MI: Gunfight, Armed Victim Shoots Armed Robbery Suspect in Detroit

Police were called around 6:45 to the 18600 block of Grayfield to the shooting. A 25-year-old man was walking when an armed man tried to rob him.

The victim has a concealed pistol license and pulled his gun. Both men shot at each other and the robbery suspect was hit in the body.
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MI: Home Invasion Suspect shot by Armed Homeowner

VOLINIA TOWNSHIP — An Elkhart Indiana man who forced his way into a home in Cass County was shot in a fight with the residents.

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TX: Armed Victim Shoots at Juveniles Stealing his Truck

The victim's son heard the truck driving away, ran out of the house, and shot several times in the air.

CCPD was called to the scene, and the juveniles were apprehended.

Two juveniles inside the truck were taken into custody, and two juveniles not in the truck were released.
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GA: Domestic Defense, Aggressive man with Knife Shot, Killed

A short while later, while the homeowner and others were in the driveway near the highway, the agitated man returned, became aggressive, and at some point, brandished a knife, striking a family member and moving toward someone armed with a handgun, the statement said.

As the man approached, a single round was fired from the pistol and the man collapsed, according to the sheriff's office.
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FL: Gun Beats Knife in Love Triangle Shooting

Deputies said the 38-year-old man who was killed cut the other man with a knife before being shot. Neither of the men has been identified, and no arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing.

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12% of Homicides in Birmingham, Alabama, were Justifiable in 2019

In 2019, Birmingham, Alabama has reported a justifiable homicide rate 53 times the national average, as reported in the FBI Uniform Crime Reports. From bhamwiki.com:

11 of the reported homicides were ruled justifiable as self-defense by investigators or prosecutors and 3 resulted from reckless driving. The suspect in another murder was shot to death on the scene and another killed himself. One death resulted from a violent act committed previous year. One other homicide took place at the Jefferson County Jail outside the city's jurisdiction. The police department therefore acknowledges 82 chargeable homicides. Suspects have been identified in 49 of those cases, arrested in 46 and charged in 41. Charges in one case were dismissed.

Justifiable homicides are severely under reported in the FBI Uniform Crime Statistics (UCR).  At least two studies indicate there are over five times as many justifiable homicides in the United States as indicated in the FBI UCR numbers. The UCR uses a very restrictive definition of a justifiable  homicide.

When justifiable homicides are carefully tracked, there are found to be more than five times as many as the FBI UCR records.

From a previous article:

Homicides in the United States in 2018, from the FBI UCR. 16,214.   The number of justifiable homicides by private citizens was recorded at 353.  The population in the United States was estimated at 327.2 million. The rate of reported justified homicides in the U.S.A. was .108 per 100,000 population. The murder rate in the United States in 2018 was 5.0 per 100,000 population.

The Detroit rate of recorded justifiable homicides is 25 times the recorded national rate of justified homicides. Detroit's murder rate is 7.76 time that of the United States. Using the murder rate as a scale, Detroit has recorded 3.2 times as many justifiable homicides per murder, as are recorded in the United States, on average.

In Birmingham, Alabama, in 2019 through December 2nd, there were 11 justifiable homicides and 82 chargeable homicides. 11 out of 93 is  just short of 12%, 11.8%. Birmingham is recorded as having a population 209,880.  That would make a corrected murder rate of 43.4 per 100,000 this year (per year), and a justified homicide rate of 5.7 per 100,000 (per year) in 2019, so far. The justified homicide rate in Birmingham is 53 times the national average for justifiable homicides as reported in the FBI UCR. Birmingham's murder rate in 2019, so far, is about 8.7 times the national average.

 Gary Kleck (page 111-114) estimates justifiable homicides are between 7.1 and 12.9 percent of total homicides. The 11.8% reported in Birmingham falls near the top of that range.

Birmingham Alabama is having 1 justifiable homicide per 7.45 chargeable homicides. Suspects have been identified in 49 of 82 chargeable homicides. It is unknown how many of the other 33 "chargeable" homicides might be justifiable, if all the actors were found and carefully investigated.

Most homicides are of criminals killing criminals. Just because you have been convicted of a crime, does not mean you have lost your right to self defense.

Criminals have significant incentive not to report the incident. Even if found to be justified, they may go to jail for a probation violation, or a violation of the prohibition on felons possessing firearms.

Most people who defend themselves from criminal attack are not intent on killing someone. They are intent on protecting themselves and others. This natural bias, combined with the fact that only a bit more than 7% of the adult population have carry permits in the United States, means more people will be victims of murder than there will be attackers justifiable killed.

It does not mean there will be more people murdered  than people who are saved through defensive gun uses.  Many more murders are likely stopped through defensive gun uses than are killed in justifiable homicides.

Justifiable homicides are a very small fraction of defensive gun uses, probably less than one-tenth of one percent. Several surveys show national defensive gun uses at between 500,000 and three million per year.


©2019 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch

MO: Drunk Starts Fight with Couple, is Shot

In a press release, they said a man who was drunk showed up at the home and started to fight a man and woman there. After warning the drunk man to stop or else he would shoot, the other man opened fire, hitting the aggressor twice.

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AR: Store Manager Shoots Armed Robbery Suspect, Demetrius Morant

According to police, the store manager said, "OK, hold on, let me get it for you," then grabbed a gun and shot the suspect twice during a shootout.

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GA: Disarm, Father takes gun from 1 of 2 Home Invaders, Shoots

COBB COUNTY, Ga. - A father protected his family from a pair of home intruders when he wrestled one of the men, took his gun and fired it, Smyrna police said.

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TX: Bounty Hunters Tase, Shoot, Kill, Armed Robbery Suspect

One bounty hunter said he pointed his taser at Sanabria, while the other was pointing a gun. The men told officers they told Sanabria to put his gun down, but he allegedly refused. The bounty hunters say they then shot him with a taser and the gun, which ultimately killed him.
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"Preventing Gun Violence" is not a Compelling Governmental Interest

In a recent column, well known Reason editor and writer Jacob Sullum makes a likely unintentional error. He writes that "preventing gun violence" is a compelling government interest. From townhall.com:

Restrictions on fundamental rights usually pass muster only if they are narrowly tailored to further a compelling government interest -- in this case, preventing gun violence.

"Gun violence" is an Orwellian phrase that compels the user to focus on guns rather than on illegitimate actions.

“Preventing gun violence” is not a compelling government interest.

Preventing murder, can be a compelling government interest, though, in our federal system of limited governmental powers, it should primarily be an interest of the States, not the federal government.

Preventing suicide, may be a compelling government interest, though the case is less clear than preventing murder.  Some governments are involved in approving of, and assisting in, some suicides.

Preventing justified homicides is clearly *not* a compelling governmental interest; promoting justified homicides aids in lowering murder, violent crime, and crime generally.

Preventing accidents may be a secondary governmental interest.

Preventing a murder or suicide committed with a particular method is *not* a compelling governmental interest, because it is not clear if prohibiting one method will do anything to lower murders or suicides generally. It is arguable that prohibiting one method will lead to the rise of other methods. If preventing one method does not lower the overall rate, resources have been wasted and liberties narrowed to no effect. Thus, singling out one method becomes a matter of choice and preference.

Using the Orwellian phrases of Progressives is one of the easiest ways to lose an argument with them. If you cede to them the ability to define the words and terms of the language used, they win, mostly by default.

A "compelling governmental interest" is a legal concept used in the application of strict scrutiny of actions that effect Constitutional rights.

It is the highest level of interest.

In the lowest level, "rational basis", the governmental interest need only serve a legitimate function. Statutes are almost never found to violate the rational basis standard.

In the middle level "intermediate scrutiny" the governmental interest must be shown to be important, a higher test than legitimate.

For "strict scrutiny", a compelling  interest must be shown. From mtsu.edu:

An interest is compelling when it is essential or necessary rather than a matter of choice, preference, or discretion.  

Examples of compelling governmental interests would be: protecting the country from invasion; maintaining the rule of law in contracts and property rights; protecting the structure and execution of Constitutional order.
 
"Preventing gun violence" is precisely a matter of choice, preference, and discretion.

The choice, preference and discretion of those who want a disarmed population, are all aimed at disarming the rest of society, precisely what the Second Amendment is designed to prevent.

Progressives do not believe in Constitutional order. They do not believe in limiting governmental power. They do not believe in God or in an moral code.

Opposition to the Second Amendment is in Progressivism's DNA.

©2019 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

Gun Watch 

NC: Domestic Defense, Ex-Wife Shoots, Kills Ex who Broke in, Critically Injued Sleeping Friend

MACON COUNTY, N.C. (WLOS) — Macon County Sheriff Robert Holland confirms with News 13, Christopher Prince, who was shot after he allegedly broke into his ex-wife's home early Wednesday morning and assaulted a sleeping male, has died from his injuries.
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MS: Domestic Defense, 84-Year-Old Woman Shoots, Kills 58-Year-Old Son

Byrd was shot and killed by his mother after a "domestic situation," Thomas said. Byrd lived in the home with his mother and officers had previously been to the home on multiple calls. The gun, a Smith and Wesson .38 Special, belonged to the mother. She is not being publicly identified.
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IL: Armed Samaritan Holds Mugger for Police, may face Charges

An armed citizen held an alleged robbery offender at gunpoint following a violent mugging on a CTA train in the Loop on Wednesday morning, police said. Charges are pending against the offender, and the good Samaritan is also in legal jeopardy.
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FL: Gun Beats Bicycle in Attempted Home Invasion

"(My stepson) saw one of them throwing a bicycle through the window there. He threw the bicycle through the window and my stepson shot five or six times. He hit that one; I don’t know if he hit the other one," Patterson said.

The Brevard County Sheriff's Office said there may have been a second man involved in the attempted burglary but has not found anyone.
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FL: Gunfight at Laundromat, Pistol v. Rifle

The two suspects left the business and the employee followed them out to see which direction they were going and to get a possible description of their vehicle, the report states.

At that time, one of the suspects turned and pointed the rifle at the employee, who had by then armed himself, deputies say. The employee fired five shots at the suspects. The suspects fired two shots back at the employee, according to the sheriff’s office.

Read more here: https://www.bradenton.com/news/local/crime/article238028749.html#storylink=cpy

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IN: Teenage Armed Robbery Suspect Shot, Killed

In a news release, police said Ellington had been shot and was unable to communicate with officers, who learned he had met with several people to sell a handgun. Police said witnesses told them Ellington pointed a handgun at the group and tried to rob them. One of the alleged intended robbery victims was armed with a handgun and fired several times in response to Ellington’s actions, police said.
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More TX: Armed Robbery Suspect Shot with Gun and Taser, Killed

There were two customers in the store at the time and one of them saw the threat and used a taser on the man. Another customer shot Sanabria, who died at the scene, police said. According to police, the would-be robber did not fire his weapon.

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NC: Gunfight, Victim Shoots, Wounds 1 of 2 Suspects

A person was visiting the home when two men got out of a car that arrived and tried to rob the visiting person, the news release said.

During a shootout between the suspects and the victim, one suspect was hit by gunfire, according to the news release.
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Followup OK: Fatal Shooting of Alfred Guy was Self Defense

TULSA, Oklahoma - Tulsa Police released new details on a fatal shooting last week. Authorities said the man who shot Alfred Guy did so in self-defense after Guy stabbed him.

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