Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Homeowner apprehends burglar with fiream and then HE gets arrested

No, he did not deserve the charge... but it's apparent the law exists - therefore it's up to the DA as to whether it goes forward or will be dismissed due to the mitigating circumstances..

Too bad he just didn't shoot the sob and save the court and taxpayers a lot of money.. But that's just me..

First off, that doesn't contradict what I said regarding burden of proof. Secondly, you're referring to a civil case, which is different in that a mere preponderance of the evidence is sufficient for a plaintiff to prevail, while in a criminal case the standard is beyond a reasonable doubt. The latter is a much harder burden on the "plaintiff," i.e., the prosecution.

Greyghost,
I'm curious. Your neighbor is away from home and you see a small fire outside his home but right next to it. Do you go and put it out or call the fire department?
Now keep in mind.... You are not being threatend, no one was in harms way, NO ONE WAS BEING RAPED, and it isn't your property.

Nope, I just go about my business and keep my nose out of the neighbors affairs. Let their damned house burn to the ground. Don't like them nor their dogs. I hope they are home and they along with their dogs are all burnt to fine ashes.

Good question.

You can come up with all the screwy sceneros you like, but the fact remains the guy went looking for trouble, then stated to police he was scared of the perp and was afraid he couldn't handle the guy.... [bleep] he should hav stayed home...

As to a fire if you like to continue with these, if it was ourside and posed a danger to the structure or life, yes I would try to put it out, if it was inside and of no danger to anones life, no it's better left to the fire department...

But hey you keep comeing up with these.

Phil

Only a ds from California would think that stopping a felon is "looking for trouble." Go hide under your bed.

Your "fire scenario" is different from the one that is the basis of this thread.

Your legal duties, and liabilities change drastically when you go from protecting you and yours with force or a weapon, to injecting yourself in something that doesn't involve you or yours.

So... by your definition when I went after a guy who had just stolen a woman's purse a few weeks ago I was "looking for trouble"?

Thank God everyone doesn't think like you...

Love it when you freaks start calling names when someone doesn't agree with your way of thinking!

Fact still remains the guy crossed the line when he left his property to go chase down someone he assumed was the person who broke into his home while he wasn't home, and witnessed nothing.

Phil

Anyone who wants to believe that firing any round into the ground is a safe place to shoot should go see a machinegun range. Specifically because the tracers allow one to see PART of what actually happens. At ANY range they impact the ground,they richochet ALL over the place!! Big MG's,mid-size MG's,small MG's, they all do the same thing. Richochet like crazy and the bullets go damn near everywhere. Letting a round go into the ground intentionally within a town,village or city is at best ill advised,and ignorant. At worst injurious or deadly. It ain't what you would LIKE to think, it is downright dangerous and ignorant. No warning shots. The scene presented so far does NOT give excuse for such an act.

I am willing to cut a little slack on this. Some of us are called to step forward and involve ourselves. Some are not. It is best to know which you are. You and I are called to step forward and do what is right within the law to help someone besides ourselves. Others do not feel that way. Not sure that falls into a good or bad guy category. It is just an "is".

I was always under the impression that firing a 'warning shot' in a CCW scenario, at least, was pretty foolish.

I won't ever do that, I hope.

I guess the fact that the guy caught the felon crawling out of a neighbor's window eluded you. Not surprised.

Scott if he said that he wouldn't intervene I can live with that. Some day Phil might be very grateful that someone was willing to step foreward in a situation concerning friends or family...

I hope he never faces that situation but if the case should arise I hope there is someone there to step in. Just as I hope that if someone were to attempt to grab my wife or one of our daughters out of a parking lot there would be someone willing to step to the plate.


Edited to add
I hope I never have to draw my carry weapon again even for something as minor as I had last night. But if I ever saw someone in real need of help I am willing to give all I have.

The fact that the guy caught and held a stranger crawling out of a neighbors window for police has nothing to do with it, and appearently the police felt the same way.... the fact that he grabed a gun and went looking for an unkown person and used the weapon in a unsafe way does!

But to each his own.


Phil

Why so defensive? Why is it a 'screwy sceanrio'? In both scenarios his neighbor's PROPERTY was in danger, not a life. You have touted the 'none of my business' angle and I'm trying to see how far it goes. In the OP he 'handled the guy' just fine it seems. Like I said, some folks make better neighbors than others. If we were neighbors and we had this conversation so I knew your position and chose to respect it, I suspect had the exact same scenario played itself out at your home, and I told you I went inside and called the cops and then watched TV while the perp was crawling out your window, "Thanks for being a great neighbor" would be about the last thought on your mind. Of course since I reasonable cause to suspect the guy also stole MY stuff I wouldn't have been so apathetic but go with it.
The cops can't be everywhere at every minute to protect life and property and that old axiom of "When seconds count, the police are just minutes away" is not only true in defense of your life. Would you have even bothered to watch the guy and/or get his license plate number or is that also 'none of your business'? I'm just trying to quantify the level of apathy people have for taking care of threats.

Imagine how much LESS crime we'd have if people viewed it as a moral duty to help someone in need rather than coming up with bizarre tenuous excuses to look the other way.