Spokane County, Washington



From the Spokane Spokesman-Review of April 6, 2004:

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Burglars get surprise from homeowner



When pair kick in the door of home, they are met with shot from pistol



Two burglars found a farmhouse Monday in Spokane County that appeared to be an easy target.



But when they kicked in the door, the two 20-something burglars became targets themselves.



Elroy Dusbabek, 45, told Spokane County Sheriff's deputies that he fired a shot over the heads of the fleeing men who raced away in a purple car.



"Near as we can tell, he didn't hit the bad guys," sheriff's spokesman Cpl. Dave Reagan said of the one shot from Dusbabek's .22-caliber semi-automatic target pistol.



The incident started about 1:30 p.m. Monday when the two men approached Dusbabek's home in the 8600 block of North Five Mile Road, Reagan said.



Dusbabek "is usually at work at this time of day," Reagan said. "It was just luck of the draw that he happened to be here today."



The two white males -- one with short brown hair and a flannel shirt, and the second with a shaved head and stubble beard -- knocked on Dusbabek's front door.



"Deciding he didn't want to be bothered by salesmen, he did not answer the door but instead went to an upstairs window to watch," Reagan said in a news release.



Dusbabek heard one of the men walk around to the back of the house. But moments later, both men got into a purple Hyundai-type car and drove away.



Minutes later, Dusbabek heard the rear screen door being opened. As he walked to the back of the house, the door crashed in, Reagan said.



"He yelled, and they took off running," Reagan said. "He cracked off a round to send them on their way."



Dusbabek told deputies that he aimed over the heads of the men and in the direction of the abandoned brick building that formerly housed the Five Mile Elementary School.

Phoenix, Arizona



From Phoenix's Arizona Republic of April 5, 2004:

Man shoots, kills his neighbor



An off-duty state Department of Corrections employee fatally shot a neighbor who was suspected of beating a woman early Sunday.



Thomas Alfredo Keefe, 33, told police he saw Sergio Bustamante, 22, kicking his girlfriend in the head outside the couple's home in the 5700 block of West Glenrosa Avenue about 1:15 a.m., Phoenix Sgt. Bill Wren said.



Keefe, who was armed with a handgun, confronted Bustamante to stop the assault, Wren said. Keefe told him to stop and Bustamante grabbed a gun from his truck, Wren said.



Bustamante fired at Keefe, hitting him in the arm, Wren said.



Keefe returned fire, hitting Bustamante in the chest. Bustamante was declared dead at St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center.



Police did not release the woman's name but said she is in her late teens and lived with Bustamante. Her condition was unavailable.



Keefe was taken to St. Joseph's hospital for treatment. Details about his condition were unavailable Sunday.



Wren confirmed that Keefe is an employee with the Department of Corrections but said he does not know what Keefe does for the department. A DOC spokeswoman was unavailable for comment.



The incident is under investigation, Wren said.

Phoenix, Arizona



From Phoenix's Arizona Republic of April 5, 2004:

(Scroll down)

Pregnant woman shoots her estranged boyfriend



A pregnant 35-year-old woman shot her estranged boyfriend Sunday morning after he reportedly forced his way into her apartment.



Jennifer Sue Manley told police that Bryant Christopher Watkins, 31, was threatening her from outside the apartment in the 17200 block of North 19th Avenue about 5:45 a.m., Phoenix Sgt. Bill Wren said. Watkins told Manley he would hurt her and their unborn child, Wren said.



Manley is nine months pregnant, and three children - ages 4 and 5, and her nephew, whose age is unknown - were in the apartment at the time.



She feared for her life and the children's safety, Wren said.



Manley shot Watkins twice with a handgun. One bullet grazed his head, and another hit his chest. He was transported to St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center. His condition was unavailable.



Wren said police will seek charges of aggravated assault and domestic violence against Watkins.

Eden Prairie, Minnesota



First reported use of a concealed weapon by a licensee under the new Minnesota law. In this case, we have a copy of the police report available here as a multi-page TIF file. A summary of the report appears here.



Important points: the attacker (as even the attacker admits to police) is a bicyclist who loses his temper when a driver honks his horn. The driver asserts that he was honking the horn to let the bicyclist know of his presence. The bicyclist catches up at the next light, throws the bike down in front of the vehicle, and grabs the driver by the throat. The driver starts to pull his gun, warns the attacker, and drives over the bike.



Both call the police: they charge the bicyclist, based on his own statement, and that of a witness to the confrontation.

Indianapolis, IN



From the Indianapolis Star of April 3, 2004:

Homeowner fatally shoots burglar



A home invasion early this morning on the city's Eastside left an elderly homeowner shaken and a 43-year-old homeless man dead.



Indianapolis police said the homeless man, Kevin L. Richardson, was fatally shot after he broke into the home of George L. Finch, 75, 400 block of North Rural Street, about 3 a.m.



Finch's daughter, Debbie Skaggs, said her father was sleeping in a recliner in the front room when he heard someone breaking out a back window and entering.



Her father got his gun, a semi-automatic pistol. "He stepped into the kitchen and he was right there. My dad told him to stop and go away," Skaggs said.



Her father told her that the man "just kept coming at him" so he fired one shot.



"I aimed low. I just wanted to stop him," Skaggs recalled her father saying.



Police said the shot struck Richardson in the thigh.



Richardson ran out the same window and fled a short way, collapsing on the sidewalk in the same block, according to the homicide report.



When police arrived, he was bleeding heavily. Medics transported Richardson to Wishard Memorial Hospital where he later died.



Sgt. Russell Burns said no charges will be filed in the case, which he described as a home invasion. Investigators concluded the shooting was justified, he said.



According to court records, Richardson had a history of theft, trespass and prostitution arrests. His parents were deceased and Burns said police were unaware of any family members in the area.

I urge you go to this somewhat longer article, and read a portrait of a man who simply will not give in to the rabble.

East Haven, Connecticut



From the New Haven Register of April 2, 2004:

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Shop owner, gunman shot in East Haven holdup attempt



Joseph Gigliotti, owner of New Haven Provisions, 850 Foxon Road, underwent surgery at Hospital of Saint Raphael in New Haven Thursday night, police said. His condition was not immediately available.



Gigliotti shot one of the three robbery suspects in the shoulder during the fracas, police Sgt. Robert Flodquist said. That man, whose name was not immediately available, was in surgery at Yale-New Haven Hospital, Flodquist said.



The injured suspect and a second suspect, who police said drove the injured man to the hospital, were arrested after Yale-New Haven police reported that two men matching descriptions East Haven had broadcast had turned up at the hospital, one with a gunshot wound, Flodquist said.



A third suspect fled on foot. New Haven police later arrested him on Eastern Street in New Haven, not far from the New Haven-East Haven border, Flodquist said.

Shreveport, Louisiana



From the Shreveport Times of April 2, 2004:

Home invasion shooting leaves one dead



A would-be robber is dead and one of his victims is in jail on drug charges after a home invasion early Thursday morning.



Carlos Cannon, 22, of Shreveport died after allegedly breaking into a home in the 3900 block of Sumner Street and being shot by the homeowner, 24-year-old Quirinius Wilson, said Shreveport police Detective Jeff Brown.



Wilson, also known as Casey Eugene Wilson, and his 29-year-old wife were asleep when Cannon and at least two other men allegedly forced their way inside, Brown said. "They heard the door being kicked in, and (Wilson) lay there in wait and she got in the closet and hid."



Cannon, armed with a semiautomatic handgun he never fired, charged down the hall but didn't make it farther than the open bedroom door when he was hit in the abdomen several times by more than 12 rounds fired from Wilson's SKS assault rifle, Brown said.



At least one of the other two intruders fired several shots through the living room wall. One grazed the wife's left arm. She was treated at the scene.



"They just had their own little war inside the house," Brown said.



The intruders realized they were outgunned and ran, leaving their vehicle, Brown said. "Wilson went out the front door and fired a couple of times toward where he said he thought he heard them."



Wilson was not charged in the shooting because he acted in self-defense, Brown said. But he was arrested after police reportedly discovered marijuana in the house. Wilson was charged on one count each of possession of a Schedule I narcotic and possession of a Schedule I narcotic with intent to distribute, Brown said.