San Antonio: Young Man Shoots and Kills Would-Be Robber

[Paladin]

http://www.woai.com/news/local/story.as ... 3F6641980F

"Young Man Shoots and Kills Would-Be Robber
LAST UPDATE: 7/11/2006 11:29:11 AM
Posted By: Laura Berryhill

A young San Antonio man shot and killed a burglar while trying to protect his home on the North Side.

The 23-year-old fired off several shots while burglars tried to kick down the front door at his home on Summit Creek in the Stone Oak area.

The home's front door was riddled with bullet holes and showed signs of the suspects' shoeprints.

Neighbors told us they don't know what they would've done if someone had tried to kick down their door. They agreed the young man who fired at the intruder must have been terrified.

Police say two of the men who live at the home woke up after hearing a door slam. One of them looked out his window and saw 3 suspects approaching the house. Two of them ran along the side of the house, the other rang the door bell.

Seconds later, one of the men started to kick down the front door. A man inside the home then grabbed a gun and started shooting at the door.

Neighbors said they heard several gunshots. Police say the suspect was hit, but managed to run from the scene.

Neighbor Paul Davis said there was a trail of blood leading from the driveway down and across the street. The burlgar collapsed and died in front of a home a few blocks away.

The young man who fired the shot is not facing any charges. The other two robbery suspects got away.

If you have any information about this crime, please call Crime Stoppers at 210-224-STOP. "

[propellerhead]

Good for him.

[spud]

Correct me if im wrong, But I thought that in TX you coudent shoot though your front door at someone because they are not in your house yet nor have you retreated. My instructor has been wrong twice before, just trying to clear this up.

[Paladin]

Correct me if im wrong, But I thought that in TX you coudent shoot though your front door at someone because they are not in your house yet nor have you retreated. My instructor has been wrong twice before, just trying to clear this up.

My understanding is that it is not burglary if they are entirely outside your house.

However since the criminals were attempting to beat down the door, you could consider the situation defending your property in the night-time.

Although I know that 3 guys trying to break into my house would definitely put me in fear of my life.

[propellerhead]

It does seem complicated. I had to consider 1) night time 2) two guys go around the side of the house 3) one is kicking in the door. At that point, you have reason to believe your life is in danger. Burglary or assault isn't happening yet but the threat is there. On the other hand, shooting through a door is reckless. An innocent bystander could get hit. Unlikely but possible.

[Charles L. Cotton]

Shooting through a door is not per se unlawful, but you'd better have a good explanation why you reasonably believed deadly force was immediately necessary to prevent . . . A good example is looking through a peep hole or window in the door and seeing a suspect pointing a gun at the door.

I'm glad the fellow isn't going to be charged and he probably had an explanation that satisfied the investigating officer and/or the ADA. As some have mentioned, the other factors such as multiple assailants moving to different locations around the house may have been considered significant; i.e. the chance multiple attackers would gain entrance at or about the same time, thus making defense much more difficult.

All this said, I've heard a number of news reports about homeowners in the Houston area shooting through doors over the years, but I can't recall any being prosecuted. Still, it's a risky move.

Chas.

[KBCraig]

This is a case that is difficult to justify per the law, so thank goodness the "He needed shootin'" defense is sometimes still valid in Texas.

Anyone trying to kick in your door at 3am needs shootin'.

Kevin

[kw5kw]

PC §9.22. NECESSITY. Conduct is justified if:
(1) the actor reasonably believes the conduct is immediately necessary
to avoid imminent harm;

[anygunanywhere]

The old "I will not really know what I would do until..." certainly applies here.

If someone is kicking the door, and I know there is more than one, waiting until the door is kicked in is not an acceptable alternative. My opinion. Once they are inside, the situation will degrade quickly.

At 3 AM, the chances of hitting IB's is small, although not zero.

Real life scenarios often do not give a lot of time to make decisions. I am certainly glad this individual survived the incident and that the DA seems to be reasonable.

Anygun

[Paladin]

Some more details here:

http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/ ... 60a52.html

"Police say resident shot would-be intruder to death

Web Posted: 07/11/2006 12:00 AM CDT
Vianna Davila
San Antonio Express-News

A suspected burglar was killed early Monday as he tried to break into a North Side home and a resident shot him through the front door, police said.

Preliminary investigations indicate the resident, Leonard Packham, was justified in firing at the would-be intruder because he was in fear for his life. Police are continuing to investigate the case as an attempted burglary, said San Antonio police Sgt. Gabe Trevino.

Texas law allows a person to use deadly force in self-defense or to defend someone else if the action is what "a reasonable person" would do in the particular situation.

The case will be sent to the Bexar County district attorney's office for a final ruling.

The sound of a pickup door slamming woke Packham, 23, as he slept in his second-floor bedroom inside the house in the 25100 block of Summit Creek around 2:30 a.m. Monday, a police report said.

He looked out the window and saw at least three males get out of two Ford Ranger pickups and walk toward his driveway, the report said.

Then one of them rang the doorbell as the others ran toward the side of the house and in the direction of Packham's backyard.

At some point, Packham called 911. He ran for his handgun and then to the bedroom of another man who lives in the house. That man ran for his gun, and the two waited at the top of the stairs, the report continued. [nice! ]

The would-be burglars then returned to the front door, but this time they tried to kick it in.

The next sound was that of Packham's gun as he fired several shots toward the door from the top of the stairs. Then he heard nothing, the report said.

Police later found a male they believe to be one of the suspected burglars sprawled on the ground in the 3100 block of Summit Crest, around the corner from Packham's home. He died from apparent gunshot wounds, the report said.

The Bexar County medical examiner's office had not identified him Monday. The other two males were at large.

Hours after the shooting, shards of glass from the front-door windows still were heaped at the entrance to the house. Small blood spots dotted the walkway to the door and trailed down to the street.

Neighbors said incidents such as Monday's shooting were anomalies on their quiet street.

From Jan. 1 through the end of May, police were called to the street nine times, according to the most available crime statistics on the Police Department's Web site. Of those, five were to report vehicle burglaries in January.

"This is a good neighborhood," said J.D. Lowrie, 22, who was visiting his mother, Packham's next-door neighbor.

"Look at this neighborhood," said Summit Creek resident Dennis Glaser, as he gestured to his left and then his right. "It's the first time this kind of thing has happened (here)." "

[Paladin]

We've talked a about some of the legal aspects of this shoot, but I've been thinking about the tactical aspects.

Overall, from a tactical perspective, I very much think that the residents handled things well. Not perfect, but well.

First of all, Packham was alert. He heard noise outside and checked it at 2:30AM. He saw what was going on early. Situational awareness is a HUGE advantage and Packham had it. Can't emphasize this enough.

Packham's actions were to #1- call 911, #2 get a gun, #3 wake other resident to get his gun. Personally I'd get my gun first, before calling 911, but whatever order IMHO Packham did all the right things here.

Packham and the other resident waited in ambush at the point where the badguys were attempting to make entry. I like this plan. It's an excellent plan. The entry point into the house (i.e. door) is a 'fatal funnel' for the badguys.

Packham shot thru the door, hitting one badguy. This is where I see some potential issues. Surprising the badguys and not letting them rush through the door is great from a tactical perspective. Shooting blindly is not great. One should ID a target before shooting. I don't know if the front door had glass or was solid... but shooting blindly through a solid door is risky.

Packham did a lot of things right, but it appears that he did take a serious life and death chance shooting through the door.

[Paladin]

Some other thoughts:

I know a lot of people favor the 'saferoom' home defense plan, but I think everyone should be aware that that plan has some shortcomings. First of all, if you don't have early warning/situational awareness... the badguys may make it in the saferoom before you have the chance to set up.

Secondly, if the badguys know your plan they can exploit it.

When you go up against a human adversary things aren't simple. If the badguys know your plan... even if your plan is the "best" plan... with their knowledge they can exploit the "best" plan and make it the worst plan for you.

I think everybody should have a saferoom plan and a home evacuation plan, but I believe you're better off with a bit more sophistication. Plans like ambushing the badguys at the point of entry and tactical searches are useful and have their place.

[propellerhead]

Packham shot thru the door, hitting one badguy. This is where I see some potential issues. Surprising the badguys and not letting them rush through the door is great from a tactical perspective. Shooting blindly is not great. One should ID a target before shooting. I don't know if the front door had glass or was solid... but shooting blindly through a solid door is risky.

Can you imagine what the news story would be if the "badguys" were actually US Marshalls, SWAT or any other law enforcement agency with the wrong address?

[Corona]

Thought I recalled that you can shoot to stop someone commiting something as petty as criminal mischief. Also, I thought I remembered that the law was much more lenient at night.