Moron is right. My first and proper reaction would have been to call the cops, then grab my cell phone, then my weapon - to vector said cops when maybe catch up to the “alleged goons.”
The same goes for Mr. Serbeck and his neighborhood watch partner, who decided to take matters into their own hands rather than do as you suggest: call the cops, then grab my cell phone, then my weapon - to vector said cops when maybe catch up to the “alleged car thieves.”
They were the ones who set this train of events in motion in the first place. Mr. Serbeck was not merely a bystander at the time of the shooting: he was an armed man who had exited his vehicle to confront an angry armed man. To call it a "tense situation" would be an understatement.
I doubt that Mr. Serbeck was either trained or prepared to deal with and defuse that sort of situation. The likelihood of unpleasant consequences was very high.... and realized.
Mr. Serbeck is no doubt a fine man, just as his neighbors and friends have said. But that doesn't mean he's immune from screwing up in a tense situation... sorry to say, I think he's partly to blame for what happened.