Oklahoma Mom Thanks Armed “Hero” Who Saved Babies

by
posted on June 8, 2017
17-nrz-007_mark-chesnut_main_6-8.jpg

We told you earlier this week how an Oklahoma man used his firearm to save two neighbor babies from their crazed father, who was trying to drown them in a bathtub. Now more details are being released about the incident, and you likely won’t hear any of it from Michael Bloomberg, Shannon Watts or anyone in the gun-ban crowd.

When 37-year-old Leland Foster showed up at the house where his twin 3-month-olds were staying with their mother and her 12-year-old niece, he was looking to kill someone. And the babies were his primary targets.

Sorrells frantically fought with Foster to keep him from drowning the children.“As soon as I have the door unlocked and the door turns, I’m being plowed into and I go flying a couple of feet into the house,” the mother, Michelle Sorrells, told koco.com.

According to Sorrells, Foster, who was armed with a knife, grabbed the two babies—a boy and a girl—and headed for the bathroom. There, he began running water in the bathtub.

“I managed to go forward and grab my son out of the bathtub,” she told the news channel. “He was face-down in the water.”

Sorrells frantically fought with Foster to keep him from drowning the children. During the battle, she was stabbed, but kept on fighting for the lives of her babies.

In the meantime, Sorrells’ 12-year-old niece went looking for help. She first called 911.

“He’s trying to drown my aunt’s babies and trying to hurt her,” she is heard saying on the 911 call, which was released on Monday. “He has a knife.”

The niece then went looking for more immediate help. Next door she found neighbor Cash Freeman and told him what was happening. Freeman grabbed his revolver, ran to the home and, hearing a woman screaming and sounds of a struggle coming from inside, charged into the melee.

“He saved me and my babies’ lives. There won’t be a day that goes by when I don’t thank him for that.” — Michelle SorrellsWhen he ran into the bathroom and saw Foster trying to drown the babies, he shot the attacker twice, killing him on the spot.

Sorrells and the babies, while shaken, were OK—thanks to an armed neighbor who had a gun and knew how, and when, to use it. Now Sorrells is calling Freeman a hero.

“He saved me and my babies’ lives,” she told koco.com. “There won’t be a day that goes by when I don’t thank him for that.

“I’m sorry he had to shoot somebody, I know that’s going to be traumatic for him, but I’m very thankful he did.”

While police are calling Freeman’s shooting of Foster justifiable homicide, the final determination of whether any charges will be filed rests with the district attorney.

So here’s where we look back on the situation and see what we can learn. A few quick takeaways:

  1. Armed citizens do save lives. In fact, they do so many times each day, regardless of the lies Watts, Bloomberg and others tell on a near-daily basis.
  2. If those in the gun ban movement had accomplished their true long-term goals before last week, Freeman would not have been able to own the gun he used to save the family.
  3. Gun control advocates will continue to deride NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre’s “good guy with a gun” statement, even though good guys with gun stop bad guys with guns—and really bad guys with knives—quite frequently.



Gun ban elitists, Hollywood stars and other gun haters look down their noses at people like Freeman and Sorrells, claiming nobody needs to own a gun for self-defense. Yet unlike those privileged naysayers, Sorrells—and most other Americans—can’t afford to have a cadre of armed guards watching over her and her family every minute of every day.

Fortunately for her and her babies, she lived next door to a good guy with a gun.

Mark Chesnut has been the editor of America’s 1st Freedom magazine for nearly 17 years and is an avid hunter, shooter and political observer.

Latest

Doug Hamlin, Executive Vice President & CEO
Doug Hamlin, Executive Vice President & CEO

Standing Guard | We Are The Grassroots Of America

The strength of the NRA is its millions of members throughout our beautiful nation. The incredible level of support this association receives at the grassroots level is critical. We can’t stop now.

Trump Administration Restores CMP M1911 Sales

Shortly into his second term, President Trump showcased a distinct policy shift on the Second Amendment.

President’s Column | Time For National Carry Reciprocity

We have reached a crucial time in the concealed-carry movement.

An Inside View of Mexico City’s Violence

So many lives in Mexico City have been touched by criminal violence, but none of them blame American gun companies.

The Armed Citizen® March 14, 2025

True stories of the right to keep and bear arms

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging U.S. Supreme Court To Hear Challenge To California Gun-Show Restrictions

In January, the NRA filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in a challenge to California laws.



Get the best of America's 1st Freedom delivered to your inbox.