Another wholesome tale of a true American defending his homestead from terra-ist intruders.

[baldguy]

Pounding on the wrong door a fatal mistake in Springs

Sean Kennedy had been drinking at a Broncos party in Colorado Springs on Sunday night when, according to his father, he drove to the wrong home, pounded on the back door and was shot dead.

Police said Monday that they would turn the case over to the district attorney's office to determine whether the homeowner will be protected under Colorado's "make my day" law. The law is designed to shield residents from prosecution if they use deadly force to protect themselves against intruders.

Grant Kennedy, also of Colorado Springs, said his 22-year-old son was no burglar.

His son had moved into the neighborhood four months ago and apparently was confused about which house was his because the homes look similar, the father said. Sean Kennedy lived about a block from the house where he was shot.

more:
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_11333142

Drunk & stupid isn't any way to go through life, son. Some asshat with an itchy trigger finger and a streak of paranoia a mile wide might kill you.

[jody]

1. Alcohol was the primary cause so we should ban alcohol. n/t

[Hobarticus]

3. I missed the part where the shooter was drunk....eom

[jody]

6. The victim was drunk and apparently tried the front door and then back door. n/t

[Hobarticus]

7. So...the victim shot himself when he couldn't get in?

Not sure I follow your logic.

[jody]

9. Apparently the victim acted like a robber trying to break into the house and the owner defended

himself.

You say "Not sure I follow your logic" but IMO you do but don't want to admit the obvious, the victim was at fault.

[Hobarticus]

11. Really? People deserve to die because they try to open a door, Callahan?

"Acted like a robber"? That's absurd.

No, actually I have no problem stating that the shooter is at fault. Blaming alcohol and the victim is stupid, hence why I say I don't follow your logic, but I've got a reasonable level of restraint in me.

[jody]

12. People who act like a robber put them self in harms way. That's the law in most states.

Have a good evening and goodbye. :hi:

[Hobarticus]

14. Yep, better skeedaddle and shoot some kids acting like burglars on your lawn

Thanks for reinforcing every bad stereotype of gun owners like myself out there. :hi:

[Name removed]

61. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[bread_and_roses]

25. Oh, right. Most robbers make an unholy racket in a populated neighborhood demanding to be admitted.

And OF COURSE it is justifiable to shoot an unknown person through your door! Why, we all do it - or would! Nothing more rational!

Look, I'm a not at all physically brave woman, but since I don't automatically reach for a deadly weapon when I'm frightened, I would have called the police, which is the rational response. And since I live in a semi-rural area, where it would take them a while to get there, I'd have gone to the other door and been ready to fly out of it and run to my own neighbors and pound on his door for help, if, say, the person started to try to kick in the door, since a door is not likely to give from someone pounding on it, no matter how hard. Neighbor's a hunter, but I know for sure not crazed enough to shoot me through the door no matter how hard I was pounding before at least figuring out what was going on.

But obviously, in the world of gun-nuttery, any excuse at all to blow someone away is sufficent.

[HEyHEY]

70. yeah, but is shooting THEN looking responsible?

[jody]

75. I'm confident the district attorney will prosecute if laws were broken. n/t

[Mad_Dem_X]

31. A robber wouldn't ring your doorbell first

Just call 911. You don't have to kill the guy. Obviously, he wasn't an intruder, because he rang the bell! He was drunk and made a mistake.

Make My Day Law - Jesus Christ.

[NaturalHigh]

52. Just call 911.

Right, because the police will always get there before anything bad happens.

:sarcasm:

[Ghost in the Machine]

74. Really?? How long have you been a robber that you would know this??

It's a diversionary tactic... distract and draw the owner to the front of the house while make entry from the rear.. element of surprise

[jody]

76. When attacked by a criminal and seconds count, the police are only minutes away. n/t

[Blue Diadem]

78. He went to the back door and broke the glass on it.

The people did call 911.

[sandnsea]

5. Alcohol is regulated and restricted

but don't let reality get in the way of making the same assinine argument for the 10,000th time.

[4 t 4]

2. Oh Yea, but guns don't kill people

Yea Right. Another perfect example of why guns should be so scarce. Some one pounds on your door and you shoot them. What if they were just trying to deliver a pizza and had the wrong address?

[sandnsea]

4. I bet the shooting gets defended

more than it will be condemned. And this is a lefty liberal board. This country is fucked up.

[firedupdem]

8. yeah it is...why not call the cops...jeez. n/t

[wartrace]

46. The homeowner DID call the police.

Apparently the man was shot after he broke the glass in the back door in an attempt to gain entry.

[Paulie]

16. Could have been a land shark

They fake the pizza delivery bit.

[MajorChode]

10. Make my day

He's just another casualty of the right's gun nuttery.

They pass laws like concealed carry and make my day which encourage trigger happy gunnuts, and people get killed for less than looking at someone cross-eyed. Meanwhile the crimes they prevent are nil.

Chalk Sean's name up there with all the kids who shoot themselves with their parents' guns. Responsible gun ownership is now out the window and we're back to the old west days.

Yep, guns don't kill people. Inbred hillbillies do, and sometimes they do it by proxy at the voting booth.

[Ghost in the Machine]

13. The guy was so drunk he didn't know where he was, yet he *drove* there???

"Sean Kennedy had been drinking at a Broncos party in Colorado Springs on Sunday night when, according to his father, he drove to the wrong home, pounded on the back door and was shot dead."

He was so drunk he couldn't recognize a house he's lived in for four months??... and he drove there??? Good thing he didn't kill some innocent person on his way home...



I'll have to hand it to his father though, he hasn't gone all outraged at the shooter... he seems to accept what happened:

"He had had too much to drink, as boys that age will do, and he apparently went to the wrong house, rang the doorbell and went to the back door and was pounding pretty aggressively, I guess, to wake up his roommates," Grant Kennedy said.

"I guess the people inside were fearful of him. It's just a tragedy."

{snip}

"People have a right to protect themselves in their homes, but this is just a tragedy," Grant Kennedy said.
(from the link in OP)

I disagree that it had to be someone with "an itchy trigger finger and a streak of paranoia a mile wide" to shoot the guy. Have you seen his photo at the link? He's a pretty beefy looking guy. Imagine him shitfaced drunk and beating on your door. I can't say for sure, but he might have even been being beligerent.

Also, ringing the door front door bell, probably repeatedly, then going around to the back door? Imagine someone ringing, or knocking, at *your* front door... you go to the door, but no one is there.. then you hear someone trying to come in the back door... what's your first instinct/reaction? Was it a diversion/distraction?

There are a lot of variables to work with on this, we still don't have all of the story, or a statement from the shooter...

[baldguy]

17. Being drunk & stupid = automatic death penalty.

Damn right! The guy DESERVED to get shot & killed.

Imagine! Getting lost & knocking on some random door. It's no wonder he got shot! He was just asking for it.

[Ghost in the Machine]

21. I never said he "deserved it", did I?

That's right, I didn't...

Do you have a response that isn't a strawman?

BTW... are you defending drunk driving? He didn't get "lost", he was too drunk to know where he was.. and he drove there...

[Blue Diadem]

41. Knocking on a random door usually doesn't involve breaking the glass.

"He had broken the window and was trying to get in the back door, thinking he was getting in the back of his own house," Kennedy's mother, Lisa Kennedy, said she was told by police. "The detectives agreed from everything we told them and from the way things looked that was pretty much what happened."

http://www.gazette.com/articles/kennedy_45573___article.html/home_police.html

[RB TexLa]

15. I've seen many a murderer and rapists' parents defend them too.

Not saying the guy was trying to break in and steal or rape at the house but just because someone's father says their kid is good doesn't make it so.

[bertman]

18. You're sitting in your home one Sunday night chilling before getting ready for bed,

when you hear someone trying to open your front door. At first you listen as the person shakes the door knob and pulls on the door, then the person starts shaking the door and banging on the door. Then he starts yelling "Hey open the door. I know you're in there." You're standing in the next room listening and wondering who the hell is this who is at your door beating on it and yelling at you. Your roommate tiptoes in and gives you a strange, puzzled look like "What the fuck is going on?".

Then, suddenly the banging and yelling stops and you both breathe a sigh of relief until you realize that the stranger at the door is going around to the back door. Now you're really worried. Is he going to try to break in the back door? Who is he? What does he want? Is he armed?

Then, he's at the back door. Now he's beating on the door and trying his best to jerk the door open. He's yelling "Open the goddam door. I know you're in there!!" You can tell he's drunk and you can see through the window that he's a big guy and he's really pissed and trying to break into the house.

Now you and your roommate are really scared because you can tell this crazy person is about to get in your house. So, in a panic, you grab your pistol and just when you think he's about to break the door down and get inside, you fire at him through the door.

Bad all the way around.

[firedupdem]

19. You forgot the part about the phone and calling 911.

It's easy for me to think about what I would have done but before I shoot through the door I'm calling 911. I think the person would have to come in the house before I shoot them.

[bertman]

20. Actually, I didn't forget. When shit like this happens and the adrenaline starts rushing

people get frozen waiting to see what's going to happen. Especially if it's a small house and you're worried that the guy is going to see you and get even more violent than he already seems to be. So the 911 call gets lost in the terror of the moment.

Or, scenario TWO, you call 911 and they say they're sending a car over, but the guy appears at your back door acting like a raving lunatic. Do you wait for the police car to arrive and find you and your roommate in a pool of blood with the murderer gone out the back door? Or do you shoot out of fear for your life?

I'm glad I was not in that situation. I think of myself as being pretty calm under duress but you never really know what you'll do until it happens.

Maybe there were kids in the house. Maybe not.

It's just a terrible, tragic story, but I felt that it should be portrayed as it COULD POSSIBLY have happened.

I know someone who got drunk and did something similar in one of those cookie-cutter neighborhoods that he lived in. Only he passed out on the porch and was awakened in the morning by the gendarmes who escorted him to his real house.

[firedupdem]

22. Sad story and scary. Maybe this is why the dad sounded forgiving...

horrible.

[wartrace]

48. You didn't actually read the article, did you?

The police were called.

[harmonicon]

24. well, here's a crazy fucking idea:

ask them what they want.

Jesus, last year my brother was visiting me and I was woken up in the middle of the night by someone messing with my door - I thought it was my brother trying to get into the apartment (maybe he'd gone to the convenience store or something and was trying to use the wrong key). So, I yelled "Paul?! What's going on?", which woke him up in the next room. That freaked me out, because I realized that it was someone either drunk like this idiot, or more likely, someone trying to break in. In my sleepy state, I yelled something at the door, and the fiddling stopped. After a few minutes when I didn't hear anything else, I opened the door and looked outside: nothing... nothing fucked with in the driveway, etc.

I guess what would have been more reasonable would have been to just shoot whoever was messing with my door, huh?

[Mad_Dem_X]

32. That's too logical!

You're supposed to shoot first, ask questions later - didin't you know that? :eyes:

Some people with guns are just too quick to use them. As a result, folks who make silly mistakes end up dead.

[bertman]

35. It's so easy now, in the security and comfort of our homes/offices to say what

these folks should have done. When the fear kicks in, rationality goes by the wayside.

So often we hear people say, "Well, I woulda done this" when they don't know what they would have done. You just don't know until it happens.

That's why the military and the police train and train and train and train, so when they get in those types of adrenaline-pumping situations they will hopefully react the way they've been trained to react. And even that often goes awry.

[harmonicon]

53. I do know what I would have done

Are you not responding to my post? That's what I did. I know that I wouldn't have ever shot anyone, that's for damn sure, unless maybe they were in my house, attacking a family member of mine. I know that for damn sure. Defending this murdered is like defending a guy who kills a 7/11 clerk by saying "you don't know what you would have done if you wanted money, had a gun, and were walking past a 7/11".

[bertman]

54. Yes, I was responding to your post, harmonicon. I'm glad that you are so cool under

stress that you would never do anything like that. But your analogy is a bit over the top.

[harmonicon]

56. it was over the top on purpose

because I think that killing people is pretty over the top, no matter what the circumstances.

[bertman]

57. and I agree with you on that.

[Blue Diadem]

34. Yep, and you call 911, but he's at your back door and he breaks the glass

Combine that with some recent home invasion type robberies.

http://www.gazette.com/articles/kennedy_45573___article.html/home_police.html

It's sad all the way around. He had to be really drunk to not know his own house and yard. It's too bad his friends didn't realize how impaired he was after a day of drinking at their house. If they would have and insisted he stay overnight, he'd still be alive.

[Loudmxr]

23. This story stinks. There is a world of difference between a drunk and an intruder.

A few yells of "Buddy ya got the wrong house!! GO AWAY!!" or "I have a gun I will kill you IF YOU DO NOT GO AWAY".

There is an element of lying in wait to finally live out the fantasy of killing another human being which many people have. Or there is just unwarranted fear taking over and shooting.

But I would have reacted differently. I am genetically a warrior. I would have chatted him up. If he was a danger.. shit yeah I would kill him. I am fight not flight always have been always will be.

But since he wasn't I would have called him a cab.:smoke:

[LanternWaste]

26. Happiness is a warm gun. Bang, bang, shoot, shoot.

Happiness is a warm gun. Bang, bang, shoot, shoot.

Guess it just goes to illustrate that even though one may live in a new neighborhood in which most of the houses look similar, pounding on someone's front and/or back door warrants a death penalty.

[Bandit]

27. America, Home of the gun totin' Brave.

Cowards IMO

[tabasco]

80. Cowards, living in a state of fear.

Sucks to be them.

[Freddie Stubbs]

28. Where in the article did it mention terrorists?

:shrug:

[baldguy]

42. That's the beauty - the gun fondlers say it doesn't matter.

The fool stumbling around on your porch might be a drunken frat boy - but he also might be an Al Qaeda operative!

The obvious answer to both: SHOOT HIM! SHOOT HIM! SHOOT HIM!

[EstimatedProphet]

29. I own guns. I'm pro-2nd amendment. This is still a bad situation

A "Make My Day" law, that allows someone to shoot an "intruder" (which the guy was apparently not) without asking questions? Who the fuck thought that up?

[Ilsa]

33. I agree with you. It seems like a threat should have been shouted

at the poor drunk before blowing him away.

This law cheapens life. (I don't have guns because we have children, including an autistic son, in the house. But I am also pro-2nd Amendment.)

[a la izquierda]

30. Wow, what a mess.

My dogs go bonkers when I fiddle with my keys at the door, so there's not anyone who'd mistake my home for theirs. When I lived in an apartment complex in California, I had something similar happen. I don't have guns though...just a baseball bat, a husband and dogs.

The driving while very impaired(at least from the sound of it) is really a problem-who knows if he hit anyone or anything while making his way home.

[slackmaster]

36. Mr. Robbins gave an incorrect account of California state law

The law varies in other states, he said. In California, for instance, there has to be no other reasonable alternative than to kill.

He's either misinformed or lying. The law says no such thing.

Here's the actual code (California PC):

...195. Homicide is excusable in the following cases:
1. When committed by accident and misfortune, or in doing any
other lawful act by lawful means, with usual and ordinary caution,
and without any unlawful intent.
2. When committed by accident and misfortune, in the heat of
passion, upon any sudden and sufficient provocation, or upon a sudden
combat, when no undue advantage is taken, nor any dangerous weapon
used, and when the killing is not done in a cruel or unusual manner.

196. Homicide is justifiable when committed by public officers and
those acting by their command in their aid and assistance, either--
1. In obedience to any judgment of a competent Court; or,
2. When necessarily committed in overcoming actual resistance to
the execution of some legal process, or in the discharge of any other
legal duty; or,
3. When necessarily committed in retaking felons who have been
rescued or have escaped, or when necessarily committed in arresting
persons charged with felony, and who are fleeing from justice or
resisting such arrest.

197. Homicide is also justifiable when committed by any person in
any of the following cases:
1. When resisting any attempt to murder any person, or to commit a
felony, or to do some great bodily injury upon any person; or,
2. When committed in defense of habitation, property, or person,
against one who manifestly intends or endeavors, by violence or
surprise, to commit a felony, or against one who manifestly intends
and endeavors, in a violent, riotous or tumultuous manner, to enter
the habitation of another for the purpose of offering violence to any
person therein; or,
3. When committed in the lawful defense of such person, or of a
wife or husband, parent, child, master, mistress, or servant of such
person, when there is reasonable ground to apprehend a design to
commit a felony or to do some great bodily injury, and imminent
danger of such design being accomplished; but such person, or the
person in whose behalf the defense was made, if he was the assailant
or engaged in mutual combat, must really and in good faith have
endeavored to decline any further struggle before the homicide was
committed; or,
4. When necessarily committed in attempting, by lawful ways and
means, to apprehend any person for any felony committed, or in
lawfully suppressing any riot, or in lawfully keeping and preserving
the peace.

198. A bare fear of the commission of any of the offenses mentioned
in subdivisions 2 and 3 of Section 197, to prevent which homicide
may be lawfully committed, is not sufficient to justify it. But the
circumstances must be sufficient to excite the fears of a reasonable
person, and the party killing must have acted under the influence of
such fears alone.

198.5. Any person using force intended or likely to cause death or
great bodily injury within his or her residence shall be presumed to
have held a reasonable fear of imminent peril of death or great
bodily injury to self, family, or a member of the household when that
force is used against another person, not a member of the family or
household, who unlawfully and forcibly enters or has unlawfully and
forcibly entered the residence and the person using the force knew or
had reason to believe that an unlawful and forcible entry occurred.

As used in this section, great bodily injury means a significant
or substantial physical injury.

199. The homicide appearing to be justifiable or excusable, the
person indicted must, upon his trial, be fully acquitted and
discharged.

Underlining added for emphasis.

Reference: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/cgi-bin/displaycode?section=pen&group=00001-01000&file=187-199

If applied to this case, IMO justification via PC 197(2) and 198 would be arguable as a defense, but not a slam-dunk. If the guy had managed to break in, then the shooting would be justifiable. Banging on the door alone is not sufficient to justify deadly force in California; but the law says nothing about waiting until there is "no reasonable alternative". That's just bullshit.

Many of the recently adopted state Castle Doctrine laws are modeled on California's. The only difference (e.g. Florida's) is the scope of the "castle" extends beyond the walls of a person's home or place of business. Other than that, the principle of "reasonableness" of fear of death or bodily injury applies everywhere except Texas AFAIK (where deadly force can be used to protect property under some circumstances).

[Javaman]

37. And here is the key sentance...

"Sean Kennedy had been drinking at a Broncos party in Colorado Springs on Sunday night when, according to his father, he drove to the wrong home,"

driving drunk. So, if he continued to drive drunk, he could have either killed himself or killed someone else.

now this "saint" goes to the wrong house, drunk, gets shot and dies.

seems like a darwin award in here somewhere.

[Statistical]

38. Doesn't look like the "stand your ground" law applies here?

Rohn A. Robbins, a Vail Valley lawyer who has written and lectured on make-my-day laws, said Colorado has an "across-the-threshold" standard, meaning the aggressor must enter the home in most cases.

I haven't looked up the law BUT IF Colorado law requires intruder to pass the threshold then likely the law won't protect the shooter.

[tammywammy]

60. He had broken a window to open the back door

"He had broken the window and was trying to get in the back door, thinking he was getting in the back of his own house," Kennedy's mother, Lisa Kennedy, said she was told by police. "The detectives agreed from everything we told them and from the way things looked that was pretty much what happened."

http://www.gazette.com/articles/kennedy_45573___article.html/home_police.html

[Statistical]

64. Ah.. I didn't see that. I would consider than an intrustion (n/t)

[Shardik]

39. This is not a defense of driving while intoxicated,

But thank god, driving after drinking does NOT constitute a death sentence for someone every time.

It can cause terrible, terrible things and should not be excused, but if you would attend and AA meeting you will hear stories of the hundreds of times a person drove drunk without repercussion only to finally be driven to stop drinking due to family pressure or loss in one form or another.

[wartrace]

40. I am not going to base my judgement on Dad saying he was a "good boy".

If the man (22 years old is not a "boy") was killed without entering the home then homeowner violated the law. It is pretty clear that an intruder has to step into the home before deadly force can be used. If the intruder DID breech the door then the shooting was justified.

I own firearms & believe in the right to self defense BUT it APPEARS there was no physical threat of harm to the homes occupants in this case. Of course SOMETIMES reporters omit details that are pertinent to what really happened. Did he kick the door in? The homeowner called police, what caused the homeowner to shoot?

Passing judgement based on a newspaper reporters story is foolish. The homeowner will have his/her day in court.

[Blue Diadem]

43. I think some reporters have an agenda and omit facts on purpose

so they have an eye catching story that enrages people.

One big important fact is that the young man went to the rear door and broke the glass. That's a huge difference from just knocking or pounding on someone's door.

http://www.gazette.com/articles/kennedy_45573___article.html/home_police.html

[Soylent Brice]

44. doesn't anybody call the fucking cops anymore?

just sayin'



:shrug:

[tammywammy]

63. They did call 911

And while waiting on the police to show up, he broke a window in order to get in the back door.

[Soylent Brice]

79. i see

i am humbled

[Subdivisions]

45. This poor guy's death is the fault of the shooter...and not his own.

I know I'm going to hear it for saying this. But, for cryin' out loud! If someone comes banging on my door and I have the right to shoot first and ask questions later, I'm going to revert to my common sense to guide the decision since, by having a gun and knowing where the intruder is, I already have the upper hand. And common sense would dictate that the first thing I do is get my gun and my phone. The second thing I do is to loudly say "I am armed and I will kill you. Who are you and what is your purpose here?" while simultaneously dialing 911. If the person is a criminal attempting to gain entry, he will most likely flee at hearing such a challenge. If it is a drunk person who has lost his way, he'll either flee or he will realize, with or without my assistance, that he is at the wrong house and will likely become apologetic and leave to find his way home, with or without my assistance.

When you have been charged with the responsibility of a legal situation like "Make My Day", it is YOUR responsibility to remain calm and act reasonably, including using your common sense in a way that avoids having to discharge that weapon. We can't have people freezing like a deer in the headlights when a firearm is called to its duty, snapping out of it only long enough to aim and pull the trigger - too late to avoid killing where no death was necessarily warranted. The shooter in this case acted irresponsibly, though I would hesitate to persue any punative action against the person, who will probably deal with it psychologically for the rest of their life.

A tragedy, indeed.

[Mugu]

50. For the most part I agree with you.

Unfortunately the drunk was behaving as a fool and breaking the window probably sealed his fate. However, I have a problem with shooting through doors. Personally I would prefer to wait for them to step over the threshold before unleashing deadly force. If they break the door and step over the threshold, particularly during hours of darkness, don't be surprised if something very bad (and very noisy) happens.

[Statistical]

67. Couple of points were left out or not clearly made in the article

1) In another article it is reported the wife did call 911.
2) The drunk did not only bang on the front door he went around to the back door.
3) The drunk broke the window in back door and was attempting to get into the house.
4) We aren't sure the home owner didn't yell "I am armed".

Initially I was thinking "dumb shooter". I also didn't think the law would cover the shooter because he shot someone in the backyard.

As I learn more I am not sure I wouldn't do the same thing.

Who the hell decides it is a good idea to smash window in to get into a house? Drunk or not?

In my younger days I got plastered quite often. Never remember being drunk enough to consider .... Hey I want this door open, maybe I should shatter the window.

[wartrace]

47. Although a tragedy, at least he didn't kill anybody driving there.

More people are killed by drunk driving every year than are killed intentionally with guns. This man was wasted out of his mind and out on the roads driving. He busted the window on the rear door of this home in his attempt to gain entry. Hello? The key doesn't fit, the fence in the backyard was totally different than the one at his home. The man was a major contributor in his own death. I am kind of on the fence with this one. On one hand it is a shame that he was shot & killed. On the other hand at least he won't be out on the highway after the next party so drunk that he doesn't know where the heck he is. Who knows if he would have killed a carload of innocent people next time?

[Paladin]

49. You're Not "Kind Of On The Fence With This One."

Like most of DU's resident Gun Nuts posting here, you're gleefully blaming the victim, expressing relief and satisfaction in his death. Because God forbid that any citizen should pass up the opportunity to use his guns on someone, right? Regardless of the circumstances, there will be support for that citizen, here.....

[wartrace]

77. Why do all anti self defense people here think they are clairvoyant?

You seem to think you can see into my mind. You seem to take my post as "gleefully blaming the victim" when I clearly say it was a tragedy. Can you tell what I'm thinking now? (good, you wouldn't like it)

I AM happy that this drunk driver will never drive on the roads again although I would have been happier if he had just went to jail & lost his license. Drunk drivers kill & maim far more people every year than intentional shootings and FAR more of those killed by drunk drivers are innocent victims than those murdered by guns.

I see your reaction as gleefully seeing another gun murder to reinforce the idea that all guns should be banned.You don't seem too interested in just targeting criminals with guns, you want to see everyone prohibited. (except criminals who aren't obligated to follow laws) You thrive on the misuse of firearms but never seem to see their value. People who misuse firearms belong in jail, people who don't have the right to self defense. The right to keep and bear arms is so important that the founding fathers put it right into the bill of rights.

Have fun tonight Paladin, if you venture out for a night of celebration be careful. It's amateur night and there will be drunk drivers looking for an innocent victim to destroy. I am serious, be careful tonight.

[NaturalHigh]

51. As soon as I read the title, I knew what this thread was about.

Yes, this was tragic, but the homeowner was defending himself from an unknown intruder. He was well within his legal rights.

[baldguy]

55. Why is getting lost in a residential neighborhood a capital crime deserving death?

Why should a homeowner be allowed to kill anybody on his property without even the slightest attempt to ascertain their situation?

[NaturalHigh]

59. Because everyone has the right to be safe in his/her home...

and defend his/her family and property. I'm sorry the drunk guy got killed, but the homeowner is within his rights. To be perfectly honest, I'm pretty sure I would have reacted the same way.

[baldguy]

65. Being "safe" is not the same as "killing everything in sight whenever possible"

I don't grant that the shooter was in his rights. A person at your door is not an automatic threat. It could be a burglar, sure. But it more likely be someone not seeking to cause harm - could be looking for help; could be a police officer; and could be a drunken neighbor who's stumbled to the wrong house.

Deadly force should be used as a LAST resort, not as the first and only.

[NaturalHigh]

66. You obviously have your mind made up on this issue...

and so do I. We'll just have to disagree.

[baldguy]

68. I just hope my car never decides to break down in your neighborhood.

[NaturalHigh]

69. If it does, please just ring the doorbell.

Don't bang on the door, shout like a drunken maniac, or break the glass out of the door, and I'll be glad to let you use my phone. I'm not much of a mechanic, so I wouldn't actually be much help with your car.

[baldguy]

72. Just go up nicely & ring your doorbell?

People have been shot for doing that, too.

[NaturalHigh]

73. Not at my house.

In fact, I've never shot anybody, and I certainly wouldn't want to. If you break the glass out of my back door, though, I'm likely to assume that you're a criminal.

[Statistical]

71. If you car breaks down I would strong recommend not ....

going into a random backyard, smashing the window in the backdoor and attempting to get into the house.

[flvegan]

58. This is why all lost, drunk people should be armed.

[tammywammy]

62. It's a sad story

And the homeowners did call the police, but while waiting for them, Kennedy broke a window in order to open the back door. I can understand the homeowners reaction to some stranger banging on the doors, trying to get in and then breaking a window.

[jody]

81. "Sean Kennedy, had broken a window and was trying to get inside a back door when he was shot and

killed by the homeowner Sunday night."

http://www.krdo.com/Global/story.asp?S=9604233