Victim in Pasco hate crime had gun, decided not to use it

[ejector]

http://www.tampabay.com/news/publicsafe ... es/1268955" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mohammed, 24, kept his gun in the holster. Because his attacker used a pellet gun. Mohammed's was real.

"I don't know. I just couldn't do it," Mohammed said, recovering at his Tampa home two days after the attack. "I couldn't blow this guy away for something he could change later in life. I'm not going to decide this man's fate."

[Oldgringo]

Interesting, wwyd?

Me, for openers, I wouldn't be goin' to Walmart or anywhere else at 0300 hrs. I also question why this Quinnell dude is not behind bars somewhere.

[Dave2]

Me, for openers, I wouldn't be goin' to Walmart or anywhere else at 0300 hrs.

Nah, 3am is the best time to go anywhere other than a public ATM. There aren't any lines and I generally don't feel like I'm interrupting the employees as much when I them ask for something.

[texanjoker]

That is a perfect example that one doesn't know whether or not they could truly do it, until faced with that decision.....

[Oldgringo]

That is a perfect example that one doesn't know whether or not they could truly do it, until faced with that decision.....

, it sounds like this Quinnell dude needs to be put away but who's gonna' $tep up and do it?

[Dragonfighter]

Anyone remember the guys going around firing paintball guns at people and filming it? The sad fact is I would probably have returned fire. They "pop" and really hurt and if I saw a red splat where I was hurting I would count myself dead and return fire. A pellet gun on the other hand is, or at least can be, a lethal weapon; ask the mafia.

[The Annoyed Man]

Second child killed in pellet gun accident: http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/9186324/

I have seen people shot with a pellet gun who required emergency surgical intervention to save their lives. I don't care if it's only a pellet gun. If you pull one on me, I'm going to pull mine and shoot you. In my opinion, the victim in this crime ought to seriously reconsider if CHL is for him. Would he have fired on this thug if the BG had been shooting his wife or child with that pellet gun?

[punkndisorderly]

Sounds like a textbook sociopath. Hope he goes away for a long time.

I'm not sure I would have drawn. Would have depended on how I interpreted the situation at the moment. Would I have understood what was happening? Would I have felt the pain, seen the gun, and thought I was being shot with a "real" gun? id I have a clear line of fire and the chance of hitting innocent bystanders was low?

The thought of having to make a decision like that in seconds has always bothered me. Having to make that decision beats not being armed and having the decision made for you, though.

Situations like this reaffirm my belief that carrying things in addition to a gun alone make sense. Pepper spray may have been a great option here.

[Moby]

An absolute time to fire.
Pellet guns can and do kill.

I can't understand how he knew it was a pellet gun but he must have.
If a pellet was stick in his forhead, an eye shot could have killed him.

The Martine/Zimmerman thing may have people afraid to defend themselves.

For me....I'd have shot. my call

[C-dub]

The BGs own mom turned him in and lead police right to him. And then he gets taken to the butter jail.

I'd have shot him. I wonder what it will take for this guy to ever pull his gun. He may die with it in his holster.

[Jim Beaux]

Logic dictates that deadly force be met with same. I wonder what the CHL will feel if the thug kills someone in the future.

[Heartland Patriot]

Just making sure I have this correct...in Texas, a pellet gun would be considered a deadly weapon?

[Dave2]

Just making sure I have this correct...in Texas, a pellet gun would be considered a deadly weapon?

Dunno about their legal standing, but it'd seem that they've been used to kill people.

[LabRat]

Just making sure I have this correct...in Texas, a pellet gun would be considered a deadly weapon?

Can a pellet gun be a deadly weapon? Sure. In my mind its entirely possible.
If it "is capable of causing serious bodily injury"; then I would think it would be a deadly weapon.
Reports of serious injuries and deaths caused by the criminal or negligent use of pellet guns are not uncommon.

As we know, any item may become a deadly weapon depending on how it's used.
A pillow might seem non-threatening, but if used to smother another person, it becomes a deadly weapon (capable of causing serious bodily injury).

The use of force and deadly force statues concentrate on the actions being committed (murder, aggravated sexual assault, aggravated robbery, etc).
That's the important key as to what response is considered lawful.

To the OP: Why this guy decided not to shoot is his own to ponder over.
I'm not going to second guess him; I wasn't there and I'm not him.
He has to determine if it was right for him. Next time, he might not be so lucky.

LabRat
BTW: I ain't no lawyer - never was, am not and never will be.

[Oldgringo]

Just making sure I have this correct...in Texas, a pellet gun would be considered a deadly weapon?

I dunno', HP. At that time of night/morning and in that setting, a gun is a gun.....