Home / DefensiveGunUse
Showing posts with label DefensiveGunUse. Show all posts
Showing posts with label DefensiveGunUse. Show all posts
"Phoenix boy, 14, shoots armed intruder while watching three younger siblings"

"Phoenix boy, 14, shoots armed intruder while watching three younger siblings"




From Fox News:
 . . . The teen and his brothers and sisters were at home alone at their residence at 55th Avenue and Baseline when a woman rang the doorbell Friday. The teen didn't open the door because he didn't recognize her, Police Officer James Holmes said Saturday.
Soon after, the teen heard a bang on the door, rushed his siblings upstairs and got a handgun from his parent's bedroom. When he got to the top of the stairs, he saw a man breaking through the front door and point a gun at him.
The boy shot the 37-year-old man, who is in critical condition but expected to survive and be booked into jail. . . .
Holmes hailed the teen's actions and his parents for teaching the kids to never open the door to strangers.
"The police and indeed our community does not ever want to see a situation where a teenager of that age has to take a weapon to protect his family ... but this young man did exactly what he should have done," he said. "I'm not sure he gave full thought about what he had to do. He just acted." . . .
Polk Co., Florida, homeowner shoots, kills suspect who barged into home

Polk Co., Florida, homeowner shoots, kills suspect who barged into home

From WDBO radio in Central Florida:
Deputies say a Polk County homeowner shot and killed a suspect who barged into his home early Sunday morning.
Deputies and emergency crews were called to Lake Daisy Drive in Winter Haven around 4:00 a.m.
Officials say the incident started when a woman called 911 to report that an unknown man had broken into her back porch area. While en route to the woman's home, deputies received a second 911 call from a neighbor, who said he had just shot a man who barged into his home.
Investigators quickly learned that both 911 callers were reporting the same man.
Officials say the suspect was yelling, banging on the door, and demanding to be let in. The suspect barged into the home when he was confronted by the homeowner, who was identified as 33-year-old William Cornwell. Deputies say Cornwell was armed with a handgun. . . .
Gun owner catches two men responsible for a string of fires

Gun owner catches two men responsible for a string of fires

From St. Clair County:

The two men charged Friday in a string of six barn and shed arson fires are a "Beavis and Butt-head duo" who just got a kick out of setting blazes, police say.
"They wanted to go out there and start fires and stir up stuff," said Capt. Steve Johnson of the St. Clair County sheriff's office. "It doesn't necessarily make sense why they would do this."
Bryan Boide, 23, of Belleville, and Nicholas Haegele, 19, of O'Fallon, were each charged with six counts of arson. In all, police said they started seven fires for "no apparent reason." They targeted sheds and barns.
Police in St. Clair County have been investigating a string of suspicious fires in the past month. Officers from area departments spent time patrolling backroads in unmarked police cars, during the times of day that the arsonists had struck. They stopped cars to try to obtain information.
The big break came just after midnight Wednesday. That's when Boide and Haegele were nabbed by a property owner on Bay Point Drive who got suspicious when he saw them walking around with flashlights on his property. The man grabbed his shotgun, held the pair at gunpoint and walked them to a neighbor's home. He had the neighbor call police. . . .
Thanks to Allen Boyer for this link. 
Motel guest shoots robber who tried to break into room

Motel guest shoots robber who tried to break into room

The subheading reads: "Motel guest heard window break before grabbing gun."  From Houston, TX:

Detectives said a man broke a window and then broke down the door to the room.
The motel guest grabbed his gun and shot the man several times, investigators said.
The suspect was rushed to Northwest Memorial Hermann Hospital, where he died. His name has not been released. . . .
"This guy is like a pit bull, fighting and mad," Herness said. "(The motel guest) was hiding behind their bed saying, 'Don't come in here, sir. I have a gun.' Thank God they had a gun. No telling what he would have done." . . .
"Fenton-area man shoots burglar; burglar charged with 3 felonies"

"Fenton-area man shoots burglar; burglar charged with 3 felonies"

From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

An intruder who was shot in the leg by the man whose Fenton-area home he broke into has been charged with burglary and two gun charges.
A man, 59, said he was sleeping at 2 a.m. Tuesday when he awoke and saw a burglar with a handgun in his home, according to the Jefferson County Sheriff's Office. The man then pulled out his own handgun and fired two shots. The burglar fled. . . . 

Thanks to Allen Boyer for the link.
"Gun carrying man ends stabbing spree at Salt Lake grocery store"

"Gun carrying man ends stabbing spree at Salt Lake grocery store"

From Salt Lake City's ABC 4 News:
A citizen with a gun stopped a knife wielding man as he began stabbing people Thursday evening at the downtown Salt Lake City Smith's store. Police say the suspect purchased a knife inside the store and then turned it into a weapon. Smith's employee Dorothy Espinoza says, "He pulled it out and stood outside the Smiths in the foyer. And just started stabbing people and yelling you killed my people. You killed my people." Espinoza says, the knife wielding man seriously injured two people. "There is blood all over. One got stabbed in the stomach and got stabbed in the head and held his hands and got stabbed all over the arms." Then, before the suspect could find another victim - a citizen with a gun stopped the madness. "A guy pulled gun on him and told him to drop his weapon or he would shoot him. So, he dropped his weapon and the people from Smith's grabbed him." . . . .
With all the negative stories about guns these days, it is good to remember that every day people are using guns defensively even if they don't get national news coverage

With all the negative stories about guns these days, it is good to remember that every day people are using guns defensively even if they don't get national news coverage

From Georgia:

Authorities in Georgia say a grandmother foiled a robbery attempt by two armed men by getting into a shootout with them, injuring one man.
Police told The Telegraph that Lulu Campbell just dropped off her grandson at her daughter's house early Saturday morning when someone demanded money outside her car, threatening to shoot her.
Campbell says the man fired at her, missing. The 57-year-old fired back, striking him in the chest. Her truck sustained eight bullet holes in the hood, one in the grill. Both front side windows were destroyed. The second man fled after she shot at him.
Campbell, who owns convenience stores and gas stations, always is armed. . . .
Several Self-Defense stories

Several Self-Defense stories

The first two cases took place in North Carolina. Home-invasion shooting 'clearly self-defense'
Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Rodney Monroe said Wednesday that a shooting involving a man who killed a would-be burglar who was kicking down his girlfriend’s apartment door was “clearly a case of self-defense.” It took detectives and prosecutors a matter of hours to determine that the shooting Tuesday in a quiet east Charlotte neighborhood was within the boundaries of the law. “The (shooter) was defending himself and his property from a criminal act,” Monroe told the Observer. “It was clear he was protecting himself.” . . .
Store clerk shoots robbery suspect in Greensboro
Police say a convenience store clerk stopped a knife-wielding robber by shooting him with a handgun Tuesday night in Greensboro. In a news release, police said Shawnda Johnny Shelton, 25, of Pleasant Garden, was shot when he tried robbing the EZ Way Curb Market at 2906 High Point Road. Shelton entered the store with a knife shortly before 10 p.m. and demanded money from the clerk, police said. The clerk responded by shooting the suspect once with a handgun, police said. . . . Police did not say where Shelton was shot, but described his injuries as non-life threatening. . . .
Santa Barbara homeowner shoots intruder, suspect in custody
A Santa Barbara homeowner shot an intruder Wednesday morning, according to police. Police said a 33-year-old man began knocking on the front door of a home in the 900 block of West Pedregosa Street. Police said the man inside the home woke up, and told the suspect to take off. Instead, police said the suspect uttered something about money, before walking around to the back of the home. Police said the man's family called 911, as he armed himself with an M-1 carbine rifle. When the suspect showed up on the back patio, police said he yelled out something indicating he was suicidal, before picking up a lantern and breaking the glass doors with it. Police said the victim inside shot a warning bullet through the door near the suspect, but the suspect continued to force his way into the home. Ten seconds later, police said the victim shot the man. . . .
"I’ll buy another gun, vows senior who lost his after shooting intruder"

"I’ll buy another gun, vows senior who lost his after shooting intruder"

Here are two defensive gun use stories. I have frequently seen that felons what their right to have a gun restored more than any other right. From the Chicago Sun Times:
Homer Wright says he won’t hesitate to buy another gun — or use it to defend himself or his South Side tavern. The 81-year-old Englewood man who shot a teen who allegedly had broken into his home said Monday he was happy that weapons charges against him were dropped, but he was annoyed that cops had seized his gun. Wright said he will buy another one if he gets the chance. “I’ll get arrested again, if somebody be breaking in here. I’m going to use it,” Wright said. Prosecutors on Monday dropped weapons charges against Wright. He had been charged with unlawful use of a weapon because, as a felon, he is not allowed to have a gun. After a morning court appearance, Wright sat at the bar inside his Englewood tavern Monday afternoon, watching reruns of the 1970s cop drama, “Kojak.” . . .
From the St. Louis Post-Dispatch:
A Dardenne Prairie man shot and killed an intruder who broke into his home last night and started beating the man's wife, authorities said. . . . St. Charles County Sheriff's Department spokesman Lt. Craig McGuire gave this account: The homeowners, Bob Lohman, 64, and his wife, Charlene Lohman, 57, were in the downstairs living room, watching television. Bob Lohman glanced over at the French-style doors, which lead to the yard, and saw a man looking through the doors at them. He got up to investigate, and a landscaping block flew through one of the windows on the doors, and then the doors flew open. Carlton came into the house, grabbed Charlene Lohman, dragged her to the floor, and began beating her. Lohman tried to get Carlton off his wife, but couldn't. So Bob Lohman went upstairs and grabbed a .38 caliber revolver, went downstairs and warned Carlton several times to get off his wife. But Carlton didn't, so Lohman shot him once in the upper torso. He then pulled Carlton off his wife and called police. . . .
The Media's troubling biases in Trayvon Martin Case

The Media's troubling biases in Trayvon Martin Case

Dylan Stableford has written up the problems with the ABC News surveillance video footage, the NBC editing of the 911 call, and a CBS interview with a funeral director who handled Martin's body.

For the NBC Editing:

The investigation came after Fox News and others pointed out that the network spliced two parts of the call together, making it appear as if Zimmerman had said, "This guy looks like he's up to no good. He looks black." In reality, Zimmerman was answering a dispatcher's question:
Zimmerman: This guy looks like he's up to no good. Or he's on drugs or something. It's raining and he's just walking around, looking about.
Dispatcher: OK, and this guy--is he black, white or Hispanic?
Zimmerman: He looks black.

Al Sharpton calls for escalating Civil disobedience if Zimmerman remains free


This looks to get worse before things improve.  If it were me, I would immediately release Zimmerman's medical records, but I understand that Zimmerman's lawyer is more worried about the legal case than about the PR aspect of things.  From the Orlando Sentinel:
If George Zimmerman is not arrested in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin soon, theRev. Al Sharpton will call for an escalation in peaceful civil disobedience and economic sanctions. . . .
The civil rights activist and syndicated television show host said he will elaborate on this plan Saturday.
"I will speak about how the National Action Network will move to the next level if Zimmerman isn't arrested," Sharpton said, who founded the organization. He added that it was the Martin family and lawyers who first asked him to get involved and nationalize this story.
The Rev. Jesse Jacksonis also expected to participate in the event. . . .
Sharpton said the recent revelations only underscores the need for an immediate arrest and trial.
"Whether he [Zimmerman] had a swollen or broken nose, neither one means he had to take a 9mm and kill someone," he said. "It's not about saying Zimmerman is innocent or guilty, this is about whether there was probable cause to arrest him." . . .
I won't quote from more of this article because I have pretty much given up hope of the media doing a good job on this story. Josh Sugarmann at the Violence Policy Center is on his hobby horse about counting virtually all defensive gun uses involving permitted concealed handguns as killings (his article is available here but please think before you click as there is little reason to add to his traffic totals).  The Zimmerman case that hasn't been decided yet has been added to the total and just goes to show how nutty Sugarmann's totals are.  



The tragic shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin by George Zimmerman has rightly generated tremendous outrage across the nation. Unfortunately, an untold number of additional families across America have experienced the same heartbreak as a result of concealed carry killers armed by state laws that allow people to carry loaded, concealed handguns in public.
Zimmerman is only one example of concealed handgun permit holders who have needlessly taken lives, destroyed families, and shaken communities. New data from theViolence Policy Center as part of its ongoing Concealed Carry Killers project shows that concealed carry killers have claimed at least 402 victims since May 2007 . . . .
A more complete response is available in my book More Guns, Less Crime (the third edition is available for only $5), but I also have a response available here. 


I am extremely disappointed how many conservatives have added to this call.  Some of these statements have been made during just the last few days.  The amazing thing is that all these statements seem to have been made without actually even reading the police report. 


Mona Charen -- "It certainly appears that Zimmerman used excessive violence." March 30
Rich Lowry (or see this at 11:50 (for full segment) and 16:15 (for Lowry comments) into the video (the video available here can't even describe the Florida law correctly Dated March 25)
Robert VerBruggen
Heather Mac Donald
Gregory Kane

Dr. Keith Ablow has this on another aspect of the story.
Zimmerman's medical records will finally close this case

Zimmerman's medical records will finally close this case

I have been thinking this exact thought for a couple of days.  With all the ruckus over the video of Zimmerman at the police station, these medical records will show whether Zimmerman's nose was broken and whether he had a cut on his head.  From CNN:

George Zimmerman's brother said medical records will prove that his brother was attacked and his nose was broken by Trayvon Martin before he fatally shot the teen.
Robert Zimmerman Jr. spoke to CNN's Piers Morgan Thursday night saying he wanted to correct some of the "mythology" and untruths that have been spread about the controversial shooting.
"We're confident the medical records are going to explain all of George's medical history," Zimmerman Jr. said. "His nose looks swollen in that video. I'm his brother."
George Zimmerman, a neighborhood watch volunteer, said he shot Martin in self defense after the teen attacked him last month. Martin, who was walking through the gated community back to the house of his father's fiancee, was wearing a hoodie in the rain and carrying Skittles candy and a can of iced tea he had purchased from a nearby convenience store. . . .

The CNN piece makes mistakes about what the law is, but I am tired of correcting the misinformation in the media on this.

Newest piece at National Review: It’s Not About Stand Your Ground: we should reserve judgment, but it seems that Zimmerman acted lawfully


My newest piece at National Review starts this way:
President Obama, Jesse Jackson, and others have chosen to personalize the shooting of Trayvon Martin in Sanford, Fla., highlighting the racial issues by expressing concern for people who look like they do or live where “blacks are under attack.” Many conservatives and liberals have also already concluded that the shooter committed a crime. All of these reactions are premature.
In response to the shooting, Florida governor Rick Scott has set up a commission to review the state’s “Stand Your Ground” law. Gun-control organizations, including the Brady Campaign, have gone beyond this and even more drastically called for the end of right-to-carry laws.
But such outrage should be restrained until we have all of the facts. Zimmerman’s call to the police, which has been heard over and over again, does not appear to tell the whole story. There is other information that appears to back up the shooter’s account. That evidence, rather than racism, might well be the reason that police chose not to arrest the shooter. . . . .

Pompano Beach gun self-defense where man protects wife and kids from attack

Pompano Beach gun self-defense where man protects wife and kids from attack


Here is a story from the Miami Herald:

A father fatally shot a man in Pompano Beach after the man threatened his family, swinging a piece of wood at his wife and kids, the Broward Sheriff’s Office said. . . .
“At this point, all indications so far point to this man defending his family and defending himself,” BSO spokeswoman Veda Coleman-Wright said.
It happened shortly before 5:30 p.m. Sunday . . . . The wife and two children walked out the door when a stranger confronted them.
The stranger swung a piece of wood at them, BSO said. It was two and three feet long and looked like it came from furniture. Then the father and his two brothers came home. “He sees this stranger going into his yard and he has this piece of wood in his hand and he’s swinging it toward his family,” Coleman-Wright said. “His wife and children were hysterically screaming.”
Emiliano Arellano, 37, got out of the car with his handgun, which he was licensed to carry, . . . .
Arellano and his two brothers tried to stop the man, BSO said. The wife and 3-year-old son managed to get in the car, but the 5-year-old daughter could not, Coleman-Wright said. Arellano said he was going to call the police.
“And that’s when the guy lost it, became very agitated and made aggression toward [Arellano’s] daughter,” Coleman-Wright said.
Arellano fired once, fatally hitting the man in the chest. . . . .

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/03/26/2716441/bso-man-shot-dead-in-pompano-beach.html#storylink=cpy
"Dozens of lives were spared in the hostage situation in Colorado Springs Tuesday, partly because of one courageous surgeon" with a gun

"Dozens of lives were spared in the hostage situation in Colorado Springs Tuesday, partly because of one courageous surgeon" with a gun


From KKTV in Southern Colorado:

Dozens of lives were spared in the hostage situation in Colorado Springs Tuesday, partly because of one courageous surgeon. He tells 11 News he was ready to do whatever it took to make sure everyone got out.
Doctor Jeff Ferguson didn't want it known that he's licensed to carry a concealed weapon, but Tuesday- he didn't have a choice. On the phone he told 11 News, from the sound of the gunman's voice, he felt like someone was going to get hurt.
Click here to find out more!"This (gunman), when you heard his voice, I was expecting any second to hear the shots ring out. I thought ok, this guy's going to start shooting people right now," Dr. Ferguson said.
Dr. Ferguson's inside story of what happened inside the building, 75 Printers Parkway. He says Dominic Oliver was yelling as he pulled out his gun in the reception area.
"(Oliver) said, ‘Everyone get on the ground’ and it was chaos after that as you can imagine," Dr. Ferguson said.
In the chaos, employees started shouting about another exit way, one Dr. Ferguson didn't want the gunman to know about. He guarded the exit with his gun, allowing everyone else to escape and ready to shoot if he had to.
"If this guy opens this door, I’m going to have to shoot him,” Dr. Ferguson said. “You were prepared to do that? I was absolutely prepared to shoot him, yes." . . .
Defensive gun use in Maine

Defensive gun use in Maine

From Bangor Daily News about an attack in Hermon, Maine:

Daniel Williams, 24, was asleep when someone knocked at the front door of his apartment around 9 a.m. last Thursday. Moments later, he was in a fight for his life, he said Monday.

Williams fired shots from a handgun last week that mortally wounded Robert Dellairo, 30, and injured Philip McIntyre, 19, both of Bangor, after Dellairo and McIntyre broke into his residence at Duran Apartments on Outer Hammond Street, according to Maine State Police. . . . Before the door latched shut, Williams said, Dellairo and McIntyre came out of hiding somewhere near the entrance and hit the door, forcing it open. . . .

Luis Ramos, 24, was also in the apartment at the time of the home invasion, state police said. Ramos ran from his bedroom during the fight carrying an electric guitar to use as a weapon, according to Williams, but one of the other men grabbed the guitar and struck Williams in the back of the head.

The two men proceeded to kick and punch Williams and Ramos, but Williams eventually managed to break away and run to his bedroom, where he grabbed his .22-caliber handgun and “did what I had to do,” he said.

Williams said he uses the gun for recreational practice shooting and that it was equipped with a laser sight. . . .


Another defensive gun use in Lancaster, NC.:

A Lancaster homeowner who shot and killed a relative attempting to forcibly enter his home on Thursday will not be charged, authorities say. . . . As for Reed, his criminal activities in Lancaster County have included receiving stolen goods, criminal domestic violence, possessing crack cocaine, driving under the influence and numerous traffic violations throughout the years, according to state court records.

“We’ve had dealings with him here before,” Shaw said.
Houston Mom Runs Burglars Off with Gun

Houston Mom Runs Burglars Off with Gun

From the Fox TV affiliate in Houston:

A couple of burglars chose the wrong woman to pick on.
They came sneaking into her house, and she sent them running out. Perhaps they didn't count on the woman fighting back, but that's just what she did.
The mother of two was getting her 10-year-old son ready for school when the two bad guys broke in. She grabbed a gun and came face-to-face with not one but two intruders inside her Huffman home.
"It was scary," she said.
She's still shaken up, so she doesn't want her identity revealed. . . .

Mom Runs Burglars Off with Gun: MyFoxHOUSTON.com

Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)