Reader: Homeowner Made the Wrong Choice in Stabbing Burglar to Death

Nope, You're wrong. He did not break the law, and the dead guy had a gun. I would have done the same thing. He stopped a long list of crime to come. I'm proud of him.

From what the origional story said, I believe the homeowner felt that his life was in danger because of the robber having a gun. He feared for his life and stopped the threat. He did nothing wrong.

First off, it doesn't make sense to say 'you're wrong' when someone holds a belief or opinion which differs from yours. He is not 'wrong', he simply PLACES MORE VALUE ON HUMAN LIFE than you do. Even if the victim had gone on to rob thousands of other houses, robbery is almost always a non-violent crime.
Also, about the dead guy's gun? If he had any intention of using it, the moron with the sword would have been dead the second he stepped into the house. Who brings a knife to a gunfight? That's retarded. This is just some jackass who collects replica swords who saw an opportunity to play samurai. I know this guy. He sat around in high school wearing a black cape and talking in broken, half-intelligible olde english, and not dating anyone ever.

I think reader Oscar Manual Herrera-Alcala has it all wrong. A man's home is his castle and he has the right to take action to defend it. A burglar knows before he enters a home that he is taking a chance on his life. This burglar chose to ignore the possible deadly consequences and he paid the price for it. It's sad that he put himself in a position where he paid the ultimate price, but it was his choice. The homeowner should face no punishment.

Home invasion/robbery is like rape, you have been violated. All thieves should be treated like this, they are human offal and will not stop unless stopped like this. After living in Mexicon for 20 yrs. and witnessing their national past time - thieving - it is no small surprise that the author's comments are as they are. Thieving is a crime, breaking into one's home armed is a violent crime. The thief is replaceable with a million others just like him, all of which I deem also, disposable, just like garbage.

No mojo you are wrong, just because its an opinion doesn't make it right. The Right of men and women to defend themselves and their possesions is fundemental. It doesn't matter if he was playing D and D at the time. If someone comes in my house uninvited and without just cause, i am making sure they leave on their back. My fav is your " robbery is almost always a non-violent crime" ROBBERY itself is Violent. My god your thoughts are weak, if everyone thought like you then their would be little risk in crime and everyone should do it.

@ Mojo- If the man had no intention on using his gun...why bring it to the robbery? And who cares about the victim's years in HS. What does that have to do with this story?

I was almost swayed by Oscar... Then after reading the posts I remembered, "Oh- that's right! I live in the real world." Thank you readers for keeping me grounded.

Hey MOJO, I can say he is wrong because he is. This guy didn't break the law.

One of the commentors said that robbery is almost always a nonviolent crime. Well, that's certainly true when honest citizens just step aside and allow the robbers to take their "replaceable posessions". But the truth is that most robbers are quite willing to use violence at the slightest resistance. In this instance our robbery victim (And let's not forget that he was a victim, he didn't start this.) got there first with the most.

You're suggesting that someone should wait to confirm that someone is going to kill you?

If someone breaks into my home, middle of the night, middle of the day, whenever; they're going to be shot, multiple times.

If you don't want to die, don't break into people's homes, it's that simple; I'm not going to wait to see if you meant my harm; I'm not going to take the risk.

what the?

sure, of course you take a risk when you break into someone's house. don't act as if i'm encouraging people to commit crimes. what i'm saying is that the punishment doesn't fit the crime here. would you stick a sword in someone who stole from a store? no, that's retarded. why is it any different here? because it's LEGAL to stick a giant fake sword through someone doesn't make it right.
also, give me a break with this 'why did he bring the gun' bit. if he had any intention of using it, as i said already, the dumbass with the fake sword would have gone ass over teakettle. he brought the gun for the same reason just about every thief who ever broke into a house brings a gun - for an easy escape if he got caught.
i know i come off a little rough around the edges, but seriously, if i can get one thing across here - i am not saying that people who break into houses should just be allowed to go about their business, or that the homeowner did anything illegal. i DO think it was extremely unethical to use deadly force against someone who CLEARLY could have had the upper hand at any point he chose to do so. the fact that he had a gun, in my mind, makes it MORE wrong to kill him with a stupid sword. maybe what bothers me so much about this story is that it seems to imply that the criminal placed more value in human life than the homeowner.

Syn is a perfect example of what bothers me here. Feel free to ignore everything I say if it bothers you, I'm not really trying to change anyone's mind. The thing is, though, that while I agree with what Syn is saying whole-heartedly - wake up in the middle of the night and realize someone's in the house - get your gun - blow the ass off whoever is rummaging around in there... there's an eagerness which is unseemly. It always seems like people who have guns in their homes are near-desperate for the chance to use them. What's wrong with just getting your gun, calling the police, and blowing the ass off anyone who COMES INTO YOUR ROOM? I think maybe I just agree with the post here - that no simple object could be worth more than someone's life, regardless of who we're talking about.

@MoJo- Trust me, I understand what you are trying to say! But, if the robber was unarmed, you would be 100% correct. But he wasn't. This all could have happened so fast that the robber didn't really know what was going on. Nor the victim. Like I said, the victim feared for his life and stopped the threat. I would have put the sword in him too if i had a clear chance. All the robber had to do was pull a trigger and the victim would have been on the ground dead. Even if the robber didn't mean to, he could have panicked and pulled the trigger.

Now about your statement earlier:
"he brought the gun for the same reason just about every thief who ever broke into a house brings a gun - for an easy escape if he got caught."

C'mon bro...really?? I have hear multiple stories of robbers that shot families dead, robbed them, and then got the hell out of there. And i'm sure you have to!

Sorry asshole. Not true. You break into my house you better be prepared some for fatal medieval reckoning.

Mojo, that's crap...why did he have a gun unless he intended to use it? To scare someone in case he was caught? That is ludicrous and stretching the truth to accommodate your argument.

The homeowner had the advantage of knowing his house and angles within the home to evade detection by the robber. Maybe the robber was caught unaware by the homeowner weilding the knife. Even if the robber hadn't had a gun, the homeowner was still well within his rights.

And, if you think an armed robber wouldn't be shot by the po-po thus sealing his fate in the same way, you're wrong!

As for who places more value on human life... Again, I say the homeowner. He obviously has a job and is paying his rent and taxes, and therefore is a productive member of our country.

Robbers take from others that had to work hard to amass their "things". They don't pay taxes for what they steal and sell, they likely get some form of welfare because they arem't employed, and therefore are a drain on society.

Maybe the homeowner valued his life more than the robber's life. Maybe that's the same exact reason we all value the homeowner's life more than the robber's.

Since you're a praying man Oscar, I'll assume you're a Hispanic Catholic and say to you. “Render unto Caesar the things which are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s"

The law of the land is the law of the land, my friend. The Burglar broke it and the Homeowner didn't. He was well within his rights defending himself and his property with deadly force when confronted by the threat of deadly force, never mind the fucking Castle Doctrine.

However foolish he was to do it with a sword, as Mojo points out... but then... when I think about it, he didn't put an unnecessary holes in his OWN walls by shooting the burglar did he?

Oscar, are we to set aside Law and Order to quiet the lamenting hearts of those family members that failed in their duty of raising their little burglar? I think not.

As for your bewildering 92% comment... Shit comes in every color, my friend... and every consistency!

Happy Tuesday everybody.

Look, it's really very simple. When someone is confronted by an invader in their home, it's very likely that they will rapidly become incapable of rational thought/action. In situations like that, instinctual responses such as fear, survival and the need to protect one's family tend to overpower rational, elevated thought. The law permitting the use of lethal force when confronted by the imminent and immediate threat to one's life or the life of another is intended to excuse decisions made and actions taken under the duress of the situation.

If you don't understand what I mean, let's play out a scenario. You're woken up in the middle of the night by a noise downstairs/in the kitchen/in the garage. Are you the kind of person who will go investigate what you've heard, or are you the kind of person who will simply ignore it and hope it goes away? If you've got a spouse sleeping next to you or a child in the next room or even a beloved pet in the house, your instinctual response will likely be to investigate.

If you do decide to investigate, you'll probably immediately start considering what you may encounter while doing so. It's entirely possible (likely, even) that you'll just find a rake that fell over in the garage, or a pile of dishes that toppled in the kitchen sink. Or maybe your dog raided the trash can. But there's a chance that you'll find something that requires more immediate action, like a stray animal that somehow made it into your home. It's also possible (though significantly less likely) that you may encounter someone who has invaded your home. Given the range of possibilities of what you may find when investigating the noise that woke you, do you prepare for the encounter in any way? Do you slip shoes on? Do you grab a flashlight? Of course. Knowing that you might find something more sinister than a broken dish, do you consider arming yourself? Do you grab a baseball bat? Your Swiss Army knife, perhaps? Are you the kind of person who has a handgun in a lockbox under the bed? If so, and that's very, very common, this is precisely why you have it there.

If you anticipate that you may encounter a threat to your safety, or to the safety of your loved ones, the rational course of action is to prepare for that by arming yourself. You take a second to make sure your family is safe, and then you go FIND OUT WHAT'S IN YOUR HOUSE.

If I know for certain that my home has been invaded, my instinctual response is to defend. I'm not going to go downstairs and confront them, I'm going to call the police from the nearest phone and then situate myself between my wife and where I think the intruder is, and I'm going to be holding a weapon of some sort. I don't care if they make off with everything of value downstairs, up to and including my kitchen appliances; that's what insurance policies are for. But if I deem that the intruder poses an immediate threat to me or to my wife, I will attempt to neutralize that threat, using lethal force if necessary. The decision to take a life in response to a threat to my own or to the life of another is justifiable in any sort of morality and is protected by the law.

Simple question: Oscar, how are you able to determine if an intruder is either a) burglarizing your home, or b) intending on harming/killing you? Those two actions are not mutually exclusive.

Remember, you have a couple of seconds AT MOST to make the decision, if you don't recognize this person or know it's someone who doesn't belong in your home.

And he has a gun. Cut the time you have to react to less than a second.

Ever done a Tueller drill exercise? This is a pretty good example of that type of decision making.

In every situation where I've had to deal with criminals, I have yet to find an identifier that can help me discern whether they are burglars, rapists, or killers. They generally don't have it tattooed on their foreheads. So how do you determine if your material possessions are threatened or if your life is in danger?

Armchair quarterbacking makes it easy to be self-righteous and hypothetically virtuous, Oscar. Hope that you're never in a similar situation and if you are, your convictions don't force you to make the wrong choice and end up losing your life due to the actions of a willing criminal.

Oh my gosh. Oscar what are you thinking? You need to pop that bubble you are living in. The man broke in his house with a gun. My question to you is if he wouldn't have killed the burglar what would have happend next? hard working citizens work very hard for what they have and you have punks wanting to steal from us. I say he got exactly what he deserved..BRAVO for him.

I totally agree with Andrew. Let the burgler(s) take materialistic things and call the cops from your bedroom. Sit in a spot you have rehearsed numerous times of where you would sit and wait if someone were ever to break in. If the burgler(s) begin coming your direction, there's more in the plan than burglerizing your home and that's when you have to be prepared to fight so that the burgler(s) do not kill you, perhaps rape your daughter(s), your wife,even your son(s)and kill your entire family. So, let the police handle the burglery when they arrive, but you have to be prepared to handle it yourself should the burgler(s) try to go further into your home other than the living room & kitchen areas because if a burglery is happening at night there is a good chance the burgler(s) want to do more harm than just to steal things. When theives break in knowingly knowing people are inside their home they intend to prepare themselves for the high likelihood of being confronted by a homeowner...the theives don't care and they will most likely do whatever they please if YOU don't prepare yourself and your family to have your own plan just in case.

Oscar, a fool and his passion will soon part ways. Your only 22, so maybe there is hope for you...but for the man in his house did he lose his life.

Oscar, you know you are right in some aspects of your statement. You have a good heart. in a situation like this, if it were to turn out the way you described (call the cops, catch the burglar, all items replaced) that would be about the best way a situation like this could turn out. BUT....is it reality??? For me if i were to come home and see my dog acting strange and know that someone (who knows who it is) is in my home, i will instinctively walk around the house to see whats going on??? ive had moments when i thought someone was in my house just to find out no one is there. You have to account for knowns and the unknowns. When i put myself in the homeowners shoes, i would feel like crap knowing that ive killed a man. Thats why i can side with you partially. But in the real world chances are i would have killed him.

I'm am liberal as they come and violence for the most part makes me ill, however as the original story says, the man feared for his life and I don't think he went out of his way to kill the dude, he was just defending himself.

justified IMO

Well "Oscar" I'm not hiding either, I'm Ryan, nice to meet you. Now onto your asinine comments.
First off, your grammar sucks. I'm not one to pick apart someone's posting for errors, but while reading yours just really got to me. Anyway, this HERO did not break the law whatsoever! He came into his home a place where he is supposed to be safe, where he is supposed to feel safe and there was an armed intruder. Who knows what the ultimate motives of the intruder were? Think about it, the guy didn't bring a gun with him to use to pick a lock, he had it and I'm sure if this unnamed man didn't act quickly the bad guy would have used it. I work hard for everything and everyone I have. Who are you to put a price on this guy's possessions?! He and everyone else has the right to protect themselves, their home, and all that they work for. This scum bag rolled the dice and decided he was going to violate the sanctity of someone's home, and he crapped out. If you want to tuck your tail and run when someone is violating your home where your family sleeps and is supposed to feel safe then that's your choice. But for you to say this guy needs to be convicted is just ignorant! After reading your posting it sounds like you are sitting high up in your tower thinking you are better than this guy because you were "robbed of most of your material possession and watched most of it happen". Well sir in my opinion that makes you a coward. I mean listen to yourself, "Oooooohh, MY hands are clean of blood and MY soul is unmarked by such ignorance and hate." Where do you get off?
If I come home to someone in MY house, there will be only three outcomes. 1 I'll grab my gun and but a few rounds in the scumbag, 2 if I can't get to my guns, I'll take my Marine Corps sword off my wall and do what the hero in this story did, and 3 I'll just use my bare hands. When all is said and done my hands may not be "clean of blood" but regardless of what you say up on your high horse, my soul will be "unmarked by ignorance and hate", because it wouldn't be a matter of "hate" it would be a matter of protecting my home and my family, and if you see that as being "ignorant" then you need to look in the mirror and look at true ignorance.

I love how this article is filed under "Douchebags". Oscar ought to take a hint.

Stay classy, True Crime Report. :)

Pete Kotz said:

Sorry, Andrew, that wasn't meant for Oscar, whose comments were pretty thoughtful. That was meant for the burglar in this case.

Statistics show burglaries quite often escalate into rape/assaults and other such personal harm. Anyone comes into my home uninvited and they are taking their life into their own hands. Defending our castle is our right as human beings. To just stand aside or wait in our home somewhere to see what the person has in mind that has broken into our home is just plain stupid in my book.

Let's take Oscar's beliefs and amend them to a different situation. Say...a bank robbery. Armed man comes into a bank, and tries to steal all the money. Federal law enforcement considers this a VIOLENT crime, whether the gun was used or not. If a security guard or any number of armed people in the bank, used a weapon and killed the robber, they certainly wouldn't be charged with a crime. They certainly are ALLOWED to let said criminal to leave with all the money, however it is NOT required, even though, it's only "material things." How can someone breaking into one's HOME, be any less violent, or more within their rights to something that isn't theirs???

Good point Soobs

While I agree in theory that material objects are no reason to kill somebody, I can't find fault with the homeowner. The robber had a gun, what's to say the homeowner could sneak out and call the police? Secondly, if his police are anything like ours, he was better off doing what he did. I'm going through something similar right now,and believe me, I wish I had caught the bastard in the act and dispatched him. My police are being no help. Yes, in another 30 years of working hard, I can replace the things which were stolen from me. I can't replace the sense of security my children lost. My case is slightly different in that it was our former landlord who stole all of our possessions and that's why the cops aren't doing squat. Had I been there when he did it, I'd have done what this guy did. Should it ever happen again, I won't hesitate. And I'm generally a tree-hugging, peace loving type. There is very little justice for the "little people" anymore.

Hey Pete, sorry for the confusion. I had just noticed that the "Douchebags" keyword was missing from the original article about the robbery attempt, and thought its inclusion here represented some form of judgment on the site's behalf.

My bad.

Pete Kotz said:

No worries, Andrew, it was probably just my omission in the original piece.

Hey Oscar, what's your address? i would like some of your "REPLACEABLE MATERIALISTIC possessions". I will be carrying a toy gun because i don't believe in violence. So just stay in your room ok? cool?

Jadensmokes said, "Robbers take from others that had to work hard to amass their "things". They don't pay taxes for what they steal and sell, they likely get some form of welfare because they arem't employed, and therefore are a drain on society."

And Andrew..."if I deem that the intruder poses an immediate threat to me or to my wife, I will attempt to neutralize that threat, using lethal force if necessary. The decision to take a life in response to a threat to my own or to the life of another is justifiable in any sort of morality and is protected by the law."

I work very hard for my things and I'll be DAMNED if I'll sneak out of my house to let some little f****r rob me blind. If someone is in MY house without MY permission and my kids are home, I'd do as Andrew says and call the police, make sure my family was safe and arm myself with one of the guns we have for this very reason.

Or, as someone else suggested on a prior post on this article, I could revamp my collection of ornamental baseball bats and beat the shit out of the intruder. When I was done, they'd be too retarded and brain damaged to try it again, but hey--they would still alive and can drool well into their nineties! Oh, but then they'd be on welfare forever for their extended care and I'd be paying for the dumbass's extended care... Yup, a bullet is still the most cost-effective option.

It's impossible to say what one would do in this situation. I'd probably blow the f****r's head off (after taking out a few mirrors and door frames) out of sheer panic. My husband would probably be the better choice with the gun...heh heh.

Mr Delvon Crockett got exactly what he had coming......a sword through his heart.

Stay the fuck out of other peoples homes and leave your illegal fire-arm at home.

Mr Delvon Crockett had a long history of gun and drug charges, and I'm sure he would have put a cap in said home-owners ass if he was provided the opportunity.

The sword wielding man is my neighbor, and a good hard working individual..................unlike Mr Thieving Crockett.

We could always bring our possessions out on the front lawn every night-as that would tend to decrease our risk of home invasion.

Or we could bust a cap on someone and the police tape would serve as a deterrent to future incursions.

They need to bring all these low life scum into the shop and install warning lights in their brains. Kind of like the tire pressure light on my dash board.

DON'T GO IN THAT HOUSE ASSHOLE

So he says that "there's no reason to kill anyone when only replaceable possessions are at stake..."

When a man comes into your home with a gun or a knife, how do you know at that point that only possesions are at stake and not your life or the life of your family? The answer is, you don't. And the perp had an automatic pistol on him. He was there with intent to kill. For all the home owner knew, he could have been detected as he turned around to leave and call police, and been shot in the back by the perp.

If you think the man was just protecting his property, you're missing the point. This perp wasn't shot in the back while fleeing. He was close enough to the home owner that he was able to shred him with the sword.

Let's stop giving CRIMINALS the benefit of the doubt. The owner didn't ask to be a part of this situation. The perp got what he deserved.

Manual, I see where you're coming from. I really do. But I have to disagree. Armed or not, if you break into a home you're taking your chances. If someone that lives in that home harms you it is YOUR fault...period. The homeowner's motivation for killing an armed man that had broken into his home are, frankly, completely irrelevant.

Ah, to be young, and think along silly lines like this. I still remember the youthful fantasy world of the college years.

You enter my house, you take your life into your own hands. I guarantee you will find my sword to be just as lethal as the one in this story. That is, if I don't shoot you first.

Stay out of my house.

well I have read all the comments and I know both the victim and the killer(homeowner oh by the way he doesnt own shit)im cool with both. The fact is the killer killed him it was planned all over a chick and some weed/money, ya see after he stabbed him he left the house to call 911 and oh yeah also to remove his marijuana plants from the house cuz thats who lives in the house the marijuana not him. And yes I am for people protecting themselves and there families but marijuana yeah right. It is sad on both parts but wrong is wrong and in the end to take a life over materialistic things is wrong I mean like I said I am cool with both and they did know each other they hung out on occasions. To the family of both stay strong and R.I.P Delvon

well I have read all the comments and I know both the victim and the killer(homeowner oh by the way he doesnt own shit)im cool with both. The fact is the killer killed him it was planned all over a chick and some weed/money, ya see after he stabbed him he left the house to call 911 and oh yeah also to remove his marijuana plants from the house cuz thats who lives in the house the marijuana not him. And yes I am for people protecting themselves and there families but marijuana yeah right. It is sad on both parts but wrong is wrong and in the end to take a life over materialistic things is wrong I mean like I said I am cool with both and they did know each other they hung out on occasions. To the family of both stay strong and R.I.P Delvon

Oh yeah for the record everyone brings up Delvons past history whe Jason the killer has a history way longer than the victim thats why he got his weed the hell out of the house conspiracy is a motherfucker and karma is a bitch