‘Hero’ Shot While Intervening With Irate Customer At Gas Station

ALSIP, IL — A 22-year-old Mt. Greenwood man is recovering from gunshot wounds he suffered Nov. 21 while trying to intervene with an angry customer at an Alsip gas station, according to police. Although Michael Haynes' wounds have been described by police as “non-life-threatening,” he faces a long and arduous recovery.

Around 5:55 p.m., Haynes stopped by the Shell gas station at 117th Street and Pulaski Road to get something to drink. As he was standing in line, a customer ahead of him was screaming and berating a store employee, according to Alsip police.

The customer turned his attention elsewhere and became confrontational with other customers, police said. Haynes interrupted the man when he began arguing with a female customer. Police said the man pushed Haynes and went outside, where police believe he went to retrieve a gun from of his vehicle.

Haynes was standing in the doorway of the store when the man returned with a gun. Witnesses told police the man started shooting Haynes in his legs and feet, making statements such as, “This will teach you to mind your own business.” The man then got into a newer model silver or gray Ford Bronco and fled south on Pulaski.

Haynes’ mother, Cheryl West, is organizing a GoFundMe campaign to help cover her son’s medical costs and lost wages as he undergoes many long months of physical therapy and ongoing visits to orthopedic and vascular doctors.

“I raised Michael to be righteous, to stand up for others, to say something when someone is being hurt or being wronged,” his mother wrote on GoFundMe. “This is what he did that evening. It is by the Grace and Mercy of God and an army of angels that my only child is alive today.”

West says her family has no idea what her son's medical costs will be.

Haynes, a 2018 graduate of Oak Forest High School, remains hospitalized. The “Help Michael rise up as a survivor and a hero” online campaign had raised almost half of its $20,000 goal as of Sunday evening.

“My son has always been my hero and I did my best to raise him, making many mistakes along the way, but he is a good, kind, strong, brave, righteous, and decent man despite my mistakes. A young woman is safe because of him,” West said.

Police believe the shooting is an isolated incident. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call the Alsip Police Department at 708-385-6902, ext. 272.

Visit the “Help Michael rise up as a survivor and a hero” to make a donation and keep up with his progress.

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