By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
A 39-year-old man with a gun who confronted a prowler in his yard in Centralia last night ended up shot in his foot with his own weapon, according to what he told police.
The man told police who arrived after the 9:24 p.m. call to the 500 block of Hamilton Avenue that he’d gone outside to feed his cat, saw someone on his property and confronted him, Sgt. Carl Buster said.
Police were told the prowler “rushed” him and struck him in the head with a pipe, Buster said.
The 39-year-old said he began to draw his pistol, but the other guy shoved the gun down, causing the victim to shoot himself, according to police. The victim fired a second round at the suspect while he was running away, police said.
The prowler then disappeared into the night, Buster said.
Police summoned aid for the man, set up “containment” around the area and attempted to find the subject they were told was a white or Hispanic male, Buster said.
A police dog was summoned to assist.
The K-9 sniffed around the yard but could not pick up a scent to track, Buster said.
The victim had a bump on his head as well as the gunshot wound, but has already been released from the hospital, he said.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Slipped, tripped, shot himself in the foot and hit his head on the way down. Felt stupid, panic set in, made up a story that sounded better than the truth, shot gun again, called police, gave a great description of attacker but forgot one thing….he didnt think about a K9 showing up to the scene. If anyone can give one reason why the dog couldnt pick up a scent to track, please do tell.
If you don’t shoot how the hell do you get the bullet in them???
Looked on Google street view. There are homes and garages all around this location. So if you fire a gun about 6 ft in level, then where is this second bullet lodged? The bullet should be lodged inside of a building near by. This story is a story. Im not against guns or self defense, but i am against shooting a fleeing person in the back. If the storys true hes lucky he didnt hit the suspect.
K May-just because you were there within minutes of this happening doesn’t mean you know what went down-you know no more that what the supposed victim told everyone-come on folks-the guy shot himself in the foot-if the dog didn’t pick up a sent-it was because there was no sent
Yes the Darwin Award. Next crazy story please Sharoyn.
I am all for people of legal- aged, non felonious, safety class trained,non mental Americans having the right to protect themselves,their family,and their property with guns or whatever they can get to at time. BUT this sounds like a guy who shot himself in the foot, felt stupid, had to hit himself in head to make bump, And then called cops. I say that why? BECAUSE THE K-9 DOG DIDN’T PICK UP ANY TYPE OF SCENT!
I’m not anti-gun by any stretch, although I’d prefer to see fewer gangbangers toting them. People absolutely have the Second Amendment right to use one to protect themselves, their families and their homes. It’s HOW you use them that’s at issue here because when you shoot someone who’s running away from you, you’re not LEGALLY defending yourself at the moment you pull the trigger. Maybe not a big deal until you’re arguing it in front of a judge and jury.
I might be inclined to react the same way the guy described it (you say you arrived afterward so you didn’t actually witness anything either, K May), but I’d expect to be tried if I shot the perp in the back.
Edward Garner was a 14-year-old burglar. Memphis, TN police were called to a residence where Garner was practicing his trade. Garner ran out a back door and tried to climb a fence to escape. A uniformed officer shot him before he could do so, killing him. Garner had taken a women’s purse worth less than $20, and there was no indication he was armed.
Policy in most jurisdictions limits shooting of fleeing felons to situations where the escape would present a grave and immediate danger to public safety. An armed robbery suspect fleeing into a corn field would probably not qualify to be shot; one running toward an occupied school would. Obviously, each situation is unique, and the officer at the scene doesn’t have a lot of time to weigh the issues.
Situations where officers generally have a “green light” to shoot include preserving the life of others and defending against an immediate threat. Pointing a gun at a cop is probably the most clear-cut situation. Do that, and there is an excellent chance you’re going to get shot. Look up case laws before any of you try to attack me again for being right. You cannot shoot a fleeing person and its not legal if you do.
Not anti gun, but shooting a fleeing person and shooting them in the back is murder. Look up the word liberal its a joke. I dont fall in that category. My views are my opinion, we still have a right to those dont we. My belief is that quick draw was scared of the shadows and blew his own foot off then hit himself with the gun to make the story sound good. Where is the second bullet lodged. Oh thats right no details on that yet. My opinion not Lib tard or what ever you say… you cant shoot at a fleeing person, police are up on charges for doing this. Your wrong im right nana nana boo boo.
You guys all crack me up!!! I was there within minutes of the incident occurring and know how it went down. Besides a piece or two of information lacking in this report, the victim did what he felt he had to do while protecting his life…other than that, you weren’t there, and until your in the victims shoes, you simply don’t understand…but thanks for the laughs, especially the anti gun liberals who make themselves so obvious and easy to pick out!!
Judd Lee: I don’t think SG is right in comparing the court officer who pursued the inmate out of the courthouse and took a shot at him. For one thing the inmate had not assaulted him and was just trying to escape. He was not a violent criminal. They could have and did easily pick him up later. The officer was just butt hurt that the guy got away from him. He was fired and rightly so.
And I don’t think that you should take shots at fleeing people even if they have just assaulted you. But I think that in a stressful, fast moving situation where you have just been bludgeoned in the head and shot you can be excused for taking a parting shot. Who knows the guy could come back at you.
This is just like watching football on TV and not realizing how hard those hits and tackles are. One good hit like that would kill an old man like me. When the normal guy is hit on the head with a pipe and shot he might just keep lashing out until the assailant is gone.
I wouldn’t go out in my yard brandishing a gun at trespassers or thieves. I would never even show a gun unless I intended to use it. It’s best to let the cops handle it or let your insurance handle it unless your life is in danger. Stay in you house with your door locked. If they break down your door then empty your gun on them.
In this case, according to the article, the guy was unaware that the intruder was in his yard when he went out.
Giant is right, like it or not. That’s the law. Further, police can only shoot at fleeing assailants under certain conditions.
I do think the homeowner was in the right here even though the intruder may have been running away when he fired the second shot. He had already been assaulted with a deadly weapon and shot by the intruder. True it was his gun, but the actions of the intruder caused him to be shot. Once you are in a fast moving life or death struggle you are going to keep firing until the assailant is down or out of range or you run out of ammo.
I love the woman in Texas, when she was asked why she shot the assailant 7 times, responded, “when I pulled the trigger the eighth time it just went click”.
My advice is to stay in your house and call 9-11 but, in this case, the man didn’t go into his yard to confront the intruder and was not even aware that the intruder was there when he went to feed his cat.
He has every right to be armed on his property and it is probably prudent given the risk of assault or robbery. When I work in my garage at night with the door open I normally have my 9mm handy in case someone might think I’m a good robbery target. I’m too old to run or fight and I have no intention of being a victim.
This is no different than the court officer that lost his job for shooting at a fleeing suspect, his life was not in danger. You cannot shoot at someone running down the road with your tv either. The story has to many holes in it like the one in his foot. I think this dude was playing rambo and shot his own foot off then pistol whipped himself in the head to make the story sound credible. Furthermore has the second bullet been recovered or is the fly by night investigation over. Just my opinion though no need to attack me. Its funny how im always getting attacked for my opinion.
That line caught my eye, too, Beenthere. Unless the K-9 has the mother of all head colds, SOME kind of scent should’ve been left behind to pick up on. Has me wondering, although the RP did have a bump on his head.
And I’m not convinced SG is a liberal, given some of his past statements about illegal immigrants, and his definition of what constitutes a “threat” has been used by prosecutors in various jurisdictions as a dividing line between what is justifiable self-defense or not.
The threat was over after he ran away. You cant shoot someone running away. Theres a cop on trial for the same reason. Theres no frustration here its just my observation..
Just curious Giant, where do you get your facts? Our job is to stay in our homes??? Either your another liberal coward, or just an idiot! I, like most in this state, am a “pro gun” guy, and if I’m to put myself in this situation, I’m about 99.9% sure that the reason we have “Amendments” is to protect us in scenarios such as this. Was the assailant running away? According to the report he was, but put yourself in the victims shoes. You’ve just been struck in the head with a “pipe” and you feel as tho your life could be in danger. Had you not had a gun would he be alive right now? Sounds to me like the gun going off may have been the reason the victim is still here to talk about it. Any suspect that’s willing to strike a blow to another persons head with deadly intent, doesn’t care about you or anyone you know, they care about getting away, and they will do anything they can to make that happen. No different than all these ppl I see “police bashing”. An officer is to “protect and serve”, but at the end of the day of the scenario should arrive, is going to do whatever it takes to ensure he’s going home to his/her family at shifts end. Therefore, how do you know the shot the victim took wasn’t an intentional shot to ensure that he was able to see his family again? It would seem the victim might be disoriented after being struck both in the head and shot in the foot. And I agree, stray bullets are in fact deadly…but so is a pipe to the head…
The dog didnt pick up a scent to track. How can that be? A physical altercation, the outside temperature and humidity would have made the body produce a scent that a dog should be able to smell. Its more likely the guy shot himself in the foot, was embarrassed and made up the story to save face.
Depends on what you personally perceive as a threat to your safety. When the prowler struck the guy with the pipe the whole game changed. Assault with a deadly weapon ( a pipe ) would justify using deadly force, whether the assailant was trying to get away or not.
SG:
Read the article. The home owner was in his own yard when he saw the prowler. He did not go into his house and get a gun. More than likely, like many of us, he had it strapped on his hip. As far as firing at a fleeing prowler I agree that once he was running away the threat was over.
Running away and shooting someone in the back is not a threat to your life. The second shot was fired as the man was running away. Thats not a threat only the police can shoot you in the back
Correct Daniel. I am just waiting for my chance to give a thief lead poisoning.
Lol, the sleeping giant is crazy. If Washington we do not have a duty to retreat. You can shoot someone anywhere, anytime if they are a perceived threat to your life. There is no duty to stay in your home.
You cant shoot someone in your front yard. Your job is to stay in your home. They firing as the man is running away, you are not in danger. Luckily the stray bullet didnt hit an innocent victim. Only police can shoot you in the back when you run away.