Posted on 07/29/2003 2:13:49 PM PDT by Clive
A reclusive British farmer whose shotgun killing of a teenage burglar provoked a national debate about victims' rights was in hiding yesterday after being released from prison.
Threats have been made against the life of 58-year-old Tony Martin, who was convicted in April, 2000, of killing one burglar and wounding another after the pair broke into his isolated farmhouse -- aptly named Bleak House -- in rural Norfolk.
Mr. Martin's five-year prison sentence for the manslaughter of Fred Barras, 16, touched off a heated debate over the rights of owners to defend their property.
That debate has been reignited with his release. Supporters say Mr. Martin has been atrociously treated, being forced to serve the maximum two-thirds of his full sentence. They are also calling for changes in the law that shows in Britain a man's home -- or farm -- is no longer his castle.
Mr. Martin's life was changed forever on that August night in 1999.
That was when he shot and killed Barras and hit his accomplice, Brendan Fearon, 33, in the leg as they prepared to break into his farm, which had been the target of burglars some 30 times before.
Prosecutors said the fact Mr. Martin had rigged up ladders in trees as lookout posts and removed the staircase inside the house indicated he expected to be attacked. The shooting was therefore premeditated.
The case continues to rile Britons, many of whom feel the law is slanted in favour of criminals. They also say they cannot rely on the overstretched police to help them, particularly in rural areas.
The farmer's release came the same day as the London Evening Standard published a police report showing there are 164 muggings a day in the British capital. That is down by one from last year's record, despite Prime Minister Tony Blair's much-vaunted street-crime initiative.
"The whole law with regards to householder rights needs reform," said Henry Bellingham, a member of the opposition Conservative Party and Mr. Martin's MP.
"The law should be more weighted in favour of the householder. What we have at the moment is an assumption against the householder. If a householder takes any action against an intruder, the householder is prosecuted."
In Canada, people whose homes are invaded are permitted to defend themselves if they are in fear for their lives.
In the United States, the test is less stringent. Prosecutors say the case would never have come to trial in their jurisdictions.
"Here in Texas, you do have a right to defend your house," said Adrienne McFarland, the state's assistant attorney-general.
"There is a specific provision which says you are allowed to use deadly force against a person committing an unlawful entry," she told the BBC. She added the householder did not even have to warn the burglar first for the self-defence argument to be valid.
Mr. Bellingham also said he had questions about why Fearon, a career criminal with more than 30 convictions, had been released early last Thursday after serving less than a third of a sentence for heroin dealing, his latest crime.
Thundered one outraged newspaper: "He is a low-life career criminal who has a record as long as a giraffe's neck."
In contrast, Mr. Martin, a first-time offender, was forced to serve the maximum two-thirds of his sentence. He was twice turned down for parole.
Mr. Fearon has also been given leave to sue Mr. Martin for compensation for the damage and distress caused by the shooting. He claims the incident affected his ability to enjoy sex and martial arts.
The lawsuit may not be the last of Mr. Martin's problems.
British newspapers reported members of Britain's gypsy, or traveller, community have warned he will be killed in revenge for the death of Barras, who was a gypsy. A price of £60,000 ($135,000) has reportedly been put on his head.
"He's a dead man. I don't know if it will be a traveller that will do it, but it will be a proper hit man, a professional job," the Express quoted one gypsy as saying.
"Something will happen to him, it's got to. And to those who say it's just talk, I'd say wait and see. The detectives can't be with him all the time, can they?" another said.
Supporters say Mr. Martin is determined to go back to his remote property, where a single yellow ribbon and a bunch of red roses had been left by well-wishers ahead of his release.
A mobile police station, manned 24 hours a day, has been set up at the rundown farm in the village of Emneth Hungate in response to the threats. It is expected to be staffed for several weeks to ensure Mr. Martin's safety.
The Daily Mirror said Mr. Martin had sold his story to the newspaper for an undisclosed fee.
"We, like most people, do not condone the fact that Tony Martin killed somebody," said Piers Morgan, the tabloid's editor.
"But we have enormous sympathy for a man who was repeatedly burgled in his own home and eventually felt compelled to take drastic action to defend himself and his property.
"The way the British justice system has treated Mr. Martin is, frankly, appalling," he said.
In response to an earlier post of this quote, I posted the following:
Traveler Scum.
Here's how Vlad Tepes handled some other rats:
"He [the Sultan] marched on for about five kilometers when he saw his men impaled; the Sultan's army came across a field with stakes, about three kilometers long and one kilometer wide. And there were large stakes on which they could see the impaled bodies of men, about twenty thousand of them, as they said; quite a spectacle for the Turks and the Sultan himself! The Sultan, in wonder, kept saying that he could not conquer the country of a man who could do such terrible and unnatural things. He also used to say that this man who did such things would be worthy of more. And the other Turks, seeing so many people impaled, were scared out of their wits." The Sultan withdrew.
Kill them all, let God sort them out.
I've got this feeling that Tony Martin doesn't care what the law says.
This is the way it will be in the US if the gunrabbers get their way. Only LEO's and felons (convicted on unconvicted) should have weapons according to the sara bradys of the world.
And therein lies another problem.
When the public loses interest, the police protection will go away.
Everyone in the UK will know that this farm has no weapons to defend it and that the police response is inadequate.
A clear green light to anyone who wants to commit a robbery or to or anyone who wants to collect on the bounty that the Romany have put on this farmer's head.
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