Not so fast.
Be aware that the conditions for responding with justified lethal force vary greatly in locales across the USA. Not everyone lives in Massachusetts or San Francisco as you do, and you're not always required to stay cowering inside the plywood box you call your domicile while a gathering of armed barbarians shout death threats outside your home.
Hell, at least one of you lives in a locale where even if they break into your home intent on bloody murder you're required to place a lampshade on your head, pretend you're a lamp, and hope for the best. Only when they're cutting your guts out with your own kitchen knife are you sort-of allowed to fight back. In some places in the USA, you can engage at range and even give chase if they flee.
In many places, it's perfectly acceptable to take the initiative in such cases. 'Reasonable' for you doesn't fit 'Reasonable' for me, under the law. If you have angry little Vinnie tough-guys for relatives in your area (like the sort that Clemenza suitably describes) who may be prone to acting as the dead boy in this story did, you might want to tell them to avoid any US state west of the Mississippi, in particularly damned sure the state of Texas, and to stay their asses in Boston and Philadelphia and Bensonhurst where they get away with hijinks like this all the time with no fear of getting their heads blown into cat food.
Just acknowledge that much at least. I am aware that this event occurred in Long Island, NY.
The crowd was not armed and I'm pretty sure they weren't shouting death threats either (although there were some threats made earlier). A lot of people have made plainly false statements of fact on this thread. You are one of them.
I am not going to acknowledge any such thing.
Had this same scenario happened to me I would have securely locked all my doors, obtained a defensive device, yes a loaded gun if need be, and while watching closely the action outside, would have phoned the police. If there were to come any action that I would interpret to be threatening or looking even remotely like an attempt to enter my domicile I would shoot in a minute. I’d for sure be telling the guy on the other end of the phone line that same thing.
I would NOT walk out into the mob and start shooting and your pretty words and grim verbs will not make me admit such a thing.
You just want to fight. John White just wanted to fight.
Must be something about certain folks and it don’t look like it has much to do with black and white.