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Posted on 12/29/2007 8:04:26 AM PST by marktwain
(Memphis - 12/28/2007) - "It's so bad around here and i'm just afraid for my safety," says one woman we spoke to as she stepped outside of her apartment and saw crime scene investigators. Police were combing her neighbor's apartment following an alleged burglary attempt that ended in gunfire. Rhonda, who didn't want to give us her last name or show her face on camera, says crime at the Camelot Apartments has driven her to leave.
"I was already in the process of making preparations to move, but this has done it. This has given me the right to make the decision to just leave here," Rhonda says. A little before 5:00 this morning, a woman returned home and caught who she thought to be a burglar in the act.
Lt. Tony Armstrong, a homicide detective with the Memphis Police Department, says, "The victim called her boyfriend. Her boyfriend came over and investigated, found him inside the house and shot him multiple times."
Medics took the suspect to the hospital where he later died. Police spent several hours later combing the apartment for more evidence. We're told the man who shot the suspect did have a state gun carry permit. It's likely the man who shot the intruder will not face any charges. Neighbors like Rhonda agree with that decision.
"People work too hard to make a living for someone to just come in and take things, your personal items or to invade your apartment like that. I think it was justifiable," she adds.
Congratulations to Rhonda. Good shooting.
And another bites the dust....
While I applaud the correct use of a weapon in killing an intruder, I can see how another man can be set up to be murdered by coming to a girl’s apartment at night.
Think about it.
The second amendment is our only salvation in these troubled neighborhoods.
I am trying to make sense of this.
Why call your boyfriend and not the police?
Does her boyfriend live in the same apartment building or something? Is the police response in this neighborhood so bad that she expects him to get there before the cops?
Why put your boyfriend in the position that he has to shoot someone?
I am all in favor of people having the right to armed self defense but if you can not do it yourself call the police. Don’t call your friends and put them in danger.
Her boyfriend could easily been killed. Her boyfriend could easily be in legal jeopardy if a district attorney decides to indict him.
Armed citizen ping
I love a happy ending.
If I didn’t have my own guns (I do) I would call my next door neighbor to come over and shoot an intruder for me. He would do it too, because I would do the same for him.
It’s great to have good neighbors.
I wondered about this as well, but after I thought about it for a bit, many possibilities came to mind.
1. She did not know what was going on for certain, and was unwilling to investigate by herself.
2. The boyfriend was close, available, and reliable, while police might not be.
3. It is a very high crime area, and police might not respond quickly.
4. She may have had bad experiences with police and did not want to involve them if it was not necessary.
Remember: Everything is much clearer *after the fact*.
It is time we ALL put the 2nd Amendment FIRST.
good post.
I realize this.
You come home at 5 AM and find someone rummaging around your house you’re not likely to think very clearly.
I thought about your bullet points and put most of them in my post.
But if I was in her situation (which I can’t be because I am a man and do not have a boyfriend) I would not want to put someone I care about in danger.
My guess is that this young woman simply did not think of the possible consequences and called the person that she most trusted and who made her feel safe.
Well that makes a certain amount of sense.
Hopefully for legal reasons of plausible deniability you would leave out the “shoot an intruder for me” part;)
She OBVIOUSLY placed more confidence in her boyfriend than in the Police...
A confidence that was obviously well justified...
The likelihood that the police would have arrived in time or killed the perp is very remote...
The boyfriend did society a favor and saved us a LOT of money trying and incarcerating the perp....who would surely be released back into society to continue his life of crime..
Think of this as simply adding a some needed bleach to the gene pool..
I agree. That's why police investigate every homicide --even justifiable ones. What appears on the surface to be a cut and dry case of self defense could have been a very cleverly planned premeditated murder.
Rhonda didn't shoot anyone.........
“You come home at 5 AM and find someone rummaging around your house you’re not likely to think very clearly.”
Or, it could be: You come home at 5 AM and find that the door to the house is unlocked. You are pretty sure that you locked it, but are unwilling to investigate to find out if there is an intruder present or if your boyfriend had been there and had left carelessly.
You are probably right.
My point really is that she was putting her boy friend in jeopardy physically and legally by asking him to defend her home.
While I am willing shoulder those risk to defend my own home I would not ask a friend to take those risk for me.
If the burglar had killed he boyfriend instead of the other way round I imagine she would never have been able to forgive herself.
Although the article say It's likely the man who shot the intruder will not face any charges it is very early in the police investigation and this man may very well be charged.
Her boyfriend could go to jail if a district attorney decides to indict him.
I don’t know Memphis politics on home defense, Tennessee is generally a good state for gun rights, but there are red states where he would be charged on general principle because he did not have a permit for his gun.
It is a lot to ask for someone to take these risk for you.
Just like anywhere - "when seconds count, the police are only minutes away".
Two days before Christmas, my neighbor's business was robbed at 3AM. The alarm went off immediately upon break-in, but the police didn't get there for 45 minutes. Of course the suspects were gone along with much of the store's inventory and a 600lb safe.
If you really believe the police will save you from a situation like this, do so at your own peril.
Huh? A quote from the story: "We're told the man who shot the suspect did have a state gun carry permit. "
Not a doubt in my mind the my lady would call me first. I live two doors away and have 10 years military experience and I know where she is and that she is also armed.
As far as your statement that you would not call your friend, as you state you are male and (no offense ladies) we are programmed differently than women (vive la difference!).
A woman that trusts her man will call on him first in most any situation like this.
“It is a lot to ask for someone to take these risk for you.”
Perhaps that is true; however, just because you ask DOES NOT mean they have to say yes.
“A woman that trusts her man will call on him first in most any situation like this.”
I agree. I think it is genetic. But, some would say that it is a cultural artifact. Either way, in most of the U.S., it is a fact.
Lol, I wasn’t sure if he was indeed male, which makes plenty sense now why he wouldnt call his friend for help. I’m sure his friend would never let him live that one down!!
Both of my cop brothers agree that your better off being armed and ready to take care of yourself than wait for the police, chances are they get there after the fact.
My mistake, I stand corrected.
Even so I states like Kalifornia and Taxachusetts it would not mean much.
I would rather have a angry live friend than a dead helpful friend.
I would let the crook get away with all my stuff while I wait outside for the cops than have a friend get hurt or go to jail because he was helping me defend my property.
Your points are valid and probably the most sane way to react to the situation...
My point, is that public confidence in the “Justice System” and those employed to enforce our laws is at an all time low..
Obvious lawbreakers and lawbreaking are all around us and in full view — with little consequence..
In societies that allow things to reach this point - it is the CITIZEN that must take up arms and do the “enforcing”...
Criminals and Politicians with ill intent, fear the armed citizen far more than the “law”.....
Lawmakers always seem to find a way around the law, or buy their way around the law...
Very hard for the perp to duck or avoid a .357 round headed for center of mass...
Boy, some 'Right Wing Libertarian, anti-Communist, McCarthy supporting, original intent interpretation of the Constitution' kinda guy you turned out to be.
:)
I agree with your brothers.
If a crook tries to rob my house while I am home he will surrender or bleed.
If he is in the house when I get home I call the cops and wait outside.
There is nothing in the house worth dying for.
Yup that’s me.
Kind of hard to defend the Constitution if some crook shoots you while you rush in to defend your plasma TV.
My guess is that this young woman simply did not think of the possible consequences and called the person that she most trusted and who made her feel safe.”
We just do not have enough information from the article to make an informed judgment.
The problem is that it is impractical to call the police for every potential confrontation. Especially in high crime areas, the police become overwhelmed with *potential* confrontations and either respond very late or not at all. Much of the time, it is up to the individual to investigate, as the boyfriend did here, to determine if the police need to be called.
One time I was going to the laundry mat and the basket must have prevented my door from closing. When I arrived home the door was ajar, I went straight to my brothers to check out the apartment, it never occurred to me to call the police.
You are right about that. I hope we get more info about this case as it unfolds.
I am really curious as to how that burglar got shot. Intelligent burglars do not carry weapons. In most states carrying a weapon during a felony is an aggravating offence that adds years to a sentence.
Good advice.
He should have thought of that before he broke into my house.
They never do. (Think that is)
“I am really curious as to how that burglar got shot. Intelligent burglars do not carry weapons.”
“They never do. (Think that is)”
These two comments seem to be contradictory.
I suspect that both are blanket statements subject to numerous exceptions.
He didn't duck fast enuff.
Shoot him first, put a butcher knife in his hand, call 911.
No fuss, no muss, no mas.
Thinking individuals are a relatively small subset of the group comprising all individuals.
Therefore that makes Intelligent thinking burglars a very small subset of the group comprising Intelligent thinking individuals.
;)
We watch “The First 48 Hours”, a crime TV show featuring murder investigations. The shows seems to have a *lot* of material from Memphis. The show also makes it plain that many of the minority residents want nothing to do with the local PD - it seems they would prefer to take care of business by themselves.
FWIW - These apts are about a mile and half off the end of the runway in ‘scenic’ East Memphis. Listed as “Luxury” apratments, I did find it *odd* that the units did not show in any of the apt finder services or as other rental units. I wonder if these are ‘managed’ as low-income units?
One final thought - maybe the lady called her friend vs the local PD as there was something in the unit she did not want the cops to see - like say, drugs or such.
I’m sure many would find Memphis a fine place to live, I’ll pass.
You have received bad advice. While forensic science is not up to what you see on CSI, it can detect scenarios such as you propose, and could do so 20 years ago. Simple blood drop analysis, with florescent light blood detection, can easily do this, with blood spots smaller than those available to the naked eye. If you are justified, the physical evidence will be consistent with your story. Don’t destroy the physical evidence. Preserve it.
However, it takes more than range time to be ready to sweep a house or apartment. I'd say the boyfriend is lucky to still be around. It may be a justified shoot but was it a smart shoot?
About two weeks ago, a friend of mine woke up to the sound of someone in his living room about 10pm. Then some guy poked his head into the bedroom. My fried yelled at him and then the guy sprinted out the back door. My friend was renting the place in a nice neighborhood with his 3 young sons after a nasty divorce. He didn’t have a gun. (He now has a 357 magnum.) My friend told the detective that if he had a gun that he would have shot him when he poked his head in. The detective replied “I would have. Just don’t chase him outside and shoot him in the back.” Sounds good to me.
Also, Toney Armstrong, the detective in the posted story, can sometimes be found on The First 48 on A&E when they are in Memphis. A true reality show if there ever was one.
http://www.aetv.com/the_first_48/first48_castcrew11.jsp?index=1&type=actor
A box of ammo to this fine shooter!
Screw that. A dead criminal is better than a live one. Once again I must reiterate...... YOU CAN “WHAT IF” ANYTHING TO DEATH!! Holy cr*p, cut the sh*t!! Point is, bf came and shot the emmer effer dead, one less for us to worry about. What is your problem w/ this??
Well freak KKKalifornica nad Taxachuttes, that’s NOT where it happened. Perhaps when other states allow their people to DEFEND themselves, others will follow. And if not, then we will ALL move to the states where we can!
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