Shoot / Don't Shoot - Another Tricky Story

[Bill Mattocks]

I could see the jury seeing this one either way. Not everything is cut-and-dried...

http://hamptonroads.com/2011/02/va-charges-rare-those-who-shoot-intruders

Thinking that a man was trying to steal something from his yard, a retired police officer fired twice at the man's pickup, hitting it once. One of the bullets lodged in the man's head.
The city's top prosecutor determined that the shooting was justified, saying Charles Duck feared for his life and his wife's when the man dived into his pickup. Duck said he couldn't see the man's hands, and what if there had been a gun in the truck?
The case illustrates the complexity of distinguishing what is self-defense and what is illegal.

...

Still, someone can't use deadly force merely to protect property, said Virginia Beach Commonwealth's Attorney Harvey Bryant.
"If you look out your front door and someone is taking the tires off your car, you can't shoot them," he said.
"We do consider in our society that your home is your castle," Harvey said. "If somebody has broken through the castle walls and come in aggressively, you're entitled to defend yourself."
Harvey said he couldn't second-guess Ferguson's decision because each case is "fact-specific." But he cautioned homeowners against using Duck's case as carte blanche to shoot trespassers.
"I don't think citizens in Virginia Beach should take this case in Suffolk as a green light for them to shoot people in defense of their property," he said.
Last year, Richmond Commonwealth's Attorney Mike Herring charged a man with second-degree murder in the killing of a burglar who was wearing a mask while he tried to steal a car.
A jury convicted him of manslaughter. It declined to impose any jail time or a fine.

I think this is a well-written article, and it examines several cases and looks at why the shooting was legally justified or not - and also explains that the jury can still decide to convict or not convict regardless of the facts of the case or the letter of the law.

As always, I urge people who decide to protect their home with a firearm to get proper training, spend time on the range learning gun safety and how to shoot it accurately, and to learn the self-defense and deadly force laws of the state they live in. Just owning a gun is not enough; you must be proficient in its use and also know when you may and may not use it. As the article shows, not every issue is completely black or white; there are many shades of gray. But educating oneself is always a good idea when one possesses the means to wield deadly force.