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.