Posted on 11/29/2013 6:22:50 AM PST by Uncle Chip
The homeowner who shot and killed a 72-year-old man with advanced Alzheimer's Disease after he rang his bell when he became lost and confused in the middle of the night might be charged in the man’s death.
Ronald Westbrook rang the doorbell of a home at 4am on Wednesday after wandering around in the dark for almost four hours in rural Walker County, Georgia, wearing just a light jacket and a straw hat in the cold 20 degree temperatures.
He had walked around three miles from his home by the time he approached the door. Sheriff Steve Wilson said he thinks he approached that particular house because the porch light was on, according to the Chattanooga Times.
Joe Hendrix, 34, of Chattanooga, Tennessee, who had moved into the house two weeks earlier with his fiancé, went outside to confront the man carrying his handgun.
Hendrix's fiancee, whose name Wilson declined to give, called 911 and stayed on the phone with an emergency dispatcher who sent two sheriff's office patrol cars en route.
The sheriff said the dispatcher who stayed on the phone with Hendrix's fiancee wasn't aware Hendrix went outside the house with a handgun.
When Westbrook didn’t react to his verbal commands, Hendrix fired four shots, one which hit him in the chest, killing him.
Wilson said that Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit District Attorney Herbert ‘Buzz’ Franklin, whom Wilson called to the shooting scene, might bring charges after reviewing all the evidence, according to Chattanooga Times.
‘We reserve our options and rights to file charges once the investigation is complete, if we feel like Georgia law warrants charges being filed,’ Wilson said.
Georgia's 2006 ‘stand-your-ground’ law that allows people to use deadly force to protect themselves ‘may apply to this case’, Wilson said....
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Not familiar with GA law, but in FL it may never get to a jury.
In FL the shooter can demand a hearing before a judge under the SYG law. No jury. If the judge decides the shooting qualifies as SYG, then the shooter cannot ever be prosecuted or civilly sued over the case.
I think the FL SYG law is in general a good idea. I believe it has potential flaws that could and should be corrected.
Mend it, don’t end it.
It is possible my understanding of the FL law is inaccurate or incomplete.
>>No, I won’t.
>>In Texas, I have the right to defend my property, as well as myself. Cops take a long time to show up.
Defend against what? Knocking on the door? What was the guy destroying/stealing? We have the same right in Florida, but common sense has to overcome redneck pride.
You may be right but what if the guy was just deaf and could not hear him?
I am trying to picture this (as a jury will) A guy rings his bell, he walks outside, sees the guy on his porch, calls out to him, the guy is standing there and does not respond, so ...*blammo* (???)
I think he will be convicted and I would vote that way (once again, IF the facts are as stated)
Yes. You are correct. In Texas, we do have the right to use deadly force to protect property. One must, however, be careful not to misinterpret that as license to kill anyone found on the property after dark. Justified or not, when the trigger is pulled, the balance of your bank account will drop just as fast as the hammer, and your life will be in the crapper for months.
When I moved back into this neighborhood after being away for many years, there was a crime problem. Mainly property crimes.
Many of the 'youth' that caused those problems now know that property will be actively defended and trespassers confronted now. Crime has gone down.
I will continue to confront trespassers on my property, and the 'youth' know that. Not that there are many anymore willing to trespass.
/johnny
If you can’t tell the difference between a 72 year old man and a “youth”, then you have no business with a gun.
/johnny
>>Against trespass, for one thing.
Texas law permits you to kill a person for simple trespassing?
The bottom line was that the young man fouled up. He should have grabbed a flashlight as well as a gun, and identified his target. Since his girlfriend had already called 911, he might have just as likely shot a police officer responding to the call.
Yeah, the question is whether what he did was a serious misdemeanor or a felony.
/johnny
The circumstances were the old guy was unarmed, and was not threatening the homeowner. Is there a jurisdiction in Texas that would find these circumstances as warranting deadly force?
“There is an old saw about never pointing a gun at a person unless you intend to kill him. A corollary would be to never put yourself into a position where you will be pointing a gun at someon unless the situation justifies you killing them.”
An excellent and succinct summary of a prudent man’s policies!
A 34 year old man who shoots a 72 year old man for trespassing in Texas might spend a lot of time behind bars.
§ 9.41. PROTECTION OF ONE’S OWN PROPERTY. (a) A person in lawful possession of land or tangible, movable property is justified in using force against another when and to the degree the actor reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to prevent or terminate the other’s trespass on the land or unlawful interference with the property.
§ 9.22. NECESSITY. Conduct is justified if:
(1) the actor reasonably believes the conduct is immediately necessary to avoid imminent harm;
(2) the desirability and urgency of avoiding the harm clearly outweigh, according to ordinary standards of reasonableness, the harm sought to be prevented by the law proscribing the conduct; and
(3) a legislative purpose to exclude the justification claimed for the conduct does not otherwise plainly appear.
Does your reading of 9.41 and 9.42 justify the use of deadly force given the facts as we know them?
I don’t see it.
So you’re just a guy looking for an excuse to kill someone? What kind of person would interpret 9.41a to give a reason to kill a man for knocking on your door? Do you shoot kids who kick their ball into your yard too?
States like Florida and Texas give us tremendous latitude to protect ourselves and our property, but we have to be intelligent and discerning human beings.
I saw something out of the UK recently where a “Yob” attacked an old (75 year old) man who happened to be a former Spec Ops Commando who had served in WWII.
The altercation ended with the “Yob” badly beaten and partially impaled on a picket fence. I've seen some pretty violent Alzheimer patients.
None of us were there. We have no idea what really happened. Everyone here should know better than to trust the liberal media. Maybe the guy is guilty as hell and needs jail time. Maybe he felt deadly force was necessary.
Why don't we stop acting like Nancy Grace and wait for the truth come out?
Hmm . . . I’d reread § 9.42 — and consult with your lawyer and maybe place him on retainer — you probably will need him.
Good number one rule. I try to abide by that in daily life.
Texas Law:
“A person is justified in using deadly force against another to protect his property to the degree he reasonably believes the force is immediately necessary to prevent the other’s imminent commission of arson, burglary, robbery, theft during the nighttime or criminal mischief during the nighttime, and he reasonably believes that the property cannot be protected by any other means.”
“A person is justified in using deadly force against another to prevent the other who is fleeing after committing burglary, robbery, or theft during the nighttime, from escaping with the property and he reasonable believes that the property cannot be recovered by any other means; or, the use of force other than deadly force to protect or recover the property would expose him or another to a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury. (Nighttime is defined as the period 30 min. after sunset until 30 min. before sunrise.)”
http://chadwestlaw.com/criminal-defense-law/self-defense-laws-of-texas/
http://lawyerdefend.me/self-defense-law-texas/
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