Thomas Charles Taylor turned himself in Sunday, claiming he shot the mother of a boy mauled by pit bulls last month in self- defense, police said.
The shooting Saturday evolved out of a domestic dispute unrelated to the Nov. 2 mauling of 10-year-old Gregg Jones.
Renee Denise Muniz, 37, was wounded in the chest, leaving her in critical condition. Muniz’s boyfriend was also shot and wounded, but his injury was not considered life-threatening, police said.
Taylor, 25, was driven to the Aurora Police Department by Fox 31 News reporter Jon Bowman.
“Taylor was saying things like, ‘I want to turn myself in. I am scared. I’ve never been involved in something like this,”‘ Bowman said.
He said a friend of Taylor’s convinced him to call the station to help him turn himself in. Bowman said authorities knew he had been negotiating with Taylor for a surrender since Saturday night.
A manhunt for Taylor began after the 2:23 a.m. shooting in the 10600 block of East Exposition Boulevard in Aurora.
Bowman said Sunday that Taylor told him he got into an argument with a girl Friday night and she punched him in his left eye. He has a glass eye on the right side, Bowman said.
Taylor reportedly was nose to nose with the woman and bit her on the lip before leaving.
Later, Taylor started getting threatening messages that there were people at his apartment with a gun, Bowman related.
When Taylor got home, he saw Muniz, her boyfriend and the woman he fought with waiting for him.
Police said Saturday that Muniz was shot while trying to help a friend retrieve her belongings, but Bowman said Sunday that Taylor told him there was nothing in his apartment that belonged to the woman.
Taylor told Bowman that Muniz rushed him and started yelling at him for putting hands on her friend. He told Bowman that Muniz pulled something dark out of her pocket, and during an altercation with Muniz and her boyfriend, his gun went off accidentally several times.
Bowman said Taylor agreed to meet him at South Havana Street and East Iliff Avenue on Sunday afternoon.
“We were a little apprehensive about us being involved. As an adult man, having seen people from all walks of life, you kind of try to size people up as best you can. Before we did take the ride, he told me he threw the gun down on the ground (after the shooting), so I was fairly sure he was not armed.”
The reporter called Aurora police’s public information officer, Marcus Dudley, to tell him Taylor was turning himself in and wished to claim self-defense, authorities said.
Dudley said Sunday that investigators were in the process of interviewing Taylor and declined to comment on the validity of Taylor’s self-defense claim.
Taylor faces charges of attempted first-degree murder and first-degree assault.
Aurora police do not support the media involving themselves in a surrender because of safety risks, Dudley said, adding that investigators are thankful Taylor is in custody.
Meanwhile, Muniz was talking and breathing on her own Sunday at the Medical Center of Aurora, a family member said.
She was being treated in the intensive-care unit, where she remained in critical condition, said hospital spokeswoman Beverly Husted-Petry.
Gregg is staying with family members, who are keeping up with his therapy schedule.
Muniz’s other four children are shaken by the shooting, said a family member who declined to be publicly identified because the family fears retribution from the shooting incident.
“It’s a mess. It’s a nightmare,” said the family member. “Here she goes, trying to help someone, and she gets shot in the chest. People are going to have to leave it up to God’s hands.”
The shooting is the latest setback for Gregg and his family.
Last week, Muniz was charged with felony child abuse and three misdemeanors, including owning a dangerous dog and cruelty to animals in connection with the pit-bull attack.
The Arapahoe County Department of Human Services has opened a file on the family, according to the arrest warrant affidavit.
While Gregg was hospitalized, Muniz was nearly evicted from their Aurora home because she couldn’t pay the rent. Donors helped her get back on track.
Staff writer Jeremy Meyer contributed to this report.
Staff writer Felisa Cardona can be reached at 303-820-1219 or fcardona@denverpost.com.
