Lubbock, Texas

From KCDB of June 9, 2007

Homeowner Kills Home Invasion Suspect

A home invasion suspect is dead, after being shot in the stomach by the homeowner.

Police say the homeowner confronted a man who broke into his home around 3:45 Saturday morning in the 3000 block of 24th street.

The homeowner allegedly asked the man to leave several times before shooting the suspect in the stomach.

The suspect was taken to UMC.

He died Saturday afternoon.

From the Daily Toreador of June 12, 2007

Tech student shot, killed in Tech Terrace neighborhood

Texas Tech student Ross Baker, 23, was shot and killed Saturday morning at a Tech Terrace home at 3006 24th St.

Baker was a senior construction engineering major from Weatherford.

The shooting occurred around 3:45 a.m., according to the police report. The homeowner, Charles Mire, told police he confronted Baker, and Mire said he then fired a warning shot into the ceiling above his head. Mire shot Baker after he did not leave following the warning shot.

He was then transported to the University Medical Center, where he later died, according to the police report.

Baker had no prior criminal record.

The Baker family was unable to be reached for comment Monday.

Meg Carroll, a senior accounting major from Houston and a close friend of Baker's, said Baker was always great company and a peaceful person.

"Nobody ever had any problems with him. (He was) very non-confrontational," Carroll said. "He would never wrong anybody. All he did was go hunting on the weekends or hang out with friends."

Carroll said Baker enjoyed anything having to do with the outdoors, such as fishing and hunting.

Sergeant John Gomez said the police department is still in the process of gathering information from several witnesses. He said Baker's autopsy and toxicology information will not be available for another two or three weeks.

Baker was a member of the Delta Tau Delta fraternity.

From the Lubbock Online of June 12, 2007

Homeowner not likely to face charges in shooting

The man who shot and killed an intruder in his Tech Terrace home over the weekend will most likely not be charged with any crime, the district attorney said Monday.

Charles Mire shot Ross Baker inside Mire's home in the 3000 block of 24th Street about 3:35 a.m. Saturday. Mire, 43, told authorities he feared for his and his family's safety when Baker entered the home and set off an alarm, according to Lubbock police reports.

Lubbock County Criminal District Attorney Matt Powell said the law allows a person to use deadly force if they fear injury or death.

"Finding a stranger in your home at that time in the morning - that's about as scary as it gets," Powell said.

Friends of Baker say that the 23-year-old Texas Tech engineering major must have been lost or disoriented when he entered Mire's home.

Baker had recently moved into a home four blocks from the Mire residence in the Tech Terrace neighborhood.

Marcus Davis, Baker's roommate, said Monday that Baker was not the criminal type.

"He didn't have any enemies," Davis said. "Everybody he met loved him. He would never hurt anybody."

Police say Baker entered the house through an unlocked side door.

Baker, who grew up in Weatherford, doesn't have a criminal history in Lubbock, according to police records.

Toxicology tests are still pending to determine if Baker was under the influence of drugs or alcohol when Mire shot him in the stomach with a 9mm pistol, according to police.

Prior to firing the fatal shot, Mire ordered Baker to surrender several times and fired a warning shot, according to police.

The district attorney's office will make a final determination in the case after the police hand over all the details of the shooting, including the toxicology report.

The shooting comes three months after Gov. Rick Perry signed into law a bill that gives Texans a stronger legal right to defend themselves in their homes, cars and workplaces.

The bill, backed by the National Rifle Association, states that a person has no duty to retreat from an intruder before using deadly force and provides civil immunity for a person who lawfully uses it.

From KCBD Channel 11 of August 8, 2007

Toxicology Reports Released for Texas Tech Student Shot and Killed in Tech Terrace

The results of a toxicology report are supporting claims made by the family of a dead Texas Tech student.

Ross Baker died June 9th after he entered a home in the 3000 block of 24th Street during the early morning hours.

The homeowner shot Baker believing he was an intruder.

Baker's family claimed that he was drunk and most likely wandered into the wrong house.

Toxicology reports now show Baker had a blood alcohol level of .165, which is more than twice the legal limit. There was also evidence of marijuana in his system.