Teenager arrested in connection with Memphis pastor’s shooting
A teenager who allegedly drove a getaway car from Zionfield Baptist Church in Memphis, Tennessee, in February after Pastor Clemmie Livingston Jr. was shot in the face by yet-to-be-identified carjackers has been arrested in connection with the shooting.
R’Shunio Greer, 18, has been charged with aggravated robbery and theft of property, according to WREG. He is also facing a number of gun possession charges.
Court documents cited by the news outlet said Greer was tied to Livingston’s shooting after investigators reportedly found pictures of Greer in a car that was stolen from Livingston’s church the day the pastor was shot. Greer allegedly admitted to driving away from the scene of the shooting.
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For the shooting case, Greer’s bond has been set at $250,000. With additional bond amounts for other cases, Greer is facing a total bond amount of $390,500.
Livingston was shot just after 9 a.m. on Feb. 25 as he came out of his church before the start of his Sunday morning service. He recently testified about the ordeal during his first appearance in the pulpit since the shooting in his Easter Sunday message.
“Glad to be here to celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. I remember the words of Peter. … He said, ‘Lord, it’s good to be here.’ And sometimes we take being here for granted, but it’s good to be here,” the 71-year-old Livingston said after directing his congregants to Matthew 28:5-6.
Even after being a preacher for almost 40 years, he said he needs to keep reading Scripture to remind himself of how sure God’s promises are.
“Say what you will. I don’t care what you’re going through. You can always stand on the Word of God. His Word is everlasting all the way to everlasting,” he said.
Although he did not plan to discuss the shooting that day, Livingston used the experience to encourage Christians not to give up on their faith.
"You've got to hold on. You've got to hold on. A few weeks ago, my faith was tested. A faith that cannot be tested cannot be trusted," he said.
"Just a few weeks ago, I had to hold on to the faith when I was struck by a stray bullet. Don't know where it came from. I just saw myself going down on my knees. I said I wasn't going to talk about this … because it's not easy to talk about," he continued.
"But I was struck by a stray bullet that put me down on my knees. I didn't know what was going on. All I could feel was blood coming from every direction. All I could remember was Troy Franklin and my daughter, Tracy, holding my head," he recalled. "My daughter wouldn't let me shut my eyes. And I remember Sister Franklin saying, 'Hold on.'"
He said he kept telling himself that he would be dead in a few minutes.
"'You can't keep bleeding the way you are and not die,'" he recalled telling himself.
God, however, had another message for him.
"When I was down on my knees, let me tell you what He said. He said to me, 'Stop trying to die and start back living.' He said to me, 'Not yet, not yet,'" Livingston declared to shouts of praise from the congregants. "When you're rooted in the Lord, you can feel His presence. I felt the presence of the Lord."
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