Posted on 05/10/2010 4:51:24 PM PDT by NCDragon
A 72-year-old Port Orchard man was arrested on investigation of manslaughter on Saturday after he apparently shot and killed a fleeing intruder.
According to the Kitsap County Sheriff's Office, the 72-year-old called police to say he'd fired shots at a stranger he found inside his home around 3:30 a.m. in the South Park Greens Apartment Homes on Southeast Larch Lane.
The man told police he had been awakened by a noise in his home, had armed himself and left his bedroom to investigate when he found a young, adult male in his living room, the sheriff's office reported.
The 72-year-old man told police the two struggled and then the intruder was pushed out the front door.
The resident fired shots at the intruder's fleeing form, according to Scott Wilson, spokesman for the Kitsap sheriff's office.
The dead intruder's body, which was was not found for several hours, was eventually located face down against the side of an apartment building, police said.
(Excerpt) Read more at seattletimes.nwsource.com ...
Must have thought the intruder was going to return.
2 words: jury nullification.
Give the man the keys to the city and a $10K prize. The idiots in Port Orchard who are going to prosecute this man are evil.
Return my a$$, he came the first time. Buy that man a beer.
I’m not disagreeing with you in the slightest.
I would pay to be on his jury.
Not Guilty——Next
>>Must have thought the intruder was going to return.<<
Or it could have just been adrenaline. Especially after a struggle in my home. I’d have emptied my gun into his fleeing body before my brain even kicked in.
I can envision lots of “reasonable men” doing that very thing.
But then again, I think it should be OK to defend not just life and limb, but property as well, just as it should be OK to shoot a fleeing felon.
Never, never, never make statements to the police.
Anything you say WILL be used against you.
“Never, never, never make statements to the police.
Anything you say WILL be used against you.”
Yep. Officer Friendly ain’t so frienfly.
He should have kept his mouth shut and lawyered up. But of course, he's 72, he probably thought he still lived in America.
A good lawyer will demand a jury trial and then plea the the old guy off with no time.
How good is this guy's eyesight? Is he sure the "form" was fleeing?
Just sayin'. Even if he gets off they will surely find some reason to take his gun(s) away.
If I’m on the jury he’s “Not Guilty”.
Washington State, enough said.
All cool! Most states don’t allow tapping felons once they run.
It is unfortunate that we live in a day and age where burglars are allowed to break into your home and steal your stuff but you can’t do anything about it as soon as they turn their back on you. In fact, they can still steal stuff on their way out of the house as long as the magical force field of their back is facing you.
Yeah, he probably shouldn’t have shot at the guy running away if he didn’t want to get in trouble with the law... but at the same time robbing people is a very dangerous profession and the burglar got what he deserved.
I live in the area, Hope they call me.
If you actually read the applicable statute and case law in the state of Washington, you would see that the State of Washington gives private citizens a great deal of authority to use deadly force to apprehend a felon.
Basically if the old guy told him to stop before shooting, he's in the clear.
In fact, the law on the use of deadly force in the State of Washington is very similar to the laws of Texas.
Do a search for RCW 9A.16.010-050
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/rcw/default.aspx?cite=9A.16
Especially, check out the note at the bottom of the page for RCW 9A.16.040
The reason for that note is related to the USSC decision in Garner v. Tennessee, 471 U.S. 1 (1985)
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