Free Republic

Murder charges are getting thrown out against an elderly man from Cedar County. A circuit judge believes Sammie Harris acted in self defense when he fatally shot Patrick Cox last Spring. Court records show Cox was arguing with his girlfriend on Harris' property in Jericho Springs. He was told to leave, but instead confronted Harris and got shot. Cox was shown to have had near-lethal amounts of Meth in his system.

SAPULPA, Okla. - Creek County Sheriff Deputies were called to a rural county home just south of Sapulpa off 145th West Avenue at around 3 a.m. after a 911 call came in with what sounded like someone choking. When deputies arrived they found a male subject laying on the floor with a gunshot wound to the head and a female subject laying across his body with a knife wound to her throat. The male subject was pronounced dead at the scene. The female subject was treated at the scene by EMS and is in fair condition. After investigators arrived it...

<p>LOWELL, Ore. (AP) -- The Lane County district attorney says a 62-year-old man acted in self defense when he fatally shot his stepson at the family's Lowell, Ore., home.</p> <p>District Attorney Alex Gardner said Thursday that an inebriated Shawn Gamble picked a fight with his stepfather Jimmie Allen Montgomery on Monday and assaulted him near a shed on the property.</p>

A woman who shot her husband at their home in Northport Sunday claimed that she was acting in self-defense, authorities said. No arrests have been made in the killing of Michael Odell Jones Jr., 28, who was shot at his home on Royal Oak Circle Sunday, said Tuscaloosa County Metro Homicide Unit Capt. Loyd Baker. “There's a self-defense issue that has been brought up that we're going to have to look at,” Baker said. The wife told investigators that Jones had threatened her with the gun during an argument, Baker said. Jones put the gun down before he began to...

A man reported shooting and killing another man in self defense Friday night. The Nevada County Sheriff's Office received the 911 call at 9:54 p.m. Friday night from the alleged shooter stating the other man had broken into his residence on the 12000 block of Pinewoods Road to attack him with a hammer. He then shot the man in the chest at close range, said Sgt. Stephen Tripp. Neither man's name has been released. The Union, however, identified the shooter as Craig Marquard. Contacted at his house, Marquard confirmed his involvement but declined comment. “The shooter's wife had left him...

COUNCIL GROVE – She nailed her 16-year-old daughter’s bedroom window shut. That didn’t work. She struggled with the girl and her 21-year-old boyfriend to keep her from leaving with him. That didn’t work either. So she grabbed her varmint rifle, chambered a round and took aim at the right rear tire as he sped out of their driveway. Now, high school physics and chemistry teacher and mom Karen Vondemkamp faces two felony counts for aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and one felony count for aggravated battery in January trial even though, she said she fired into the ground. “As...

Gerald Rushton was killed by his pet European red stag deer. While feeding the animal he was attacked by the buck and was stomped and gored by it. This was all witnessed by his granddaughter who immediately ran to get Mrs. Rushton who then called 911 for help.

WAILUKU - A man who said he was defending himself from being hit with an electric toothbrush when he struck his former girlfriend, breaking her nose, has been acquitted of a felony assault charge. A 2nd Circuit Court jury deliberated for less than an hour before returning the verdict Thursday afternoon, finding 31-year-old Agenhart Nahoopii, of Makawao, not guilty of second-degree assault. "We're happy with the jury's verdict," said defense attorney William Sloper. "We're disappointed that the prosecution is bringing these cases with little or no evidence." Nahoopii was arrested after Therisa Amandola went to the Kihei Police Station, where...

Ken Kratz, a 50 year old District Attorney for Calumet County, Wisconsin, has issued a "sincere and heartfelt apology" to a victim, his soon to be former wife and the people of Wisconsin. Amid ever increasing calls for his resignation, he has resigned himself to therapy and time off for texting a recent 26 year old victim of domestic abuse and trying to entice her into a sexual relationship by impressing her with his prestige, status, house and income. At a news conference that was held two days after the AP release of the 30 texts he admitted the...

A Dunwoody woman who fired six shots into her naked and unarmed husband was acquitted on all charges Friday by a DeKalb County jury. Lona Scott, 47, the mother of two, had told jurors that if she hadn’t killed her husband, Cliff, he would have killed her. Fighting back tears, Scott mouthed “thank you” to jurors as not-guilty verdicts were read aloud to murder, felony murder, voluntary manslaughter, aggravated assault and illegal firearm possession charges. She then hugged her lawyer, Brian Steel, and was soon embraced by relatives and friends who sat through the weeklong trial. “I’m so very happy,”...

WASHINGTON – The U.S. was slow to take seriously the threat posed by homegrown radicals and the government has failed to put systems in place to deal with the growing phenomenon, according to a new report compiled by the former heads of the Sept. 11 Commission. The report says U.S. authorities failed to realize that Somali-American youths traveling from Minnesota to Mogadishu in 2008 to join extremists was not an isolated issue. Instead, the movement was one among several instances of a broader, more diverse threat that has surfaced across the country. "Our long-held belief that homegrown terrorism couldn't happen...

Kristin Ruggiero of New Hampshire figured it would be a slam dunk. The gambit worked like a charm during the divorce hearing; now she would bring the case to criminal court. Her husband Jeffrey, an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard, was an incorrigible batterer, at least that’s what she led to the judge to believe. That got him convicted of criminal threatening, and she won custody of their 7-year-old daughter. But Kristin Ruggiero wasn’t finished. One day, the woman bragged to her startled ex, “I took all your money, I took your daughter, and now I’m going to take...

A Raleigh County attorney and gun rights advocate says he may be able to help restore the right to own guns to those convicted of misdemeanor domestic violence. His efforts don't sit well with the leader of a local domestic violence awareness group, however. Under federal and state law, a person convicted of any felony or a misdemeanor domestic violence crime is prohibited from owning a gun. Jim Mullins, a lawyer in Beckley, has been running ads in local newspapers offering to help domestic violence offenders overcome that law. Under the law, it is possible to petition the court to...

A 22-year-old woman who shot the father of her child will not be charged with any crime, Birmingham police said today. The Jefferson County District Attorney's Office ruled the fatal shooting last month of Melvin Bozeman, 31, as justifiable. 26 0 9Share Bozeman was shot to death July 16 in the 700 block of 47th Street North. Police at the time said the shooting started with a domestic dispute inside a home there, and then the fight spilled into the street. Bozeman was shot multiple times. Police have not released the name of the woman. Homicide detective Cynthia Morrow said...

Update:Police released information Tuesday afternoon saying Rafael Garcia may have fired at least one round from a weapon during this morning’s harrowing domestic incident. Police also said that Garcia is a deputy U.S. Marshal, assigned to New Jersey. The victim today is described as Garcia’s 44-year-old girlfriend. Her injuries are “non life-threatening.” Garcia has been charged with first-degree assault, first-degree criminal attempt to commit assault and criminal attempt to commit assault on a police officer. Garcia is being held on a $1 million bond and is scheduled to appear in court Wednesday. The original post follows: One person is in...

The great struggles of the twentieth century between liberty and totalitarianism ended with a decisive victory for the forces of freedom—and a single sustainable model for national success: freedom, democracy, and free enterprise. In the twenty-first century, only nations that share a commitment to protecting basic human rights and guaranteeing political and economic freedom will be able to unleash the potential of their people and assure their future prosperity. People everywhere want to be able to speak freely; choose who will govern them; worship as they please; educate their children—male and female; own property; and enjoy the benefits of their...

A 24-year-old Troy man died early Monday in a Birmingham hospital after he was shot in a local residence around 1:30 a.m. Troy Police responded to the reported shooting in the 100 block of Rose Circle, where James A. Jones was shot, according to information released by Chief Anthony Everage. While the case remains under investigation, Assistant District Attorney Tom Anderson said the indident appears to have stemmed from a domestic situation. “It appears at this stage the actions of the shooter were in self defense,” Anderson said. “There has been from what I understand a history of calls (to...

A male was shot and killed shortly before noon at a Park and Ride in Lytle on Sunday while sitting in the front seat of his vehicle, police say. The Medical Examiner's Office identified the victim as 39-year-old Guadalupe Hernandez Junior of Somerset. Meanwhile, Lytle police say the shooter may have been acting in self defense. Texas Rangers and a K-9 unit were at the scene at the intersection of IH-35 and FM 2790 across the street from the Lytle State Bank. Police say Hernandez was fighting with a woman and punched a hole through the windshield of a late-model...

A woman fatally shot her male companion after, witnesses said, the man assaulted her outside a pool hall Wednesday night, police said. The man, thought to be 39, was seen assaulting the woman about 7:30 p.m. in the 4700 block of Malcolm X Boulevard near Hatcher Street. Witnesses told police the woman got a gun from the couple's vehicle and shot the man in the chest. He died at Baylor University Medical Center at Dallas. "We are in the early stages of the investigation, and the indications are that it's self-defense," Dallas police homicide Sgt. Eddie Douglas said. Investigators took...

For those of you who thought the Talon domestic surveillance system was dead... it's back! Talon 2.0 coupled with the recent legislation giving the Feds the power to seize control over private networks = not a pretty picture.