Tragedy struck in Pennsylvania early Sunday morning when a college baseball catcher, known for his dedication on and off the field, was fatally shot by police after mistakenly attempting to enter the wrong house while intoxicated, according to his family.
The 22-year-old, Glenwood ‘Bubba’ Pysher, had been enjoying a night out celebrating a friend’s birthday at a bar in Upper Pottsgrove on Saturday evening. As the evening wound down, the celebratory group decided to continue their festivities at a friend’s home, explained Pysher’s mother, Erin, in an interview with WPVI. told WPVI.
Opting to walk, Pysher unfortunately arrived at a different home, mistakenly believing it to be his friend’s residence.
“He was unaware of his mistake,” recounted Erin. “He knocked on the door, repeatedly asking to be let in, convinced it was where his friend lived, but it was not.”
Alarmed by the unexpected visitor, the residents of the Snyder Road property contacted the police, fearing a potential break-in. Responding officers later found Pysher at the back of the house, reported the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office.
The responding officers then discharged their weapons, fatally striking him twice, Erin told Fox 29.
It remains unclear what may have prompted officers to draw their weapons, but Erin suggested cops acted rashly.
‘12.32, he was on the phone with his friends,’ she said. ‘By 12.35, I believe he’s already shot. So within a few minutes, the cop pulled up and shot him.’
Glenwood ‘Bubba’ Pysher, 22, was fatally shot by police officers in Upper Pottsgrove, Pennsylvania early Sunday morning
Pysher was gunned down outside a house on Snyder Road he had mistakenly thought was his friend’s house
She then went on to claim that her son was unarmed and was only carrying his cellphone and a book bag at the time.
The shooting was caught on surveillance cameras set up in the backyard of the property, with the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office now combing through the video as part of an investigation into the officer-involved shooting.
But some in the community are already pressing for answers.
‘What happened? Could it have been de-escalated?’ family friend Kia asked, rhetorically. ‘We don’t know, but we want to figure that out.’
Wendy Hasara, another family friend, also called for ‘justice’ to be served and for Pysher’s death to ‘prevent this from ever happening to another person’ in a post on Facebook.
She recounted how Pysher worked at the local Walmart in his free time.
‘He often worked right up to [the] time he needed to leave for a game… worked then drove his non-AC car to even away games in the heat and then put on that hot catcher’s gear and played his heart out,’ Hasara wrote, calling Pysher a ‘life with a bright future, stolen too soon.’
He had been getting ready to play at Saint Elizabeth University in New Jersey, to where he had recently transferred.
Pysher was remembered as a dedicated baseball catcher who worked at a Walmart
Pysher was been getting ready to play at Saint Elizabeth University in New Jersey, to where he had recently transferred when he was killed
‘To see someone that has so much potential, because he was so excited about going back to school, lose their life, it hurts,’ Kia told Fox 29.
‘He was an amazing soul, young man, never got in any trouble, well-respected.’
Everyone in the community will now remember him for ‘his love for baseball and the joy he found in catching balls, something that brought so much pride to his father, mother, three sisters and the entire Pysher family,’ Anthony Napoli said in a statement.
‘Bubba meant so much to so many and his loss has deeply shaken all who loved him.’
Off the field, Pysher’s grieving mother said he was a ‘lovable goofball.’
‘He will walk in the backdoor and say his favorite thing, “Hey mom, your favorite kid is home,”‘ she said. ‘He was just happy-go-lucky, didn’t have a care in the world, and I’m going to miss that.’
The Montgomery County Detective Bureau is now investigating the officer-involved shooting.