TexasCHLforum.com

Personally, I would not shoot a perp just to protect my property that had a relatively low value (approx. $1,500 in the case of my golf clubs). Legally, I might be justified, but as far as what I would do? No, I likely would not shoot just to prevent the loss of $1,500.

But I might get out of my vehicle and draw my gun, as in the OP hypothetical. In that case, if the BG started casually walking away from me carrying my clubs, I would follow and observe. However, if he started closing the space between us, while carrying deadly weapons (the clubs), and possibly having other unseen weapons, then I might possibly decide to shoot to stop the approaching threat. If it came to that, I would try to not focus on the question of whether his life was worth more of less than the $1,500 worth of clubs. That is a decision best left to the BG. My decision would be based on the threat to me and my family.

In my driveway, it would be impossible for the BG to walk away from me, unless he was going back into the garage and toward my home. He could walk laterally, but one of the two possible directions would be toward my front door, and the other direction, he would run into a large shrub that would cause him to move toward me. All three of those options are potentially threatening to me or my family. This would complicate the decision somewhat.

I would probably also factor in the irrational behavior of continuing his theft while facing the business end of a .45. That would make me think he might well be unstable, high, or just plain crazy, which would also factor into my threat analysis.