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It's quite possible he could be in shock or something, but his initial demeanor when he got back on the phone sounded quite calm and composed to me.
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He sounded composed but agitated, if that makes sense. He was still articulate and able to clearly say what he meant; and he could respond to questions. But his voice was fast and loud and suggested he was excited.
I don't think his state matters much if at all. This isn't an irresistible impulse case. I don't see any language in the Texas statute that forbids him from putting himself in this situation.
In fact, it expressly permits him to stop a list of delinated crimes by use of deadly force -- including robbery.
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Was it robbery or was it burglary? It sounds like burglary, and every news article I've seen has referred to the 2 men as "burglars" as opposed to "robbers". This is huge in this instance. btw I brought up Garner to show that police have the right to fire upon fleeing violent felons, not just any joe who sees someone stealing a car or something. Apparently that's not necessarily the case in Texas. I found some interesting quotes from
this article. Here are some:
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The Pasadena man who killed two suspected burglars as they left his next-door neighbor's home did not intend to kill them when he stepped outside with his 12-gauge shotgun, his lawyer said Friday.
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Hmmm, that's kind of interesting considering the number of times he said "I'm gonna kill 'em" (or something similar) over the course of a 6 and a half miunute phone call to the 911 operator.
Another quote:
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"Mr. Horn, do not go outside the house. You're going to get yourself shot if you go outside that house with a gun," the dispatcher told Horn at one point.
"You wanna make a bet," Horn responded. "I'm gonna kill them. They're gonna get away."
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Killed in the incident in the 7400 block of Timberline were Miguel Antonio DeJesus, 38, and Diego Ortiz, 30, both of Houston.
Each had a minor previous brush with the law. Records show DeJesus was charged with failure to identify himself to a police officer in July 2004. He pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 20 days in jail. Ortiz was charged with possession of marijuana in July 2005, but it was later dismissed.
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So between the two, there hasn't been a single violent felony charge, burglary isn't a violent crime per se, and it hasn't been reported that they were armed. All you have is the man's testimony that they "ran at him". One thing I think is also strange is that you hear 2 consecutive shotgun blasts, a couple seconds of delay, and one final one. Could it be inferred that the 2nd man was fleeing but was then taken down by the 3rd shotgun blast several seconds after? This could easily be answered from looking at the crime scene, but I haven't found any info on that after a google search.
Finally:
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Attorneys and legal experts said Horn's defense probably will be based on state law that allows people to use deadly force to protect neighbors' property.
"If you see someone stealing your neighbor's property, you can get involved and help to stop it," said Sandra Guerra Thompson, a law professor at the University of Houston Law Center.
Others disagreed.
The statutes that allow people to use deadly force to stop a burglary appear to require that the incident be occurring at night, said Craig Jett , a Dallas criminal defense attorney and president of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyer's Association.
"It can't be during the day," Jett said.
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It seems that the tipping point is the interpretation of the Texas statute, whether or not the man gets charged with anything. Personally, I think the 911 call revealed an intent; maybe he'll be bailed out by commanding them "to stop or I'll shoot", and if they were actually on his property, because this is Texas after all.
Definitely an interesting case though. Good posts Treesong, this stuff really interests me. The defendants are hispanic, not black as the man thought, if that changes anything.