One of my favorites from the last couple of years because it was a clear case that the firearm made a big difference. This happened in 2013. People who say "why do you need high capacity magazines " need to see reality. You don't know how many people you might need to defend yourself against or how many bullets it might take to stop an attacker. There are plenty of stories of trained police who miss a lot of shots when defending themselves. This mother was in a nightmare situation. Chased to an attic with her twin 9 year old children, she hit her attacker with 6 shots before he left. She was out of ammo but bluffed the guy. If there had been more than one person, she had missed a few more shots, or he decided to keep coming despite the bluff, who knows what would have happened.

http://abcnews.go.com/US/georgia-mom...ry?id=18164812

Georgia Mom Shoots Home Invader, Hiding With Her Children

A mother of two has been hailed a hero by her husband after she shot an intruder in their Loganville, Ga., home last Friday afternoon.

"She protected the kids. She did what she was supposed to do as a responsible, prepared gun owner," said her husband, Donnie Herman, in an interview with ABC's Atlanta affiliate WSB-TV.

According to Herman and the Walton County Sheriff's Office incident report, Melinda Herman was working at home when a man began to ring the doorbell. She called her husband at work, who told her to gather their 9-year-old twins, a boy and a girl, and go hide. All three of them went to an upstairs crawl space, and Melinda brought along a .38 caliber handgun to the hiding place.

Her husband, meanwhile, called the police. In the 911 recording, Herman can be heard saying, "She shot him. She's shooting him, she's shooting him. Shoot him again."

"I heard him pleading," her husband said to the 911 operator. "He was screaming."

The man allegedly broke into the house and rummaged around before making his way to the crawl space, where he found the mother and children hiding.

"The perpetrator opens that door, and of course at that time he's staring at her, her two children and a .38 revolver," said Walton County Sheriff Joe Chapman to WSB-TV.

Melinda Herman shot the intruder five times, hitting him in the face and neck. Chapman said she told the man if he moved she would shoot him again, although she had run out of bullets.

"The guy is [heard] telling her to quit shooting," said Chapman.

The intruder, who police identified as 32-year-old Paul Slater, managed to get to his car and as he tried to flee, crashed into a tree. Deputies later found him in a neighbor's yard.

Melinda Herman and her children, in the meantime, had sought refuge in a neighbor's home.

"Her life is saved and our kids lives are saved. And that's all I can say," said Donnie Herman.

Slater is currently in the Gwinnett Medical Center, receiving treatment for his injuries, which deputies described as serious. A family member told WSB-TV that Slater was on a ventilator and had endured puncture wounds to his lungs, liver and stomach.

Armed Citizen Intervenes, Shoots Suspect Allegedly Beating Woman in Convenience Store
http://www.breitbart.com/big-governm...enience-store/

A citizen “legally carrying” a handgun demanded a suspect stop attacking a woman in a convenience store then shot the suspect twice when he refused the demands.
The incident occurred at the Columbia Avenue One Stop in Holland, Michigan, around 10:20 pm on February 9.

According to WUSA, “Officers were originally called out to deal with a subject who was acting disorderly.” But when they arrived, they learned the disorderly conduct had allegedly escalated into an all-out assault on a 39-year-old woman and that the 29-year-old suspect had been shot twice to end the attack.

Police indicated that a 43-year-old witness tried to stop the assault only to have the suspect turn and begin assaulting him. At that point, the 43-year-old opened fire, striking the suspect twice.

A press release from the Holland Police Department says:

The female victim and the suspect were involved in a domestic relationship. The suspect was reported to be initially intimidating the victim and other customers in the store. One of those customers left and called 911. The video shows the victim to be visibly afraid, and at one point tries to escape. The suspect violently punched the victim several times and threw her down to the ground, and it is at that point that the customer arrives and tries to intervene. The suspect immediately turned and violently attacked the customer. The customer indicated that the suspect tried to grab his gun, and he then shot the suspect twice. The female victim did indicate that she feared the suspect would beat her to death if the customer did not intervene. The female victim was transported to the hospital for injuries and was then released.

Holland Police said the suspect in the assault was already wanted for other charges. He is currently hospitalized in critical condition.

Who can forget the Uber driver who potentially stopped a mass shooting in Chicago.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/l...419-story.html

Uber driver, licensed to carry gun, shoots gunman in Logan Square

Authorities say no charges will be filed against an Uber driver who shot and wounded a gunman who opened fire on a crowd of people in Logan Square over the weekend.

The driver had a concealed-carry permit and acted in the defense of himself and others, Assistant State's Attorney Barry Quinn said in court Sunday.

A group of people had been walking in front of the driver around 11:50 p.m. Friday in the 2900 block of North Milwaukee Avenue when Everardo Custodio, 22, began firing into the crowd, Quinn said.

The driver pulled out a handgun and fired six shots at Custodio, hitting him several times, according to court records. Responding officers found Custodio lying on the ground, bleeding, Quinn said. No other injuries were reported.

Custodio was taken to Advocate Illinois Masonic hospital, where he was treated for gunshot wounds to the shin, thigh and lower back, authorities said.

Custodio, of the 2900 block of North Ridgeway Avenue, was charged with aggravated assault and unlawful use of a weapon charges. He was denied bond during the Sunday court hearing.

The Uber driver, a 47-year-old resident of Little Italy, provided police with a valid concealed-carry permit and a firearm owner's identification card, Quinn said.

This concealed carry stopped a knife attack just by pulling his firearm.

Man buys knife, stabs 2 at Salt Lake City store

http://www.ksl.com/?sid=20161608

SALT LAKE CITY — A man stabbed two people at the Smith's Marketplace grocery store in downtown Salt Lake City before being subdued by a bystander.

The attack took place around 5:30 p.m. in the parking lot of the store at 455 S. 500 East.

According to a witness, it appears one man was stabbed in the side of the head and another was stabbed in the stomach. The exact condition of the victims is unknown, but police believe the injuries are very serious and possibly critical.

Police say a bystander with a concealed carry permit witnessed the attack and stepped in to keep it from escalating.

"(The bystander) was suspicious of what might be going on, and when he saw the stabbing, he just drew his pistol and challenged the individual," which caused the alleged attacker to lie down on the ground, said Salt Lake City Police Lt. Brian Purvis.

By the time police officers arrived on the scene, the man was subdued and is now in custody.

The attacker apparently bought the knife inside the store. Police are going over surveillance videos to determine what else the man may have done before the attack.

Police have not yet interviewed the man in custody, who they say is in his 30s, and have been unable to speak to the victims while they are being treated for their injuries.

Police say there is no apparent motive for the attack at this time.

"Just going on what the witnesses said, it appears to be random," Purvis said.

Both victims are being treated at the hospital. Their identities have not been released, but police say they were both males, one in his 40s and one in his 30s.

"This was a really volatile situation that could have gotten even worse," Purvis said. "(The bystander) was definitely in the right place at the right time."

Armed Citizen Intervenes, Stops Knife Attack in Walmart Parking

An armed citizen intervened and stopped a stabbing that was underway in a Walmart parking lot in Topeka, Kansas.
The incident occurred on Saturday around 4:00 p.m.

According to WIBW, the Topeka Police Department says, “two men were involved in an altercation.” One of the men was armed with a baseball bat, the other with a knife. One of the men had been stabbed when a bystander with a handgun noticed the altercation and stepped in to stop it.

Topeka police Sergeant Joshua Klamm said the armed citizen, “Drew his firearm, and held the people to the ground basically at gun-point.” Klamm said the armed citizen “is a concealed carry holder.” An off-duty TPD officer who works at the Walmart then rushed to the scene and took over.

The stabbing victim was taken to a hospital and treated for non-life threatening injuries, then both he and the suspect were “taken into custody for aggravated battery

A gun is the equalizer in many situations. Heressone from Saturday night.



BCSO: Woman kills man in self-defense

https://www.abqjournal.com/953153/bc...f-defense.html

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Deputies say that a woman who shot and killed a man Saturday evening may have done so in self-defense as he attempted to sexually assault her.

Bernalillo County Sgt. John Allen said deputies responded to reports of a shooting at a South Valley home around 7:45 p.m. Saturday. They found Guillermo Mendez dead with a gunshot wound to the chest.

Rose Martinez told deputies that Mendez had been “holding her against her will and trying to sexually assault her.”

“So she had to shoot him,” Allen said.

Allen said no charges have been filed, but the case remains under investigation.

“We are leaning more toward self-defense,” Allen said.

He said Martinez had previously made reports to BCSO about domestic violence incidents.

A reality that people in a self defense case have to consider, it can take years and a trial to determine if defending yourself was right in the eyes of the law. Sometimes they find for you, sometimes not.


Judge: Shooter acted in self-defense

http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/news/2...n-self-defense

By Stephanie Taylor Staff Writer
A judge has found that a Lake View man who shot another man through his door was acting in self-defense.

Ronald Gene Sandlin, 58, was charged with attempted murder in the June 2014 shooting.

Tuscaloosa County Circuit Court Judge Allen May issued a ruling last week making Sandlin immune from prosecution and dismissed the case.

"The Court finds that the defendant has proven by a preponderance of the evidence that he was acting in self-defense at the time of the shooting," the judge wrote in the order.

Sandlin was accused of shooting Joseph Parsons, who investigators say had gone to the Sandlin home on Lake View Drive to collect a debt.

Sandlin fired through the front door of the house as Parsons was banging and kicking on it, according to court records. Sandlin said in court that there was an existing crack in the door, that he could see daylight coming through and thought it was about to give way.

One round fired from the small-caliber pistol went through a glass part of the door and struck Parsons in the chin. He suffered a broken jaw and other injuries.

Testimony during a court hearing in December revealed that Parsons had threatened to kill Sandlin and had come to his house nine days before, claiming he was accompanied by a "hit man" as he attempted to collect a $500 debt over a card game.

Sandlin said he didn't owe that much, but gave Parsons a check for $500 that he later stopped payment on, according to the court records. Sandlin told Parsons to stay away from his house, according to court records.

The shooting happened when Parsons, 57 at the time, returned on June 30, 2014.

This one happened in Pa in 2012 but always stood out in my mind. Man on a bike defended himself against a couple of teens who tried to do him harm.

No charges for man who shot teens
65-year-old city man acted in self-defense in killing, wounding of teens, DA says

http://www2.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=361731

A 65-year-old Reading man who was riding his bicycle was justified in shooting two teens - one fatally - who tried to rob him on a Schuylkill River trail as part of a crime spree, the Berks County district attorney said Thursday.

The teens, age 16 and 15, and another 15-year-old boy skipped school Wednesday and robbed two pedestrians in West Reading before they attacked the man as he rode on the Thun Trail in Cumru Township at 11 a.m., police said.

The man, whose name authorities withheld, will not be charged for shooting the teens because he acted in self-defense, which is legal under Pennsylvania's Castle Doctrine, District Attorney John T. Adams said.

"While I don't condone violence, the bike rider had no choice," Adams said. "It was justifiable homicide."

Julius Johnson, 16, of Reading was pronounced dead at the scene Wednesday morning after he was shot in his chest with a handgun, officials said.

An autopsy Thursday by Dr. Supriya Kuruvila, a forensic pathologist at Reading Hospital, determined Johnson died of a gunshot wound to the chest, according to the county coroner's office. The death was ruled a homicide, officials said.

The 15-year-old shot in the neck remained in Reading Hospital on Thursday, officials said. Information about his medical condition could not be obtained. Police did not release his name because he has not been charged.

The third teen, Michael Gonzalez, 15, address unavailable, was charged with robbery, aggravated assault and related offenses and committed to the county youth center in Bern Township.

Officials said an investigation continues.

Johnson was a Reading High School student, and the 15-year-olds are Gov. Mifflin High School students, Adams said.

Adams gave this account:

Johnson was on probation for previous offenses. Juvenile probation officers had gone to his Oakbrook residence earlier Wednesday and found the three teens playing video games.

They told the two 15-year-olds to leave. The officers put an electronic monitoring device on Johnson's ankle, ordered him to stay home and report to their office with his parents at 4 p.m.

Instead, the three met up and decided to jump and rob random victims.

They first robbed an elderly man in West Reading shortly after 10 a.m., taking money from his pockets, then tried to rob another man in West Reading, kneeing him in the stomach and pushing him to the ground. Neither man was hurt.

The bike rider was on the trail between Reading and West Reading.

As he rode past the teens, the 15-year-old whose name was not released punched the man in the face, knocking him from his bike. Johnson ran and kicked the man, who was sitting against a chain-link fence along the trail.

As one of the teens ran toward the man, he shot Johnson and the 15-year-old.

People who found the man called 9-1-1 and waited for police to arrive. It was unclear if the people heard the shots or were on the trail.

The teens weren't armed, but the shootings were legal because the man was unable to escape, thought his life was in danger and had a permit to carry his gun, Adams said.

The man told investigators: "I was scared for my life. I was in big trouble. If I could have kept my bike on the trail, I would have gotten out of there."

The man was unhurt but shaken by the shootings, Adams said.

Adams did not know if Johnson's monitoring device had GPS tracking capabilities or if it simply triggered an alarm when he left his home. Adams said juvenile probation officers acted appropriately.

Cumru Police Chief Jed Habecker credited his department for its quick investigation.

He said the crime was only the second robbery to occur along the Cumru section of the Thun Trail in about a decade.

Adams said he has heard from many people in the community that the bicyclist was a hero for successfully defending himself.

"When your life is in danger, you have no choice but to use deadly force," he said.

Self defense does not just mean against criminals who intend to do you harm.


http://www.spokesman.com/stories/201...ad-in-self-de/


Spokane man shoots pit bull in the head in self-defense
UPDATED: FRIDAY, FEB. 24, 2017, 3:42 P.M.


A man shot a pit bull in the head Wednesday morning as the dog attacked him in the Hillyard area, according to SCRAPS director Nancy Hill.

The dog, named Achillies, was euthanized Thursday.

According to the Spokane County Regional Animal Protection Service a man on the 2200 block of E. Nebraska saw a neighbor’s pit bull running loose Wednesday morning.

He walked across the street to contact the dog’s owners. That’s when Achilles bit him on the right leg. The victim then backed away, but the dog bit him again.

That’s when the man drew his pistol and shot the dog once in the head. The man was standing on the sidewalk, according to Hill. Hill said the dog survived initially but a veterinarian deemed the injuries too severe and euthanized him.

However, the dog’s owner tells a different story on a fundraising site. She had asked for $5,000 from the public “to help Achillies overcome this tragedy.” As of Friday afternoon the site had raised $100.

The dog’s owner did not immediately return a request for comment and has not yet removed the fundraising post.

According to the owner, Achillies got out of the house and was walking around when “my neighbor who does not like pitbulls came over to my house and shot Achillies in the head and left him in my driveway on the ice” to die.

According to Hill police said the man who shot the dog had a license to carry. Police determined that the man acted appropriately, Hill said. The pit bull had no prior record with SCRAPS.

Because the dog is dead, SCRAPS will not be investigating the incident further.

“The shooting was justified, although we never recommend shooting an animal,” Hill said.

The shooting was just one incident during a busy week for SCRAPS.

Thursday, just a day after the shooting incident, a SCRAPS officer was attacked by another pit bull while responding to a complaint.

“It’s funny one of the officers the other day said, ‘Oh my gosh the sun came out and things have gone crazy,’ ” Hill said, adding later, “It’s like spring break week came early.”

According to Hill the officer approached the door of a residence on the 1000 block of E. Dalton around noon.

According to a complaint the dog at the residence was loose and had “run toward someone viciously barking,” Hill said.

When the SCRAPS officer knocked on the door he heard barking. Shortly after a woman opened the door and a gray and white pit bull named Blue charged out and bit the officer. The dog was then restrained by the woman.

The SCRAPS officer’s wounds weren’t severe, Hill said.

“I always worry, what if it was a Girl Scout opening the door,” she said.

According to Hill, Blue already had a record with SCRAPS and was considered potentially dangerous. After the Thursday attack the dog was labeled dangerous and was impounded at SCRAPS.

Hill said the dog’s owners have four options now; they can have the dog euthanized, they can relocate the dog to a new jurisdiction, they can appeal the ruling or they can meet the dangerous dog restrictions.

Even if the dangerous dog designation is upheld, the owners can keep the dog if they comply with strict fencing requirements and only take the dog out if it is leashed and muzzled. A $250,000 liability insurance policy is also required.

She encourages dog owners to keep their animals properly restrained, and to teach them how to socialize with others.

Meanwhile, the owners of the pit bull that attacked a five-year-old girl earlier this month have appealed the ruling. Their hearing, in front of the Spokane County Commissioners, will occur March 7.

Fatal Shooting at Rock Hill Nightclub Ruled Self-defense
Authorities say the 76-year-old owner of a Rock Hill nightclub will not face charges for fatally shooting a 28-year-old patron last month.

ROCK HILL, S.C. (AP) — Authorities say the 76-year-old owner of a Rock Hill nightclub will not face charges for fatally shooting a 28-year-old patron last month.

York County Sheriff Kevin Tolson said Friday an investigation concluded that Elijah "Mac" Teal shot Christopher Elkins in self-defense about 1 a.m. Jan. 15.

Authorities say Elkins and a group of friends were escorted to the parking lot of the private Hideaway Club after a fight, but Elkins came back. When Teal refused to let Elkins back in, Elkins struck the owner in the head.

According to a news release, Teal then shot Elkins twice. One of the bullets hit Elkins in the ribcage area.

Authorities say Teal was legally carrying the gun.

Prosecutor Kevin Brackett says a business owner has no duty to retreat when attacked.