Last year, Matthew Exton spotted his ex-wife and her family at a local restaurant. After sending a drink to their table and spitting at them on his way out, the now-former Toledo-area attorney returned with a gun and attempted to shoot his ex at point blank range. Thankfully, Exton forgot to take the safety off, giving a waiter the opportunity to tackle Exton to the ground.
What’s the appropriate tip under those circumstances? At least 25 percent, right?
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Exton lost his law license a month later, and now — another year hence — he’s been convicted of attempted murder.
It’s another reminder that “the only thing that can stop a bad guy with a gun is a good guy with a gun” is pithy propaganda, but doesn’t really work out in practice. Nothing would have stopped a less forgetful Exton, and this absent-minded version was stopped by quick thinking and brute force.
As WBTV reports:
“Nothing in their training and soft openings at the restaurant could have prepared the staff for what walked through that door,” [Lucas County Prosecuting Attorney Julia R.] Bates said. “The defendant did not come with the intention of having a meal. He came with anger in him and with the intention to commit a public execution of his ex-wife at the restaurant that day.”
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Maybe it’s just me, but for some reason, I’m stuck on “and soft openings.” As though the prosecution feared jurors might say, “sure, training didn’t cover this, but shouldn’t they have tried a few soft openings to work out the ‘patron tries to murder someone over appetizers’ kinks?” I need an oral history of how that worked its way into the closing argument script.
In any event, Exton will be sentenced later in the month.
Former attorney convicted of attempted murder after trying to shoot ex-wife in restaurant [WBTV]
Joe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter or Bluesky if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news.