[lifacs]

I don't think this guy should have fired his gun at a door knocker. What say you?

[csvset]

I could say, "I wouldn't have shot", but then my situation is different. I have windows in my front door and a window to the side that I can look out of. I also have a passel of hounds that would have raised a ruckus at a late night knock. I also have three teenagers, and wouldn't be too alarmed to hear a late night knock. That's not to say that I don't answer the door late at unarmed..

I recall a case in California, where some "yutes" were driving around shooting out windows with slingshots.

They hit one guy's house taking out a window, possibly more than one, possibly more than one shot.

Anyways, the family was laying on the floor, thinking they were under attack. Southern California had had a spate of sniper shootings, primarily along the freeways.

Anyways, the homeowner grabs his gun and walks down the block and sees the car of "yutes". The homeowner approaches the car and engages the occupants in conversation. The homeowner said he saw a "yute" in the backseat, "make a move", and the homeowner shoot the youth, killing him.

The homeowner was acquitted. The trial was on Court TV.

The defense was rather savy. They had a mockup of the homeowner's window setup in the courtroom. Without warning, the defense atty, whipped out a slingshot and fired a projectile through the double paned window.

The subsequent noise made several jurors jump. Very effective technique on his part.

[Shooter 2.5]

About fifteen years ago, my family moved into a subdivision that has a large group of kids living there. My son became enemies with the brat that lived next door and the kids started harrassing my family.

One night they continued to ring the door bell and run away. It happened about five times in one evening.

After that, it started to escalate. The kids started leaving eggs in our mailbox, vandalized the dog house and finally they started on our cars.

We had friends over and all of the tires had the air let out, the antennas were bent and the windshield wipers were gone.

When the cops were called, I finally explained to the parents that if I ever see anyone on my property again, I will treat them as an adult burglar in the shadows and I can't be responsible for the safety of their children. I will be in fear of my life.

That stopped the calls and damage.

Would I have done that? No. But they didn't know that.

[longtermmemmory]

"How can they call that self-defense?" said a family member who asked not to be identified. "If they thought it was a burglar, what kind of burglar knocks?"


ANSWER: miami home invaders. This is the way the home invaders work. Get the owner to open the door then shoot them when the door opens. (it was part of the push for FL CCW history. It is also why home invasions in FL wend down 30% the first year of CCW.)

Their new M.O. is to get people when the come home and are in the driveway.

There is more to this story. Comming to the door armed is not odd. The 6 foot 2 "kid" must have done something to make the man not believe he was just a prankster and was a danger.

[G.Mason]

"What is so important that you are defending that you need a gun?" said Quiroga, the mother of two teenage boys, before breaking into tears.

Absolutely nothing, nada, ziltch, mother Quiroga.

I give up! Rape me, rob me, kidnap my kids and sell them into slavery.

[xrp]

"How can they call that self-defense?" said a family member who asked not to be identified. "If they thought it was a burglar, what kind of burglar knocks?"

I don't think this guy should have fired his gun at a door knocker. What say you?

At 12:30am, if you are protecting yourself or your family you don't take any chances, sorry. That split second of warning instead of acting is all a potential attacker needs to take you (him) out and run inside and rape your (his) wife and children.

[FairOpinion]

There has to be more to this.

Let's see: 16 year old "kids" (who should know better) are "playing" "knock on the door and run" in the middle of the night.

The homeowner is sound asleep (or even if he isn't). He hears the knock, thinks for a moment, what is this? He gets his gun, walks to the door and opens it (poor judgment on his part, you don't open the door at midnight to any knocks).

BUT THE MAIN POINT: WHY IS THE "KID" STILL AT THE DOOR.
If he really just "knocked and ran" he would be two houses over by now, and when the homeowner opens the door, there wouldn't be anyone there.

The teenager was big, as the article said: 6'2", 210 lbs. These days there are a whole lot of violent crimes committed by teenagers. Many crimes are indeed committed by knocking, then when the homeowner opens the door, pushing their way in, and robbing the house, usually violently attacking the homeowner as well, even killing him.

As I said, the homeowner should not have opened the door, he should have sat facing the door with his gun, and if somone is breaking in, then shoot them. But once he opens the door in the middle of the night and find a huge guy 6'2", 210 lbs., standing there, maybe menacingly, maybe even trying to push his way in, what would anyone think, except that whoever is standing there is up to no good. Remember this is the middle of the night.

The article only presented ONE point of view, that of the "teenagers". Do "good kids" go around knocking on doors at midnight? How do we know they weren't trying to push their way into the house? Why was the teenager still standing at the door a minute or two later, when the homeowner answered the door, if he was just "knocking and running"?

[Sloth]

If the guy feared a burglar, why did he open the door?

[beaversmom]

I don't think this guy should have fired his gun at a door knocker. What say you?

I agree with you.

"What is so important that you are defending that you need a gun?"

First off this is the most stupid comment in the whole article. With that, I would say that this guy was way in the wrong to shoot the boy. The boy was silly to be out ringing door bells at his age but he didn't deserve to die for it. If the boy had been inside his property that would have been a different matter but you don't just start shooting because of a late night knock at the door even if you think that the person is holding a weapon. I think the homeowner should have yelled out, "I've got a gun that I'm not afraid to use in one hand and a phone that I'm using to dial 911 in the other--get off my property now!" Then he could have called the police at that point.

Even though he was not too smart to do what he did, I do feel sorry for the homeowner as well as the boy's family.

[coloradan]

I will reserve judgement on what I think about this case.

However, I will point out that there are a few people here at FR who, if the police were the shooters, would hasten to say "Good shoot!" if there were even the slightest inkling that the man had something, anything, in his hand that could have been construed as a weapon. ("What, don't you think police officers should have the right to defend their lives?") Furthermore, the man's name is released, and curiously, even the value of his house. If a police officer shoots someone under similar circumstanecs, they don't release such details, especially the name of the officer involved, "pending the results of an investigation." Here is more evidence of the caste system at work.

[Fighter@heart]

"What is so important that you are defending that you need a gun?" EVERYTHING with-in the confines of my home that I've WORKED for and the lives of my family & myself, I guess that about covers it!!

[Hillary's Lovely Legs]

On New Year's Eve my cousin was dropped off by a friend at around 3am. He lived in a condo and they all looked the same. His friend dropped him off at the wrong condo and my cousin tried his key in the door. When it didn't work, he left. He was then shot in the back by a shotgun by the owner. He was found dead on the front lawn in the morning.

[thathamiltonwoman]

Four years ago while my husband was working the night shift a teenager decided it would be funny to bang and kick on my front door around midnight. It woke me up out of a deep sleep. I called 911 and prayed that the door would hold. It took the cops 10 minutes to arrive. The kid would kick the door, giggle and run. Then he'd come back and repeat the perfomance. By the time the cops arrived the kid was gone. They did a cursory search of the area, took my statement and that was it.

My husband bought us a gun the next day. We never had another problem but if I'd been armed that night and IF that kid had managed to kick the door open he'd be dead now. I can certainly sympathize with the man in this case.

[Voice in your head]

"'They were playing knock on the door and run,' said one family member.

If that is true, then why was the kid there when the man answered the door? I guess he forgot the "run" part of the game, or he had some other motive. Perhaps he only ran when he heard people coming to answer the door and was trying to find a vacant home to burglarize?

[HighWheeler]

"What is so important that you are defending that you need a gun?" said Quiroga, the mother

Stupid question gets the general answer:

How about my life and the lives of my family? Important enough, Quiroga The Mother?

[BOOTSTICK]

I live in Florida {Tampa Bay area}, here we have had similar incidences, a man drunk knocking on a door, he beleived to be his home, instead was the home of his neighbor. The elederly woman who FEARED FOR HER LIFE, shot through the door, killing the drunk. No charges were filed, since Florida law allows lethal force, if an individual "fears great bodily harm, or loss of life". The comments of the parents in this case are understandable, yet nonetheless assinine. A few years ago I happened to be awake at 2 AM when I heard a noise outside my front door. I went out my backdoor with my pump shotgun, and confronted two teens at my front door, who were placing a matress against my door. They said they were only doing a prank, yet I was of the beleif they were going to break in with the matress to muffle the noise. The expressions on their faces were priceless when I racked my pump, and told them, if they moved , they would be chasing their heads down Main Street. Both were arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

[Moonman62]

When Levin, a Palm Beach County businessman who lived alone, was awakened from his sleep by a knock at the door early Saturday, he armed himself with a handgun and answered it, deputies said. He told deputies he saw someone he believed was holding a weapon.

You're supposed to run after pulling this prank. Why was the kid standing there?

[Lancey Howard]

If the kids were playing "knock on the door and run" - - then why was this 6'2", 210-pound teenager still standing there after the guy woke up and opened his door?

[fightu4it]

How can you get to be 16 years old and still be so dumb?

[Akira]

"If they thought it was a burglar, what kind of burglar knocks?"

Many kinds. My coworker (the kind of guy who tries to help everybody, although not anymore) answered the door to a teenager who sounded in trouble at about 10pm one night. As soon as the door was open, he was inside. My coworker was shot in the stomach, and 3 years and 3 surgeries later is still having complications. I agree, you don't answer the door at night. There's lots of fault to go around here, but it's silly to think the only kinds of burgulars are those that sneak in through a window.

[StriperSniper]

What say you?

A birthday celebration capped off by an early-morning round of mischievous doorbell ringing

Bad choice of words by the writter.