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Break into this Mar Vista man's car and you just might get shot. When three men were burglarizing his car early Sunday morning, he didn't call police, he stuff a pistol in his pants and confronted them. That led to a fight and one of the hamburglars getting shot in the cheek. The 23-year-old is now in the hospital in stable condition and the resident was released after the LAPD deemed the shooting as self defense, according to the Daily Breeze.
You're not allowed to just shoot people robbing your car, an officer at LAPD media relations tells LAist. Generally speaking, if you are in fear for your life, you have the right to defend yourself. Because this man confronted them and scuffle began, detectives for some reason or another found this to be true.
That said, burglary from motor vehicles (BFMVs) happens all the time in Los Angeles. When officers flood a neighborhood with information like "don't leave stuff in your car, or at least visible from a window," they see car break ins decrease significantly. Their slogan goes like this: "leave it, lose it."
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Vigilanteism is not often successfull.....
I'm on the other side of the fence from you, G, in saying they got what they deserved.
Yeah, I don't really care, how is that if I leave my stuff in my car and someone steals it, then its my fault. How ridiculous is that. Yeah they got exactly what they deserved.
At least he is not dead and now has a reminder of how stupid was what he and his friends were doing. This should be a lesson.
Some LAPD officers believe that it's your fault. I don't side with that 100%, but considering that's the unfortunate reality of it, i abide by it as much as possible.
It literally takes seconds to break into a car. Hit a window with a baton, it might take a few strikes but a lot of these burglars have these porcelain balls (or something like that) and if you throw it at a window, it shatters with ease (they are considered a burglary tool and just having them will land you in jail).
Considering all that, it's such an easy crime to get away with. Police find that the now-depleting bicycle patrols work best (Van Nuys Division just went form 12 to 4 officers in the bike unit). You can't hear a well-maintained bike sneak up behind you.
This is the only reason I sometimes wish I lived in Texas.
If the burglary victim shot the guy in the cheek, I'm guessing he was going for the kill. Frankly, I wouldn't want to go the rest of my life knowing I'd killed someone over something replaceable. Just not worth it.
If they weren't in his house, and were just stealing stuff out of his car... I don't know that I'd call that "self-defense." I'm with damian on this one. Perhaps he meant to miss the guy and didn't, but maybe he was also really, really lucky that he missed what he was aiming for.