FAYETTE COUNTY, Ky. (LEX 18) — Jerry Gumm II will never forget the call he received from a relative on Sunday, July 13.
"He said, 'Guy House is out at the church and he shot them all up, '" recalls Gumm, whose father, Pastor Jerry Gumm, was one of four people shot at Richmond Road Baptist Church that day.
The gunman, Guy House, was shot and killed by police after he opened fire on Gumm's stepmother, Beverly Gumm, and stepsister, Christina Combs, who both died at the scene.
His father and brother-in-law, Randy Combs, are still recovering in the hospital.
Gumm talked to LEX 18 on Tuesday inside the church where his father has preached for more than 50 years. He said on that Sunday, he rushed from Nicholasville to the church to find out what happened.
"I wanted to know the condition of my father and I told police my name, that my father was over here," said Gumm, who didn't know who was dead or alive at that time.
He acknowledged his emotions were running high, but said that before he could get any answers, he ended up being arrested and charged with menacing.
In a citation, a trooper with Kentucky State Police wrote that Gumm was 'billigerent' and 'grabbed the handle of his gun.'
Gumm maintains he never reached for his gun; instead, he claims he was backing up and trying to raise his hands.
"I was asking for the condition of my father the whole time, and they said, 'Watch the news, that's all the information you'll need to get,'" Gumm said.
He and his attorney both hope the charge will be dismissed. Gumm is scheduled to go back to court on August 29.
Despite his arrest, Gumm says he still respects the police.
"They're humans, they're going make mistakes but they're supposed to have a lot more training, more de-escalation training and it looks like a couple of them weren't using it," he said.
