TX: Sheriff Appreciates Armed Homeowner

In Smith County, Texas, Ellis Tyra held one burglar at gunpoint, and felt compelled to shoot at a vehicle that was being driven recklessly toward him.   The story is a fairly familiar one.  The homeowner noticed a strange vehicle at his property.  He armed himself and investigated.

After finding two intruders, a man and a woman, he ordered them to stay in place, but the woman dashed to a vehicle and drove at/past the Tyra to escape.  He fired one shot that hit the vehicle but did not harm anyone.

Sheriff deputies arrived nine minutes after being called, took the man into custody, and captured the woman after a short pursuit.

The case is a stereotypical example of the synergy of armed citizens and peace officers.  The armed citizen is the first responder, because they are at the scene as it is happening.  The citizen serves as the eyes and ears of the sheriff department or police department.   The sheriff department provides backup, bringing armed reinforcements to the aid of the citizen, and coordinates the pursuit of escaping suspects.  

They also gather evidence, and do all the necessary administrative chores to insure that the rule of law prevails.   In short, they do the things that would be very hard for an ordinary citizen to do, because they have to make a living and have their own areas of expertise.

The interesting part of this otherwise common scenario is that support for the armed homeowner by the Sheriff was noted in the broadcast.  From cbs19.tv:

Sheriff Smith stated that he appreciates the quick actions of the homeowners as well as all Sheriff's Office personnel involved.

Such support is common in rural areas, and does much to explain the low crime levels usually found there.  Urban Sheriffs and police chiefs are finding the courage to voice their support as well.   Prominent examples are Detroit's Chief Craig and Milwaukee County's Sheriff Clarke.  

Sheriff Clarke was targeted by Michael Bloomberg's organizations for being supportive of armed citizens, but he survived the primary opposition that was funded by the disarmist, and now serves as an example to others.   Sheriffs and police chiefs can buck the establishment and win.

I suspect that  support has always been fairly common, but was not reported, or was downplayed,  before the  new media offered alternate channels of communication. You can see the confidence that Ellis Tyra has in his local Sheriff.   From  cbs19tv.com:

As for Tyra, he says the Sheriff has assured him no charges will be filed against him for firing his weapon.

An even better outcome would be to give Tyra an award for helping to stop crime in the community, as happened in this case in Kentucky.




Armed citizens and local Sheriff departments make an almost unbeatable combination when they work together, resulting in low crime rates.   It is only when a sizable percentage of the population do not trust the local peace officers, and refuse to cooperate with them, that crime rates skyrocket.   Conversely, when local peace officers show that they respect and appreciate armed citizens, it builds mutual trust and respect.


 Definition of  disarmist 

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