re: #13 erik_t

Murder charges: Rifle jammed, she laughed, so he killed her with a pistol

At court in support of the defendant was friend John Lange, who said Smith had been targeted at least six times for break-ins and doesn’t deserve to be in jail for protecting his home. “They tortured him and targeted him, and it’s not good,” Lange said. “One time alone would be too much. It’s terrible.”

Having been the victim of a break in a few weeks ago I know how it feels. There’s an assumption that if someone breaks in when they know you’re home they are ready to do you harm, especially since the guy was trapped in the basement. The second person came down even after hearing the shots and taunted him when his gun jammed. Not a smart move. The homeowner wasn’t within his legal rights but after my recent experience I can see how this sort of thing can happen. One of the reasons I’m not considering a gun after my break in is because of situations like this. A moment of passion/anger, a lapse in judgement and the homeowner is in deep shit. I could have easily shot my intruder, he was standing only feet away when I woke up. But without my glasses in the dark if I had shot him in the back I’d be in jail. I don’t have a whole lot of emotional sympathy for the criminals but I’ll take my chances being unarmed and hope for the best.