80-Year-Old May be Charged with Murder

[rnatalli]

Man, 80, to be charged for killing 'pregnant' intruder? - CNN.com

I'm sorry, you break into my house and attack me, you'd better be prepared to take a bullet.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

I think the problem is that they were already fleeing and outside of the house when he shot her. They will likely say that his life was no longer threatened when he fired the fatal bullet.

That's why you drag them back in after you shoot them...

 

[Adam]

Even if they charge him, I can't believe it would be for murder. Seems like voluntary manslaughter would be the max, given that it was in the midst of an attack on the man in which he certainly could have feared for his life. They came into his house and broke bones, after all. For all he knew, they were running to a car to get a shotgun.

 

[Steve81]

Even if they charge him, I can't believe it would be for murder. Seems like voluntary manslaughter would be the max, given that it was in the midst of an attack on the man in which he certainly could have feared for his life. They came into his house and broke bones, after all. For all he knew, they were running to a car to get a shotgun.

Indeed. It's easy to say a "reasonable person" should have stopped once the assailants were fleeing. However, people aren't robots, and I can only imagine the man's mental state after taking that kind of beating. I certainly couldn't convict him of anything if I were on a jury unless some other, more damning facts came to light.

 

[STRONGBADF1]

Even if they charge him, I can't believe it would be for murder. Seems like voluntary manslaughter would be the max, given that it was in the midst of an attack on the man in which he certainly could have feared for his life. They came into his house and broke bones, after all. For all he knew, they were running to a car to get a shotgun.

Prosecutors go for the max so they can plea bargain.

 

[markw]

I'd say it's "reasonable" to assume that an 80 yesr-old person, alone, in the middle of the night and having the shiite beat out of him by two people who broke into his house might be scared out of his wits and be on a hair-trigger.

Ofcourse, this whole situation could have been totally avoided had they not decided to break into his house to begin with.

 

[j_garcia]

Read about that one the other day. They were already fleeing when he shot her, so unfortunately, he can be charged. It will be manslaughter not murder.