A gun strapped churchgoer who fired and killed a fellow parishioner during Sunday service, was charged on Thursday (April 28), following an intensive investigation that collected the testimony of 50 witnesses in the days since the shooting. There were approximately 300 in attendance at Keystone Fellowship Church in North Wales, PA when the incident occurred in the church sanctuary at 11 am.  Victim Robert E. Braxton III, 27, was remembered during a special service the following day. 46-year-old Mark T. Storms, who claimed self-defense at yesterday morning's arraignment, faces counts of voluntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment.

Keystone Fellowship put out a statement via Facebook Monday, that read: “Our hearts are deeply grieved over the tragic event that occurred Sunday morning, April 24 at our Montgomeryville campus. As a church family, we are shocked and heartbroken over what took place, and our congregation is in prayer for everyone involved,”

According to witnesses, what began as a tap on the shoulder to inform Braxton that he had been occupying a reserved seat, escalated with him going off on a profanity laced tirade that started with him yelling "don't f***ing touch me!" The commotion simmered down once the pastor interceded, witnesses said. But moments later Storms appeared with his gun drawn in one hand and a store bought concealed-weapons-permit in the other. "F*** you and your fake badge, get the f*** out of here. That's not a real gun," Braxton is recalled to have responded. "What are you going to do, shoot me?" he followed, before swinging a fist at Storms. That's when the gunman discharged his weapon, striking Braxton in the chest and arm. He was immediately rushed to Abington-Lansdale Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

Storms told police that at the moment of the attack, he felt his "person was in great danger", and added that he feared for the safety of the other congregants. He admitted to have used the badge as a tactic to defuse violent situations in the past. His bail has been set at $250,000 with a preliminary hearing scheduled for May 12th.

Source: nydailynews.com