Orlando, Florida: Parking Lot Attendant Shoots At Robbers

Orlando, Florida

From December 27, 2007 WKMG channel 6:

ORLANDO, Fla. -- A Central Florida man who collects cash for parking at a church fought off five armed men who had ambushed him and demanded cash.

The 65-year-old victim, who did not want to be identified, said he was collecting cash in the Parramore area before an Orlando Magic basketball game when someone put a gun to his head.

He noticed that that he was surrounded by four other men as well.

The man said he pretended to reach into his jacket for cash but instead pulled out his hidden gun and opened fire.

The men fled during the shooting and it was not known if any of them were hit by bullets.

The victim said he had a permit for the concealed weapon.

He said he has been a victim of crime before.

"A couple of years ago, eight teens attacked me with a pipe trying to rob me," the man said.

Florida: Panther kills farm animal, threatens ten year old boy

Golden Gate, Florida

From NBC-2 of December 30, 2007

Panther kills farm animal, threatens ten year old boy

A Florida Panther is causing trouble for one Golden Gate neighborhood. A Collier County man claims that a panther jumped over his fence, killed a farm animal, and almost attacked a ten year old boy.

Homeowner and Golden Gate resident John Edgar is no stranger to wild animals.

Edgar raises goats, peacocks, and roosters, but Sunday night, he captured pictures of a new, unwelcome gust - a Florida Panther.

Edgar said that he had taken a few kids out for target shooting practice Saturday afternoon and was unaware that a wild animal was following closely behind.

When all of a sudden, Edgar said that a panther jumped over a fence and stood just 50 yards away while crouching down as if it were ready to attack one of the boys that was with the group.

"What I would like to put forth is the fact that it stalked a kid, " Edgar said.

"I thought he was ready to jump so we both shoot, 'pow-pow,' not at the panther, just in the air."

After firing several rounds, the panther then ran away, and so did the little boy and his family.

(More)

Texas: Man in critical condition after bar security guard shoots him

Fort Worth, Texas

From the Fort Worth Star-Telegram of December 29, 2007

Man in critical condition after bar security guard shoots him

A 28-year-old man was shot multiple times by a bar security guard early Saturday morning in the 100 block of West Rosedale Street, police said.

A security guard at the Cowboy Palace bar told police he was acting in self-defense when he fired multiple shots a man in a red car who allegedly tried to run over the security guard.

Jesus Torres was taken to John Peter Smith Hospital, where he was listed in critical condition. No arrests were made. Police seized the security guard's weapon.

Fort Worth police spokesman Lt. Dean Sullivan said detectives are investigating.

Missouri: Suspect in intrusion dies of wound

Columbia, Missouri

From the Columbia Missourian of December 28, 2007

Suspect in intrusion dies of wound

One of the intruders in an apparent home invasion in Columbia died Friday afternoon after he was shot by one of the occupants of the home.

Henry Lee Brown, 23, was shot as he and another intruder kicked open the front door of an apartment on Old 63 early Thursday morning, according to a news release from the Columbia Police Department. He was pronounced dead at 1:43 p.m.

Columbia police Sgt. Ken Hammond said Brown suffered a gunshot wound to the chin, which exited, then came back through his throat and became lodged in his chest. Hammond did not explain whether the bullet had ricocheted.

At just past midnight Thursday, police responded to a call of shots fired at the apartment. Two people inside told police that two men had tried to kick open the door. One of the occupants retrieved a gun from another room, shot at the intruders as they came through the door and wounded Brown.

Brown and the other unidentified man then ran from the apartment. As police talked with the two people at the scene, they were notified that Brown had been dropped off at Boone Hospital Center’s emergency room. He was later transferred to University Hospital because his injuries were so severe.

Hammond said he doubts that charges will be filed against the person who shot Brown. He said the shooting would seem to fall under the Castle Doctrine, a legal statute that says Missouri property owners are allowed to use deadly force to defend themselves against unlawful intruders.

Brown did have a criminal history that included convictions for drug crimes and for misdemeanor assault and trespassing.

Hammond confirmed that police have been in contact with the two people from the apartment but said he could not comment on their reaction to the news of Brown’s death because the investigation is ongoing.

Further Links:

Suspect shot in apartment break-in dies

Domino's Delivers! (Lead To Robber)

St. Louis, Missouri

From the December 28, 2007 St. Louis Post-Dispatch:

A Domino’s pizza deliveryman who shot and killed a would-be robber in Pagedale has a valid permit to carry a weapon and appears to have acted in self-defense, according to St. Louis County police.

The driver, who works for the Domino’s franchise nearby in University City, delivered an order at 7 p.m. Thursday to a phony address in the 6500 block of Julian Avenue, where two armed men announced a robbery. The driver pulled his own pistol and fired shots, striking one of the robbers.

Brian Smith, 19, of the 600 block of Ferguson Avenue in Ferguson, was pronounced dead at the scene, said officer Tracy Panus, the department spokeswoman. The other gunman fled. Police arrested a suspect this afternoon and booked him pending application of warrants, she said.

Panus said the driver may have been fired upon, but was not wounded. She said officers found a pistol at the scene that hadn’t been fired.

The driver surrendered his own weapon and showed officers a concealed-carry permit from Florida. Panus said officers verified the permit this afternoon.

Panus said Prosecuting Attorney Bob McCulloch’s office will review the police reports but added, "It doesn’t appear to us that (the driver) did anything wrong."

UPDATE: The January 3, 2008 St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports that the driver quit rather than be fired by Domino's for carrying a gun.

Antioch, Tennessee: Burglars Scared Off By Armed Resident

Antioch, Tennessee

From December 27, 2007 WKRN channel 2:

Police are looking for two men and a woman they believe are responsible for 5 burglaries in Antioch. Police were close to capturing the three after they burglarized a house, and the burglars were scared off from another house after the homeowner shot at them.

"I heard a big bam, a big pow, and I opened the blinds and saw the van plow through the fence," said Kris Kopp.

Tennessee: Man Shoots And Kills Burglary Suspect

Memphis, Tennessee

From WREG of December 28, 2007

Man Shoots And Kills Burglary Suspect

"It's so bad around here and i'm just afraid for my safety," says one woman we spoke to as she stepped outside of her apartment and saw crime scene investigators. Police were combing her neighbor's apartment following an alleged burglary attempt that ended in gunfire. Rhonda, who didn't want to give us her last name or show her face on camera, says crime at the Camelot Apartments has driven her to leave.

"I was already in the process of making preparations to move, but this has done it. This has given me the right to make the decision to just leave here," Rhonda says. A little before 5:00 this morning, a woman returned home and caught who she thought to be a burglar in the act.

Lt. Tony Armstrong, a homicide detective with the Memphis Police Department, says, "The victim called her boyfriend. Her boyfriend came over and investigated, found him inside the house and shot him multiple times."

Medics took the suspect to the hospital where he later died. Police spent several hours later combing the apartment for more evidence. We're told the man who shot the suspect did have a state gun carry permit. It's likely the man who shot the intruder will not face any charges. Neighbors like Rhonda agree with that decision.

"People work too hard to make a living for someone to just come in and take things, your personal items or to invade your apartment like that. I think it was justifiable," she adds

From MyEyewitnessNews of December 30, 2007

Southeast Memphis Shooting: Woman Charged

On Sunday, December 30, 2007, we have new information on a deadly shooting at the Camelot Manor apartments in Southeast Memphis.

Memphis police have charged a woman who lived at the apartment in connection with the shooting.

22 year-old Asa Marmon was shot and killed in Antionita Clay's apartment by her boyfriend after she told her boyfriend Marmon was a burglar.

Memphis police say Antionita Clay knew it was Marmon inside her apartment before she called her boyfriend and police about a burglar.

Police say that Clay and Marmon had a prior relationship and she wanted to end it.

Clay is charged with false reporting and reckless homicide.