Horton, Michigan



From the Jackson Citizen Patriot of January 12, 2005

Burglar caught in act



A Horton party store owner played a hunch and, with a suspected burglar in custody this morning, his inkling turned into a sure bet.



After being burglarized a week ago, Doug Harrington of Griff's Party Store, 389 Moscow Road, figured he'd be hit again. So, he laid in wait with a 12-gauge shotgun in his lap after the store closed Tuesday.



About 12:30 a.m. today, Harrington was greeted by an intruder. He ordered him to the floor.



"I wouldn't have shot him," said Harrington, 59, an Army veteran who said he barked at the suspect like a drill sergeant. "I didn't want him to know that. He didn't like looking down the barrel of a 12-gauge shotgun."



A 17-year-old Horton boy, whose name is being withheld pending arraignment, is in the Jackson County Jail. He was expected to be charged with burglary.