OK, Castle Doctrine fans, was this home defender an example of courage or foolhardiness?
EVANSVILLE — An East Riverside Drive resident interrupted a burglary at his home Wednesday morning and held a man in the house at gunpoint until police arrived.
Joseph Vallar, who lives at 1323 E. Riverside Drive, rushed home from work about 10 a.m. Wednesday when a neighbor alerted him that someone was inside his home.
Vallar, who served with the Army's Special Forces, quickly drove home, according to a police probable cause affidavit, took a handgun from his vehicle and went inside his house where he confronted a man near his sons' bedroom.
[. . .]
Evansville Police Department PIO Karen Kajmowicz said while the incident ended well, she hopes that people realize Vallar's actions do not constitute the best way to handle such a situation. She said there was reportedly an approximately 15-minute time span between Vallar receiving the neighbors' call and his dialing 911, while it only took three minutes for police to arrive at the scene.
"Once the victim got a phone call, he should have called 911," she said. "The police need to handle that situation."
[. . .]
Vallar "got his property back" and "very little damage (was) done," but the situation was "a recipe for just a complete disaster, and we hope that neighbors will call 911 when they see suspicious activity," Kajmowicz said.
I wasn't thinking about the danger of the burglar turning nasty and getting the gun away from the homeowner, but what would have happened if the burglar said, "Screw you" and just started to walk away. The homeowner would then have to shoot or let the guy go (speaking of bluffs being called). Laws on when deadly force can be used vary from state to state. Indiana's law is stronger that some -- here, we have the right to use deadly force if we "reasonably believe" it is necessary, and, furthermore, we have no "duty to retreat." But the "reasonable" part should be kept in mind. If a burglar is in your home or a carjacker is trying to take your car, force can be considered reasonable. Shooting a burglar on the street who is running away from your house would not be reasonable. And "Get off my grass!" is probably preferable to brining out the shotgun if someone is cutting across your lawn.
Anyway, which is the better position: Call the police in most cases and use your own weapon as a last resort? Or shoof first and call the cops in only when absolutely necessary?
