Which is better, the Army or the Navy?
Two Florence men argued bitterly over the question on Christmas Day, leading to a fight that ended with a shooting, authorities say.
The incident began after Dustin Jakes, 27, invited his former roommate, David Provost, 24, over to his family's home for Christmas dinner. Both men were on leave from the military -- Jakes is in the Army, while his buddy's a Navy man.
Sometime in the evening, presumably after a few stiff eggnogs, the two began arguing over which branch of military service was "better."
The dispute turned physical, but Jakes couldn't defend himself properly because of a recent shoulder surgery. He'd recently returned home from a deployment in Iraq, but it wasn't clear how he received the shoulder injury.
Fearing for his safety, Jakes pulled a handgun on the sailor, says a statement by the Pinal County Sheriff's Office.
"What are you going to do, shoot me?" the younger man taunted. "I don't care. Shoot me."
Provost "advanced" on Jakes as he said this, prompting the soldier to fire two rounds into the floor of the home.
One of those slugs, though, happened to pass through Provost's left foot on the way to the floor.
Cops and paramedics were summoned to the home in the 6700 block of Stacy Street, and Provost was treated at a local hospital.
Police determined that Jakes acted in self-defense, so he wasn't arrested. Which means:
Army: 1
Navy: 0
