front door of the Senior Center.
One board member who had been a preschool teacher said, “Seniors and four-year-olds are a lot alike.”