Knox County, Tennessee



From Knoxville’s WBIR.com of September 29, 2004

Stepfather shoots stepson in West Knox County



A Knox County stepfather shoots his stepson to stop him from attacking another family member.



It happened Tuesday night in a West Knox County home in the Cabbott Ridge subdivision.



Sheriff Tim Hutchison says Ronnie Chandler shot 29 year old Albert Cannon once in the stomach.



The sheriff says Cannon was beating his 48 year old aunt, who apparently came to confront him about sexually assaulting her daughter, Cannon's cousin.



The sheriff confirms Cannon was indicted last year for sexual assault.



"It's obvious the 29 year old is having some problems," Sheriff Hutchison say. "And he kept beating his aunt, and his stepdad and mom couldn't stop stop it, except for shooting him one time."



No charges are expected to be filed against the stepfather.

Trenton, New Jersey



From Long Island’s Newsday.com of September 24, 2004

Retired officer shoots pistol-pointing man



A retired city police officer shot and wounded a man who pointed a gun at him Friday morning during an argument in a bar, police said.



Earl Hill, 47, who was carrying his personal Glock 9mm semiautomatic pistol, said other bar patrons were involved in a verbal altercation when he arrived there around 10 a.m. Hill told authorities that Theodore Demetrius Meekins, 39, of Trenton, then took out a handgun and pointed it at him.



Hill told Meekins, who also is known as Theodore Wilson, to drop the gun, but he refused, police said. Hill then fired three shots at Meekins, who was hit once in the lower abdomen and once in the right leg.



Meekins then dropped his gun as he ran out of the bar, but later went to St. Francis Medical Center where he underwent surgery for his wounds.



Meekins, who is expected to fully recover, was charged with aggravated assault.

Atlanta, Georgia



From Atlanta‘s CBSAtlanta.com of September 24, 2004

Former police officer shoots, kills man in attempted carjacking



A former Atlanta police officer was wounded after shooting and killing a man who tried to take his car.



The retired director of Atlanta's corrections department and a former police officer -- J-D Hudson -- is hospitalized in stable condition.



He was taken to Grady Memorial Hospital following the shootout around 10:30 p-m Thursday at his home in south Fulton County.



One suspect was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities are looking for a second suspect.



Lieutenant Darryl Halbert says the two men may have followed Hudson to his home to steal his late-model Cadillac. Hudson was struck several times.

Buffalo, New York



From Buffalo‘s WIVB.tv of September 25, 2004

Fatal Shooting May Have Been Self Defense



Buffalo Police are investigating a fatal shooting that may have been an act of self defense.



Officers say around 9:30 Friday night two teenagers broke into a social club for senior citizens on Genesee Street near Sherman.



Police beleive the teens were trying to rob the members, and threatened them with a shot gun.



The shot gun went off and a member of the club returned fire, killing one teen, injuring the other.



Police say the man that fired the shots did have a pistol permit for the gun.



They do believe he fired in self defense, but are continuing their investigation.

Wichita, Kansas



From Wichita’s KSNW-TV of September 24, 2004

Grandmothers involved in shootout



A shootout in north Wichita has neighbors talking. That's because the alleged shooters are both grandmothers.



The scene played out in the 2600 block of North Holyoke.



"She come out with her black gun. She didn't know I had my little .25 automatic," said Ann Gartner.



"She pulled out a pistol and it was like the wild, wild West at the old folks home," said neighbor Gary Potts.



"I stepped around the right side of the car and 'pow,'" said Gartner. "I nearly hit her in the shoulder."



It's normally quiet in the 2600 block of North Holyoke except for Thursday.



Fifty-three year old Bertha Criner was on the front porch. 82-year-old Ann had driven up to Criner's home and the two got into a verbal argument which escalated into gunfire.

…

.When the bullets stopped flying, no one was injured and police say Ann was shooting in self defense.



Police arrested 53-year-old Bertha Criner.

Anchorage, Alaska



From Anchorage‘s KTUU.com of September 23, 2004

Dog-walker shoots brown bear on Fort Richardson



Picture this -- a 750-pound brown bear in full charge, just feet away. You have just a fraction of a second to react, and your life depends on it.



That’s exactly the situation an East Anchorage man found himself in Thursday afternoon while taking his dog for a walk.



In the front yard of Gary Boyd’s house, a crowd gathers. The conservation piece -- a massive brown bear hide stretched across his lawn. Just a couple of hours earlier, that bear was alive -- and not far from Boyd’s house -- on Fort Richardson.



Boyd was walking his dog on a nearby road when he heard something big coming through the brush. He instinctively drew his weapon -- a .44-caliber handgun.



“When he broke into the open at a full run, he was at about 20 feet from me and that's when I fired the first round,” Boyd said. “And then he didn't turn and I shot a second time at about 15 feet and that turned him to the right, and then I shot him three more times.”

…

Boyd says it’s fortunate the way it worked out, because shortly after he shot the bear a group of high school cross country runners passed by that very spot.



(More)

Croom-a-Coochee. Florida



From the Leesburg Daily Commercial of September 23, 2004

Man rams house, is shot



A Center Hill man was shot and then arrested after he rammed his pickup into his former girlfriend’s home and threatened her with a hammer, according to Lt. Bobby Caruthers.



Caruthers said Troy Lee Jennings, 46, had gotten into an argument with a woman he previously lived with, Judith Carr, on Tuesday night while the two were in Center Hill. During the argument, Jennings managed to break the steering column on Carr’s Ford Expedition, but Carr called her 20-year-old son Donald to pick her up.



Caruthers said Carr received threatening phone calls at her mobile home in Croom-a-Coochee throughout the night from Jennings, and around 8 a.m. Wednesday morning, Jennings rammed his GMC pickup into the bedroom area of the home.



Though Jennings caused only minimal damage to the home, he then grabbed a hammer from inside his truck and shattered the window into Carr’s bedroom, Caruthers said. Carr ran from the room, and at the same time, her son Donald ran in and shot Jennings twice with a 22-caliber rifle.



Jennings was hit in the right arm and in the right shoulder blade, Caruthers said.



Jennings was transported to South Lake Hospital, but was released Wednesday afternoon and taken to the Sumter County jail.



Caruthers said he is being charged with three counts of aggravated battery and one count of burglary. He is being held without bond.



Caruthers said Donald Carr will probably not be charged for shooting Jennings.



“At this time, detectives are going to do the report and review it with the State Attorney’s Office, but it is their belief that Donald was using self-defense because his mother was being attacked with this hammer and their house was rammed by this vehicle,” he said.

West Eugene, Oregon



From Eugene’s NBC16.com of September 23, 2004

Springfield woman will not face charges in shooting



The Springfield woman who shot her estranged boyfriend last Thursday will not face charges.



Police say the woman shot 47-year old Kevin Millican in the head at a West Eugene home.



Investigators say the couple had been involved in an altercation the day before, and the woman had gone to a friend's house to avoid Millican.



Friends say Millican showed up at the house repeatedly looking for her. Authorities say she told him to leave last Thursday. According to reports, she shot him when he advanced toward her.



Millican remains in critical condition in the intensive care unit at Sacred Heart Hospital.

Sunnyside, Washington



From Yakima’s KIMAtv.com of September 21, 2004

Store Owner Talks About Shoot Out



Police say pair of masked robbery suspects walked into this market and pulled guns on the man behind the counter. That clerk was also owner, Uriel Barjas. He says they got away with some money but not before he fired three rounds.



"I acted like I was going to lay on the ground, but instead grabbed my gun," says Barjas. "I straightened up and fired."



Police don't know if the suspects were injured.



It's not the first time Barjas has come face to face with criminals, either. There's been a string of robberies in the area. Store owners are getting together to talk about how to arm themselves.

Little Rock, Arkansas



From Little Rock‘s WATV.com of August 12, 2004

Two Men Charged in Death of Partner in Shootout



Police say two robbery suspects face capital murder charges for the death of another man who was working with them, even though neither actually shot him.



Reginald Scroggins, the man whose bullet killed Cortelyous Johnson, has not been charged because it appears he was acting in self-defense.



Sergeant Terry Hastings, spokesman for the Little Rock Police department, said prosecutors are reviewing whether to charge Scroggins or not.



The men charged with killing 28-year-old Cortelyous Johnson are 22-year-old Jarrett Johnson and 23-year-old Gregory Williams, 23. They're also charged with two counts of committing a terroristic act and four counts of aggravated robbery.



A police report says the three men were robbing people outside a Little Rock nightclub early Monday.

No subsequent stories about this incident were found.

Jackson, Mississippi



From the Jackson Clarion-Ledger of August 5, 2004

Slaying case to be heard by grand jury



A grand jury will decide if a 16-year-old boy who allegedly killed his mother's boyfriend will be charged, police said Wednesday.



Michael Smith is accused of killing Robert Day, 47, after Day allegedly shot Margaret Smith, 35, of Pittsburgh Street, on Tuesday night in a field at Dalton and Deerpark streets in west Jackson after they had attended a National Night Out event blocks away from their home.



Margaret Smith and Day had "a considerable history with the police department," said Jackson Police Department spokesman Robert Graham.



Day was pronounced dead at the scene of a gunshot wound to the face, Hinds County Coroner Sharon Grisham-Stewart said. Margaret Smith was pronounced dead at 11:30 a.m. Wednesday at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. Grisham-Stewart said Smith had a gunshot wound to the head.



Day, who police say had been arrested for other offenses, including murder, had been "waving the weapon" around at the event, Graham said.



When the event was over, Margaret Smith and Day got into an argument, Graham said.



"Day produced a weapon and shot Margaret Smith in the head," Graham said. "Smith's son then produced a weapon and shot Robert Day."



Michael Smith was taken into custody, questioned and released, Graham said.



No charges have been filed against him yet, he said.



Police may classify the shooting as a justifiable homicide, Graham said. The case is now in the hands of a grand jury.

No subsequent stories about this incident were found.

Anchorage, Alaska

From Anchorage‘s KTUU.com of September 17, 2004

Don’t mess with old lady and her shotgun

An 18-year-old man is behind bars, charged with attempted burglary Thursday morning in a Fairview neighborhood. Police arrested him after he was apprehended by the resident of the home he invaded -- an angry 70-year-old woman.

It’s normally a quiet neighborhood, with Shiloh Baptist Temple only a block away. For some reason, the teen targeted this house in broad daylight, apparently ignoring the “Dog in Yard” sign, and soon found out he was messing with the wrong lady.

Just another Thursday morning, and 70-year-old Edna Brackney came home a little earlier than usual. As she reached her door, she saw the deadbolt had been broken.

“I knew something because of the door, that we had been burglarized.”

She called 911. “Nothing was disturbed in the kitchen,” Brackney said. “Nothing disturbed in the living room. I was calling my dog because I was worried about him.”

Six-year-old Sam the poodle smelled the intruder, hiding in the hallway bathroom. “Sammy’s a good boy. He showed me where that guy was, yes, sir. ‘Till the dog growled I didn't know he was in there. Then I pulled the door shut.”

Brackney was in no mood to leave. She stood her ground, holding her gun -- “a Brazilian stagecoach shotgun” -- pointed down the hallway toward the door 10 feet away.

“I was too mad. Soon as you step through that door, I will shoot,” she told the teen. “The cops are coming. You better sit down.”

“It’s loaded and I know how to use it. And down the hallway, there's nothing you can hit but what you're aiming for.”

Brackney says her home was burglarized nine years ago. This time she was ready.

“When we bought this at a second-hand store, a policeman was there and showed us how to use it.”

Brackney held the intruder there until police arrived. Friday, 18-year-old Lee Guerra was arraigned at the Anchorage Jail, charged with attempted burglary.

“The police thanked me,” Brackney said. “They said they knew him and they thanked me and they said I did a good job.”

.

Hartford, Kansas



From Topeka’s WIBW.com of September 17, 2004

No Charges Filed



The Coffey County prosecutor says a rural Hartford man was justified in killing his wife's ex-husband after he burst into their home and attacked them with a knife. County Attorney Douglas Witteman says Delano Nixon will face no charges. Authorities say 62-year-old Theodore Schmidt went to the southeast Kansas home of Delano and Linda Nixon on July 24th after fatally stabbing his girlfriend, 35-year-old Lisa Ragsdale. Witteman says Ragsdale was trying to end her relationship with Schmidt. He says Schmidt killed her by cutting her throat with a paring knife. Schmidt then drove to the home of the Nixons, who married one year after her 1991 divorce. Delano Nixon grabbed a single-shot shotgun that he kept in his bedroom. When he encountered Schmidt at the door of the bedroom, Nixon was knocked aside and suffered a knife wound across the chest. He killed Schmidt after the intruder attacked Linda Nixon and slashed her throat.

Detroit, Michigan



From Detroit’s ClickOnDetroit.com of September 16, 2004

Police: Shooting Is Clear-Cut Case Of Self-Defense



Man Attacked With Golf Club



A motorist attacked Wednesday afternoon by a man with a golf club fired back in self-defense, according to police .



A Michigan Department of Corrections parole officer exchanged heated words with a driver and his two female passengers near the northbound Lodge service drive at Euclid on Detroit's west side, according to police.



When the parole officer stopped at a traffic light, the man in the other car attacked him with a golf club and the two women used Club-like anti-security devices to smash out the windows of the officer's truck.



"He was being assaulted in a violent fashion by these people," said Cmdr. Craig Schwartz, of the Detroit Police Department. "They actually did strike him, causing injury to his head."



Police said during the altercation, the parole officer pulled out his registered firearm and fired a shot at the man.



The man was taken to Henry Ford Hospital where he was pronounced dead.



Local 4 Safety Expert Ike McKinnon said called the incident a clear-cut case of self-defense.



McKinnon said the golf club and other devices used in the attack against the officer could be considered deadly weapons.



"That's a weapon. Depending on how it's swung, you could lose your life," McKinnon said.



McKinnon said that anytime a person feels their life is in immediate danger, they are justified in protecting themselves.

Harrison Township, Pennsylvania



From Pittsburgh’s WPXI.com of September 14, 2004

Harrison Township Home Invasion Turns Deadly



A homeowner allegedly fought back against a masked intruder.



Harrison Township police said Ras-saleem Hudson, 20, of the North Side, dressed in black and wearing a Halloween mask, followed a man into his Spruce Street home around 10 p.m. Monday.



Hudson started beating and pistol-whipping the homeowner.



That's when the homeowner's wife allegedly came downstairs with a 12-gauge shotgun and shot Hudson.



Hudson was pronounced dead at the scene.

.

Update



From Pittsburgh’s WPVI.com of September 25, 2004

The Allegheny County District Attorney says a woman who fatally shot an armed man who had broken into her home will not be charged.



Stephen Zappala Junior says 55-year-old Eleanor Cash was justified in killing Ras-Saleem Hudson of Pittsburgh on September 13th.



Police say that Hudson, armed with a handgun and wearing a Halloween mask, accosted Cash's husband, forced his way into the couple's Harrison Township, home and demanded money.



As Hudson grabbed Leon Cash, Eleanor Cash fired a single shotgun round into Hudson's torso, killing him almost instantly.

Dallas, Texas



From Dallas’ NBC5i.com of July 30, 2004

Dallas Man Shoots, Kills Man At Front Door



Dallas homicide investigators are trying to piece together details of a shooting early Friday that left one man dead on the front porch of another man.



Brandon Washington, 32, left a friend's house in the 7300 block of Bluestem Drive of South Oak Cliff at about 2 a.m. Friday. At about 4 a.m., he returned to the same block, this time at the house almost directly across his friend's.



According to police, Washington banged and kicked on the front door of the house. The homeowner emerged, and a confrontation ensued, Dallas police Sgt. Ken Sprecher said.



"(The homeowner) opened the door, and there was some type of confrontation on the front porch, steps," Sprecher said. "The homeowner then fired one time, striking the subject in the upper torso. He fell and died."



The homeowner said he thought Washington was a burglar attempting to break in to the house. Investigators took into custody the homeowner for questioning and

later released him.

…

Evidence will be presented to a Dallas grand jury, which will decide if enough evidence exists to indict the homeowner

No subsequent stories about this incident were found

Los Angeles, California



From NBC 4 TV in Los Angeles, August 27, 2004:

LOS ANGELES -- One of two would-be thieves was killed and a 73-year-old nightclub owner and a woman were wounded in a botched robbery attempt outside a male revue club in South Los Angeles early Friday, police said.



It began shortly before 2 a.m. when two men confronted owner Bobby Hopkins outside The Right Track, 1732 W. Florence Ave., and demanded money, said Sgt. Peter Casey of the Los Angeles Police Department's 77th Street Station.



Hopkins said he was struck in the head with a ball peen hammer and shot in the right arm before shooting one of his assailants, who died later at a hospital. The other fled. It was unclear whether he was shot.



Both suspects reportedly were in their 20s, but neither has been identified so far.



A 23-year-old female patron was struck in the back by a stray bullet, but it was unclear who fired it, Casey said. She was hospitalized in stable condition.



Hopkins will "probably not face any charges," Casey said. "Right now it seems like self-defense. It was a robbery that went bad.

Shreveport, Louisiana



From Shreveport‘s KTBS.com of Septmeber 7, 2004

Robbery attempt foiled by liquor store clerk



A would-be robbery of a Shreveport liquor store ended when the clerk fought back.



Police said a man went into the store, doused the store's clerk with alcohol and threatened to ignite it.



The clerk reached for his own gun and the two men started struggling. By the time police arrived at Lucky Liquor Stop at Kings Highway and Linwood Avenue the clerk was holding the suspect.



Police took the unsuccessful bandit into custody.

Bristol, Tennessee



From Bristol’s WCYB.tv of Septmeber 3, 2004



The inference that the homeowner did the shooting is so strong, this is presumed to be self-defense.

Bristol Shooting



One person is in the hospital after what police say started as a home break in. Officers were called to 207 Resevoir Street around 8:30 last night.



The resident told authorities two men were trying to break into his home.



Police say the two left the scene with a man waiting in a car outside. Officers found the two men on Columbia Drive, they say one had a gunshot wound to his arm.



He was taken to the hospital for injuries, the other is being questioned. Police are still searching for the third man.

Milwaukee County, Wisconsin



From the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel of Septmeber 4, 2004

Man acquitted in shotgun killing on street



A Milwaukee County jury on Friday acquitted Rudolph Spears of all homicide charges he faced for killing a man with a shotgun last year.



Spears, 27, had testified he didn't know Randy Scott, 23, and wasn't armed when Scott ran toward him on the evening of Aug. 14, 2003. Spears pulled the shotgun out of his car and fired on Scott in the 1300 block of N. 37th Place. A medical examiner found Scott had been hit three times, including once in the head.



At trial, Spears and a neighbor of Scott's described him as a neighborhood ruffian known for firing guns and menacing people with a 3-foot pipe. Spears said prior encounters with Scott led him to buy the shotgun for protection.



Jurors found Spears not guilty of first-degree intentional homicide and of all three lesser charges Circuit Judge Elsa Lamelas had ordered them to consider: second-degree intentional homicide, and first- and second-degree reckless homicide.

Houston, Texas



From the Houston Chronicle of Septmeber 4, 2004

Robbery followed by 'incredible' gunbattle



Suspects escape after four-block car chase while shots were fired back and forth



When Amir Borhani heard his dad screaming during a robbery outside their family-owned food market in southwest Houston Friday, he ran out of the store and was met by the barrel of a semiautomatic weapon and a man with a handkerchief tied around his face.



"I looked straight into the barrel and then straight into his eyes and yelled, 'No, don't shoot,' " said Borhani, 25.



What followed was an "incredible" four-block gunbattle between Borhani, a family friend and a carload of robbers who communicated with each other by walkie-talkie. The robbers got away, but not before one of them was shot in the leg, Houston police said.



The incident began about 3 p.m. at Tony's Market/Check Cashing store on the corner of Dashwood and Rampart. Borhani's father was struggling with a robber over a backpack when his son joined the confrontation. During the chaos, the older man managed to free himself, and Borhani grabbed his father's gun and exchanged fire with the three robbers as they fled for their car.



A family friend then grabbed another gun that was kept inside the store.



The friend and Borhani jumped inside their car and followed the robbers. Borhani said shots were fired back and forth for a few blocks.



During the chase, the suspect's car spun out of control and crashed into a utility box. The occupants got out of the vehicle and started to run.



Sgt. R.W. Mascheck of the Houston Police Department said the family friend managed to shoot one of them in the leg before they got away. By then, Borhani had emptied his father's gun.



Mascheck said he doubted charges would be filed against Borhani or his friend. Mascheck said investigators were checking to make sure the store owner had permits for both of the guns.



(More)

Des Moines, Iowa



From the Des Moines Register of Septmeber 4, 2004

Suspect shot with rock salt is caught



Police caught the alleged burglar who was shot in the backside Thursday morning with a shotgun shell filled with rock salt.



It's the same guy police last year were calling the "Cognac Burglar." Police say in just over a year the man was arrested, convicted, sentenced, served his time, and is back on the streets.



Make that, he was back on the streets. He was headed back to jail Friday.



Charles Ross III, 40, of Des Moines picked up the nickname "Cognac" for breaking into a liquor store near Drake University in pursuit of his preferred type of alcohol.



In 2003, Ross was tied up with telephone cord and electronic cable by citizens who recognized him from a police "wanted" picture. When police answered a call in the 1300 block of 21st Street, Ross couldn't move.



Citizens had seen Ross' photograph, taken by a store surveillance camera, posted at the Drake Liquor Store, 2106 Forest Ave., which had been hit eight times since the middle of May 2003.



This time, according to Des Moines Police Detective Franklin Irvin, Ross was caught on camera again, early Thursday, breaking into the same store.



Ross, also known by the nickname "Tuna," was charged Friday with burglary. Irvin said Ross was sitting at the corner of Sixth and Indiana avenues when he was taken into custody.



Ross read about the burglary in the morning newspaper and learned that the shotgun shell contained rock salt rather than shotgun pellets.



He asked police, "Is rock salt poisonous or not?" Officers did not answer the question. They took him to the hospital for treatment. The blast hit his pants and left only a red mark underneath, officials said.



Irvin said Ross can be heard on the tape telling the store owner something like, "You shot me in the butt."

Redondo Beach, California



From the Torrance Daily Breeze of September 2, 2004

Redondo resident scares off intruders



Three are arrested on suspicion of attempted burglary after the incident



A Redondo Beach man thwarted a burglary at his home when he opened the blinds and waved a handgun at the potential intruders, who fled.



Police officers quickly caught up to the two women and 16-year-old boy who allegedly tried to break into the house Monday not knowing someone was inside. The suspected burglars ended up in jail.



The resident, a graveyard shift worker with a power company, was asleep at 9:10 a.m. in the 3300 block of McBain Avenue when one of the suspects knocked at his door, Redondo Beach police Sgt. Phil Keenan said.



The knock apparently is a common tactic used by burglars. When no one answered, they figured no one was home.



By this time, the homeowner got up to check who was at the door, and he noticed somebody suspicious across the street and heard a noise at the back of the house, Keenan said.



He realized somebody was trying to break in through his back window and got a handgun.



"As the person is still trying to make entry into the window he pulls back the miniblinds and points the gun at the suspects," Keenan said. "They, of course, ran off."



The victim called police, telling them a woman and two men drove away in a green sedan with a spoiler.



A short time later, Redondo Beach police officer Don Martinez spotted the car traveling east on Artesia Boulevard.



The driver accelerated when Martinez got behind them, but stopped in an alley in the 2800 block of Artesia and abandoned the car.



The three tried to walk away in different directions, but Martinez ordered them to the ground. More officers arrived and helped arrest them.



The suspects turned out to be two women and a teenage boy.



Arrested on suspicion of attempted burglary were Lanisha Lynette Armstrong, 20, of Compton; Shaton Shanay Nix, 20, of Long Beach and a 16-year-old boy from Compton.