Gainesville, Missouri



From the December 30, 2003 Jefferson City News Tribune:

A coroner's jury decided that a man was justified in shooting and killing a couple who threatened him at his home near Thornfield last month, and the Ozark County prosecutor said he will not file charges.



Merl Cantwell, 40, and his wife, Tammy, 32, of Isabella, were killed on Nov. 9 by Boyd Merriman. Investigators said the Cantwells had accused Merriman of shooting their dog.



The six jurors agreed unanimously that Merriman acted in self-defense.



Dr. Keith Norton, the pathologist who performed the autopsies, said Merl Cantwell's blood-alcohol concentration was almost twice the legal limit on the night that he died. Norton also said that the Cantwells had "lethal quantities" of the antidepressant Prozac in their bodies.



Jurors also listened to threatening messages that Merl Cantwell left on Merriman's answering machine. They deliberated a little more than an hour before returning their verdict.

High Point, North Carolina



From the Greensboro News-Record of December 30, 2003

Property owner shoots burglar



After a struggle, a man shot an intruder who broke into a High Point business he was watching early Monday, sending the burglar to the hospital, police said.



Police identified the injured man as Terry Wayne Combs, 42, of 109 E. Peachtree Drive. He was charged with two counts of felony breaking and entering and one count of felony larceny after receiving treatment at High Point Regional Hospital, police said.



The shooter, Ernest Galloway, 77, suffered scrapes and soreness but was not hospitalized.



According to police, someone broke into Oak View Auto Service at 312 Old Winston Road about 11:20 p.m. Sunday, stole snacks and cash and left before police arrived.



Galloway, who owns the property, decided to watch the business overnight for its owner because several broken doors and windows left the shop open to passersby, he said Monday.



When a man entered about 4 a.m., Galloway confronted him with a .32-caliber rifle, and the two struggled before Galloway regained control of the weapon. At some point, Galloway shot the man in the midsection when the burglar moved toward him again. Police responded shortly after and found both men across the street from the business.



High Point police Detective Ron Meinecke said the District Attorney’s office will decide whether any charges should be filed against Galloway.

Wilmette, Illinois



From the Chicago Tribune of December 31, 2003

(Requires Registration)

Wilmette man shoots intruder in his home



Hours after an intruder used the dog door of a Wilmette home to steal a set of keys and a BMW sports-utility vehicle, the homeowner shot a man he confronted inside the house, authorities said Tuesday.



After being hit twice Monday, the suspect plunged through a front window of the home and escaped, but he was caught a short time later when he drove the stolen SUV to St. Francis Hospital in Evanston seeking treatment for his wounds, police said.



Morio Billings, 31, of the 2100 block of South Trumbull Avenue in Chicago, was charged Tuesday night with two counts of felony residential burglary and one count of felony possession of a stolen motor vehicle, said John Gorman, spokesman for the Cook County state's attorney's office.



Billings, who was shot in the left shoulder and left calf, remained hospitalized after surgery, Gorman said. His condition was described as non-life-threatening.



Billings was shot by Hale DeMar, 54, who was home in the 0-99 block of Linden Avenue with his wife and two children when Billings used a key to enter the house, authorities said.



Police would not say whether Billings is suspected in the first burglary when the keys were stolen from DeMar's house. That incident occurred between 11 p.m. Sunday and 3 a.m. Monday.



"At this point our hearts go out to the residents that suffered this trauma," said Wilmette police spokesman Roger Ockrim.



...



DeMar is barred from owning a handgun by village ordinance. Ockrim did not know whether DeMar would be charged with any violations.



But he said, "The primary issue is someone has been burglarized and someone has been shot." Ockrim described DeMar as "understandably upset."



Police said they will investigate whether the shooting was in self-defense. The state statute dealing with such shootings is open to interpretation, said police and officials with the state's attorney's office.



"There's the letter of the law and the flavor of the law," Ockrim said. "You can't make a blanket statement until you've conducted an investigation."



...



Wilmette Village Trustee Beth Lambrecht predicted the firearms ban will be discussed at a future Village Board meeting, either to reconsider the ban or to remind the public of it.



She said using a gun to chase off a burglar is "very risky."



Another trustee said he didn't think the incident would lead to a change in the handgun ban.



"It wouldn't from my viewpoint," said Trustee James Griffith. "But I'm glad the guy had a gun."

UPDATE (NBC5.com): "Wilmette police say a homeowner who shot an intruder during a break-in will not be charged with violating the affluent Chicago suburb's handgun ban."



The authorities' collective positions on their handgun ban, and this homeowner's actions is the quintessence of incoherence.



FURTHER UPDATE (Chicago Tribune): "A Wilmette homeowner who shot and wounded an intruder was charged today with violating the north suburb's ordinance banning handgun ownership."



"If convicted, Hale DeMar, 54, faces a fine of up to $750."



...



"DeMar also is accused of failing to renew his Illinois Firearm Ownership Identification card when it expired in 1988, a Class A misdemeanor."



"Violation of the firearm registration law carries penalties of up to one year in jail, a $2,500 fine or court supervision or probation."



Perhaps someday Chicago will join the rest of the country.

Columbia, South Carolina



From the Columbia The State of December 30, 2003

Man shot by store manager, official says



A man found dead on the side of Bluff Road was shot after a confrontation with a store manager who accused him of shoplifting, officials said.



Wyman Lee Williams, 44, of 1123 Abbott Road, was shot in the chest at Rickenbacker’s Party Shop on Bluff Road early Sunday, said Richland County Sheriff’s Department spokesman Lt. Joseph Pellicci. He gave this account of the incident:



Williams went to the store and tried to steal a pack of beer when the 66-year-old clerk confronted him. Williams threw the beer cans at the clerk and beat him while customers looked on. Williams started to leave but then slammed the man to the ground. When he attempted to beat the clerk again, the clerk fired a round, hitting Williams, who then left. The clerk then called the sheriff’s department.



Williams’ body was found about a half mile from the store, but no one knows whether he walked there or someone gave him a ride and dropped him off, Pellicci said.



No charges have been filed against the clerk, whose name has not been released.

Tulsa, Oklahoma



From Tulsa's KOTV.com of December 29, 2003

Tulsa man shot during carjacking incident



An investigation is underway into a carjacking that's left a Tulsa man hospitalized.



Tulsa Police found Dave Torres lying in the driveway of a Tulsa residence Sunday. He was shot once in the lower abdomen, when he caught someone stealing his truck.



Torres told police he managed to fire several shots at the suspect, but doesn't know if he hit him.



Torres wounds are not life threatening.

Brooklyn, New York



From the New York Daily News of December 29, 2003

B'klyn man kills intruder



A Brooklyn man shot dead a would-be robber who had burst into his first-floor Flatbush apartment last night, police said.



"I just shot somebody," the man said in a call to 911, police said.



The 29-year-old intruder, identified by his girlfriend as Fisher Canton, was gunned down about 6:45 p.m. inside the rear bedroom of the apartment on E. 18th St., near Newkirk Ave., police said.



Police were questioning the apartment resident, who was not identified, and trying to determine if his weapon was registered.



They also were sorting out whether Canton, who was shot in the face, was armed or just pretending to carry a weapon.



...



Third-floor tenant David Colling, 54, defended his neighbor's actions.



"It could have happened to me," Colling said. "I guess he did the right thing."



Building resident Harry Bell, 30, a maintenance worker, said his apartment was broken into about a year ago and thieves stole about $2,000 worth of jewelry.



"I guess you got to do what you got to do to protect yourself," he said.

Kansas City, Missouri



Brief but clear news report from KCTV, Channel 5 in Kansas City, December 25, 2003:

At about 6 a.m. Thursday, armed robbers hit the Grand Slam Liquors on Sixth Street in Kansas City.



The clerk fired some shots at the robbers, but police officers didn't think anyone was hit.

However, this Kansas City Star articles the following days (here and here) don't seem to mention the shots fired.



Thanks to Wince and Nod for the links.