Tag Mark Jamieson

Originally posted:

When Seattle-based masked crusader Phoenix Jones was arrested last week for pepper spraying a group of people he claims were fighting, he piqued the curiosity of thousands across the nation. A real-life superhero? Stopping crime in the dark of night? Suit, boots, mask and all?
It turns out Jones isn’t the only ordinary guy whose nighttime is filled with crime-fighting, caped adventures. The Web site RealLifeSuperheroes.orgboasts 720 members. Posts on the site suggest there are dozens, if not hundreds, of real-life superheroes currently in action in St. Petersburg, Fla., New York City and Milwaukee, among other cities.
But though these superheroes have attracted thousands of adoring fans, city cops don’t count themselves among them.
“Just because he’s dressed up in costume, it doesn’t mean he’s in special consideration or above the law,” Seattle police spokesman Detective Mark Jamieson said of Jones.
Other police say vigilantes like Jones risk hurting themselves and others.

Mark Wayne Williams, a.k.a. Michigan’s “Batman.” (Image via YouTube)

I will continue to patrol with my team, probably tonight. … In addition to being Phoenix Jones, I am also Ben Fodor, father and brother. I am just like everybody else. The only difference is that I try to stop crime in my neighborhood and everywhere else.

As the movement has grown, it has also sought to become more organized, with some members proposing a uniform set of standards, others publishing tutorials on how people can join, and a few even considering a sanctioning body to oversee it.
There are now many sub-movements within the movement, such as the Rain City Superhero Movement in Seattle, of which Phoenix Jones is the leader.
“The movement has grown majorly,” Edward Stinson, a Florida-based writer who advises real-life superheroes, told MSNBC. “What I tell these guys is, ‘You’re no longer in the shadows. You’re in a new era. … Build trust. Set standards. Make the real-life superheroes work to earn that title and take some kind of oath.’ ”

Originally posted: http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5ix-PXiZOo4Z-N_Jx8NWWWs0zkwvQ?docId=a51a823c485c4474a79aa1c01b22ae96
By Gene Johnson, Associated Press
SEATTLE (AP) — Fabio Heuring was standing outside a Seattle nightclub on a Saturday night and smoking cigarettes with a friend when a man bolting from a bouncer ran into them. The enraged man ripped off his shirt in the middle of the street and prepared to give Heuring’s buddy a beating.
Just then, in swooped a bizarre sight: a self-proclaimed superhero in a black mask and matching muscle-suit. He doused the aggressor with pepper spray, much to Heuring’s shocked relief.
A couple hours later, though, the superhero ended up in jail for investigation of assault after using those tactics on another group of clubgoers, sending pangs of anxiety through the small, eccentric and mostly anonymous community of masked crime-fighters across the U.S.
The comic book-inspired patrolling of city streets by “real life super-heroes” has been getting more popular in recent years, thanks largely to mainstream attention in movies like last year’s “Kick-Ass” and the recent HBO documentary “Superheroes.” And as the ranks of the masked, caped and sometimes bullet-proof-vested avengers swell, many fret that even well-intentioned vigilantes risk hurting themselves, the public and the movement if they’re as aggressive as the crime-fighter in Seattle.
Some have gone so far as to propose a sanctioning body to ensure that high super-hero standards are maintained.
“The movement has grown majorly,” said Edward Stinson, a writer from Boca Raton, Fla., who advises real-life superheroes on a website devoted to the cause. “What I tell these guys is, ‘You’re no longer in the shadows. You’re in a new era. … Build trust. Set standards. Make the real-life superheroes work to earn that title and take some kind of oath.'”
It’s not clear how many costumed vigilantes there are in the U.S. The website www.reallifesuperheroes.org lists 660 members around the world. They range from members of the New York Initiative in New York City and the Shadow Corp in Saginaw, Mich., to a character named Nightbow who says he has patrolled the streets of Carlisle, England, for three years.
Some take on their fictional identities while doing charity work.
Benjamin Fodor, better known as Phoenix Jones, is the most prominent face of the Rain City Superhero Movement, a collection of vigilantes who appeared in Seattle over the past year. Early on Oct. 9, about two hours after he saved Heuring and his buddy, the 23-year-old man charged a group of people leaving a downtown nightclub as a videographer trailed him.
From the shaky camera work, it appeared there may have been some kind of disturbance in the group. Fodor insists he was breaking up a fight when he hit the crowd with pepper spray; the people who got sprayed told police there had been no fight. He was briefly booked into jail for investigation of assault, but prosecutors haven’t charged him yet. He appeared in court last week while wearing his superhero costume under a button-down shirt.
“Recently there have been increased reports of citizens being pepper sprayed by (Fodor) and his group,” the police report noted. “Although (Fodor) has been advised to observe and report incidents to 911, he continues to try to resolve things on his own.”
Fodor remained unapologetic after the court appearance, saying he’s just like anyone else except that “I decided to make a difference and stop crime in my neighborhood.” He invited members of the public to join him on patrol Saturday night.
Heuring, a 27-year-old shuttle driver from Auburn, is a fan.
“Without a question, there was a fight going to happen,” he said. “It could have ended ugly had he not come in. He used good judgment in our case. He saw who was instigating it and who he needed to defend.”
But many in the vigilante community point to Fodor’s arrest as a watershed moment: As more people — often, young people — fashion themselves into superheroes, they risk finding themselves in similar situations where they wind up hurting innocent members of the public or being shot, stabbed or beaten themselves. Such negative attention could doom the movement, they say.
Stinson, who is 40 and says he has a military background, said that if the movement is to continue to grow, it needs to do a better job policing itself. He envisions a nonprofit organization that would have departments devoted to fundraising and building community trust and alliances. He also thinks there should be tactical superhero training — including how to take control of a volatile situation and defuse it.
Filmmaker Michael Barnett followed 50 real-life crime fighters for 15 months for his documentary “Superheroes.” Many have great intentions, he said, but that doesn’t mean their methods are proper.
“The police by in large appreciate an extra set of eyes, but they really, really want these guys to do it according to the law,” Barnett said.
Masked crusaders began appearing in the 1970s with San Diego’s Captain Sticky, who used his Superman-like costume to fight against rental car rip-offs and for tenant rights, Barnett said. They spread throughout the country in the 1980s and 1990s, and became more popular thanks to the faster communications and online support communities of the Internet.
Barnett said he met plumbers, teachers, cashiers and firefighters who leave their day jobs behind every night in the name of security. Their weapons include pepper spray, stun guns and batons. Relatively few have any combat training or any formal knowledge of how to use their arsenal, he said.
That concerns the professional crime-fighters.
“If people want to dress up and walk around, knock yourself out,” said Seattle police spokesman Mark Jamieson. “Our concern is when you insert yourself into these situations without knowing the facts, it’s just not a smart thing to do. If you think a situation warrants calling 911, call 911.”
Not all of the vigilantes take a confrontational approach. A 53-year-old man in Mountain View, Calif., who calls himself “The Eye,” keeps a low-enough profile that officers there have never booked anyone arrested with his help.
“The only reason I know him is because he’s my neighbor,” said police spokeswoman Liz Wylie. “He’s a neighborhood watch block captain, a very good one at that.”

Originally posted: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada-15301830
A self-styled superhero known as Phoenix Jones has been unmasked in a Seattle court as he waits to see if he is charged with a pepper spray attack.
Police say Phoenix Jones – real name Benjamin Fodor – attacked four people who had left a Seattle nightclub.
As the court hearing ended, he tore off a dress shirt to reveal his black and yellow superhero costume.
Prosecutors said they had not yet decided whether to file charges, but Mr Fodor vowed to continue crimefighting.
The 23-year-old, who leads the Rain City Superhero Movement, said he was trying to break up a fight. The clubgoers insisted to police they were not fighting.
“I will continue to patrol with my team, probably tonight,” he told the Seattle Times on Thursday. “I am just like everybody else. The only difference is that I try to stop crime in my neighbourhood.”
During the hearing, a court officer asked Jones to remove his mask. He did so, but then put it back on to speak to reporters.
Seattle Police are not likely to be calling on Mr Jones to help them keep Seattle safe.
“If people want to dress up and walk around, knock yourself out,” said police spokesman Mark Jamieson. “Our concern is when you insert yourself into these situations without knowing the facts, it’s just not a smart thing to do.”
According to the Associated Press news agency, a police report says there have been increased reports of citizens being pepper-sprayed by the would-be superhero and his group.
Although Phoenix Jones “has been advised to observe and report incidents to [police], he continues to try to resolve things on his own,” the report says.

Originally posted: http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/blogpost/post/phoenix-jones-real-life-seattle-superhero-arrested-for-pepper-spray-assault/2011/10/11/gIQAY1oTcL_blog.html
By Elizabeth Flock

Masked crusader Phoenix Jones, who says he often patrols the streets of Seattle in a superhero suit to stop crime, may have accidentally gotten involved in a crime.
In a situation almost straight out of the movie “Kick-Ass,” Jones is fighting an assault charge for allegedly spraying pepper spray on people, who he says were fighting. Seattle police say the people were dancing.
Jones is out of jail after being held Sunday night.
“Just because he’s dressed up in costume, it doesn’t mean he’s in special consideration or above the law,” Seattle police spokesman Det. Mark Jamieson said of the incident. “You can’t go around pepper spraying people because you think they are fighting.”
Jones, who has been unmasked by police as Benjamin Francis, insists he “witnessed a hit-and-run/attempted murder of a man and he responded to stop it,” according to a Facebook post.
Jones has posted this video as proof that a crime had taken place, though the video is shaky and unclear. In the video, it appears Jones and his sidekick, known as Ghost, run toward a group of people and try to break them up. A woman is then seen running after Jones and hitting him with her shoe. A BMW car appears, almost hits an unidentified man, and a person with Jones says to call 911 to report a hit-and-run.
In an interview with local station 97.3 FM, the woman who hits Jones with her shoe says she didn’t need the help.
Jones was wearing a black and gold superhero costume and a bullet-proof vest, and carrying two cans of pepper spray when police arrived at the scene.
Police took the suit, boots and mask from him, but Jones says he has a backup suit.
Jones is married to a woman he calls PurpleReign, another masked vigilante.
He is also the leader of the Rain City Superhero Movement, a group of self-proclaimed superheroes that has previously been credited with preventing a carjacking. Watch the report from that carjacking below:
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3AANmw2Oiyg

Originally Posted: http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/stories/8267897/everyday-superheroes
Reporter: Allison Langdon
Producers:Stephen Rice, Julia Timms
It’s a comic book staple; a geeky, mild-mannered guy suddenly discovers he possesses super powers.
Before you can say “to the bat cave”, he’s wearing his undies on the outside and saving the world from evil.
No one really believes that happens but, as Allison Langdon discovered, super heroes really do exist.
And while they get around in some pretty outlandish costumes, these caped crusaders take their work very seriously indeed.
Story contacts:
For more information about real-life superheroes, visit:
www.reallifesuperheroes.com
www.citizenheroesthemovie.com
Full transcript:
ALLISON LANGDON: Early morning a rooftop in downtown Seattle. At my side, a masked figure keeps watch over his city. Suddenly an alarm rings out and our caped crusader springs into action. This is a job for Phoenix Jones. It’s no comic book fantasy. My costumed, crime-fighting companion is real. So too is the car thief, who’s about to get some roadside assistance, Phoenix Jones-style.
PHOENIX: What I’m doing is definitely shocking but I think it’s crazier to let people run around and just assault people and you can make a difference or make a change.
ALLISON LANGDON: The world’s most popular superheroes sprang from the pages of DC and Marvel comic books and leapt onto our cinema screens when modern special effects made it possible to create their astounding superpowers. But recently, in movies like ‘Kick Ass’, we’ve seen a new breed of crime-fighter. Ordinary people taking the law into their own hands and it’s inspired a growing number of self-proclaimed “super-heroes” like Phoenix Jones to do the same. Do you think you make a difference?
PHONEIX: Absolutely, in the city of Seattle for sure. And you know people ask me if I’m making a worldwide impact and I say not yet, but I’m on my way.
ALLISON LANGDON: Phoenix doesn’t have special powers or even permission to fight crime. But despite the very real danger, there’s a growing league of these characters striding the streets of America in capes and masks, believing they can make the world a better place.
NYX: My name is Nyx. I’m a real life superhero and I patrol New York City.
DC’S GUARDIAN: Communities aren’t safe any more. It’s people not being able to walk down the street without being mugged. That’s wrong.
CRIMSON FIST: I’m one guy, I can’t save the world but I’d like to inspire the world to save itself. A lot of people doing it will make a difference.
ALLISON LANGDON: Do you feel like you’re a better person when you wear this outfit?
LIFE: Definitely, you know, when I put on the mask and when I put on the tie and everything like that I do feel empowered. I think maybe a lot like when a policeman affixes a badge or a priest puts on his collar.
ALLISON LANGDON: Meet Life. Recently, he formed a dynamic duo with Dark Guardian, patrolling the mean streets of New York. Armed with nothing more than truth, justice and cool costumes, they sought out and confronted drug dealers.
LIFE: It’s definitely very scary because these people are armed; these people have been to jail for violent offences. You’re messing with their business. So yeah, it gets hairy, it gets hairy.
ALLISON LANGDON: On this night at least, good conquered evil. The dealer eventually moved his business off the street. Shade and his crime-fighting team face that same New York vermin every night. But they come prepared. When you go out on patrol, do you carry weapons?
SHADE: I would actually carry this with me.
ALLISON LANGDON: Really, what you are doing, shouldn’t that be left to the police?
SHADE: If the police did their job, we wouldn’t have to. Someone’s gotta do something, right?
ALLISON LANGDON: Handling a weapon is one thing, but when you design your own super-costumes, you also quickly learn new skills. So this is very impressive. We’ve got a superhero who fights crime and can sew.
SHADE: When people to get to know me, I’m a teddy bear.
ALLISON LANGDON: Meantime, at a secret location at the rear of a dingy comic book store Phoenix Jones suits up. Like any good superhero, he closely guards his true identity as a father of two. Each night, amid the comic book covers, he transforms from a mild-mannered child-care worker to crime-fighting crusader. So we’ve done the leaping tall buildings. And before you can say “to the bat-poles”, he’s in hot pursuit of another evil-doer. Of course, Phoenix Jones is not really a man of steel. His utility belt might be equipped with tasers, zip-tie handcuffs and mace spray, but under the mask, there’s a mere mortal. And those on the streets aren’t always as easily intimidated as their comic book cousins.
PHONEIX: I’ve had a few injuries. I’ve been stabbed a couple of times. I got shot once. Hit with a baseball bat, ah.
ALLISON LANGDON: But Phoenix gets little sympathy from the local police. In Seattle, you won’t find Commissioner Gordon reaching for the bat phone.
MARK JAMIESON: I would not call him a crime fighter. Not at all, no. The police are the crime fighters.
ALLISON LANGDON: In fact Detective Mark Jamieson would prefer it, if Phoenix – and his mates – just kept their costumes for Halloween.
PHONEIX: The police have actually asked me to stop doing what I’m doing and when they said that I thought you guys are really missing it. If a guy can walk around in a gold suit dressed like a superhero and actually find crime, like I’m literally finding criminals doing felonies, where are the police, like why are you guys letting that happen?
MARK JAMIESON: It may have just been an argument, a couple of guys yelling at each other because they’re drunk, but now Phoenix and his friends turn up saying, stop, stop and they get assaulted, and now we have a crime.
ALLISON LANGDON: Sounds like they make your job a lot harder?
MARK JAMIESON: Definitely, there is the potential of escalating a situation.
ALLISON LANGDON: Are they vigilantes?
MARK JAMIESON: It could be perceived that way, yeah.
ALLISON LANGDON: The cops say that you’re a vigilante.
PHONEIX: Yeah which is weird you know. A vigilante goes out, sees crime and exacts his own revenge whereas I come up and I hold you to the standards that the police and the citizens voted for.
ALLISON LANGDON: But away from the mean streets of the big city in a faraway castle we found a different kind of superhero. The one who calls himself Sir Ivan.
SIR IVAN: Welcome, welcome to the castle!
ALLISON LANGDON: Nice to meet you, Sir Ivan. I’m really getting the royal treatment!
SIR IVAN: Well I want you to feel like a princess today!
ALLISON LANGDON: Ivan’s the son of a billionaire banker, living the good life in the Hamptons who, when the mood takes him becomes Peace Man. So where does Sir Ivan become Peace Man?
SIR IVAN: Good question – I’m about to answer that.
ALLISON LANGDON: I should have known he’d have a batcave. Of course! The secret entrance and his own version of Robin. Peace Man and your trusty side-kick, come here, come here. Oh, good gracious. Peace Man believes he’s saving the world through music. He’s pumped his vast fortune into his own record label. His grand plan is to end all wars in Africa through his music. Other real life superheros, they go out and they fight crime, they feed the homeless. You don’t do that, do you?
SIR IVAN: I am saving people’s lives. I can mean the difference between life and death. My cheque.
ALLISON LANGDON: But Phoenix Jones and many like him, are taking this whole superhero business very seriously. He claims to have 28 arrests under his belt.
MARK JAMIESON: I’d be surprised if it were that high.
ALLISON LANGDON: Nevertheless the good citizens of Seattle seem to have embraced the idea.
PHOENIX: They called me a folk hero and it’s come down to kind of a I don’t know without sounding egotistical, like a batman-esque quality. People are really excited to come see it.
ALLISON LANGDON: The ladies especially seem to like a crime-fighter in uniform.
GIRL FLIRTING: Very nice to meet you. Where are you from, Phoenix Jones?
PHONEIX: Seattle area. We’re gonna go look for criminals, but it was good meeting you, Jessica?
ALLISON LANGDON: So there are perks to being a superhero?
PHOENIX: Well kind of. I mean I’m married with two kids so there’d be perks for a younger person I think.
ALLISON LANGDON: But if you really want to snare a superhero, why not use one of their own super-weapons designed to entangle a villain’s fleeing feet. My turn.
PHONEIX: Alright, let’s do it.
ALLISON LANGDON: Let’s make it interesting – run away, be afraid, be very afraid. Brings down Phoenix Jones! Rest easy citizens. Phoenix Jones was unhurt and lives to fight crime another day.
PHOENIX: I’m just lucky this covers the blushing part of my face. It’s terrible!
ALLISON LANGDON: What does your family say about what you do?
PHOENIX: My kids love it. They’re always blowing my secret identity, it’s kinda terrible.
ALLISON LANGDON: What do you say to them when you go out at night?
PHOENIX: I tell them this is the only thing that daddy can think of to make the world better, and I give them a kiss and I tell them I’ll see them when I get back.

Originally posted: http://www.upi.com/Odd_News/2011/01/12/Seattles-superhero-suffers-broken-nose/UPI-39361294857957/
SEATTLE, Jan. 12 (UPI) — Seattle’s real-life masked crime fighter said one man pointed a gun at him and another broke his nose when he intervened in their argument.
The caped crusader known to the public as Phoenix Jones said he was attempting to stop a heated argument between two men from turning violent during the weekend when one of the men pulled a gun on him, ABC News reported Wednesday.
Jones said the other man struck him, breaking his nose, before both suspects fled.
Police said dressing up like superheroes is not illegal in Seattle, but they worry about the safety of those who heed the call to Justice, like Phoenix and his colleagues in the Rain City Superheroes.
“Our concern is if it goes badly, then we end up getting called anyway, and we may have additional victims,” Detective Mark Jamieson said.
Jones said he began dressing up and patrolling the streets after his young son was injured by broken glass from some teenagers attempting to break into his car.
“Teenagers are running down the street, breaking into cars, and no one does anything? Where’s the personal accountability?” he said.

Originally posted: http://abcnews.go.com/US/real-life-seattle-superhero-phoenix-jones-suffers-broken/story?id=12589895
Phoenix Jones, Caped Crusader Patrolling Seattle, Attacked at Gunpoint
By JESSICA HOPPER and NEAL KARLINSKY
Jan. 11, 2010
Phoenix Jones, the real-life superhero who has gotten fame for patrolling the streets of Seattle, found his kryptonite in the guise of two attackers who left him with a broken nose over the weekend.
Armed with a skintight black-and-gold, belted costume, a cape and a fedora, Phoenix Jones suits up at night to fight crime on the streets of Seattle. He’s the leader of a real-life superhero movement called the Rain City Superheroes.
On Saturday, things turned violent when a man held Jones at gunpoint and another broke his nose.
“They were all swearing at each other and like about to fight,” Jones told ABC affiliate KOMO.
Jones stepped in to try and stop the men. The caped crusader claimed that he called 911 and had one of the men in a headlock when another man pulled out a gun.
“He starts swinging on me and starts an altercation with me,” Jones told KOMO.
The incident over the weekend is exactly what worries police about everyday citizens who take justice into their own hands.
“Our concern is if it goes badly, then we end up getting called anyway, and we may have additional victims,” Detective Mark Jamieson told ABC News last week.
Seattle police said that it is not illegal to dress up as a superhero, but they worry about excess calls to 911 when residents confuse Jones and the other real-life superheroes with the criminals they’re trying to capture.
Jones said that he calls police ahead of time to tell them where he’ll be patrolling. He said he developed his costume, along with his alter ego’s name, when his crime-fighting ways made him too recognizable.
“When I started breaking apart fights, I had no outfit or moniker or symbol, and people started recognizing me in my everyday life. It got kind of dangerous and very uncomfortable,” he said. “This suit is what people recognize, and when I take the suit off, I’m able to live as close to a normal life as possible until I put it back on and am ready to defend the people of Seattle.”
While Jones might not have Batman’s Alfred Pennyworth to help him build cool new gadgets, he has adapted his car and costume to protect him.
He wears a bulletproof vest and carries not just a Taser but a net gun and a grappling hook.
His car has a computer in it that prints any e-mails sent to his superhero e-mail address.
On the night ABC News went on patrol with Jones, the caped crusader zapped a warning shot with his Taser during a very tense run in with a man he said was about to drive drunk.
“Just back up! Stay back, stay away. I don’t want to have to Tase you,” Jones yelled.
Jones’ sidekicks, Red Dragon and Buster Joe, called the police.
Jones’ quest to help his fellow residents is a weirdly close imitation of the movie “Kick Ass,” whose characters dress up as superheroes and take on crime fighting.
Jones said he has a real nine-to-five job, a wife and two kids.
He told ABC affiliate KOMO that an incident with his son inspired him to put on his cape.
One night someone broke into Jones’ car, and the broken glass injured his son and resulted in a trip to the emergency room. When people told Jones that several people witnessed the break-in but did nothing, he was dumbfounded.
“Teenagers are running down the street, breaking into cars, and no one does anything? Where’s the personal accountability?” Jones told KOMO.
Jones emphasizes that his real mission is to help people — he also hands out food to the homeless. On the night ABC News followed the men, they distributed food from Taco Bell to homeless people sitting on the sidewalks.
While police might be skeptical, Jones and his gang of wannabe heroes don’t plan to give up.
“I have two kids,” he said. “I always tell them the same thing every time before I go on patrol: ‘This is the only thing daddy could think of to make the world better for you guys, and I’ll see you when I get home.'”
ABC Affiliate KOMO contributed to this story.

Originally posted: http://tpmmuckraker.talkingpointsmemo.com/2011/01/real_life_superhero_gets_his_nose_broken_in_street.php
Phoenix Jones, a.k.a Phoenix Jones the Guardian of Seattle, a.k.a. the “Real Life Superhero” who dresses up and tries to thwart crime in Washington State, had his nose broken and a gun pointed at him in an altercation in Seattle last weekend.
KOMO reports that the incident occurred Saturday night, when Jones saw two men “swearing at each other and like about to fight.” The mask-and-body-armor-wearing Jones stepped in to intervene, but one of the men started “swinging” at him. So Jones put him in a headlock, and called 911. That’s when the other man pulled out a gun. Jones let go, and was kicked in the face by the man he had just been holding. Both men got away.
Police told KOMO that they fear someone could end up getting killed if Jones and his Rain City Superhero Movement keep up their “patrols.”
“They insert themselves into a potentially volatile situation and then they end up being victimized as well,” Seattle Police Detective Mark Jamieson said. “If you see something, call 911.”
But Jones, who said that he turned down reality show offers from the Discovery Channel, MTV and A&E, sounded undaunted.
“I train for these situations,” he said. “I don’t just come out willy nilly and run out on the streets.”
(h/t New York Post)

Originally posted: http://www.komonews.com/news/local/113246859.html

During an interview on Monday, January 10, 2011, “Phoenix Jones” recounts the attack that left him with a broken nose. By Komo News

Originally posted: http://abcnews.go.com/US/real-life-superhero-phoenix-jones-tackles-streets-seattle/story?id=12562715

Armed with a skintight black-and-gold, belted costume, a cape and a fedora, Phoenix Jones suits up at night to fight crime on the streets of Seattle. He’s the leader of a real-life superhero movement.
“I’m definitely not going to let my fellow citizens be assaulted and not do anything,” Jones said.
Jones leads the Rain City Superheroes, a group of 10 fighters who perform their own form of vigilante justice on the streets of Seattle.
“It’s a pretty simple message. Citizens need to be more accountable. Calling 911 is a great start, but it’s not the end all to end all,” Jones said. “Criminals feel free to just run wild in my city, and I’m not going to stand for it.”
Superman can fly, Batman has his gadgets and Spiderman has his webs and supersharp senses. But Phoenix Jones, Red Dragon and Buster Doe have just their snazzy costumes and endless enthusiasm as they patrol Seattle’s Capitol Hill.
Red Dragon sports a red robe and a wooden sword. Buster Doe covers his face with a white scarf.
Jones said he developed his costume, along with his alter ego’s name, when his crime-fighting ways made him too recognizable.
“When I started breaking apart fights, I had no outfit or moniker or symbol, and people started recognizing me in my everyday life. It got kind of dangerous and very uncomfortable,” he said. “This suit is what people recognize, and when I take the suit off, I’m able to live as close to a normal life as possible until I put it back on and am ready to defend the people of Seattle.”
While Jones might not have Batman’s Alfred Pennyworth to help him build cool new gadgets, he has adapted his car and costume to protect him.
He wears a bulletproof vest and carries not just a Taser but a net gun and a grappling hook.
His car has a computer in it that prints any e-mails sent to his superhero e-mail address.
On the night ABC News went on patrol with Jones, the caped crusader zapped a warning shot with his Taser during a very tense run in with a man he said was about to drive drunk.
“Just back up! Stay back, stay away. I don’t want to have to Tase you,” Jones yelled.
Red Dragon and Buster Joe called the police.
“I know what you guys are doing … fine … but if somebody’s drunk, all of a sudden having somebody in their face with masks on …” a Seattle police officer warned Jones.
Police are perplexed, worried the group will turn into vigilantes and doubt that the superhero posse has ever stopped any crime.
“Our concern is if it goes badly, then we end up getting called anyway, and we may have additional victims,” Detective Mark Jamieson said.
Jones said that he calls police ahead of time to tell them where he’ll be patrolling. He said that his costume is crucial in helping police recognize him, and it makes an impact on would-be criminals.
“If you fight crime without the outfit, the police don’t know who to look for. They don’t know who’s bad and who’s good. …This is a very noticeable outfit. … It tells people and drug dealers and criminals … that when you see this outfit and this group of people, we stand for a message. … We’re against the crimes that you’re trying to do,” Jones said.
Seattle police said that it is not illegal to dress up as a superhero, but they worry about excess calls to 911 when residents confuse Jones and the other real-life superheroes with criminals. Police said that acting as a superhero can be dangerous, but Red Dragon said that the people they confront rarely turn against them.
“If you approach somebody with the right attitude, they’re not going to really escalate things. For the most part, they’ll just leave you alone,” he said.
Jones’ quest to help his fellow residents is a weirdly close imitation of the movie “Kick Ass,” whose characters dress up as superheroes and take on crime fighting.
Jones said he has a real nine-to-five job, a wife and two kids.
He told ABC affiliate KOMO that an incident with his son inspired him to put on his cape.
One night someone broke into Jones’ car, and the broken glass injured his son and resulted in a trip to the emergency room. When people told Jones that several people witnessed the break-in but did nothing, he was dumbfounded.
“Teenagers are running down the street, breaking into cars, and no one does anything? Where’s the personal accountability?” Jones told KOMO.
Jones emphasizes that his real mission is to help people — he also hands out food to the homeless. On the night ABC News followed the men, they distributed food from Taco Bell to homeless people sitting on the sidewalks.
While police might be skeptical, Jones and his gang of wannabe heroes don’t plan to give up.
“I have two kids,” he said. “I always tell them the same thing every time before I go on patrol: ‘This is the only thing daddy could think of to make the world better for you guys, and I’ll see you when I get home.'”
ABC Affiliate KOMO contributed to this story.