Man kills 2 People While 911 Is Telling Him Not To

[ElSapo]

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ElSapo-

I don't know...

How do you claim self defense in a potential life threatening situation that you voluntarily entered? If his personal safety was really his top priority, he would have stayed inside.

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I don't know what happens after he leaves the house and before the shooting. Yes, he made a mistake by leaving the house. I agree with that.

Legally though, and perhaps in his own morality, he felt he could and should try and stop them. Once that decision is made, the situation evolves.

Once he's outside and saying, "stop" then things happen. I don't know how it goes from there. But was he within his rights to try and stop them? I don't know. I think he has a strong case, and when I listen to the tape I hear a lot more than just an idiot with a gun.

Although, I think I also hear that part.

[James Boston]

ElSapo-

I guess my biggest issue here is that he seemed very aware of what he was walking into and what the likely outcome would be. My opinion would probably be different if he had made some type of gut reaction to grab his gun and attempt to stop a robery in progress, but he didn't. His first thought was to call the police. Then, after being told to stay inside and being told the police were coming, he decided to take matters into his own hands. We can't know if he had already made up his mind about shooting the men as he left his house. I feel like we do know 2 things though:

1) His safety wasn't really his top priority, or he wouldn't have gone outside.
2) He can't fully claim that he was the only one in a position to stop the act, given that he was told the police were almost there.

I guess my whole point is that he tried to stop them because he wanted to, not because he had to or needed to. Knowing he was entering into a situation that he acknowledged would likely merit self defense, and taking it upon himself to do so, doesn't seem reasonable or seem like a valid defense.

[ElSapo]

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I guess my whole point is that he tried to stop them because he wanted to, not because he had to or needed to. Knowing he was entering into a situation that he acknowledged would likely merit self defense, and taking it upon himself to do so, doesn't seem reasonable or seem like a valid defense.

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I think this is really important. There's a very strong argument that he created the situation himself. Now, you can also argue that that's complete BS - two thieves with criminal backgrounds created the situation.

But I actually agree with you, that essentially he put himself in a situation that very likely could lead to a need for violence. (Or even an unnecessary, kneejerk, nervous violent reaction)

I don't know how this will play out of course. I guess it just doesn't seem so clear to me. No, money and posessions are not worth someone's life. But I also understand the feeling that you should do something, to not feel helpless, to not want to sit there and wait while the police are still on the way.

Ugly situation.