Posted on 09/24/2010 10:21:42 AM PDT by MissTed
An 82-year-old Wheat Ridge homeowner who was charged after police said he shot at two men stealing a trailer from his property, was sentenced Friday.
Robert Wallace was given two years of unsupervised probation and he can't own a gun.
Wallace agreed to a plea agreement in which charges were reduced to criminal attempted manslaughter and illegal discharge of a firearm, instead of the initial four charges of attempted first-degree murder.
"No one won," said Wallace as he left the courtroom.
Wallace agreed to let the state destroy the gun that was used in the shooting. Other guns he owns will be sold with the money possibly going to pay his legal fees.
Jefferson County District Attorney Scott Storey said, "It is illegal to shoot someone who is stealing your property."
Storey had taken heat from the community following the initial charges of attempted first-degree murder as information concerning the two suspects immigration status surfaced.
"Immigration status did not play a role in this decision," said Storey.
Storey said Wallace "was not overcharged" with the initial charges of attempted first-degree murder. He said charges are based on the law.
Storey said a disposition was reached before public outrage on this case.
One of the suspects, 28-year-old Alvaro Cardona-De Lorea, was shot through the eye, leaving him with brain damage and a disfigured skull. Cardona has undergone a competency evaluation which showed he may not be competent to stand trial. His case has been continued.
The second theft suspect, Damacio Torres-Ochoa, 32, was arrested by federal immigrant authorities at his Boulder workplace on an immigration violation, authorities said. Torres is charged with theft of an at-risk adult. His next court appearance is Oct. 4.
“Huh? Are they afraid it has a taste for human blood now? “
I guess. I call it capital punishment of an inanimate object. “Bad gun! We sentence you to death!”. Silly, isn’t it?
Since the source is The Denver Post and The Post is circulated only in the Denver area not outside in adjacent states. So I aasume this happened in Colorado. Am I correct ?. Just where in Colorado is Jefferson county that this DA could be so protective of illegal aliens ? Was this DA elected to office or appointed ?
This happened in the city of Wheat Ridge, CO. It’s about 15(?) miles west of Denver. I believe the RINO DA was elected, but I don’t live in that city so am not certain.
A competent attorney would tell him to say NOTHING, but at trial (if it ever got that far, because if he didn't talk, they probably wouldn't have charged him) give a good story about how when you told them to STOP stealing your property, they came at you in a threatening manner.
Please remember to NEVER talk to the police, the more you talk, the more rope you are handing them to hang you.
Ridiculous. Are Coloradans really that controlled? A person's private property can make the difference between life and death sometimes.
In Florida, you CAN use deadly force to prevent a forcible felony, including protecting your property against grand theft...
When you steal someone’s property, you literally have stolen a part of their life. They cannot recover the lost time it took them to obtain said property. That law-abiding citizens should have to sit back and allow punks to steal parts of their life away is horribly unjust and too soft on crime.
That is absolutely correct, and I do indeed think that weak minded people forget this, as is prevailing all across the US. Stealing is seriously insidious stuff. In fact the "too soft on crime" phenomenon tragically demoralizes the responsible segment of the society, so that that segment loses motivation, investment, and spirit.
This is exactly how "liberalism" becomes leftism, that is with the abolition of standing up for the responsible and cultivation of the irresponsible, the only path left is authoritarian extortion (by government or otherwise).
This is also the endgame of urban slums and excessive taxation.
Johnny Suntrade
10mm is basically the next step up form .357 mag. My loads average 10% more penetration, power, expansion, and permanent wound channel without sacrificing accuracy. My mags also hold 12 rounds each instead of 6 or 8 (six for a wheel-gun or eight for a Coonan).
“In Florida, you CAN use deadly force to prevent a forcible felony, including protecting your property against grand theft.”
I’d beg to differ..
Florida law justifies use of deadly force when you are: Trying to protect yourself or another person from death or serious bodily harm; Trying to prevent a forcible felony, such as rape, robbery, burglary or kidnapping. Using or displaying a handgun in any other circumstances could result in your conviction for crimes such as improper exhibition of a firearm, manslaughter, or worse.
Burglary is only included because if occurs in an occupied dwelling, it is a felony punishable by life.
Grand Theft isn’t included.
82-year-old Robert Wallace said in February that he looked out his window and saw two men hooking his flatbed trailer up to their pickup. He yelled at them to stop, but they sped away, stealing his trailer. He told police he fired two shots at the pickup.
Minutes later, police say 32-year-old Damacio Torres dropped 28-year-old Alvaro Cardona off at a hospital emergency room with a gunshot wound to the face.
Torres did not stay to talk with police, but they caught up with him later. According to court documents, he admitted he and Cardona stole the trailer.
Wallace did not want to talk on camera, but when we asked him if the two men threatened him he said, “They almost ran me over.”
The Jefferson County DA’s office said that neither Torres nor Cardona have been charged with anything at this point, even though Torres confessed to the crime. However, the homeowner, Wallace is facing twelve felony counts, including four counts of attempted first degree murder. If convicted, he could spend the rest of his life behind bars.
Sources say Torres and Cardona are believed to be in the country illegally and both have an arrest record. Cardona’s record includes public fighting and numerous traffic offenses like driving without a license or insurance. Torres’s record includes agricultural trespassing as well as a 2005 arrest for aggravated motor vehicle theft for which he was given a plea bargain to a lesser crime. Sources say Torres is also under investigation for being part of a major auto theft ring.
So in this case it likely would have been OK. That doesn’t mean there is no way anyone in Texas could ever be charged for shooting someone who is stealing property. And as someone else said, the jurisdiction could play a huge part in that.
He will need some dynomite like the Duke boys had
I’m almost tempted to suggest voting for the democrat if this twit is a so called republican.
Wallace must have said the wrong thing. All he should say is: I was afraid for my life. They made me shoot. I expected them to kill me.
It is astonishing that it is illegal in Colorado to shoot illegal aliens stealing your stuff on your property.
At 82 years old I’d tell that DA ‘’F you sonny boy. You want my guns? Come and take ‘em’’. What else has one to lose at that age?
Thanks for getting it.
“He was in the wrong.”
No. The thieves were guilty of being repeat criminals.
That much is settled.
Exactly, now he has a bullseye painted on him.
Horrible.
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