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Man who killed burglar jailed
The Telegraph (UK) ^ | (Filed: 17/10/2002) | UNK

Posted on 10/17/2002 7:27:03 AM PDT by SWO

A man who stabbed to death a burglar he found in his family's home has been jailed for five years.

Barry-Lee Hastings, 25, stabbed Roger Williams, 35, a total of 12 times after mistaking a crowbar in his hand for a machete. But Old Bailey Judge Brian Barker told Hastings that he had gone too far and his actions were not justified.

Hastings, of Wood Green, north London, was found guilty of manslaughter last month and remanded for reports. His family shouted "This country stinks" as he was led away and said later they would appeal.

They were backed by supporters of farmer Tony Martin who was jailed for shooting dead a burglar.

Judge Barker told Hastings he had repeatedly stabbed Mr Williams in the back, the majority of the attack taking place outside the house when the possibility of danger was over.

He said: "What you did could not possibly have been done while you were still under threat. You had gone into the attack and you were engaged in retaliation.

"Although Roger Williams was a burglar and had no right to be there, a householder is not entitled to use more than reasonable force to defend himself. His presence did not justify the actions you took.

"No one can fail to have sympathy for a householder or visitor who without warning found himself in the position you did when you reached the front door."


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Front Page News; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: banglist; rhodesia; secondamendment; selfdefense; sheep; tonymartin; uk
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Yet another British Lamb is punished for acting like a wolf.

See also; Man guilty of manslaughter after tackling career burglar By Sue Clough, Courts Correspondent (Filed: 11/09/2002) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/09/11/nburg11.xml

I stabbed burglar to protect my two young children, says father. By Sue Clough, Courts Correspondent (Filed: 04/09/2002) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/09/04/nstab04.xml

'I killed burglar because he was coming at me with a machete' By Sue Clough, Courts Correspondent (Filed: 30/08/2002) http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2002/08/30/nburg30.xml

1 posted on 10/17/2002 7:27:03 AM PDT by SWO
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To: *bang_list
Or should that be OOF?
2 posted on 10/17/2002 7:30:50 AM PDT by SWO
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To: SWO
It is virtually impossible to legally protect your home and family in England. One couple was forced to remove barbwire from the top of their fence they put up to stop burglars from climbing the fence. The reason they were forced to remove it was that its presence could injur a burglar trying to climb the fence!

When I was in London last summer I noticed that a lot of concrete walls around homes and apartment buildings had broken glass mixed in the concrete. The reasons are obvoius.

3 posted on 10/17/2002 7:32:11 AM PDT by Phantom Lord
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To: SWO
Reasonalbe force? Who can sit in judgement when they weren't there? So the perp is now the victim?
4 posted on 10/17/2002 7:32:18 AM PDT by RedBloodedAmerican
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To: SWO
Reasonalbe = reasonable.
5 posted on 10/17/2002 7:32:31 AM PDT by RedBloodedAmerican
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To: SWO
"This country stinks"

That pretty much sums it up.

6 posted on 10/17/2002 7:36:25 AM PDT by chuknospam
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To: SWO; dd5339; cavtrooper21
Egads! Just what has Britain fallen to? Will they just come out & say their people have no inherent right to self defense? I feel sad for the British people.
7 posted on 10/17/2002 7:38:52 AM PDT by Vic3O3
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To: chuknospam
"This country stinks"

You should try their cooking....

8 posted on 10/17/2002 7:39:05 AM PDT by Hodar
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To: SWO
What's next? A posthumous war crimes trial for Churchill for using more force than needed during the Battle of Britain?
9 posted on 10/17/2002 7:41:24 AM PDT by KarlInOhio
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To: Vic3O3
Thank God this attitude did not permeate in WW II.....

....well America is headed down this too....unless we take more serious action.
10 posted on 10/17/2002 7:42:24 AM PDT by SFBiker80814
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To: SWO
Judge Barker told Hastings he had repeatedly stabbed Mr Williams in the back, the majority of the attack taking place outside the house when the possibility of danger was over.

Yeah, if I had stabbed but not incapacitated a home-invasion burglar, and he left the house, why, I'd sleep like a friggin' baby with the doors unlocked because naturally 'the possibility of danger is over.'

11 posted on 10/17/2002 7:42:32 AM PDT by Sloth
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To: Hodar
When I first read this, I thought the story was based here in America. I was thinking something is seriously wrong here.
Then when I saw that it was England, I wasn't suprised.
12 posted on 10/17/2002 7:42:40 AM PDT by ConservativeMan55
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To: Hodar
You should try their cooking....

Little known by foreigners, in England one need not obtain any permits of any kind to open a restuarant. And that included HEALTH permits! Be careful where you eat when you are there.

13 posted on 10/17/2002 7:45:36 AM PDT by Phantom Lord
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To: Phantom Lord
England is the supposed model of what Liberals want this country to look like?
Ridiculous!
Look at California, a state which has been taken over by liberals, and the sorry state it is in, then look at England. Uggh.
14 posted on 10/17/2002 7:48:03 AM PDT by ConservativeMan55
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To: Phantom Lord
Death From Within.....English cooks...
15 posted on 10/17/2002 7:48:28 AM PDT by joesnuffy
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To: joesnuffy
Scottish food is better. Except for Haggis!
16 posted on 10/17/2002 7:50:37 AM PDT by Phantom Lord
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To: SWO
The Elite (Royals) are protected by their own armed guards...of course
Its the peasants that needs be controlled...and just for fun immigration of the dregs of the universe are thrown into the mix and given more rights than the indigenous peasants...
Just like one giant ant farm for the elite
17 posted on 10/17/2002 7:50:43 AM PDT by joesnuffy
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To: SWO
By all means, let the burglar with the crowbar into your home, and then you might be allowed to try to defend yourself (without a gun). The buglar only brought the crowbar to pry to open the cabinets, of course, not to use on you, your wife or your children! How DARE you have the bad manners to strike him before he gets a first swing at you! That brutally criminal homeowner should be locked up, for the safety of the community! I hope that the burglar will get the finest medical treatment, happily paid for by the state, and will be released as soon as possible since he has obviously suffered enough... AND he never robbed the house! No charges, your honor.
18 posted on 10/17/2002 7:50:45 AM PDT by Teacher317
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To: SWO
The problem here is he stabbed the guy 12 times. He's getting 5 years for incompetence. Had he been able to kill him with one cut, he'd probably not be going to jail.

Lesson: Learn to use a knife properly before attempting to exsanguinate a burglar in your home.
19 posted on 10/17/2002 7:51:33 AM PDT by ReadMyMind
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To: SWO
Here, it would not even have gone to trial - or if it had, the jury would have acquitted in a heartbeat.
20 posted on 10/17/2002 7:51:43 AM PDT by hchutch
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