If you haven't read my post last night. I suggest you do so before continuing.
As many of you speculated, the post was inspired by this news story. I took creative license to embellish here and there and my post may not reflect, with perfect accuracy, how things went down that night. What we know for sure, though, is that the homeowner, realizing that his home was being broken into, shot the intruder through the sliding glass door. The intruder took off on foot and was discovered, dead, fifty yards from the home he was trying to break into.
It's a terribly tragic story for all parties involved - especially when you learn that the intruder was only a 19 year old boy. I saw his picture in the article and was struck with a little emotion. The kid doesn't look like a bad kid. He looks like somebody who made a stupid decision - caught in the wrong place at the wrong time - and paid for his life because of it. But as the homeowner, what can you do in a situation like that? How would you react? It's impossible to say that the homeowner over-reacted. It's also impossible to say that he didn't. Some moments in life have no defined black and white boundaries. We can only hope that in those moments we'll refrain from doing something we'd regret, and on that note I can't imagine what regret the homeowner must feel right now, even if he did feel justified in firing the shot last night.
I, like many of you who commented, would have tried to scare the intruder off before shooting him. And if I were to shoot, I'd have shot him in the leg - reducing the chances of death to something very minuscule. Then again, it's easy to say that as I sit, calmly, in my chair. In the heat of battle, in those moments of desperation, palpable fear, and split-second thinking, I'm not sure how I'd act.
Rest in peace, Kyle Poulton.
-Barry
i read the news article yesterday and too, felt a lot of emotion. i know as a single mom though, i'd do ANYTHING to protect my littles. i hope that if that time ever had to come that i'd be able to think clearly and calmly. obviously this dad had planned ahead, and knew that if the situation were to arise he was well prepared and ready to protect. you can't fault him for that...it's just sad to think that there could have been a different outcome. :( good post barry!
ReplyDeleteI don't think the homeowner should be prosecuted for what he did, but part of me thinks he may have used slightly excessive, but not unnecessary force. The fact that someone was breaking into his home gave him the right to utilize deadly force. However, like many have said, was that the best option? I don't know if it was. The fact that he was still outside of the house attempting to force entry seems like it would give the home owner the opportunity to make his presence known and attempt to scare off, or apprehend the suspect. It's an unfortunate incident.
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