Cleburne, Texas

From the Cleburne Times-Review of November 15, 2007

Man shot Wednesday in scuffle over son

Seventeen-year-old charged with felony firearm possession

A 20-year-old Fort Worth man was shot in the chest Wednesday night while attempting to take his 15-month-old son from a residence in Burleson after a fight with another Fort Worth man, according the Johnson County Sheriff’s Office.

Ashton Lamar Miles Brown, 17, is accused of shooting Damarcus King, who was transferred to John Peter Smith Hospital. Brown was arrested on a charge of a felon in possession of a firearm. Details on King’s condition were not available.

According to reports, King, the father of the child, had sent threatening messages to the mother. King said he would harm the mother and grandmother and then take the child from the East Renfro Street home.

Brown was inside the residence with the mother and child when King arrived at the home. When King entered the residence, a fight began between the two men. At 6-3 and 200 pounds, King is three years older, six inches taller and 50 pounds heavier than Brown.

During the fight, Brown fired a shot from a 9 mm handgun, which struck King in the chest. The shot entered and exited King’s chest cavity area.

Despite the wound, the fight continued while King and Brown stumbled over a love seat. King went out the front door and collapsed in the front yard, where he remained until paramedics arrived for treatment.

Both men have prior arrest records.

Although the case is under investigation, reports indicate that the new Castle Doctrine Law may apply. The law, also known as the Defense of Habitation Law, gives people the legal right to use deadly force when defending their residence from an illegal trespasser.