Marine Shot, Plugs Holes with Fingers

DEERFIELD BEACH, Fla. (AP) - A U.S. Marine Corps officer said Friday he reacted as he was trained to do by chasing two men who stole a gold necklace he thought they were buying, and then using his fingers to plug bullet holes in his body when one of them opened fire. Lt. Col. Karl Trenker, a 29-year Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, demonstrated at a hospital news conference how he stuck his fingers on his left hand into two holes in his left chest and another finger from his right hand where a .22-caliber bullet entered his abdomen. His doctor said the move helped staunch the flow of blood. "I'm a Marine and I'm not going to run from a fight," Trenker said. "You wouldn't want a Marine to run from a fight. Call me crazy, call me stupid. I got shot once and it just angered me more. I wanted to get this guy. I got shot twice, and I re-evaluated that decision. I decided I need to stay alive." As for the use of his fingers, Trenker said, "I improvised." Read more at http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/story/2011-12-30/marine-shot-plugged…