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Alert drivers nab suspect in shooting They gave him a lift and stalled until cops came Just after crossing the Oregon-California border, the couples saw a hitchhiker. About half a mile later, Don Clontz wondered if the hitchhiker could have been the shooter. A 17-year-old boy accused of shooting another teenager Sunday night in Dorris, Calif., was caught just hours after the attack by two couples who were headed to see the victim in the hospital. Don and Liz Clontz and Steven and Maria Harrold lured the 17-year-old suspect back to Dorris after Liz Clontz said her dog was antsy sitting in the front seat of the car and needed to be left at home. At their house, Liz Clontz called police and Don Clontz wrestled the suspect into submission as the boy went for a gun when deputies arrived. "It worked out too perfectly," Liz Clontz said. "The words that came out of our mouths were just too perfect. I tell you it was all the Lord's doing." The 17-year-old was lodged in Siskiyou County juvenile detention on a charge of attempted murder. The victim was listed in good condition at Merle West Medical Center in Klamath Falls Monday night with a bullet wound to his stomach. The couples' quick thinking was key to the arrest -- if ill-advised, said Susan Gravenkamp, Siskiyou County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman. "They were very brave to do that," Gravenkamp said. "I wouldn't recommend it, but it turned out good." The shooting occurred about 9:30 p.m. Sunday at the Bar 40 Fun Center, a game room on Main Street in Dorris, a town of 1,000 about 26 miles south of Klamath Falls. The 17-year-old and the victim got into an argument about 6 p.m. and Mick McFadyen, 60, the business owner, took the boys outside and lectured them. He told deputies that everything seemed fine and the boys went inside and played pool for an hour. The 17-year-old left the Fun Center and came back a short time later. He went to the 13-year-old, who was leaning on a counter, and ordered him to go outside or face the consequences, witnesses told deputies. The victim refused, and the 17-year-old pulled a hand-gun from behind his back and fired it once into the victim's left side. McFadyen told deputies that he jumped the 17-year-old and pushed him against a pole while struggling for the gun. The shooter threw McFadyen aside and ran away. Shortly after, Don and Liz Clontz started getting phone calls about the attack. Their daughter -- who was away on a camping trip -- dates the victim. The Clontzes went with the Harrolds to the Klamath Falls hospital to pray for the boy. Just after crossing the Oregon-California border, the couples saw a hitchhiker. About half a mile later, Don Clontz wondered if the hitchhiker could have been the shooter. They knew who the suspect was through word of mouth, but Maria Harrold was the only one who had ever had any real contact with him. Her son and the shooter had been friends while growing up. They turned around, drove back and asked the hitchhiker where he was going. He told them that he was headed to Bend. "As soon as this young man spoke up I knew who he was," Maria Harrold said. "He just talks with kind of a slur. He's got a kind of distinctive voice." Maria Harrold whispered to the other three, telling them who they were picking up. Liz Clontz said they let the boy into their car even though they figured he was armed and they didn't have a plan. "What do you do? Let him get picked up by somebody and be gone?" Liz Clontz asked. The Clontzes had brought along their mixed-breed dog, Shasta, and the dog was put in the front seat as the Clontzes scooted over to give room in the back to the 17-year-old. Shasta cowered up front and Liz Clontz said the dog was scared of riding in the front seat. She said they should take the dog home and put her in a pen. When they arrived at their house at 225 N. Juniper St., Liz Clontz took Shasta in the house and called 911. She then went and got her husband, saying that she was having problems getting the dog into the pen. She told Don Clontz that she had called police and he needed to be ready if the boy went for his gun. Don Clontz went back and sat beside the boy. Deputies arrived in the driveway in just a few minutes. The boy started "freaking out" and reached into his pocket. Don Clontz grabbed the boy's hand and wrestled with him. "I didn't give him a chance to pull out the gun, because I was not going to get shot," Don Clontz said. Deputies opened the door and arrested the suspect. They took a loaded .22-caliber semi-automatic handgun from him. The Clontzes and the Harrolds all believe that more was at work than happenstance. "I still get in a daze when I think about the whole situation," Don Clontz said. "God is just awesome." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA