Texan shoots burglars at neighbors house

[Luke]

Im sure most of you have probably read that recently a man witnessed two hispanic men break into a neighbors house, he called the police (which was recorded) and after 5-10 mins the police did not arrive and the burglars were making off with a bag of loot. he informed the police he was going to not let them get away, and he then told them to stop, they started to run, he shot them both, and they both ended up dieing.

Now im wondering whats going to happen to this well to do man. Im aware that a law was passed on sept 1st saying you can shoot and kill someone unlawfully on your property in Texas, but i don't think that applies to neighbors unless they asked him to watch over their property.
I actually wish things like this would happen to people stealing other peoples hard earned things more often. Would you want to go and rob someone knowing that the owners, or a neighbor could shoot and kill you for stealing? I know I would not (not that I would anyway) and I believe this would be a deterent for criminals.
Any way firearms forum-ee's what say you?

heres the link to the recorded police phone call and the full story;


http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Shocki...next_1116.html

[Texman]

we saw that story here and have been following it.. of course not a word since from the worthless tv talking heads.. Sure wish I could follow it.. used to be in Texas, he would have walked,, no questions.. With all the dammed bleeding heart liberals now.. who knows.

[Luke]

yea I've been trying to follow it but no new updates and probably wont be any until his appeal, and I don't know when that will be though.
Luke

[Bruce FLinch]

If on the Jury, I would say Not Guilty!

[Tom Militano]

I agree with Bruce and I'd buy him more ammo.

[Pistolenschutze]

The only possible "crime" this guy might be guilty of is discharging a firearm in the city limits! The police should be giving him a medal, not a hassle.

[bluesea112]

From what I understand, the neighbor DID ask the guy to watch his house while he was out of town. If that is the case, the neighbor's house becomes an extension of our hero's house and is therefore covered under the new "castle" law.

In case anyone is interested in knowing, that new "castle" law protects us from prosecution not only if we use deadly force against someone that is in the process of stealing from or breaking into our house, but it also allows for the use of deadly force against someone who is on our property that we THINK has intentions to steal from us or break in under the cover of darkness. "Under the cover of darkness" is the all important phrase. Deadly force, against anyone not actually in the process of stealing, may be used only after the USNO's official sundown time or after the USNO's official sunrise time.

Reason for such a law? We have a problem with wet-backs in Texas. They swim the river in large groups and then run across private property leaving destruction in their path. They steal food, kill livestock, burglarize and rob farmer's and ranchers, and bust into homes to hold family's hostage to avoid being picked up by the helicopter's infrared camera outside.
We have put up with these illegals and their criminal activities for decades. We were finally pushed too far. Someone correct me if I am wrong, but I believe the straw that broke the camels back was the ranch owner just outside of Laredo who came home from a cattle auction to find that a group of wet backs had broken into his house, stolen all of his food and valuables, slit his dog's throat, raped and murdered his wife and daughter, and beat his 14 or 15 year old son so severely that he later died too.

If the guy from the incident the other day doesn't walk, along with a pat on the back for a job well done, I would be EXTREMELY shocked. I would also bet that the Chief of Police in that guy's town will soon be looking for another job. We don't arrest our hero's in Texas. We offer to clean their gun for them, and sometimes buy them a brand new box of wet-back bullets, but we never arrest them.

[Luke]

Bluesea i was wondering if you knew where I could read that news article, so next time we talk about illegals in class I can use that in my argument
thanks,
Luke

[Pat Hurley]

Originally Posted by Bruce FLinch

If on the Jury, I would say Not Guilty!

Hell, if I were on the jury Bruce, I'd throw a parade and make the shooter Grand Marshall!

If the shooter was smart he's claim that the burglers turned in a threatening, menacing way, and that it appeared as if they were reaching for weapons. Or, in today's political climate, he could claim the burglers were either Republicans, homophobes, anti-abortionists, or appeared to be white and descended from western Europeans, and thus all charges would be dropped and the deaths would be declared justifiable homocides.

[Deputy Dawg]

Originally Posted by Luke

Bluesea i was wondering if you knew where I could read that news article, so next time we talk about illegals in class I can use that in my argument
thanks,
Luke

There was an article in The Houston Chronicle on 11-21-07

[Pistolenschutze]

Hey Dawg! Good to see you posting again. How goes life in the fast lane?

[user]

If it were Virginia, and those dudes were carrying more than $200 of stolen stuff, that makes them felons, and a person is entitled to do whatever it takes to stop a fleeing felon. That's justifiable homicide, but you'd dam'well better be actually right (regardless of what you reasonably suspect) before you shoot.

There's a statute that makes it a crime for a law enforcement officer to permit a fleeing felon to escape - he's statutorily required to shoot.

Now none of what I just told you would be questioned in the least in 1965; but I'm not so sure, especially in Northern Virginia or Hampton Roads, where there's so many foreigners (people from Massachusetts, New York, Michigan, California, etc.) living there now. All it takes, though, is one juror to insist on "not guilty".

But there's a difference between not getting charged with a crime at all and having a really good defense. Do you suppose the neighbors will pay thousands of dollars in legal fees for the well-meaning citizen when he's sued by the perpetrators' families for wrongful death? That could easily cost $20,000.

Might do better to go out and shoot the bad-guys' tires.

[dcd_enterprises]

Originally Posted by bluesea112

From what I understand, the neighbor DID ask the guy to watch his house while he was out of town. If that is the case, the neighbor's house becomes an extension of our hero's house and is therefore covered under the new "castle" law. ...

I HOPE YOU'RE RIGHT. There has to be a line drawn, here and now.

[Luke]

thanks Deputy Dawg

[Deputy Dawg]

Originally Posted by Pistolenschutze

Hey Dawg! Good to see you posting again. How goes life in the fast lane?

I have been very busy, now that I have been working a part-time job along with my regular one.Having three teenagers at home does not help either.

[bluesea112]

I made an error in my last post that I should correct. I meant to say that "Under the cover of darkness" in the Texas statute means after official sundown and BEFORE official sunrise...not after sunrise.
Y'all probably knew what I meant, but I wanted to correct it never the less.

[inplanotx]

Originally Posted by bluesea112

I made an error in my last post that I should correct. I meant to say that "Under the cover of darkness" in the Texas statute means after official sundown and BEFORE official sunrise...not after sunrise.
Y'all probably knew what I meant, but I wanted to correct it never the less.

By everyting I have read, there is no such provision in the state law of "under darkness". This incident happened in broad daylight and no one has arrested him yet.

IPT

[millwright]

Why I don't say 'buy him more ammo", I'd opine this sort of case has far more bearing and importance than might be supposed. Murder/homicide - generally defined by law and custom as the more severe crime - is largely confined to a limited set of participants having relatively minor impact upon society and its economy. Robbery and homicide incidental to it, OTOH, has both a direct and continuing economic impact far exceeding the value of the goods stolen. Robbery suppresses not merely economic growth, but existing trade by increasing overhead thru losses and insurance costs. It drives businesses, and consequently customers, out of the area leading to urban blight, with impact upon tax revenues and city services. All of these have a direct and continuing effect upon residents in excess of any monetary loss they might incur.

So, I ask you, what is the more egregious crime ? Homicide or robbery ? >MW

[islenos]

§ 9.43. PROTECTION OF THIRD PERSON'S PROPERTY. A person
is justified in using force or deadly force against another to
protect land or tangible, movable property of a third person if,
under the circumstances as he reasonably believes them to be, the
actor would be justified under Section 9.41 or 9.42 in using force
or deadly force to protect his own land or property and:
(1) the actor reasonably believes the unlawful
interference constitutes attempted or consummated theft of or
criminal mischief to the tangible, movable property; or
(2) the actor reasonably believes that:
(A) the third person has requested his protection
of the land or property;
(B) he has a legal duty to protect the third
person's land or property; or
(C) the third person whose land or property he
uses force or deadly force to protect is the actor's spouse, parent,
or child, resides with the actor, or is under the actor's care.

Acts 1973, 63rd Leg., p. 883, ch. 399, § 1, eff. Jan. 1, 1974.
Amended by Acts 1993, 73rd Leg., ch. 900, § 1.01, eff. Sept. 1,
1994.

http://tlo2.tlc.state.tx.us/statutes....000009.00.htm

[Xaiver56]

I have been following this story and here is a link to the latest information I have seen:

http://www.hcnonline.com/site/news.c...d=532238&rfi=6

It appears that people showed up to protest John Horn, however then more people showed up to protest the protestors

[Marlin T]

They were illegal aliens from Jamacia

[berto64]

I bet there haven't been anymore burglaries in the area, have there?

Problem handled.

[stash247]

Berto, you're as old as me; we have a different 'value system' in place, in some locations.
Texas is not one of them.
The Texas Penal Code makes it my 'responsiblilty' to stop the commission of a felony, if it is within my power to do so; if it could be proven that I did not, charges could be filed, against me!
islenos has already quoted the law, chapter and verse!
My Neighbors, and I capitalised that, out of respect, have been so for thirty years; I will watch over their property, as they do mine, when we are away; it's the old way, but the way we do business, here.
I'll bet a buck or two that the guy is 'no billed' by the Grand Jury, because his actions were deemed 'reasonable and proper', when he ended a 'burglary of a habitation', a Felony crime, in Texas Law.

[armedandsafe]

They were illegal aliens from Jamacia

I read elsewhere they were from Columbia and were using stolen/forged identiy papers to get driver's licenses.

Pops

[RIPBiker13]

I'm with the man. I think he did good. But he did say "you're dead" and whether or not that was the case, the word we should use is "stop." I don't think he did anything wrong.