In Georgia, two Niners fans taking in Saturday's Niners victory at a Duluth-area Applebee's became victims of some unnecessary violence when a disgruntled Saints fan reportedly took offense to their excitement and opened fire on them in the parking lot. The shooter, identified as 31-year-old Saints fan Donald Ray Ayro, left the restaurant in a hurry after the two friends Corey Adams and Chris Middleton got excited over one of the Niners' exciting touchdown plays. After the 36-32 victory, Ayro apparently ambushed the pair as they left the restaurant, grazing Adams in the back of the head and sending Middleton to the hospital in critical condition.
There's a chance Ayro was hopped up on more than just Skinnybee margarita's and the disappointment of a Saints loss — Adams told the Atlanta Journal Constitution that he saw the shooter "pop a pill" at one point. With plenty of witnesses on hand at the suburban strip mall eatery, local police caught up with the suspect a short while later and booked him on two counts of aggravated assault, being a felon in possession of a firearm and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. Adams suffered a slight wound, but he told a local TV station that he hoped his friend would pull though.
The Examiner is calling the shooting "the latest of an unfortunate string of sports-related incidents" committed against fans of San Francisco teams, citing last year's unfortunate attack on Giants fan Bryan Stow, but we think this would be a much better argument for keeping Applebee's out of San Francisco city limits. You know where else they have an Applebee's? Santa Clara.
This particular location of the nationwide neighborhood bar & grill is apparently not very good.
