Posted on 12/26/2001 7:53:41 AM PST by Gritty
DURHAM, N.C. (AP) -- A 31-year-old Durham man is facing murder charges after shooting a suspected burglar in his front yard.
James Edward Hill Jr. called 911 early Monday to report the shooting, saying the man was trying to break into his home, Durham Police Lt. Ed Sarvis said.
The 23-year-old victim, whose name was withheld, was found lying in Hill's front yard, Sarvis said. He was taken to Duke Hospital, where he died of gunshot wounds.
Hill is being held at the Durham County Jail without bond, said his attorney, Kenneth S. Ward. He is scheduled to appear in District Court on Monday.
Ward said witnesses told him Hill was at home with his wife when he heard burglars outside. He stepped out the front door and was attacked with what might have been a brick, Ward said.
He then fired his registered handgun at one of two men outside. Since Hill has no telephone, he went to a neighbor's house to call 911, Ward said.
After the victim was pronounced dead, police turned the case over to homicide investigators, who found probable cause to charge Hill with murder, said Sarvis, who could not elaborate on the team's findings.
Police could not say how many times or where the victim was shot. The body has been sent to the chief medical examiner's office in Chapel Hill for an autopsy.
Neighbors said they have had problems with break-ins recently.
More facts are needed before opinions can start flying on this one. Although, no phone is odd. He must have cable modem...
Always drag the body into the house before dialing 911!
It cuts down on the number of questions that may take you to the "convict condo".
Good grief...I thought everyone knew that you are supposed to drag their carcass into the house, making sure you don't leave a trail of blood. "Geez, officer...he was standing there on my living room throw rug and threatening my life, what was I to do?"
People ignore this advice. It will get you put in jail and ruin any self defense defense that you have if you go tampering with evidence. Let the Police find you changing the "crime scene" and fabricating a story and they won't look well on it. They will think you have something to hide and base their investigation on that premise. Shoot ONLY when "in fear of your life or others" and keep your mouth shut and let a lawyer talk for you.
Darwin was right......(grin)
This entire case sounds like civic improvment to me.
I hope he did a public service getting rid of this cretin and does not get put through the wringer for it.
He will probalby be charge with aiding and abetting a habitual offender (a registered handgun).
Suspect, shot to death, had long record
The Herald-Sun
Dec 25, 2001 : 7:13 pm ET
DURHAM -- A man allegedly shot to death trying to break into a Fayetteville Street home had a lengthy list of prior charges against him, including burglaries and drug arrests.
Jermaine Eric Hart, 25, of Chapel Hill, died of his wounds at Duke University Hospital. James Edward Hill Jr., 31, was arrested at 3303 Fayetteville St. at 2:02 a.m. Monday, according to police.
Hill called 911 to report he had shot a man who was trying to break into his house.
A search of court records revealed that Hart had a lengthy list of various charges against him in Durham and Orange counties. Those included drug charges, arrests for breaking into vehicles and a charge of felony possession of burglary tools that was still awaiting action in Durham County Superior Court.
Hill remained in the Durham County jail on Christmas Day.
Why step out the door?
Of course, not having a phone might be the reason -- that is a little strange though.
Again, please ignore the people saying that you should drag the body anywhere -- don't even touch it!!! If you are in fear of your life, shoot the bastard (in the chest or head -- NOT in the leg) and leave it at that.
If you want the dead body to be in your house, you'd better wait until the perp is in your house before you shoot him.
Disgusting - the guy greases a multiple rap offender and he's in the slammer??!! That's moronic. The DA needs to be replaced.
prambo
In North Carolina, you may use deadly force against somebody trying to break in to your home, even if you don't see a "weapon". Based on the fact he was attacked with a brick (just ask Reginald Denny if a brick is a "deadly weapon") he was probably in fear for his life or serious bodily injury (another defense for using deadly force).
But then again, this is Durham, which is Berzerkly East, so maybe he should have just offered the perp a joint and let him in to help himself.
CD
1) You want to be added to my North Carolina ping-list.
2) You no longer want to be included in this North Carolina ping-list.
FRegards,
Constitution Day
Old North State bump-list:
Articles relating to North Carolina, NC politics and NC people.
To add to this list, type *Old_North_State in the "To:" field.
To view articles on this list, click the link above.
Free Republic Bump List Register
This guy sounds like a bad dude that got justice when he was expecting profits.
Of course, there were cases when the police would arrest someone for something like this, but in Texas all indictments have to be handed down by grand juries, and you would always get a "no bill" from the grand jury if you were clearly defending your property, your life, or the life of others. And ther was no requirement that the force being used was proportional. It was assumed that if someone was breaking into your house, you had a reasonable fear for your safety, and could shoot him dead.
After reading more closely, I know exactly where this neighborhood is.
From the 1770's to the early 1900's, my ancestors owned most of the surrounding land.
Now we only have the old family cemetery which is just a few blocks from this address.
It's not far from North Carolina Central University, and although it has some really nice older folks living there, there are always shady-looking characters about.
- CD
No,no, no. That will only lead to a charge of murder. It is the best policy to not shoot unless the person is in the home. But self-defense is always a valid reason for shooting if the person has a dangerous weapon and is threatening you.
Always drag the body into the house before dialing 911!
It cuts down on the number of questions that may take you to the "convict condo".
NO, NO, NO! Cheap throw down or an odd kitchen knife. Dragging leaves marks.
No, you are only allowed to use deadly force if you or someone else is in imminent danger of death or grievous bodily harm. That is the exact wording of the law as taught in official firearms safety courses in NC.
In NC if someone breaks in your house you are allowed to ask them to leave, but more than that will bring the law against you. As long as they don't threaten you with violence you might as well live in England. Breaking in by itself is not sufficient aggression to meet the test of imminent danger. They can even start packing up your stuff and you still have to be polite to them.
The application of these laws varies greatly within the State. In Durham, if you use a weapon you are probably screwed no matter what the circumstances. In some rural counties the guy in the article would never have been arrested in the first place.
We are to shoot for the center of mass. And the idea is to shoot to stop, not kill. And you must be in fear for your life. It is amazing how many "cowboys" here are saying to interfere with the scene by moving the body. If we have to kill someone, we must have all of the proper rules checkmarked. Otherwise, some wiseass lawyer will have us for lunch.
They should give the man who shot this POS a medal, not a jail cell.
By his actions of self defense, he probably saved several lives down the road.
I'm sure Reginald Denny would absolutly agree with you.
I'm sure Reginald Denny would absolutly agree with you.
"In NC if someone breaks in your house you are allowed to ask them to leave, but more than that will bring the law against you"
Sounds like two extremes to me. In Indiana, you better not shot them outside but if they physically enter your home, the danger to your life is assumed and you are free to defend yourself as you see fit.
It is possible you are correct. If so, I am misinformed and so are a lot of others in my area who took the same state-mandated safety course. We were taught the exception was if somebody was in the process of breaking into your home they could be fired upon to prevent entry. However, once inside, they had to meet the "threat of death or grievous bodily harm" test. As you state, after they are successfully inside they can help themselves as long as they mind their own thieving buisiness and didn't threaten you or other occupants. You also can't shoot them in your front yard if they are just trying to steal something.
Can you give a specific cite on the disputed language?
Might have been a brick? Did the 'burglar' throw it? Where did it land?
It's a suspicious story. A warning shot would have been more appropriate, and I wouldn't be surprised if the self-defense defense is bogus.
No, it's past that stage. They've charged him with murder.
The cite I request is only for the actual "breaking-in" period. On everything else, we agree.
If you are ever in the position to fire a warning shot, instead, command the perp to stop, and let him make the next move: comply with your instructions, or be shot - his choice. For multiple perps, cover the closest one, unless another is clearly more threatening to your life.
The case was settled when the homeowner paid the perp's medical bills and made a cash settlement with him.
They didn't say what County this was, but they were very clear that you don't shoot unless someone is in the process of attacking you or someone else with the intent to kill or do "grievous" bodily harm. If the person is coming at you and you pull a weapon and order them to keep back, but they continue to come at you, it is normally assumed that they intend grievous bodily harm if they are willing to risk getting shot. All of this has to convince a jury, so the results can be extremely variable from county to county.
You are talking about war. I am talking about an incident in a lawyer-run civilian environment. If a law-abiding citizen doesn't want to spend the rest of his life behind bars, there are rules to be followed. Yes, shooting for the center of mass might kill. But if you get up before a jury and a wiseacre lawyer, you had better not talk about trying to kill the SOB. And you had better say the proper words like, in fear of my life. Semper Fi to you, gyrene.
This method not only does the job, but it protects you somewhat from lawyers who might argue that you were overdoing it and out of control. Once the attack is stopped, you have reached the limit of your legal right to shoot in NC.
This sentiment and other similar ones are what you keep in the back of your mind. You never express them to the cops who are doing the paperwork, and you never voice them in front of a jury, if it comes to that.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.