Re: Grand Canyon: Wanted Man Who Fled Rangers Rescued From Below Rim

Grand Canyon National Park (AZ)
Wanted Man Who Fled Rangers Rescued From Below Rim

Park dispatch received a visitor report of a man panhandling at the Duck on a Rock pullout on the afternoon of April 22nd. Rangers Philip Oakes and Cori Conner - the former a field training ranger, the latter a trainee from North Cascades - headed to the spot, which is about ten miles east of Grand Canyon Village, and contacted the man, who declined to identify himself. He instead fled from the two rangers and jumped over the canyon edge, falling to a point approximately 25 feet below the rim. High-angle rescue team members were brought in and rappelled down to the man. On the way down, they were notified by rangers on the rim that one of the vehicles parked at Duck on a Rock belonged to a man wanted in connection with a murder investigation in Texas. When the rangers reached the man, they first handcuffed then treated him. He was placed on a litter, lifted to the rim, and taken to Flagstaff Medical Center by DPS helicopter to have his injuries treated. Rangers identified him as Terrance Black, 48, who is wanted in connection with a murder investigation in Texas. Once he is released from the hospital, he will be transported to the Coconino County Detention Center, where he will remain in custody until Texas Rangers pick him up. The vehicle, which is associated with the Texas murder investigation, has been impounded by the National Park Service and is being held for the Texas Rangers, who will process the car for clues.

I'm wondering if he was dumb enough to think that jumping into the Grand Canyon was a way to escape the authorities or if it was a haphazard suicide attempt.