Posted on 03/06/2026 8:02:48 AM PST by yesthatjallen
WHITE LAKE, Mich. (FOX 2) - More details came out in court Thursday after a White Lake Township man shot and killed a burglar he caught breaking into his garage last year.
Dayton Knapton, 24, is charged with manslaughter, assault with intent to murder, and several weapons offenses for the shooting last summer that killed a 17-year-old.
Video was shown in court on Thursday of what appeared to be Knapton opening fire on several burglars - shooting as they ran away.
The backstory:
Police said Knapton spotted seven people entering his detached garage in the 9000 block of Mandon Drive on a security camera shortly after 1 a.m. July 8 and went outside. That's when he started shooting at the group as they left the garage, causing them to run away.
After the shooting, White Lake Township police were notified that a 17-year-old was near Huron Valley Hospital in Commerce Township, while another 17-year-old was at the hospital.
One of those gunshot victims died while the other one was receiving medical treatment for their injuries.
A neighbor who heard the gunshots said it was the third time someone had broken into the garage. That witness believes the suspects were after dirt bikes. His attorney confirmed this during a court hearing, saying Knapton had added a motion detector to his property because of attempted burglaries.
SNIP
(Excerpt) Read more at fox2detroit.com ...
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He only got one of the seven?
Range time needed.
THE MORE RURAL I LIVE-—THE MORE LIKELY YOU WILL GET SHOT ON MY PROPERTY
If it was true he shot while they were actually running away that is a problem.
The thing is I do not trust the state in this. It would need to be very clear and obvious that happened.
Cops can shoot at you if you are running away.
2faced Justice
The article doesn't say if the burglars are/were white or black. That may have figured into the decision to charge him.
Do not defend yourself in CA.
Well, it appears the burglars were black so he is in trouble. Have the civil rights activists gotten involved in the case yet?
This was in Oakland County, Michigan, not Oakland, California.
They can only shoot when you are running away if they believe shooting is in response to a continued public threat, like if you run away still armed. If you are running because you just shoplifted, they cannot shoot you.
“Do not defend yourself in CA.”
That’s not an accurate statement.
There are dozens of cases where burglars are shot in the home without charges.
There’s also dozens of cases outside the home where owners confronted thieves and had to shoot to protect themselves. Without charges.
I understand his position fully. But damn that was a bad decision. The best “win” he can get is spending 50k on lawyers to hopefully beat the manslaughter charge, and god only knows how much on the civil case.
In the meantime his property goes to seed and falls apart.
His very best possible “win” is still a crushing defeat.
You can’t let emotion get the best of you. It’s not 1930 anymore.
We have to promote our ill informed stereotype prejudices somewhere. I take my coffee with a coupla’ dashes of hyperbole in it.
“Cops can shoot at you if you are running away.”
No, they cannot. Not unless you are armed and there is an immediate articulable continuing threat. But in 1985, Tennessee vs Garner ended the ability of cops to shoot non violent fleeing felons. (and generally for us too)
“spending 50k on lawyers”
******
“Dayton Knapton, 24”
The young man probably doesn’t have much in the way of equity.
They were running. Most shooters practice on fixed target ranges, not trap, skeet, or sporting clays ranges.
any cop shooting, i always think of what they did to Bonnie and Clyde....especially Bonnie. There was never any evidence she robbed or killed anybody. They just flat out blew them away, no questions asked.
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