Plantagenet wrote:Actually there is a bit more to the story than that.
In this case the home owner shot the intruder----who happened to be a furious Black Lives Matter supporter who became so incensed over an on-line disagreement that he drove across town and then broke into the other guy's house to attack him.
If the home owner hadn't been armed, the enraged and out-of-control Black Lives Matter person might have killed him and his family.
Plant, did you read the article? It sounds a bit complicated to me, like there should be more information before one can really form a conclusive opinion. They knew each other. They met in church. Why is a police officer arguing with locals on facebook?
I'm not really sure about this story, if the journalist slanted it maybe to make it more favorable sounding to the 20 year old.. maybe the reporter left out pertinent info.. there's definitely holes in this whole story though, that is not a complete story.
One would need to see that facebook to tell what was going on. Was the kid a radical, was he saying violent things about police, or was it the other way around and maybe he was cyberbullied. (I'm asking a question, I don't know the answer)
Here's what the police chief said:
"I don’t think the officer had a choice — I honestly don’t,” Belmar told reporters on Saturday, labeling the situation “a very difficult position to be in.”
Well, that's not very conclusive. "I don’t think the officer had a choice — I honestly don’t" sounds like the police chief isn't sure.
It just sort of seems like there's more to this story. There's not enough information, to conclude the 20 year old's INTENT.
If it's two people that know each other from church, and maybe the 20 year old was cyberbullied by posters on facebook and then his friend from church that's also a cop is arguing with him too.. and then he goes over to his house.. what are we really talking about here, a heated argument between friends, or a random assault home invasion?
These details matter, in the law. (in other words, WHAT is the rest of the story.. all the article says is the broken window.. WHAT happened after that, exactly.. did the kid lunge at someone, were there any verbal threats made, or any threats on facebook.. all that makes a difference, and so far none of that info is in the article)
EDIT: I re-read the article (I guess I'm the one that didn't read it all
)..
Authorities said Gebhard, 20, and the officer were acquainted, and Gebhard made Facebook threats to the officer's family and “uninvolved members of the community” in advance of the Saturday encounter with the unidentified officer.
Well okay, THAT makes a difference. There still needs to be more details though, what awful reporting that doesn't even include the most pertinent info about a story.
Anyway, there still needs to be more detail, before one could make a definitive conclusion.