Monday, September 17, 2007



Florida: Owner Sleeping In Gas Station Over Crimes Surprises, Kills Intruder: "A gas station owner in Central Florida who was sleeping in his business after a rash of crimes in the area shot and killed a man trying to break into his store early Friday morning, according to sheriff's deputies. Investigators said someone apparently began to break into the Citgo gas station located at the corner of Pine Hills and Silverstar Road at about 2:30 a.m. The owner said when he was awakened by glass breaking he grabbed a gun and opened fire, shooting 14 times. Police said the culprit was able to flee the business after being shot but was found dead after collapsing in a nearby parking lot. The owner, who did not want to be identified, said he did not regret using lethal force. "One way or another, he had to go down," the owner said. "His days were numbered. If it were not me, he would get somebody. And if he had a weapon, I would have gone down." The owner said there have been 14 break-ins in the last two weeks. Police said the business owner acted in self-defense but were checking surveillance video and still investigating the case. The owner said he has slept at the station for the last 10 days to stop any crime at the station."


Georgia: Man killed during home invasion: "An early-morning struggle in a darkened duplex left a man lying dead on the floor next to a backpack full of burglary tools, Clayton County Police said. The renting resident told detectives he heard the noise of someone breaking down his back door at about 4:30, Wednesday morning. He went to check, and bumped into someone in the kitchen. “He saw the suspect reaching for a gun in his waistband,” said Deputy Chief Tim Robinson, and “was somehow able to disarm the suspect. He fell back — I’m talking, maybe 10 feet — he fired and he killed the suspect.” The renter, whose name has not yet been released by police, fired several shots inside his 5701 Williamsburg Trace residence, between Riverdale and College Park, according to his statements to police... Everything seemed to match the man’s account. “The physical evidence tends to support his story,” the deputy chief said. “And he’s been very cooperative.” The angle of the bullet, the position of the body, the signs the back door was forced open and the bag next to the dead man’s body all lent credence to the resident’s account of being surprised by a home invasion and then shooting a would-be burglar to death. Police have not yet positively identified the dead man. They have a tentative identification, Robinson said, and have some indication he had burgled before. “He did have a backpack, and inside that backpack he did have several items that are indicative of someone who was burgling homes,” Robinson said.


Felons need guns too: "In a Sept. 4 Salt Lake Tribune story, Danny Dutton of Hurricane justifiably killed a man in self-defense, but may go to prison because he used a gun he wasn't entitled to have -- because he's a convicted felon. So, in order for Danny Dutton to save his life, he had to commit another felony to defend himself. There's something wrong here. Do convicted felons have reasonable expectations to be able to defend themselves if their lives are in danger when they're not committing a crime? If not, why not? The Second Amendment says 'the right of the people to keep and bear arms shall not be infringed.' It doesn't go on to say 'unless you're a convicted felon.' That's something that individual states tacked on later."

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