‘Legally armed Good Samaritan’ saves woman from being strangled, Tennessee cops say

A Tennessee man is being hailed as a hero after police say he saved a woman during a violent attack Tuesday.

Around 2 p.m., Jefferson City police responded to reports of a fight outside a Bojangles restaurant where a “legally armed Good Samaritan” had stepped in to stop the woman from being assaulted and strangled during a domestic incident, according to a report posted to the department’s Facebook page.

Police learned a man and woman started arguing as they walked near the restaurant’s drive-thru. That’s when the suspect, identified as James Michael Shelton, slammed the woman to the ground when she tried to flee, the report states.

Shelton proceeded to strangle the woman and drag her away — until a witness in the drive-thru lane jumped into action, police said.

“A bystander in the drive-thru noticed the assault and immediately exited his vehicle and trained his pistol toward the male suspect and ordered him to stop,” according to police. “The suspect immediately complied and was eventually taken into custody by responding officers.”

Shelton, 25, is now jailed on aggravated domestic assault and aggravated kidnapping charges, police said.

The victim was treated at a local hospital. An update on her condition was not provided.

Jefferson City police haven’t identified the Good Samaritan.

Jefferson City is about 30 miles from Knoxville.