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Cleveland man shot at east side bar during heated political discussion

Victim is Donald Trump supporter
Posted at 9:41 PM, Jul 26, 2016
and last updated 2016-07-27 09:32:13-04

A discussion over the upcoming presidential election ended with a Cleveland man in the hospital, shot in the thigh, and the gunman on the loose.

Paul Jones, Jr., 60, was at his neighborhood bar Winston's Place near E. 131st Street and Miles Avenue around 6 p.m. Monday, talking politics with a friend.

Jones, an Air Force Vietnam War veteran, just happens to be a staunch Donald Trump supporter -- something that didn't sit well with a man nearby.

"He butted in the conversation," Jones said, speaking from his hospital bed. "The conversation wasn't directed at him or to him."

It escalated from there in a way no one ever imagined.

The man got so upset, he went out to his car -- and came back with a gun.

Cleveland police said he shot Jones in the thigh, then walked out -- effectively ending the debate.

"I'm quite sure you have a lot of people having their own opinions. But that doesn't mean you should hurt somebody because you have your own opinion," Jones' mother Latosca added.

Detectives are still searching for the shooter. He will be charged with felonious assault.

Jones is expected to make a full recovery.