Home Invaders Are Always Armed

BY Herschel Smith
5 years, 4 months ago

News from Oklahoma:

A Tulsa man shot and killed a man breaking into his house near 51st and South Lewis Tuesday morning. The same homeowner shot another burglar five years ago.

Police said the intruder’s name is Donald Stovall. The homeowner is Charles Sweeney and he said he did what he felt he had to do to protect himself.

Charles Sweeney said noises coming from his bathroom woke him up. The first thought that ran through his head was someone was breaking into his house.

“I grabbed a pistol which is right there where I sleep, and it was only about another three or four seconds and he comes into view and blam boy that 9 millimeter is real loud inside the house,” said Sweeney.

Sweeney said he shot the man in the chest and called police.

“When he clenched up his chest he says ‘I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m sorry’ he retreats back to the bathroom and he tried to get out the same window but he didn’t make it,” said Sweeney.

Tulsa Police said Donald Stovall died inside Sweeney’s house. This is not the first time Sweeney has shot a burglar in his home.

A man named Michael Watts broke into Sweeney’s home in 2013. Sweeney shot him too, but he lived.

“He goes down I run for the phone he gets back up shoves my air conditioner out of the way and takes a high dive right out my second story window,” said Sweeney.

And while Tulsa Police investigate, they say people do have a right to defend themselves.

“If you are in your home and you have an intruder come in and you feel that you are in fear of your life or the life of someone else who maybe in your home, you are well within your rights to defend yourself,” said Captain Karen Tipler.

Sweeney said he just wants people to stop breaking into his house.

“He got inside the interior of my house and I didn’t know if he had a weapon and I thought my life was in danger I shot him, and I’ll do it again,” said Sweeney.

I just have two quick observations.  First, home invaders are always armed.  They may have a firearm, or they may have a cutting tool of some sort, or they may have only their fists.  Fists can kill.  All home invaders are always armed.  It’s true, so assume it is so in every instance and for every circumstance.

Second, this guy shouldn’t have been yammering and yakking to the police.  He should have let his lawyer do the talking for him, and that should have been an immediate phone call.  No exceptions.  You have a right to representation and defense, and that’s what your attorney is for.

Just as he shouldn’t have been yammering and yakking to the police, he sure shouldn’t have been doing it to the television cameras.

Just stupid.  Shut up and let your attorney defend you from the outset of the event, not after stupid, exaggerated, incorrect and nonfactual things have been said in the heat of the moment.


Comments

  1. On November 30, 2018 at 6:28 am, Duke Norfolk said:

    Yes. This guy got away with a lot of stupid remarks that could have hung him in a different jurisdiction. Now it could be that he knew exactly what he could get away with given the local legal environment, but that would be giving him too much credit, I think. He needs to learn to shut up and call a lawyer.

  2. On November 30, 2018 at 8:09 am, Sean said:

    “I feared for my / my family’s lives. I need medical attention.” End of statement to police.

  3. On November 30, 2018 at 8:31 am, Jess said:

    I agree. In this situation – regardless of the circumstances – an opportunistic DA can destroy your life.

  4. On November 30, 2018 at 12:04 pm, Heywood said:

    Oldie but still relevant.

    https://youtu.be/i8z7NC5sgik

  5. On November 30, 2018 at 5:47 pm, Fred said:

    Burglars don’t want to get caught. If somebody is in your house knowing or with reason to believe, somebody may be home, this is whole ‘nother situation. You are in danger for your life. There are no color codes or levels of defense in this environment. Go on offense, execute your plan and kill them immediately. This is why you need a family plan(s), one in which every circumstance is covered, in this case; asleep in bed.

    Pick a name of nobody you’ve ever known and nobody in your family has ever had. A rare name. This is your code word. When you scream Nigel, Nigel, is that you Nigel in the middle of the night everybody knows what to do and if it’s a family member they can yell back that’s it’s only them raiding the ice box for some Pecan Pie. This is only an example. Involve all children of all ages. Everything you were taught about children by the twentieth century has been a lie. Involve all of your children in the plan regardless of age.

    And yeah, the guy ain’t bright and not only for blabbing to police and to news. Location, as they say, is everything, er, that’s timing. It’s; location, location, location, yes, that’s it.

  6. On December 1, 2018 at 11:25 am, revjen45 said:

    “Go on offense, execute your plan and kill them immediately.”
    Giving such advice may not be a good idea. You indicate that your goal is to kill. The legally justified exercise of lethal force is to prevent the infliction of harm on yourself and/or people you love enough to protect. By admitting that your plan is to kill you make defense of your actions a lot harder. Indeed, there might not be much difference in terms of actual application (# of shots fired, shot placement, etc.) but a head shot would be easier to justify if you hadn’t said to go in with the intent to kill. It is true that a CNS shot is the only way to immediately neutralize a threat with a pistol. I would much rather be able to say that my reason for doing so was to stop without having said otherwise in a post. In the Real World I would much rather resolve any situation without shooting simply to avoid he blight on my life that would follow even a “good” shoot. SYG aside, I would much rather leave than have a violent encounter outside my home. Inside I would stop the threat, period.

  7. On December 1, 2018 at 11:37 am, Fred said:

    Ok. Good Point, especially from a legal perspective. I’ve read some about criminality in which the perps know the resident is home, so; neutralize the threat? You’re right, I probably shouldn’t have put it that way.

  8. On December 1, 2018 at 12:14 pm, BRVTVS said:

    @Revjen

    It’s unfortunate that so many states have laws which allow a non-lethal resolution. Warning shots and displays of a firearm can land you in prison faster than actually shooting someone.

  9. On December 1, 2018 at 12:18 pm, BRVTVS said:

    Correction: That should read “prevent” rather than “allow”.

  10. On December 1, 2018 at 3:54 pm, Fred said:

    My state “allows” lethal resolution but Revjen45 is right, of course nobody wants to kill somebody else. That’s why, by law, we’ve have made a covenant in which nobody is to enter another man’s home unless invited. I guess I made the mistake of presupposing that everybody still recognizes our covenants in law and intends to live by them. Like they say, never presume anything…

  11. On December 2, 2018 at 4:53 pm, Jeffrey Dege said:

    “They may have a firearm, or they may have a cutting tool of some sort, or they may have only their fists.”

    If you confront someone who has broken into your home, and there was a gun sitting on a end-table, and he moved towards it as if to take it, would you consider it a threat?

    If you confront someone who has broken into your home, and you had a gun, he moved towards you, would you consider it a threat?

    No difference.

  12. On December 3, 2018 at 8:00 pm, Chris Mallory said:

    Just to repeat again, don’t talk to the cops or the media.

    We had a local guy involved in a sketchy shooting. He shot a guy who had been robbing his storage unit. He told the cops he feared for his life that the robber was going to run over him. The cops had no evidence that the story the shooter told was not the truth.

    But, always a but in there, the shooter gave an interview to the local news station. In his filmed interview, the story he told was totally different than the one he told the cops.
    He probably would not have faced charges without that second interview. Now he is sitting in the state pen.

  13. On December 7, 2018 at 8:17 pm, Donk said:

    @Heywood: RT, little home slice from my upbringing AO. I also suggest this one https://youtu.be/08fZQWjDVKE as it is the lawyer’s LEO buddy’s followup presentation to your vid. He basically says the lawyer is right.

    @Fred, awesome, at my hacienda we use Hootie Who!!! @Fred, I think you are in VA, I am from Tidewater.

    @revjen45 my present AO is SC, the one thing they have right is in my home, as @Fred would say, I am Apex. If you are in my home uninvited – legal justification for deadly force – period. That said, I am a disciple of Christ, if I can talk the home invader down so be it – but it is going to be done with him looking down the barrel of a large bore semi pistol, some flavor of AR or shotgun with warm blanket of knowledge that at least my state has deferred to my Apex right.

    As I said in a comment re another post as well as what we are discussing now re dialing 911 or talking to popo. If you are within your legal right to shoot an invader to your domicile, why call the cops? Drag him/her into the mudroom, wait for things to settle, then drag him/her into the street, parking lot, field across the street or what not. Once he/her is found, shut up and let your counselor do the talking. My only point is to defer a discussion with the LEO – ever. Help me riff why this is a bad plan?

RSS feed for comments on this post. TrackBack URL

Leave a comment


You are currently reading "Home Invaders Are Always Armed", entry #20288 on The Captain's Journal.

This article is filed under the category(s) Firearms,Guns and was published November 29th, 2018 by Herschel Smith.

If you're interested in what else the The Captain's Journal has to say, you might try thumbing through the archives and visiting the main index, or; perhaps you would like to learn more about TCJ.

26th MEU (10)
Abu Muqawama (12)
ACOG (2)
ACOGs (1)
Afghan National Army (36)
Afghan National Police (17)
Afghanistan (704)
Afghanistan SOFA (4)
Agriculture in COIN (3)
AGW (1)
Air Force (40)
Air Power (10)
al Qaeda (83)
Ali al-Sistani (1)
America (22)
Ammunition (275)
Animals (282)
Ansar al Sunna (15)
Anthropology (3)
Antonin Scalia (1)
AR-15s (373)
Arghandab River Valley (1)
Arlington Cemetery (2)
Army (86)
Assassinations (2)
Assault Weapon Ban (28)
Australian Army (7)
Azerbaijan (4)
Backpacking (2)
Badr Organization (8)
Baitullah Mehsud (21)
Basra (17)
BATFE (218)
Battle of Bari Alai (2)
Battle of Wanat (18)
Battle Space Weight (3)
Bin Laden (7)
Blogroll (3)
Blogs (24)
Body Armor (23)
Books (3)
Border War (18)
Brady Campaign (1)
Britain (38)
British Army (35)
Camping (5)
Canada (17)
Castle Doctrine (1)
Caucasus (6)
CENTCOM (7)
Center For a New American Security (8)
Charity (3)
China (16)
Christmas (16)
CIA (30)
Civilian National Security Force (3)
Col. Gian Gentile (9)
Combat Outposts (3)
Combat Video (2)
Concerned Citizens (6)
Constabulary Actions (3)
Coolness Factor (3)
COP Keating (4)
Corruption in COIN (4)
Council on Foreign Relations (1)
Counterinsurgency (218)
DADT (2)
David Rohde (1)
Defense Contractors (2)
Department of Defense (210)
Department of Homeland Security (26)
Disaster Preparedness (5)
Distributed Operations (5)
Dogs (15)
Donald Trump (27)
Drone Campaign (4)
EFV (3)
Egypt (12)
El Salvador (1)
Embassy Security (1)
Enemy Spotters (1)
Expeditionary Warfare (17)
F-22 (2)
F-35 (1)
Fallujah (17)
Far East (3)
Fathers and Sons (2)
Favorite (1)
Fazlullah (3)
FBI (39)
Featured (189)
Federal Firearms Laws (18)
Financing the Taliban (2)
Firearms (1,758)
Football (1)
Force Projection (35)
Force Protection (4)
Force Transformation (1)
Foreign Policy (27)
Fukushima Reactor Accident (6)
Ganjgal (1)
Garmsir (1)
general (15)
General Amos (1)
General James Mattis (1)
General McChrystal (44)
General McKiernan (6)
General Rodriguez (3)
General Suleimani (9)
Georgia (19)
GITMO (2)
Google (1)
Gulbuddin Hekmatyar (1)
Gun Control (1,633)
Guns (2,298)
Guns In National Parks (3)
Haditha Roundup (10)
Haiti (2)
HAMAS (7)
Haqqani Network (9)
Hate Mail (8)
Hekmatyar (1)
Heroism (4)
Hezbollah (12)
High Capacity Magazines (16)
High Value Targets (9)
Homecoming (1)
Homeland Security (3)
Horses (2)
Humor (72)
Hunting (31)
ICOS (1)
IEDs (7)
Immigration (106)
India (10)
Infantry (4)
Information Warfare (4)
Infrastructure (4)
Intelligence (23)
Intelligence Bulletin (6)
Iran (171)
Iraq (379)
Iraq SOFA (23)
Islamic Facism (64)
Islamists (98)
Israel (19)
Jaish al Mahdi (21)
Jalalabad (1)
Japan (3)
Jihadists (81)
John Nagl (5)
Joint Intelligence Centers (1)
JRTN (1)
Kabul (1)
Kajaki Dam (1)
Kamdesh (9)
Kandahar (12)
Karachi (7)
Kashmir (2)
Khost Province (1)
Khyber (11)
Knife Blogging (7)
Korea (4)
Korengal Valley (3)
Kunar Province (20)
Kurdistan (3)
Language in COIN (5)
Language in Statecraft (1)
Language Interpreters (2)
Lashkar-e-Taiba (2)
Law Enforcement (6)
Lawfare (14)
Leadership (6)
Lebanon (6)
Leon Panetta (2)
Let Them Fight (2)
Libya (14)
Lines of Effort (3)
Littoral Combat (8)
Logistics (50)
Long Guns (1)
Lt. Col. Allen West (2)
Marine Corps (280)
Marines in Bakwa (1)
Marines in Helmand (67)
Marjah (4)
MEDEVAC (2)
Media (67)
Medical (146)
Memorial Day (6)
Mexican Cartels (41)
Mexico (61)
Michael Yon (6)
Micromanaging the Military (7)
Middle East (1)
Military Blogging (26)
Military Contractors (5)
Military Equipment (25)
Militia (9)
Mitt Romney (3)
Monetary Policy (1)
Moqtada al Sadr (2)
Mosul (4)
Mountains (25)
MRAPs (1)
Mullah Baradar (1)
Mullah Fazlullah (1)
Mullah Omar (3)
Musa Qala (4)
Music (25)
Muslim Brotherhood (6)
Nation Building (2)
National Internet IDs (1)
National Rifle Association (95)
NATO (15)
Navy (30)
Navy Corpsman (1)
NCOs (3)
News (1)
NGOs (3)
Nicholas Schmidle (2)
Now Zad (19)
NSA (3)
NSA James L. Jones (6)
Nuclear (62)
Nuristan (8)
Obama Administration (221)
Offshore Balancing (1)
Operation Alljah (7)
Operation Khanjar (14)
Ossetia (7)
Pakistan (165)
Paktya Province (1)
Palestine (5)
Patriotism (7)
Patrolling (1)
Pech River Valley (11)
Personal (72)
Petraeus (14)
Pictures (1)
Piracy (13)
Pistol (4)
Pizzagate (21)
Police (648)
Police in COIN (3)
Policy (15)
Politics (969)
Poppy (2)
PPEs (1)
Prisons in Counterinsurgency (12)
Project Gunrunner (20)
PRTs (1)
Qatar (1)
Quadrennial Defense Review (2)
Quds Force (13)
Quetta Shura (1)
RAND (3)
Recommended Reading (14)
Refueling Tanker (1)
Religion (491)
Religion and Insurgency (19)
Reuters (1)
Rick Perry (4)
Rifles (1)
Roads (4)
Rolling Stone (1)
Ron Paul (1)
ROTC (1)
Rules of Engagement (75)
Rumsfeld (1)
Russia (37)
Sabbatical (1)
Sangin (1)
Saqlawiyah (1)
Satellite Patrols (2)
Saudi Arabia (4)
Scenes from Iraq (1)
Second Amendment (668)
Second Amendment Quick Hits (2)
Secretary Gates (9)
Sharia Law (3)
Shura Ittehad-ul-Mujahiden (1)
SIIC (2)
Sirajuddin Haqqani (1)
Small Wars (72)
Snipers (9)
Sniveling Lackeys (2)
Soft Power (4)
Somalia (8)
Sons of Afghanistan (1)
Sons of Iraq (2)
Special Forces (28)
Squad Rushes (1)
State Department (23)
Statistics (1)
Sunni Insurgency (10)
Support to Infantry Ratio (1)
Supreme Court (52)
Survival (185)
SWAT Raids (57)
Syria (38)
Tactical Drills (38)
Tactical Gear (14)
Taliban (168)
Taliban Massing of Forces (4)
Tarmiyah (1)
TBI (1)
Technology (21)
Tehrik-i-Taliban (78)
Terrain in Combat (1)
Terrorism (96)
Thanksgiving (13)
The Anbar Narrative (23)
The Art of War (5)
The Fallen (1)
The Long War (20)
The Surge (3)
The Wounded (13)
Thomas Barnett (1)
Transnational Insurgencies (5)
Tribes (5)
TSA (24)
TSA Ineptitude (13)
TTPs (4)
U.S. Border Patrol (6)
U.S. Border Security (18)
U.S. Sovereignty (23)
UAVs (2)
UBL (4)
Ukraine (10)
Uncategorized (98)
Universal Background Check (3)
Unrestricted Warfare (4)
USS Iwo Jima (2)
USS San Antonio (1)
Uzbekistan (1)
V-22 Osprey (4)
Veterans (3)
Vietnam (1)
War & Warfare (412)
War & Warfare (41)
War Movies (4)
War Reporting (21)
Wardak Province (1)
Warriors (6)
Waziristan (1)
Weapons and Tactics (79)
West Point (1)
Winter Operations (1)
Women in Combat (21)
WTF? (1)
Yemen (1)

March 2024
February 2024
January 2024
December 2023
November 2023
October 2023
September 2023
August 2023
July 2023
June 2023
May 2023
April 2023
March 2023
February 2023
January 2023
December 2022
November 2022
October 2022
September 2022
August 2022
July 2022
June 2022
May 2022
April 2022
March 2022
February 2022
January 2022
December 2021
November 2021
October 2021
September 2021
August 2021
July 2021
June 2021
May 2021
April 2021
March 2021
February 2021
January 2021
December 2020
November 2020
October 2020
September 2020
August 2020
July 2020
June 2020
May 2020
April 2020
March 2020
February 2020
January 2020
December 2019
November 2019
October 2019
September 2019
August 2019
July 2019
June 2019
May 2019
April 2019
March 2019
February 2019
January 2019
December 2018
November 2018
October 2018
September 2018
August 2018
July 2018
June 2018
May 2018
April 2018
March 2018
February 2018
January 2018
December 2017
November 2017
October 2017
September 2017
August 2017
July 2017
June 2017
May 2017
April 2017
March 2017
February 2017
January 2017
December 2016
November 2016
October 2016
September 2016
August 2016
July 2016
June 2016
May 2016
April 2016
March 2016
February 2016
January 2016
December 2015
November 2015
October 2015
September 2015
August 2015
July 2015
June 2015
May 2015
April 2015
March 2015
February 2015
January 2015
December 2014
November 2014
October 2014
September 2014
August 2014
July 2014
June 2014
May 2014
April 2014
March 2014
February 2014
January 2014
December 2013
November 2013
October 2013
September 2013
August 2013
July 2013
June 2013
May 2013
April 2013
March 2013
February 2013
January 2013
December 2012
November 2012
October 2012
September 2012
August 2012
July 2012
June 2012
May 2012
April 2012
March 2012
February 2012
January 2012
December 2011
November 2011
October 2011
September 2011
August 2011
July 2011
June 2011
May 2011
April 2011
March 2011
February 2011
January 2011
December 2010
November 2010
October 2010
September 2010
August 2010
July 2010
June 2010
May 2010
April 2010
March 2010
February 2010
January 2010
December 2009
November 2009
October 2009
September 2009
August 2009
July 2009
June 2009
May 2009
April 2009
March 2009
February 2009
January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
January 2008
December 2007
November 2007
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007
June 2007
May 2007
April 2007
March 2007
February 2007
January 2007
December 2006
November 2006
October 2006
September 2006
August 2006
July 2006
June 2006
May 2006

about · archives · contact · register

Copyright © 2006-2024 Captain's Journal. All rights reserved.