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Self Defense in the news Part 6
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
This article is not so much sel defense as it is what happens when citizens are denied their right to,Josey.
Cops admit breakdown in 911 response
By Shia Kapos
Tribune staff reporter
Published May 10, 2002, 4:50 PM CDT
Chicago Police Department officials acknowledged today a breakdown in the police response last week to the home of a South Side woman who was fatally shot after repeatedly dialing 911 for help.
"Something went wrong," said First Deputy Supt. John Thomas, adding the two officers in the first car called to the scene were at the center of the department's internal investigation. Thomas said police hope to have some answers in the next few days.
Ronyale White called 911 three times May 3-at 11:40, 11:45 and 11:50 p.m. She said her estranged husband, Louis David Drexel, allegedly had entered the home, that she had an order of protection against him and that she wanted him out.
After each call, a police car was dispatched to her home on the 10600 block of South Lasalle Street. But only the second and third cars responded in a timely fashion, Thomas said {ndash} and even then, they arrived 17 minutes after White's first call.
Officers found the 31-year-old mother of three on her bedroom floor, shot multiple times. Drexel was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and is being held without bond pending a May 30 Violence Court hearing.
As for what happened to the first police car, Thomas said the Calumet District officers in that car are under scrutiny. It was not clear today whether they showed up at the scene after the other two cars, or even if they showed up at all.
The officers have not been reassigned during the investigation and are "entitled to due process," Thomas said. But, he said, "the officers did not respond.in a timely manner."
White's death has prompted internal investigations by the Chicago Police Internal Affairs Division and the Office of Emergency Communications, which runs the 911 center.
Thomas vowed a complete inquiry, saying, "Our investigation will be thorough, it will be complete, and it will get to the bottom of what went wrong at Ronyale White's house."
He said if findings indicate a "systemic" problem, police would address those issues immediately. And if the inquiry shows procedures were not followed, "disciplinary action" would be taken, Thomas said.
Separately, the head of the City Council's Police and Fire Committee said today the incident demonstrates the police department should consider equipping police vehicles with global positioning satellite (GPS) devices that would let supervisors know the cars' exact locations at all times.
"I don't know if it would have saved this poor woman's life, but it would have let you know where the (police) car was when it got the call, so there would be no guesswork," said Ald. Isaac Carothers (29th).
Tribune staff reporter Gary Washburn contributed to this story.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/showcase/chi-020510ronyale.story?coll=chi-news-hed
Here is another like above;Knifeman jailed May 11 2002
Malcolm Pickering, Evening Gazette
A police armed response unit was called out when a Stockton man ran amok with two knives, Teesside Crown Court was told.
Anthony Shaw, 24, of Morven View, Elm Tree, had confronted two terrified women with the weapons in the street before bursting into a house full of people, still brandishing the knives.
Prosecutor Ian West told how Shaw, waving the knives about, met up with the two women in Cleatham Close, shouting abuse and threats.
The terrified women responded, he said, one aiming "a well placed kick" and the other hitting him with her umbrella.
But, he said, when one of them fell over, Shaw kicked her before leaving the scene, only to turn up soon afterwards, bursting into the house in Carburt Road, where he was known to the occupants.
Several people in the house were threatened with violence and kept there against their will, said Mr West, matters coming to an end when one man escaped to call the police.
The result was an armed response unit arriving at the scene, and Shaw was arrested, he said.
Defence barrister Nigel Soppitt asked the court to accept that although people had been badly frightened, no-one had been seriously hurt. He asked the judge to pass a sentence which would not have "a crushing effect" on a young man.
Shaw, who admitted two charges of affray, possessing an offensive weapon and assault, was jailed for a total of two years.
Judge Les Spittle told him: "You must have been a terrifying sight to these two women, who reacted with spirit and courage."
He added: "You then burst into this house where you were known, threatening violence. This was bizarre behaviour. The armed response unit came out anticipating a siege or kidnap situation. The potential for harm was tremendous."
http://icteesside.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0001head/page.cfm?objectid=11862331&method=full&siteid=50080
Yet another except in this case if the robber were armed the victim would be dead due to his restricted rights;Have-a-go hero shows thief the window
By ANGIE BROWN
A HAVE-A-GO hero plunged through a window as he tackled a trapped intruder trying to get out of his home in the middle of the night.
Despite suffering a dislocated shoulder, Gino Diponio sat on the man - who was already inside the house in Duddingston when Mr DiponioOs wife locked up for the night - until the police arrived.
Mr Diponio said he "didnOt think of the consequences" when he woke up to find a man in his sitting room.
He jumped on the thief who had just opened a window and they both crashed through it.
"I thought at first it was my son at the window because it was really dark. I had just woken up so I was a bit disorientated," said Mr Diponio.
"When I realised what was happening, I leapt on him as he was half out the window and we both fell on to the grass outside.
"He was screaming, my wife heard and called 999. When the police saw my shoulder they called for an ambulance. I hadnOt felt the pain because I had so much adrenaline pumping round my veins, but afterwards it really hurt.
"Some people think it was a stupid thing to do because a lot of people carry knives but I just followed my instincts."
The 39-year-old, who only moved into his house in Southfield Road West last year, was sleeping on the sofa when he was woken by the sound of the thief trying to climb out of the window with his daughterOs leather jacket.
It is thought the intruder had hidden in a room upstairs after he was disturbed by Mr DiponioOs wife, Corinne, 39, as she locked up before going to bed.
She had decided to leave her husband on the sofa after he fell asleep in front of the television, and had wrapped him in a blanket before locking the front door and going to bed. The car salesman, who was only wearing shorts and a T-shirt at the time, added: "The man must have got a fright when he realised he was locked in the house.
"All the lights were off so he wouldnOt have seen me sleeping on the sofa either and the last thing he would have expected was me jumping on top of him."
Mr Diponio sat on the thief outside on the lawn for around 15 minutes until the police arrived.
The keen bowler will have to wear a sling for weeks and has had to pull out of a tournament. He said he was told by doctors that 20 per cent of dislocation injuries continually recur.
Mr Diponio said all the residents in the street had been left "shocked" by the incident, which happened just after 12.30am on Monday.
"Most people in the street know about it now and are being extra careful to lock their windows and doors," he said.
"Most of the people living in the street are elderly so they have all been left shocked and worried over what has happened.
"My 18-year-old daughter, who was sleeping in the house when it happened, is now having nightmares because she keeps thinking about this man creeping about in the house," added Mr Diponio.
Duddingston councillor Ian Berry has urged residents in the area to lock their windows and doors.
"I am shocked and horrified by this incident. We need more police officers in the streets and I am going to write to Chief Constable Tomkins about this urgent requirement.
"I have been noticing a number of dubious people in the area recently and I would appeal to residents to be diligent in the locking of doors and windows.
"I have sympathy with the family involved in this incident and blame the Labour group for their lack of police funding, we need to know we are safe in our beds."
A Lothian and Borders Police spokesman said they had responded to an emergency call just after 12.40am on Monday to the house in Duddingston.
A Lothian and Borders ambulance spokeswoman confirmed they had been called to Southfield Road West at 12.51am and had taken Mr Diponio to ERI with a suspected dislocated shoulder
A man was arrested and charged with theft and assault in connection with the incident.
http://www.edinburghnews.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=511382002
Shop owner who shot robber had been victim of previous shooting
By Juan Ozuna
The Monitor
McALLEN - Sitting behind a glass counter that held gold pieces, silver coins and antique watches in his shop, Harold Falknor said Thursday that he could not eat nor sleep after fatally shooting a 36-year-old hold-up man the day before.
The 64-year-old coin shop proprietor who Wednesday shot to death a fleeing robbery suspect in front of his store said partial motivation for his actions came only because he's been held up before and survived being shot during that previous robbery of La Casa Coin Co.
"If a person cannot defend himself in this world, it's not worth living in," he said.
Falknor recounted how 12 years ago three "white Aryan Nation people" entered his store, which was then located near 10th and Pecan Street, and robbed him at gunpoint.
After collecting their loot, they ordered him to lie face down on the floor. They then shot him in the head with a .22-caliber gun above his right ear, fracturing his mastoid bone, he said.
"The bullet went through and into the floor," he said, recalling a hole that remained in the floor of his shop after the incident.
He said doctors could not explain how he lived through the trauma, other that that he was lucky. Falknor said jokingly that the reason for his survival could have been his "hard, German head."
Joking aside, the events of 12 years ago caused him to install an electronic lock on that shop's front door so he could screen customers before they entered, he said.
But the front door of his shop at 104 N. 10th St., which he moved to just last year, only uses a standard bolt lock, which remained open for customers Thursday afternoon.
"The first thing I thought (Wednesday), I said to myself, `Oh, no, not again. This can't be happening again,' " he said. "I feared for my life like I never feared before."
Falknor said the hold-up man had come into the store approximately 30 minutes before the shooting to inquire about the price of gold pesos.
After some haggling over the deal, the man left, only to return soon afterward with a handgun, Falknor said.
"He put the gun to my head and said in Spanish that he was going to shoot me in the groin and take everything in my back room," Falknor recounted. "He parked right here in front and I knew he was going to book it."
After the man fled the shop, Falknor said he went to find his .38 Police Special - a gun he has kept within his places of business for more than 30 years - from behind a shelf. Then he followed the perpetrator into the parking lot.
"I wasn't thinking anything, really. I should have felt relieved that I was still alive, but I just followed him out and shot him," he said.
Watching the getaway van reverse out of its parking space, Falknor said he saw the man stop his vehicle and reach down between his legs, as if for a gun. He said it was that move that changed his aim from the van's tires to the robber himself - a deed he isn't proud of.
"You can't take a man's life just like that. But I had no idea it was going to come down to something like this - you don't preplan this," he said.
Released by police about four hours after the midday shooting with no charges against him, Falknor said he has since received "over 1,000 phone calls" from concerned residents and business owners, most of whom are well-wishers.
Sitting in the shop Thursday were plants that had been sent over by friends, one of which sported an American flag.
"I don't know who gets the idea that I'm in the wrong - I know there's a dead person out there and I feel very sorry about that - but once you pull the trigger, that's it, there's no turning back," he said. "The reason I'm sitting here right now is because they found the stolen goods and three guns in his van."
Police confirmed Thursday that they had found evidence in the van which corroborated Falknor's account of the robbery, but would not confirm that they had found three guns in the vehicle.
Meanwhile, Falknor said La Casa Coin would continue to be open for business, with only an alarm for security until he gets his gun back from police.
Fear of another attack still affects him, he said, but financial constraints force him to keep going.
"If they want to rob somebody, they're going to rob somebody," he said. "But I'm pinching. I have to make a living."
---
Paul Binz, managing editor of The Monitor, contributed to this report.
http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/sections/archive/topstoryjmp/5-10-02/News11.htm
2 intruders killed in morning home invasion
By MIKE GLENN
Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle
Gunfire erupted this morning inside a northeast Harris County home. By the time it was over, two men were dead and a third was being sought by sheriff's deputies.
The shooting occurred about 5 a.m. at the house in the 4200 block of Glenchase Lane.
Precinct 4 deputy constables went to the scene after the homeowner called to report a break-in at the residence.
When they arrived, the constables found one man dead and another shot, but still alive. He was taken to Ben Taub General Hospital where he later died from his injuries, officials said.
Harris County Sheriff's detectives were called to the scene to investigate.
The homeowner, who has not been identified, told investigators he and his brother-in-law were asleep upstairs when the front door was kicked in.
Three men entered and ran upstairs armed with shotguns. They exchanged gunfire with the homeowner after forcing open the bedroom doors. Two of the intruders were shot during the gunfight, officials said. A third intruder who fled may be wounded.
Detectives said the third man he could be driving a blue or green Cadillac Escalade with a California license plate 4ABU25.
The shooting is being referred to the Harris County Grand Jury without any recommendation for charges.
The motive behind the home invasion was still unknown later today.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/metropolitan/1397397
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Cops admit breakdown in 911 response
By Shia Kapos
Tribune staff reporter
Published May 10, 2002, 4:50 PM CDT
Chicago Police Department officials acknowledged today a breakdown in the police response last week to the home of a South Side woman who was fatally shot after repeatedly dialing 911 for help.
"Something went wrong," said First Deputy Supt. John Thomas, adding the two officers in the first car called to the scene were at the center of the department's internal investigation. Thomas said police hope to have some answers in the next few days.
Ronyale White called 911 three times May 3-at 11:40, 11:45 and 11:50 p.m. She said her estranged husband, Louis David Drexel, allegedly had entered the home, that she had an order of protection against him and that she wanted him out.
After each call, a police car was dispatched to her home on the 10600 block of South Lasalle Street. But only the second and third cars responded in a timely fashion, Thomas said {ndash} and even then, they arrived 17 minutes after White's first call.
Officers found the 31-year-old mother of three on her bedroom floor, shot multiple times. Drexel was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and is being held without bond pending a May 30 Violence Court hearing.
As for what happened to the first police car, Thomas said the Calumet District officers in that car are under scrutiny. It was not clear today whether they showed up at the scene after the other two cars, or even if they showed up at all.
The officers have not been reassigned during the investigation and are "entitled to due process," Thomas said. But, he said, "the officers did not respond.in a timely manner."
White's death has prompted internal investigations by the Chicago Police Internal Affairs Division and the Office of Emergency Communications, which runs the 911 center.
Thomas vowed a complete inquiry, saying, "Our investigation will be thorough, it will be complete, and it will get to the bottom of what went wrong at Ronyale White's house."
He said if findings indicate a "systemic" problem, police would address those issues immediately. And if the inquiry shows procedures were not followed, "disciplinary action" would be taken, Thomas said.
Separately, the head of the City Council's Police and Fire Committee said today the incident demonstrates the police department should consider equipping police vehicles with global positioning satellite (GPS) devices that would let supervisors know the cars' exact locations at all times.
"I don't know if it would have saved this poor woman's life, but it would have let you know where the (police) car was when it got the call, so there would be no guesswork," said Ald. Isaac Carothers (29th).
Tribune staff reporter Gary Washburn contributed to this story.
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/showcase/chi-020510ronyale.story?coll=chi-news-hed
Here is another like above;Knifeman jailed May 11 2002
Malcolm Pickering, Evening Gazette
A police armed response unit was called out when a Stockton man ran amok with two knives, Teesside Crown Court was told.
Anthony Shaw, 24, of Morven View, Elm Tree, had confronted two terrified women with the weapons in the street before bursting into a house full of people, still brandishing the knives.
Prosecutor Ian West told how Shaw, waving the knives about, met up with the two women in Cleatham Close, shouting abuse and threats.
The terrified women responded, he said, one aiming "a well placed kick" and the other hitting him with her umbrella.
But, he said, when one of them fell over, Shaw kicked her before leaving the scene, only to turn up soon afterwards, bursting into the house in Carburt Road, where he was known to the occupants.
Several people in the house were threatened with violence and kept there against their will, said Mr West, matters coming to an end when one man escaped to call the police.
The result was an armed response unit arriving at the scene, and Shaw was arrested, he said.
Defence barrister Nigel Soppitt asked the court to accept that although people had been badly frightened, no-one had been seriously hurt. He asked the judge to pass a sentence which would not have "a crushing effect" on a young man.
Shaw, who admitted two charges of affray, possessing an offensive weapon and assault, was jailed for a total of two years.
Judge Les Spittle told him: "You must have been a terrifying sight to these two women, who reacted with spirit and courage."
He added: "You then burst into this house where you were known, threatening violence. This was bizarre behaviour. The armed response unit came out anticipating a siege or kidnap situation. The potential for harm was tremendous."
http://icteesside.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0001head/page.cfm?objectid=11862331&method=full&siteid=50080
Yet another except in this case if the robber were armed the victim would be dead due to his restricted rights;Have-a-go hero shows thief the window
By ANGIE BROWN
A HAVE-A-GO hero plunged through a window as he tackled a trapped intruder trying to get out of his home in the middle of the night.
Despite suffering a dislocated shoulder, Gino Diponio sat on the man - who was already inside the house in Duddingston when Mr DiponioOs wife locked up for the night - until the police arrived.
Mr Diponio said he "didnOt think of the consequences" when he woke up to find a man in his sitting room.
He jumped on the thief who had just opened a window and they both crashed through it.
"I thought at first it was my son at the window because it was really dark. I had just woken up so I was a bit disorientated," said Mr Diponio.
"When I realised what was happening, I leapt on him as he was half out the window and we both fell on to the grass outside.
"He was screaming, my wife heard and called 999. When the police saw my shoulder they called for an ambulance. I hadnOt felt the pain because I had so much adrenaline pumping round my veins, but afterwards it really hurt.
"Some people think it was a stupid thing to do because a lot of people carry knives but I just followed my instincts."
The 39-year-old, who only moved into his house in Southfield Road West last year, was sleeping on the sofa when he was woken by the sound of the thief trying to climb out of the window with his daughterOs leather jacket.
It is thought the intruder had hidden in a room upstairs after he was disturbed by Mr DiponioOs wife, Corinne, 39, as she locked up before going to bed.
She had decided to leave her husband on the sofa after he fell asleep in front of the television, and had wrapped him in a blanket before locking the front door and going to bed. The car salesman, who was only wearing shorts and a T-shirt at the time, added: "The man must have got a fright when he realised he was locked in the house.
"All the lights were off so he wouldnOt have seen me sleeping on the sofa either and the last thing he would have expected was me jumping on top of him."
Mr Diponio sat on the thief outside on the lawn for around 15 minutes until the police arrived.
The keen bowler will have to wear a sling for weeks and has had to pull out of a tournament. He said he was told by doctors that 20 per cent of dislocation injuries continually recur.
Mr Diponio said all the residents in the street had been left "shocked" by the incident, which happened just after 12.30am on Monday.
"Most people in the street know about it now and are being extra careful to lock their windows and doors," he said.
"Most of the people living in the street are elderly so they have all been left shocked and worried over what has happened.
"My 18-year-old daughter, who was sleeping in the house when it happened, is now having nightmares because she keeps thinking about this man creeping about in the house," added Mr Diponio.
Duddingston councillor Ian Berry has urged residents in the area to lock their windows and doors.
"I am shocked and horrified by this incident. We need more police officers in the streets and I am going to write to Chief Constable Tomkins about this urgent requirement.
"I have been noticing a number of dubious people in the area recently and I would appeal to residents to be diligent in the locking of doors and windows.
"I have sympathy with the family involved in this incident and blame the Labour group for their lack of police funding, we need to know we are safe in our beds."
A Lothian and Borders Police spokesman said they had responded to an emergency call just after 12.40am on Monday to the house in Duddingston.
A Lothian and Borders ambulance spokeswoman confirmed they had been called to Southfield Road West at 12.51am and had taken Mr Diponio to ERI with a suspected dislocated shoulder
A man was arrested and charged with theft and assault in connection with the incident.
http://www.edinburghnews.com/edinburgh.cfm?id=511382002
Shop owner who shot robber had been victim of previous shooting
By Juan Ozuna
The Monitor
McALLEN - Sitting behind a glass counter that held gold pieces, silver coins and antique watches in his shop, Harold Falknor said Thursday that he could not eat nor sleep after fatally shooting a 36-year-old hold-up man the day before.
The 64-year-old coin shop proprietor who Wednesday shot to death a fleeing robbery suspect in front of his store said partial motivation for his actions came only because he's been held up before and survived being shot during that previous robbery of La Casa Coin Co.
"If a person cannot defend himself in this world, it's not worth living in," he said.
Falknor recounted how 12 years ago three "white Aryan Nation people" entered his store, which was then located near 10th and Pecan Street, and robbed him at gunpoint.
After collecting their loot, they ordered him to lie face down on the floor. They then shot him in the head with a .22-caliber gun above his right ear, fracturing his mastoid bone, he said.
"The bullet went through and into the floor," he said, recalling a hole that remained in the floor of his shop after the incident.
He said doctors could not explain how he lived through the trauma, other that that he was lucky. Falknor said jokingly that the reason for his survival could have been his "hard, German head."
Joking aside, the events of 12 years ago caused him to install an electronic lock on that shop's front door so he could screen customers before they entered, he said.
But the front door of his shop at 104 N. 10th St., which he moved to just last year, only uses a standard bolt lock, which remained open for customers Thursday afternoon.
"The first thing I thought (Wednesday), I said to myself, `Oh, no, not again. This can't be happening again,' " he said. "I feared for my life like I never feared before."
Falknor said the hold-up man had come into the store approximately 30 minutes before the shooting to inquire about the price of gold pesos.
After some haggling over the deal, the man left, only to return soon afterward with a handgun, Falknor said.
"He put the gun to my head and said in Spanish that he was going to shoot me in the groin and take everything in my back room," Falknor recounted. "He parked right here in front and I knew he was going to book it."
After the man fled the shop, Falknor said he went to find his .38 Police Special - a gun he has kept within his places of business for more than 30 years - from behind a shelf. Then he followed the perpetrator into the parking lot.
"I wasn't thinking anything, really. I should have felt relieved that I was still alive, but I just followed him out and shot him," he said.
Watching the getaway van reverse out of its parking space, Falknor said he saw the man stop his vehicle and reach down between his legs, as if for a gun. He said it was that move that changed his aim from the van's tires to the robber himself - a deed he isn't proud of.
"You can't take a man's life just like that. But I had no idea it was going to come down to something like this - you don't preplan this," he said.
Released by police about four hours after the midday shooting with no charges against him, Falknor said he has since received "over 1,000 phone calls" from concerned residents and business owners, most of whom are well-wishers.
Sitting in the shop Thursday were plants that had been sent over by friends, one of which sported an American flag.
"I don't know who gets the idea that I'm in the wrong - I know there's a dead person out there and I feel very sorry about that - but once you pull the trigger, that's it, there's no turning back," he said. "The reason I'm sitting here right now is because they found the stolen goods and three guns in his van."
Police confirmed Thursday that they had found evidence in the van which corroborated Falknor's account of the robbery, but would not confirm that they had found three guns in the vehicle.
Meanwhile, Falknor said La Casa Coin would continue to be open for business, with only an alarm for security until he gets his gun back from police.
Fear of another attack still affects him, he said, but financial constraints force him to keep going.
"If they want to rob somebody, they're going to rob somebody," he said. "But I'm pinching. I have to make a living."
---
Paul Binz, managing editor of The Monitor, contributed to this report.
http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/sections/archive/topstoryjmp/5-10-02/News11.htm
2 intruders killed in morning home invasion
By MIKE GLENN
Copyright 2002 Houston Chronicle
Gunfire erupted this morning inside a northeast Harris County home. By the time it was over, two men were dead and a third was being sought by sheriff's deputies.
The shooting occurred about 5 a.m. at the house in the 4200 block of Glenchase Lane.
Precinct 4 deputy constables went to the scene after the homeowner called to report a break-in at the residence.
When they arrived, the constables found one man dead and another shot, but still alive. He was taken to Ben Taub General Hospital where he later died from his injuries, officials said.
Harris County Sheriff's detectives were called to the scene to investigate.
The homeowner, who has not been identified, told investigators he and his brother-in-law were asleep upstairs when the front door was kicked in.
Three men entered and ran upstairs armed with shotguns. They exchanged gunfire with the homeowner after forcing open the bedroom doors. Two of the intruders were shot during the gunfight, officials said. A third intruder who fled may be wounded.
Detectives said the third man he could be driving a blue or green Cadillac Escalade with a California license plate 4ABU25.
The shooting is being referred to the Harris County Grand Jury without any recommendation for charges.
The motive behind the home invasion was still unknown later today.
Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/metropolitan/1397397
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Comments
By Joe Humphrey
Times-Union staff writer
A Jacksonville juvenile was shot by his neighbor today after police said the man came home to find the 16-year-old in his apartment.
Robert Johnson of Oak Hill Apartments at 7528 Arlington Expressway said he arrived home from work about 3 p.m. and noticed the sliding-glass door open. Inside he saw a silhouette of a person and quickly went outside to get a gun from his car.
"I was scared to come back inside," said Johnson, who also was concerned that his 10-year-old was coming home soon. "I stood at the door for like five minutes."
When he went back in, he saw and recognized the intruder. Johnson said he didn't want to kill the teenager, so shot him in the leg and called police.
Police said the teen lives in the unit below Johnson and was taken to Shands Jacksonville with non-life-threatening injuries.
Detective D.C. Hills said burglary charges will be investigated.
As far as Johnson's right to defend his home with deadly force, Assistant State Attorney Mose Floyd said a person needs to reasonably believe that such force is necessary to prevent the burglary. It is a judgment question which is usually left for a jury to decide if charges are filed and the case goes to trial, Floyd said.
http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/050302/met_teenshot.html
Police believe man acted in self-defense in slaying
By J.M. KALIL
REVIEW-JOURNAL
Las Vegas police believe a man was acting in self-defense early Wednesday when he shot his 43-year-old neighbor to death in the southeast valley.
The Clark County coroner's office has not released the name of the man killed about 3:05 a.m. at the Canyon Willow Apartments, near Eastern and Tropicana avenues.
Police declined to release the name of the 22-year-old shooter because he has not been charged with a crime.
Lt. Tom Monahan said police received a 911 call reporting a family disturbance outside an apartment at the complex, 3014 Casey Drive.
A 22-year-old man and his grandfather, in his 60s, from a neighboring family responded to the disturbance because they heard a woman screaming, police said.
"They went over to make sure somebody wasn't getting beaten to death," Monahan said.
When they got to the apartment, the 43-year-old man confronted them and a fight broke out in which the men pummeled each other with fists, police said.
During the fight, the 43-year-old man picked up a wooden footstool and approached the grandfather, Monahan said.
At that point, the 22-year-old man pulled out a handgun, the lieutenant said.
"The 22-year-old kid says, 'I've got a gun. Don't do it. Don't do it,' " Monahan said. "When he didn't cease, the kid shot him."
Paramedics responded, but the 43-year-old was dead from a gunshot wound to the head when they arrived.
Monahan said police did not arrest the shooter because homicide detectives believe he used deadly force in self-defense.
Monahan said the 22-year-old, his grandfather and independent witnesses told police the same story of how the incident unfolded.
Investigative reports on the case will be submitted to the Clark County district attorney's office. Prosecutors there will determine whether charges are warranted, Monahan said.
http://www.lvrj.com/lvrj_home/2002/May-02-Thu-2002/news/18654602.html
No indictments in shootings
By THOMAS BARR
Editor
SHEPHERDSVILLE - A Bullitt Circuit Grand Jury ruled Tuesday that the man who shot and killed a neighbor was justified.
And the same jury panel ruled that sheriff's deputies took reasonable actions in a shootout with another suspect.
On Tuesday, the six-man, six-woman panel returned a no-true bill in the case involving James Karnes Jr.
On Jan. 30, Ronald S. Richardson, 52, was shot to death. This came after Richardson had been shooting at James L. Karnes Sr. The two were long-feuding neighbors off Cedar Grove Road.
Richardson was pronounced dead at the scene. Karnes Jr. came out and shot Richardson after his father had been shot in the stomach.
Commonwealth's attorney Michael Mann said the grand jury looked at the role of the younger Karnes in the shooting.
He said the burden of the jury was to see if Karnes did anything which could be considered a crime.
In looking at the total situation, including the past differences between the neighbors, Mann said the jury ruled that Karnes Jr. acted in self-defense.
The second case involved a Feb. 23 shooting at the mobile home of Bryan Petty.
Petty, 27, was indicted on five counts of wanton endangerment for allegedly firing shots at sheriff's deputies.
Originally, Petty was charged with five counts of attempted murder for firing his gun at deputies Scotty McGaha, Tim Waters, Jimmy Coomes,Brent Hall and Tony Roberts.
Deputies were called to the Petty mobile home on Apache Way. A call to Central Dispatch said that the suspect may have been suicidal.
When they arrived, Petty came out of the trailer and pointed a handgun to his own chest. Det. Charles Mann said he went to his vehicle to get more ammunition and went inside the home.
Police tried to have Petty drop his gun when he reappeared outside. However, he fired two shots at officers after making verbal threats to kill them.
Two of the deputies returned fire, one striking him in the stomach and leg area. He was taken to the hospital and is now under care at the state psychiatric center, where he is being evaluated.
Mann said the grand jury looked at the conduct of the officers, which has a separate statute to consider.
In their investigation, the grand jury report said that "force was necessary and justified" by the officers.
Once the evaluation is complete, Petty will face arraignment in Bullitt Circuit Court.
http://www.pioneernews.net/pioneernews/myarticles.asp?P=348861&S=504&PubID=6526&EC=0
Woman Acquitted of Animal Cruelty
A Nichols woman shot a dog that had repeatedly attacked her dog.
Wednesday, May 1, 2002
By LORRIE DELK
The Ledger
BARTOW -- Judy Desue told a jury she got fed up with a neighbor's dog repeatedly entering her yard and attacking her dog, and that's why she shot it.
On Tuesday, the jury found her not guilty of animal cruelty.
"I feel good about it," Desue said of the verdict. "Whether I was guilty or not, I wanted everyone to know there are two sides to every story."
Desue said she was concerned about the case because she felt most people feel strongly about animal cruelty and would think she was guilty without hearing her side.
Her public defender, Phil Averbuck, also was pleased with the verdict.
Desue, who turned 33 Tuesday, shot "T," a pit bull mix owned by 16-year-old Andrew "Junior" Young, after it and another mixed-breed dog attacked her dog, Snowball, she told the jury. She shot the dog with a .22-caliber rifle.
Desue testified that she had repeatedly told Young to keep his dog on a leash because the dog frequently attacked her dog.
In August, T and two other dogs attacked Snowball and severely injured its hind leg, Desue said as she cried. One dog had Snowball by the throat, another bit the dog's stomach, and T tore the flesh on Snowball's hind leg. A scar from the attack remains, she said.
Desue said she did nothing at that time because she was scared. The next day, she told Young, "If you don't keep your dog on a leash, I'm going to have to do something."
The attacks continued about "every other night," Desue said.
On Dec. 13, Desue heard dogs fighting outside her home in Nichols -- a small community west of Mulberry -- and went outside to find T "just skinning my dog like a catfish," she said.
T had Snowball by the same hind leg the dog had injured before and was tearing its flesh.
Desue saw Young and his friend laughing as their dogs attacked, she told the jury. Once they saw her, they began trying to regain control of their dogs.
With the rifle in her hand, Desue told Young and his friend to move out of the way so she could shoot the dog. She said that although she originally aimed the rifle at the friend's dog, she decided against shooting it because she had not given him repeated warnings to keep his dog out of her yard, as she had with Young.
When Young yelled a second time for the boys to move, they obeyed, and she fired one shot at T. She hit the dog in the stomach, and it ran away.
Young and his mother later took the dog to a veterinarian. They couldn't afford to treat the dog and had it put to sleep.
Assistant State Attorney Matt Kaylor told the jurors during his closing argument not to "base your decision on if you would have done the same thing in that situation."
Kaylor argued that Desue "had no right to take the law into her own hands."
"I think citizens do have a right to defend their property against an animal on their own property," Averbuck said. "Whether a dog on its own or through the encouragement of another (injures your pet), you have a right to use force on that animal."
Lorrie Delk can be reached at lorrie.delk@theledger.com or 863-533-9079.
http://www.theledger.com/local/local/01dogg.htm
News briefs
Area
Houston woman charged with embezzling funds
A Houston woman was arrested Monday on charges of embezzling $240,000 from accounts at Banco Popular, where she was a sales and service representative.
Hilda Martinez, 45, allegedly opened certificate of deposit accounts and redeemed them prior to the maturity date without customers' knowledge.
FBI officials said she then opened savings and checking accounts in more than 30 customers' names and depleted the funds, usually through ATM withdrawals.
An arrest warrant signed by a federal magistrate judge Friday charges Martinez with theft, embezzlement or misapplication by a bank officer. She could get 30 years in prison and $1 million in fines.
Woman sentenced to life for shaken-baby death
A northwest Houston woman has been sentenced to life in prison for murdering a 2-year-old boy in her care.
Stephanie Rae Gallegos, 23, was convicted and sentenced Friday in the February 2001 death of Gabriel Nathaniel Garza as a result of shaken-baby syndrome. Gallegos lived with the boy's father, Gilbert Garza.
The boy had suffered a fractured skull, and Gallegos was accused of shaking him and striking him with an unknown object.
She could be eligible for parole in 30 years.
Store owner shoots man who fired at him first
A store owner shot and wounded a would-be robber who fired at him outside the shop in northwest Houston on Monday, police said.
Dalton Francis, 17, first shot at Yong Do Cho through his car window at Gessner and Clay shortly after noon, police said, then chased Cho's car into a parking lot in the 5600 block of Gessner.
There Francis shot at the shop owner, Fabern Dale Cossey, who wounded him, police said. Francis and Flenzy Ray Jones, 33, of Houston ran but were arrested in the 10000 block of Tanner, police spokesman Alvin Wright said.
Jones was charged with aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, police said, and Francis will be similarly charged when he leaves Ben Taub Hospital, where he was in fair condition.
Accident off East Loop kills one, injures three
A man was killed and three others were injured, one severely, after their car veered off the East Loop, went airborne and rolled over, ejecting them.
Sergio Navratte, 23, died at Ben Taub Hospital following the accident in the 900 block of the East Loop about 9:20 p.m. Sunday.
Another backseat passenger, Julian Martinez, 23, was in critical condition at Memorial Hermann Hospital on Monday.
The driver, Ivan Zamaron, 28, and a front-seat passenger, Arturo Ramirez, 24, suffered less severe injuries.
Woman killed trying to cross in front of car
A woman died after her car drove in front of another vehicle on Texas 290 in northwest Houston, police said.
Susie Young was driving on Becker Road trying to cross Texas 290 about 9:30 p.m. Sunday. She died later at Cy-Fair Hospital.
Jury awards constable damages from motorist
A jury awarded a Harris County deputy constable $648,906 in damages against a motorist who rammed her car from behind.
Debra Powers is confined to administrative duty in Precinct 5 after she suffered a broken neck and spinal vertebrae in the accident off Westheimer and Addicks-Clodine on Feb. 13, 1998.
Her attorney, Richard Wakeland, said Powers was driving her personal vehicle, with her husband, also a deputy constable, as a passenger, when defendant Christopher Elder hit their car from behind.
Elder claimed the brakes on his 2-month-old car failed, but no such evidence was presented at the trial last week in state District Judge Martha Hill Jamison's court, Wakeland said.
Man drowns after canoe capsizes in Lake Conroe
CONROE -- A Dallas man became the first drowning victim this year on Lake Conroe after removing his life vest so he could maneuver while trying to right an overturned canoe.
Ivan Kenneth Norbert, 37, drowned about 3:20 p.m. Saturday after he and three others were dumped into the water near Piney Shores Resort, said Precinct 1 constable Lt. Bo Crabtree.
The Precinct 1 dive team recovered Norbert's body at about 5:50 p.m. in about 12 feet of water, he said. The other three survived.
Police investigate killing of Cut and Shoot man
CUT AND SHOOT -- Police on Monday were trying to learn who shot and killed an 81-year-old man as he investigated a noise in his east Montgomery County residence.
Willie Ortega was shot several times in the chest at about 11 p.m. Sunday in his residence in the 11000 block of Crocket-Martin Road, sheriff's Sgt. Bruce Zenor said.
Deputies found Ortega's body in a rear bedroom. Lt. David Moore said there were no suspects.
Man being pursued dies when car hits tree
WILLIS -- A Conroe man was burned beyond recognition after his car smashed into a tree and burst into flames in Montgomery County while being pursued by Panorama police.
Luis Acosta, 21, a paint and body repairman identified through his vehicle registration, lost control of his car at about 12:20 p.m. Saturday while trying to turn from Texas 75 onto Bell Street in Willis, officials said.
Panorama Police Chief Art Collins said Acosta accelerated after a patrolman tried to stop him for speeding. The officer chased Acosta at 100 mph but did not try to overtake him during the two-mile, one-minute chase, Collins said.
Jury sentences man for ex-wife's murder
GALVESTON -- A jury sentenced a man to 65 years in prison Monday for murdering his ex-wife.
Jurors deliberated less than two hours before sentencing Michael Fred Armstrong, 66, of Port Bolivar. Armstrong was convicted Friday in the Feb. 22, 2000, death of Shirley Marie Barrow.
Barrow, 56, was beaten with a wrench at her home in Port Bolivar, prosecutor Jeth Jones said.
Armstrong had pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity.
Airport security detains Saudi Embassy workers
Several employees at the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Washington, D.C., were prevented from boarding a flight out of Bush Intercontinental Airport on Sunday.
They were released after showing diplomatic passports identifying them, FBI Houston spokesman Robert Doguim said.
Airport security said the diplomats had no checked luggage and paid for tickets with cash -- two red flags during times of heightened security following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Doguim said.
The men, who had an audience with Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah in Houston on Saturday, were trying to board a flight to Baltimore. "They were very cooperative," Doguim said.
State
Underground workers cause San Antonio blast
SAN ANTONIO -- Three city workers were injured and several blocks of downtown lost power Monday afternoon when an explosion ripped an area where underground electrical work was under way, officials said.
The City Public Service workers were hospitalized with undetermined injuries from the 2:10 p.m. blast, which also forced evacuation of a nearby hotel and the Bexar County Courthouse.
Bob McCullough, a spokesman for City Public Service, said the men were working on a circuit breaker when a short circuit caused the explosion and subsequent fire.
The explosion occurred near the Homewood Suites Hotel on the Riverwalk near Saint Mary's and Market streets, police said.
Air passenger held after heroin found in clothes
DALLAS -- An international airline passenger whose clothes were allegedly soaked in heroin when he arrived at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport remained in custody Monday on smuggling charges.
U.S. Customs Service agents said they found the drugs in clothing Mauro Hernandez carried inside a duffel bag on a flight from Caracas, Venezuela, to New York on April 12.
Hernandez, 41, was held without bail on a federal charge of possession of heroin with intent to distribute.
From staff and wire reports
http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/story.hts/metropolitan/1389798
Armed store owner comes to rescue of intended robbery victim
A parking lot shootout ensued after a would-be robbery is foiled. Images from the scene
By Bob Boudreaux
ABC 13 Eyewitness News
(4/29/02) - A neighbor comes to the rescue of a robbery victim in northwest Houston. Now one suspect is in the hospital, another is under arrest, and a third remains on the loose.
Witness Don Thresher saw the whole thing from start to finish.
This daring act happened during midday Monday in the parking lot of a check cashing location in the 5600 block of Gessner near Tanner.
This was a wild scene, with the owner of one business, Joe's Food Market, wanting, needing, and ultimately getting life-saving help from the owner of a check cashing facility directly across the street.
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The lead flew. At least six shots dented bulletproof glass, and shattering that that wasn't. The owner of Joe's Food Market, 62-year-old Yong Do Cho, had been followed by three suspects in a gray Isuzu as he came from a bank. They shot at him on Clay Road, and he raced three blocks up Gessner to a check cashing facility across from his business where he thought he could get help. He was right.
As he pulled into the parking lot, the three armed hijackers attacked, shooting through his window, only to be met by an armed employee of the check cash business who blasted at them, hitting one.
Don Thresher saw the whole thing from start to finish.
"These boys were firing guns like it was a game," said eyewitness Don Thresher.
One suspect fled in the Isuzu, two others ran away on foot. Both of them were caught. One perpetrator has not yet been identified. The other is 18-year-old Dalton Francis, who was arrested with a gunshot wound as he attempted entry into a neighboring house.
Neighbors here know that this check cash business is a no-nonsense place, with a reputation for shooting bad guys.
"Everybody knows, don't mess with this man," said a neighbor. "You won't even come here and bother with this man, 'cause he don't play that."
It certainly was not a game. The intended victim, the owner of Joe's Food Market, was only slightly injured. The suspect who was shot is reported to be in fair condition. We've still got one perpetrator who is on the loose.
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/news/42902_news_checkrob.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878