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Almost a year down the road, the defense in this case filed a preliminary motion for dismissal and suppression of evidence, and the judge denied it.

http://www.startribune.com/local/233400341.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Defense attorneys always do this, and judges nearly always deny them.

- Jim

Dragged along with a continuance: http://www.sctimes.com/article/20130701-" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; J/NEWS01/307010050/Hearing-rescheduled-Little-Falls-man-accused-killing-teens

This is pretty much an example of what those pessimistic souls are thinking when they say every bullet comes with a lawyer and a $20,000 legal bill attached. I don't really agree with that statement, but events can go there.

Y'all have a great day.

- Jim

It doesn't sound good. But as usual it is filtered through the media. The situation looks worse for the suspect when the deceaseds' relatives are free to talk to reporters.

Not that I'm trying to play the devil's advocate. The delay calling 911 alone caused this guy a world of grief.

- Jim

A bond hearing was held today, and audio recordings from surveillance equipment in the home were played in open court.

The suspect's bond was reduced to a level that he could meet, and he bonded out with conditions that included surrendering his firearms and passport. (These conditions are common in felony cases.)

http://brainerddispatch.com/news/crime/ ... il-reduced" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://brainerddispatch.com/news/crime/ ... eased-bail" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

- Jim

Law enforcement officials executed six search warrants which, among other factioids, reportedly turned up evidence that the deceased burglars had burglarized another house the same day or a day earlier.

The headline of the following story is "Little Falls-area man accused of shooting teens had surveillance system that recorded break-in." Exactly what was recorded is unknown and probably will come out at trial in a year or two.

http://www.sctimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/ar ... 2312090049" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The homeowner is still in jail.

- Jim

His appearance does contribute to the insanity defense, which, as far as I can tell, is the only "get out of jail" card left for him.

This episode probably will play out for a year or two, but so far it is a textbook example of how to turn justified self defense into a felony.

- Jim

If you're on the post office wall, at least you're not in jail (yet).

Do they still have wanted posters at the post office? I haven't noticed them for years. Maybe they're in a dark corner or something.

- Jim

ELB wrote:I would expect any school official, from janitor to superintendent, who pointed out that these two "kids" deliberately, if unthinkingly, put themselves in the position where it was morally and legally justifiable to shoot them in self-defense would be drummed out of the county ...

Arguably it would be inappropriate to talk about the specific people who were killed in this case, given the raw emotions.

I just wonder if anyone (other than a few parents) tells kids these days that actions have consequences, and that sometimes they are irreversible. When I was a kid we were absolutely terrified to going to the Audy Home, which is the male juvenile detention center in Chicago. It was and still is a horrible place.

- Jim

Keith B wrote:I showed up at a party one time in a suit and every one else was in jeans and flip-flops. I felt pretty uncomfortable being so over dressed.

'
My high school (as I said, back in the Pleistocene) required us to wear a dress shirt, tie, and jacket all the time. That was considered appropriate business attire for men, and they thought we should get used to it. It worked.

I rarely mind being overdressed. Actually I rarely give a Rhett Butler for what people think.

Keith B wrote:... if you really want to look good maybe you could just go to Glamor Shots and have a really spiffy photo done, print up some small ones and give them to the police and ask them to use it for the mug shot photo.

I don't think they would accept that.

However, one of my time-wasters is looking at mug shots. Some people (mostly women) look exactly like they are posing for a fashion shoot—makeup, hairstyle, jewelry, the whole nine yards.

- Jim

Here are some follow-up stories. The two deceased burglars had almost certainly committed other burglaries. Since dead people can't be formally accused of a crime, that information is probably all that will come out about that aspect of the incident.

The accused homeowner got one of the more reputable criminal defense lawyers in Minnesota.

http://brainerddispatch.com/news/crime/ ... ies-abroad" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.sctimes.com/viewart/20121129 ... polis-firm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
http://www.kare11.com/news/article/1000 ... t-attorney" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I don't mean to make light of a serious incident, but one lesson I take away from it is before you open the door for the police, make sure you shave, comb your hair, and wear a decent shirt. Those mug shots get repeated on media sites thousands of times.

- Jim

I agree that the deceased, if they were, as reported, trying to steal drugs, weren't pulling up the average IQ of the state of Minnesota. Burglary is stupid. Burglars typically don't get much value out of what they steal, and the hazards are obvious.

Identity theft and embezzlement have a much better payoff, and those people don't get shot. I saw the other day where some guy had embezzled $2 million and just couldn't quit, until he got caught. But I digress.

The defender, while initially justified in using deadly force ...

- Jim

Do you feel better now?

- Jim

That article contains information that I had not read before, that the deceased burglars are suspected of another burglary a day earlier.

The homeowner was perfectly justified in shooting to stop the burglars. If had just listened to and understood Charles Cotton's deadly force lecture, he would be a free man today.

- Jim

urnoodle wrote:It's ugly to say but maybe bringing gang bangers and students with behavioral problems into that basement to see the consequences those actions might have an impact. Talking about it just doesn't seem to work.

You can tell them. You can show them. But sometimes they have to learn the hard way. Also there seems to be a nihilistic streak among some kids, which was not the case when I was that age (back in the Pleistocene era). They don't care if they totally screw up their life or the life of anyone else, or get killed.*

Obviously we can blame all the usual suspects such as the disintegration of the family, loss of moral and religious values, the Pill, drugs, and rock and roll.

*P.S.: Upon reflection, there were people like that, but I had nothing to do with them. They were called juvenile delinquents at that time. Now they are called at-risk youth.

- Jim

ELB wrote:I hope the school administrators and grief counselors take a moment to point out to the students that if you don't screw yourself up by abusing drugs and breaking into houses, then crazy old men who are otherwise not hurting anybody won't have a chance to over zealously defend their homes.

If only it worked that way.

"Scared straight" programs can work with some kids. When I was in high school they took us on a tour of Cook County jail. This was a bad place. You could smell it from the parking lot. Years later I realized that the inmates that we encountered probably were trustys who were stationed to do exactly what they did, which was scare the stuffing out of us. One of them stuck his well-muscled arm between the bars and said something like, "Yum, fresh meat."

Also those wrecked cars and ghost plays might deter some kids from drinking and driving.

However, some don't learn by example, and some are removed from the gene pool. It's sad. It really is. Probably a dozen living people will not be the same after this incident, for the rest of their lives.

- Jim