Man shoots burglars with shotgun

[Squatch]

From yesterday's story.

Here's the 911 call. This guy is FUCKING nuts! ABSOLUTELY NUTS.

This asshole practically hunted the burglars down, despite the 911 dispatcher telling him to cool his jets.

His warning to the burglars was "BOOM YOU'RE DEAD"....THEN he shot them.

Link

[Botany]

1. Sorry they should not be stealing.

The killing was "over the top" but they went out
to break the law and to invade people's homes.

I have had so much stuff stolen ... I have a small
business ... chain saws, drills, mowers, ladders,
weed whips, speed saws, sanders, and on and on
that my "liberal good will" is all gone for thieves.

[madokie]

3. I agree with you

if that makes you feel any better. We have a known thief living in our neighborhood and it worries me to death every time I see him casing the neighborhood out. He has stolen from me on a couple occasions but it was back when he was under the age of 18 or he and I would have gone round and round toe to toe. the next time if there is it will be too.

[Tyler Durden]

4. Sorry for your losses, but stuff don't equal LIFE....

Unless of course you're Cosa Nostra.

Hunting them down and killing them is Texas Bush Death Penalty stuff.

Personally, I got enough bad shit on my Karma. I load my .357 with bird shot loads and aim for the knees: I'm not a killer.

[Beerboy]

52. If you ever had to shoot and aimed for knees,

you wouldn't be able to post.

[FyurFly]

57. .357+birdshot = LOL

[Beerboy]

64. .357 + knees? Grim. n/t.

[doc03]

69. Man you would just piss him off real bad, you better hope he

isn't armed.

[liberalnurse]

87. I see that you are correct.....

thieves are threatening and many thieves have shot and killed their victims during their assult..........Stuff and things can also get me killed armed or unarmed.

[Ellen Forradalom]

45. This is why small business owners and middle-class homeowners

respond to law-and-order candidacies such as Nixon's and (in France) Sarkozy's. A breakdown in public order is far more threatening to their well-being than to the rich, who can move further away, build private enclaves, and hire security.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

60. Sorry, but the homeowner shouldn't be murdering people.

Murdering, IMO, is a worse offense than stealing.

But maybe I'm just a crazy liberal.

[Lerkfish]

76. sorry, but you can't lose what you didn't have.

if you can lose your "liberal good will" so easily, maybe deep down, you didn't have it, in at least this regard.
Not dissing you per se, I'm saying there is a lower base part of being human that hungers for vengeance.
If it erupts at simple burglary, it might not have been that far below the surface, after all.

[Botany]

78. Go out to your tool shed @ 7:00 AM and find the tools you need to ...

.... work that day stolen and have $800.00 in the bank w/ $3,000
worth of bills and spend that $800.00 to replace what you worked
hard to get and then go to work for the day. I guarantee your
good will to all your fellow man is pretty well baked.

"If it erupts at simple burglary..." mind if I steal your car and loot your
home tomorrow?

I do not support killing people but if you want to be a burglar than
that is one of the risks you took on w/ your job. I or others (male
or female, republican or democrat, black or white, gay or straight ...)
did force them to become a thief.

And yes the idea that other people get up and steal stuff as others
go and work does not sit well with me.

As per your "sorry, but you can't lose what you didn't have." Comment
you know nothing about me or what I am about. Because I have worked
for free w/ the poor and others and not for any glory but because it
is the right thing to do and I care very much about my fellow man.

[lame54]

86. sorry - but that fuckers going to jail

he is a viglante - screw him

[RB TexLa]

2. Another one?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2284353

[Squatch]

5. Yep.

I didn't realize the link to the 911 call had been posted.

[doc03]

6. One question, were they burglarizing the house?

If they were caught in the act too bad, they won't do it again. Future burglars will think twice about coming to that neighborhood.

[Squatch]

7. How did the guy know they were burglars?

He even said in the call that he did not really know his neighbors. So, how was he to know WHO those two people were or what they were doing there?

You'll also notice that when he confronts the two men, he say's "Boom, you're dead" (and then pulled the trigger about 1 second thereafter) not something to the effect of "Stop" "Halt" "Achtung" "Attencion". Nope, this dude hunted these two guys down and took on the roles of judge, jury, AND executioner.

[CT_Progressive]

8. Maybe it was the fact they used a crowbar to get in that was the giveaway?

Um, duh?

[Squatch]

9. I once used a brick to gain entrance to my OWN house...

so that would give another person probable cause to gun me down?

[CT_Progressive]

10. He didn't know his neighbors "that well" but he knew they were White and the crowbar dude was black

You'd have to be pretty fucking stupid not to know they were thieves, especially once they came back out carrying sacks full of stuff, not using the front door, not having a car, etc.

Actually, you'd have to be fucking brain dead to not know they were thieves.

[Squatch]

14. Dear Lord, you're serious, aren't you?

"his neighbors...were White and the crowbar dude was black"

No white folks would EVER associate with black folks, so they gots to die.

But, you're alright with private citizens intervening with deadly force on (apparent) property crimes. That's pretty damned fucked up.

[CT_Progressive]

17. Let me be more clear.

If you don't think those guys were clearly burglers based on the audio tape of what the guy witnessed with his own eyes, you are completely fucking stupid.

Clear now?

[Squatch]

19. And let me be more clear.

If you think that it's OK to use deadly force to stop an apparent PROPERTY crime, YOU are a raving fucking lunatic.

[CT_Progressive]

21. Well, I don't. So, guess I'm not a raving fucking lunatic.

However, I think its perfectly legal in Texas.

[Squatch]

22. I, for one, am relieved.

I was starting to worry about you for a second. :thumbsup:

[CT_Progressive]

26. Awwww, you're so nice.

I never had no one worry about me before! :(

Seriously, though, its pretty freakin clear they were burglers.
Its also pretty clear the dude was a psycho.

Most people, when faced with a shotgun, OBEY ORDERS. He could have ordered them to the ground, and you better believe they would have dropped in a heartbeat. Just pulling the trigger was an act of cowardice, clearly driven by fear and ignorance.

[slackmaster]

29. I would definitely use deadly force to stop someone from setting fire to my house

Enough of my lifetime has been invested in acquiring my home and possessions that I would not hesitate to kill to protect it, in the (very unlikely) event it came down to that.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

71. Only if you were in it.

And thought that you'd die in such a fire.

Otherwise, you'd be a murderer.

[slackmaster]

82. Nope

Situation:

Middle-aged bearded neckless man with a Molotov cocktail in one hand, Zippo lighter in the other, standing on the sidewalk in front of my house shouting "I came here all the way from New Jersey just to burn your fucking house down, Slack!"

If I was working in the garden, I would use whatever I had in my hand to stop him. If I was inside, I would get a gun then go outside and shoot him. Either way, my actions would be justifiable under California law. From the Penal Code:

197. Homicide is also justifiable when committed by any person in
any of the following cases:
1. When resisting any attempt to murder any person, or to commit a
felony, or to do some great bodily injury upon any person; or,
2. When committed in defense of habitation, property, or person,
against one who manifestly intends or endeavors, by violence or
surprise, to commit a felony, or against one who manifestly intends
and endeavors, in a violent, riotous or tumultuous manner, to enter
the habitation of another for the purpose of offering violence to any
person therein; or,
3. When committed in the lawful defense of such person, or of a
wife or husband, parent, child, master, mistress, or servant of such
person, when there is reasonable ground to apprehend a design to
commit a felony or to do some great bodily injury, and imminent
danger of such design being accomplished; but such person, or the
person in whose behalf the defense was made, if he was the assailant
or engaged in mutual combat, must really and in good faith have
endeavored to decline any further struggle before the homicide was
committed; or,
4. When necessarily committed in attempting, by lawful ways and
means, to apprehend any person for any felony committed, or in
lawfully suppressing any riot, or in lawfully keeping and preserving
the peace.

[Beerboy]

42. The Constitution guarantees We the People the right to defend

Our Life, Limb, and Property, whether committed by a State or private criminal. Where it's gonna get dicey for the shooter was that it was his neighbor's property.
No good deed goes unpunished comes to mind.

[slackmaster]

13. He probably knew his neighbors well enough to know they weren't black

:eyes:

[Beerboy]

25. I'm sure he's going to need a lawyer. n/t.

[doc03]

68. I was in a bad mood this morning, I really

don't think he was justified in killing the guys just for robing the neighbors house. I do think it would be different if he caught them in the act of robing his own house. In Ohio you can't legally
just gun them down for breaking in I believe they would have to be armed and actually threatening your life. I think if I saw they were armed and I had a gun in my hands I would shoot first. In the time I say halt or I'll shoot I would probably be dead.

[slackmaster]

11. Disturbing indeed - Also a duplicate GD topic

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2284353

[Squatch]

16. You're the second person to point that out. Thanks.

[karlrschneider]

12. I'd love to have that guy for a neighbor.

The thieves won't be burgling again.

[LanternWaste]

27. he's the last guy in the world I'd want as a neighbor...

Maybe you. As for my part, he's the last guy in the world I'd want as a neighbor... or even a co-worker.

[Beerboy]

15. I hope my neighbors are like that.

I didn't see the video, so it might just be internet sensationalist BS, but I'd like to think if I heard a B/E next door and I could do something about it after calling 911, the least that's going to happen to the neighbor's uninvited house-guests is that they're going to prison.
So some burglars got shot, BFD.
Thanks for the link!

[Blue Fire]

18. He wasn't defending himself or his property.

He'd made up his mind to pull the trigger before he even left his house. I can understand his outrage, and if the burglars had entred his home, his response as well. But I wonder if there was some other underlying motive (racial?) driving him to kill?
He would have provided a better service to law enforcement if he had used a camera instead of a shotgun. Last I heard, burglary doesn't carry the 'death by concerened citizen' penalty.

[Squatch]

20. I think he took the 911 operator's warning as a challenge

911 guy: if you go outside the house with a shotgun, you're going to get shot.
Caller: You want to bet?!?

[slackmaster]

28. I got that impression as well, Squatch

He even made a point of saying the law had changed recently, which is true but not necessarily relevant to what actually happened in this incident.

[Blue Fire]

31. Exactly.

He was justifying his decision to kill before he even fired. He used this incident as an opportunity to kill for his own personal reasons.

[liberalnurse]

89. I do not see the shooter

identifying this is the opportunity he has bee waiting for by any stretch of the imagination................More like being prepared for the worst in case it happens. Man was elderly, vulnerable to the elements of todays bold, senseless crimes we hear or see every day.

Yes, his perception was off the mark clouded by legitimate fear for his own safety.

[Blue Fire]

99. The last thing this trigger-happy buffoon was concerned about was his own safety.

A person who's afraid makes every attempt to avoid confrontation, and acts only when their property, body and/or life are in direct danger. This guy initiated the confrontation with the bad guys, not the other way around. Listen to the recording again - this nut job is having fun playing 'Sheriff with a Gun'. He was not acting in his own defense. There is no justification for this kind of rash vigilantism.

[CT_Progressive]

30. If we're going to psycho-analyze him, let me give it a go...

To me, he was clearly afraid. What was going thru his mind, was that if they got away, they would continue to hit his neighborhood, likely him next. He didn't want them to feel emboldened, and he didn't want to wake up one morning to two guys with a crowbar (or maybe guns) in his house. So, panic set it. I could hear the panic in his voice as he talked to the dispatcher. His level of panic grew as time went by, and his panic peaked when he saw them about to leave.

He didn't go out to shoot them because he is some a-hole, or racists, or gun nut, or psycho. He did it out of sheer panic and fear and ignorance. He did it because, in his mind, their escape meant his house was next.

[Blue Fire]

34. What a bunch of rubbish!

He didn't sound scared in the least. He sounded like he was ENJOYING himself!
If a person is frightened, they assume a defensive posture to avoid confrontation and danger. This bonehead walked out his door with a cocked and loaded shotgun with the intention of pulling the trigger.

[CT_Progressive]

36. My untrained internet psycho-analysis can beat up your untrained internet psycho-analysis

:)

[Blue Fire]

43. Oh Yeah!!!!

My untrained internet psycho-analysis has it all over your untrained internet psycho-analysis.
Ha! So there!


:toast:

[Beerboy]

56. Lol y'all! n/t.

:beer:

[slackmaster]

35. He was NOT afraid, he was pissed off

As the 911 operator observed repeatedly.

[CT_Progressive]

38. Not "observed", "remarked"

The 911 Op heard a man "riled up".
I listened, and I heard a man scared out of his mind.

[Kingshakabobo]

39. Oh yourrrre gooood. Has he retained your services?

[CT_Progressive]

40. I thought about being a lawyer once.

I got better !

:)

[Swamp Rat]

41. Don't quit your day job

:D

[LanternWaste]

58. He sounded panicky and fearful to you?

He sounded panicky and fearful to you? I didn't get that from either his tone or his inflection at all... in fact, to me he sounded rather excited and even more thrilled.

[Beerboy]

33. The way to ensure a speedy response from law enforcement

is for the caller to say they are armed and feel threatened by the crime they're calling about... I can hear the sirens from here!

[SharkSquid]

23. Interesthing that this came out

I just chased some asshole out of my house with my old service pistol this morning...

I was hoping I didnt have to shoot but if I had caught him I would have roughed him up a smidge...


BTW glad to be here...

and :hi: to everyone

[ldf]

53. welcome, sharksquid

we have all kinds here at du, so you may get some flack for your willingness to defend and protect your own.

but those who do this need to know that there is a cost to every decision.

:thumbsup: to your courage.

many here will say you are an ass for not inviting them in and wrapping up everything all nice and pretty for them. and that you were rude for not saying "have a nice day" as they left....

:shrug:

[SharkSquid]

55. My wife was like that

right up until this morning, now she wants me to take her to the range, its like a bad NRA commercial

Thanks for the welcome...

:toast:

[moez]

24. I'd love to live next to that guy....

I don't think I'd worry too much about my family and home while I was away on business trips - works even better than a big, nasty dog...

[Ganja Ninja]

32. Sounds like they were coming on his property as they left.

The guy was clearly worked up and his adrenalin was pumping. He lost control. I can't say I blame him. How does he know these guys won't be back to hit his house some day?
The hazards of the work place when crime is the way you make your living.

[slackmaster]

37. Well, we know for sure those two will not be back to hit his house some day

That may be the only good news in this story.

They did NOT deserve to die for stealing stuff, but the world is a better place as a result of their deaths.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

44. Theft is not a capital crime

Killing someone for stealing your TV is NOT justifiable homicide, and if you think it is, then you have a 19th-century view of "justice."

[Beerboy]

46. You're 100% correct in the sense that the gov't

can't arrest, try, convict, imprison, then execute a defendant/convict for stealing alone. A private citizen has entirely different rights, and responsibilities.
If someone/some people is/are B/E your property, you're under immediate threat, and have the right to kill, w/o warning in the most dangerous circumstances.
It's justifiable to kill people trespassing to steal. How do you know they're not there just to murder you, rape the kids, murder them, then steal everything. Then burn everything.
The burglar has a greater burden of proof, but they're dead, and it's probably for the best in the long run, but for the guy who shot them, he'll soon find himself penniless, even if he did do the right thing. Doing the right thing doesn't guarantee you'll be rewarded, IRL, often the opposite... think of gentiles hiding Jews from Nazis, a completely illegal act, totally strafbar.
In this case, the caller was responsible, he notified law-enforcement w/ everything.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

47. Well, if they actually start threatening the kids, maybe, but

someone whom I catch in the act of unplugging my TV set, no.

Breaking into someone's home to kidnap or rape children is an extremely rare event compared to burglary. Unfortunately, the unceasing fear-mongering on the news channels has made people think that their children are in constant danger.

There's nothing like fear for controlling a population.

[CT_Progressive]

49. You are naive

If you were unlucky enough to stumble across a burglar in your home, the situation has changed from them simply robbing you. Upon seeing you, the criminal could react in any of several different ways, many of which would put your life in danger.

The second you see that burgler and they see you, its no longer simply burglary. Your life is now in danger, and you gain the Constitutional Right to defend yourself with deadly force, right at that moment, before they even make decision on what they will do next.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

50. I'd rather die naive than kill someone to protect property

:shrug:

What you have there is the germ of the doctrine of "preemptive warfare."

[Alexander]

65. Yes, stopping a burglar/thief/possible killer on your property is "preemptive warfare".

:eyes:

Right.

Listen to other DUers - burglars don't just steal when they physically encounter their victims.

And I sure hope you're never in a position to ever defend me or my property.

[Bjorn Against]

91. There is no Consitutional right to use deadly force

"The Constitutional Right to defend yourself with deadly force, right at that moment, before they even make decision on what they will do next."

Show me where the Constitution gives you the right to kill someone before they can even make a decision on what to do next.

And please don't tell me about the second amendment, because the second amendment does not say anything even close to what you just claimed.

[CT_Progressive]

92. Its called "The Judicial Branch"

Judges rule on matters of law, which tie directly to Constitutional Rights.

The Right to Self Defense has been established by the Judicial Branch.

Therefore, the Right to Self Defense is a Constitutional Right.

http://www.lectlaw.com/def/d030.htm

[Bjorn Against]

93. The right to self defense is extremely limited.

Not too many judges would agree with your assessment that you can use deadly force on someone "before they even make decision on what they will do next."

There are very few people who have successfully made the self defense argument in court, in order for that defense to succeed it has to be a very extreme case. Shooting someone who is stealing from your neighbors is not going to fly as a self-defense case in court.

[CT_Progressive]

94. It will in Texas, where its SPECIFICALLY allowed by law.

[Bjorn Against]

101. Self defense is specifically allowed by law everywhere, but that doesn't mean this is self defense

What you described in your post is not self defense. Self defense is not shoot first ask questions later.

Anyways though, I am through debating this. Clearly you are confused if you think shooting someone who poses no immediate threat to you is a Constitutional right, and I don't have time to debate such a skewed interpretation of the Constitution.

[CT_Progressive]

102. You twisted my words.

I do not think shooting someone who poses no immediate threat to me is a Constitutional Right. You said that, I did not.

What I said, was shooting someone who poses an immediate threat to me is a Constitutional Right.

This is FACT.
This is MORAL.
This is LEGAL.

There is no debate on this.

The debate is around the law in Texas, where they EXTEND this RIGHT to cover their neighbors property.

I really don't give a rats ass if you are willing or not willing to kill in self-defense. I am.
If I find someone in my house, I will simply kill them. Period.
I will not try to figure out why they are there.
I will not try to ascertain whether they are armed or not.
I will not try to discover if they intend me any harm or not.
I will simply kill them dead.
And I will not serve a day in jail.
End of discussion.

[MilesColtrane]

51. Personally,...

...I won't be trying to ascertain the intent of someone who's just broken into my house.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

61. "Paranoia strikes deep, into your life it will creep..."

:eyes:

[MilesColtrane]

62. Yeah, you'd think I WOULD be paranoid...

...seeing as how I live in the city with the most crimes committed per capita nine straight years in a row.

But, having a shotgun by my bed quickly puts to rest any fear of being victimized in my home.

[Botany]

79. Bingo

Hi, Mr. Burglar ... i sense you are in an emotional state ... why don't
we sit down a share our feelings. Poverty, racism, sexism, class
struggle, ADD problems, food allergies ... the floor is open ...
and I being a liberal care.

[Beerboy]

66. Theft is a capital crime, if perpetrated by a citizen upon a citizen.

I have no idea if such horrible crimes are rare or not, but should I hear what I think is a burglary in process @ my neighbor's house, I'd say collect weapons while calling cops! Last I heard, burglars don't announce what house they're ripping-off, and who they have time to rape @ gun-point.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

73. The three of you have just proved my long-held belief that

fear turns people mean and greedy.

No wonder so few Americans are upset at the idea of preemptive war or torture of suspected terrorists and are so gullible about the very notion of a "war on terror."

Sad, really sad.

[Lord Wortherington]

81. I'm with you Lydia

I would like to see those posters after having taken a life, my guess is that their muscle extends about as far as their fingertips to their keyboards. Internet toughguy syndrome.

[Pavulon]

105. Fear is reasonable in some situations

Fear is your bodies way of keeping you alive.

If I come home and see someone robbing my neighbors home or breaking onto their car my response would depend on several things.

Are they home? I know their schedule and if they aren't there calling the police and watching is reasonable.

If they were home stepping in could be warranted. Depends on the situation.

People do and say strange things when they are scared.

If the situation sets up as the shooter had a reason to be threatened or had legal backing to stop a crime he is clear.

It varies by state.

[qdemn7]

48. Simple solution

Don't steal in Texas, and you won't get shot. Especially in Harris and Dallas counties.

[virginia mountainman]

54. Well...

They should NOT, have ran toward a man with a pump shotgun....

[Quantess]

59. Those are the risks you take when burglarizing a home.

One of these days, a madman with a gun will shoot you.

[Basileus Basileon]

63. Break into someone's house? You grant him carte blanche to

end any threat he perceives as he sees fit. Don't like it? Don't break into people's houses.

(Your neighbor's house is a bit much.)

[Beerboy]

67. Heck yeah. Being a liberal doesn't mean you won't defend

your family and community, @ gunpoint, and only if necessary.
I'm not letting some creep break in here w/o 2 seconds to flee before I open fire.
It can't be repeated often enough, Don't Break Into People's Houses!

[Mugu]

70. I agree.

Come in my home uninvited and something bad and very noisy is going to happen. All one has to do to avoid that situation is not come in my home unless invited.

Regards, Mugu

[Name removed]

72. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Scout]

74. i just listened to the whole tape....

that man was not afraid, he was just itching to go out and shoot those people. he could hardly contain himself, and finally did NOT even try. he's a murderer, and a dickhead.

Lucky for him he didn't shoot a plain clothes cop!

what an asshole ... and people like him seem to be breeding the fastest.

[walldude]

75. It's a sad state we live in when people are so scared of

their own shadow that they will advocate the hunting of a human being, even if that human is a criminal. This guy was not protecting himself or his home. He didn't even give them a chance to surrender. I hope all you who are advocating the killing of these criminals are ready to spend this week agreeing with Limbaugh, O'Reilly, Coulter and Hannity because this is the kind of old west style vigilantism that those people love.

[mitchum]

77. An occupational hazard of being a thief

[ChazII]

80. That was my initial thought

when I read the OP. Glad to know I am not alone.

[slackmaster]

83. Whether or not the shooting was legal, that is certainly true

The dead guys made a poor career choice, and compounded that mistake by picking the wrong victim.

[Paladin]

84. I'm Mulling Over Which I'd Rather Have In My Neighborhood

An occasional burglar, or some of the bloodthirsty, gun-addled louts who have turned up on this thread. Tough decision.....

[JVS]

98. "Do not shoot anybody else! Do you understand me?"

:rofl:

[bread_and_roses]

85. So some here defend shooting people in cold blood, while they are running through a yard?

According to the linked story, none of the scenarios used here in "justification- ie, armed burglar confronting homeowner, arsonists in the act, rapist in the bedroom, etc. are in any way relevant to this incident.

According to the story, the men were running through a yard. There is no mention of them being armed, or threatening the shooter in any way.

Yet some here defend the shooter?

So now, attempted break-in to an empty house and running away warrant deadly force from vigilantes?

And at least one poster characterizes those questioning such actions with a farrago of RW talking points about "inviting them into your house and wrapping stuff up for them."

Unbelievable. Well, the vigilantes will probably get the world they so clearly want soon. I wonder how they'll like it?

[flvegan]

88. Sadly, the Castle Doctrine will probably protect him.

I sense a pending "itchy trigger finger" syndrome and lots of creepy vigilante type stories like this in the future.

And yes, I'm aware of the irony considering my avatar.

[mooseandsquirrel]

90. "I've got a shotgun. Want me to go after them?"

This was one of the first remarks heard on the tape. In essence, this guy deputized himself.

But, there are so many "what ifs" that a "shoot-first-ask-questions-later" approach may not be the best choice. For example, what if the intruder wasn't burglarizing the house but, instead, he was an estranged husband trying to get some of his things out of the house his wife won't let me into?

This reminds me of the incident a year or so ago about the Japanese exchange student who was shot dead in front of a house that he thought was hosting a Halloween party. Turned out he had the wrong address.

Just too many "ifs" in this case. This guy's going to need a lawyer...

[John Kerry VonErich]

95. This is first degree murder and he will face the death penalty.

I truly believe he wasn't hunting, but entrapping. Notice when he called back to the dispatcher....

"Get the law over here quick. I had no choice," a frantic-sounding Horn says. "They came in the front yard with me. I had no choice."

He admitted he lured them there, that is malice.

Wonder what would happen if he had a tazer?

[Catherine Vincent]

96. Another thread, good!

This one was getting too long:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x2284353

This guy definitely was anxious to shoot him some bad guys! But last night I heard on the news that he is sorry now. :eyes:

[JVS]

97. Let him go free!

[FormerOstrich]

100. I recently left town for a long weekend...

I had arranged with my hispanic friend to stay at my house and care for my dogs while I was away.

When he arrived, after working all day in the Honeywell clean room, the keyless garage door opener malfunctioned. Rather than leave my dogs to fend for themselves for four + days, he scaled the back fence and broke into my house. Afterward he unlocked the side gate and went to his car to retrieve his overnight bag.

I am very thankful none of my neighbors shot him.

[LisaL]

103. Right. How would the guy who shot the alleged burglars even

know for sure there was not a legit reason for them to be there?
It's not his property, and if he was in his house calling 911, then, IMO, he should have just decided he done his civic duty.

[CT_Progressive]

104. It was obvious they were thieves.

1) They had a crowbar with them
2) They were black, the owners white.
3) They didn't have a car, they approached on foot.
4) They exited the house with bags full of valuables.

Basically, you'd have to be a retarded goldfish to not know they were criminals.

[LisaL]

106. The post I was responding to described as to how the poster asked

a friend to watch a house, and that friend had to break into the house to take care of the dogs, and as to how someone could have mistaken that for burglary. I am saying that if someone doesn't know what exactly the situation is, even if it appears to be a burglary, it still could be something else.
The guy called 911, and it wasn't his property. I personally do think this guy could be charged since Castle law would cover his property but not someone' else.

[Pavulon]

107. He said they were in his yard..

personally I would not have used force there but that does not mean his actions were illegal in his state. Moral and legal are not always aligned.

If I had to gain entry into someones home I would call the police first. Climbing fences or other burglaresque actions are a bad idea. At best you could end up arrested until everything was sorted out, worst you could be shot by a homeowner.

[LisaL]

108. Well, when I lived in an apartment on a first floor, we had a bad

lock on the door, and the door wouldn't open, so I would climb into window to get inside. People sometimes forget keys, lock themselves out, ask friends to come over, etc.
What right does someone have to shoot and kill if it's not their property and they don't know what exactly is going on?