Montana: Man who fired pistol in self-defense released: "A Billings man who was arrested after firing a pistol in a tavern parking lot has been released from the county jail. Justin Swanz, 26, was freed about 10 hours after his arrest early Tuesday when county prosecutors sent the case back to police for further investigation. Chief Deputy County Attorney Mark Murphy said he could not discuss details of the case, but Swanz claimed in an interview Wednesday that he fired the pistol in self-defense. Swanz told The Gazette on Wednesday that he fired once into the air as six or seven men advanced on him in the parking lot following a confrontation inside the bar. Swanz said he fired the Taurus .44 Special revolver once. "They were going to beat me up," Swanz said. "I had no choice but to fire that shot in the air. It was total self-defense." Swanz said he had arrived at the tavern alone between 10 and 11 p.m. to play pool. He bought a pitcher of beer and played several pool games with another man. Swanz said he went to leave shortly after 1 a.m. and was confronted by men who claimed he owed the other man $1,200 for betting losses on the pool table. Swanz said he did not bet on the games, but the men threatened him and one man grabbed his pocket knife from his front pants pocket. Swanz was told to leave, so he grabbed his jacket and walked out of the tavern, he said. As he walked to his car, Swanz said, the men followed and continued to threaten him. When it appeared they were going to attack him, Swanz said, he pulled his pistol from his coat pocket, pointed it into the air and fired one shot. The gunfire stopped the men, although someone threw ice on him, he said. Swanz said he does not have a concealed weapons permit. Swanz said he is unemployed and he has no criminal record.


Ohio: Grocer killed with own gun: "Lorain grocer Jose Gonzalez was fatally shot with his own gun during a struggle with the suspect in a ''botched robbery'' at Gonzalez's store last Friday, police said. Gonzales had bought the gun to protect himself and his store following a previous holdup, according to neighbors. Police said a man armed with a weapon that was not a gun walked into the Gonzalez Grocery at 2522 Lexington Ave. at about 10 a.m. on Jan. 25. A fight ensued between the man and Gonzalez, and Gonzalez's gun somehow got into the hands of the intruder, according to police. Lorain police Chief Cel Rivera would not specify what weapon police believe suspect Decio Rodrigues, 24, of Lorain, brought to the store, but said it was not a gun. The chief said he does not believe Rodrigues entered the store with the intent to kill Gonzalez. As the suspect ran from the store with cash in his hand, he was spotted by an Allied Waste worker. Lorain detectives worked around the clock with the U.S. Marshal's Violent Fugitive Task Force to capture Rodrigues. He was taken into custody Saturday night and was charged with aggravated murder." [Shoot. Don't talk]


IN: Guns at colleges could save lives, state senator says: "Would a pistol-toting professor at Virginia Tech University have prevented deaths there last spring? More guns on college campuses as a first line of defense might seem nonsensical, but to state Sen. Johnny Nugent, the idea makes perfect sense. Nugent, a Lawrenceburg Republican, got 25 votes on a Senate bill last week that would have stopped universities and many other public buildings from prohibiting those who have permits to carry concealed weapons from doing so. Courthouses, airports and jails would have been exempted from the prohibition."