"Justifiable Homicide" in Seattle

[Guest]

Now here's something you don't see every day on the Left Coast:
it appears that the King County Prosecutor won't file charges.

This also looks like a clear case of "He Needed Killin'".

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mh

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[Lucky... 0]

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Now here's something you don't see every day on the Left Coast:
it appears that the King County Prosecutor won't file charges.

This also looks like a clear case of "He Needed Killin'".

Story

mh

It looks like JH to me. The question was, was there excessve force used? You can't really turn down the force from the gun, you can aim it differently, but the next queston is: Do you have a duty to aim differently? He didn;t go for a head shot, so I see nothing imprudent here. Even if he had, it still may have been JH.

[Richards 0]

Seems pretty straight forward to me. The guy attacked a random victim without warning . He actually got the victim on the ground and stated his intention to kill him.

The shooter was in danger and responded appropriately. The guy only fired one shot in self defence. He should not be charged. It is a good thing that no innocent people were killed.

Richards

My biggest handicap is that sometimes the hole in the front of my head operates a tad bit faster than the grey matter contained within.

[ryoder 1,590]

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You can't really turn down the force from the gun, you can aim it differently, but the next queston is: Do you have a duty to aim differently? He didn;t go for a head shot, so I see nothing imprudent here. Even if he had, it still may have been JH.

You shoot to stop the attack, and you aim for the center of mass. The idea that you would "shoot to wound" is a myth. First, it is very difficult just to hit your target under the stress of a self-defense situation. Second, aiming at something other than the center of mass would increase the probability that you would miss and hit an innocent bystander. Third, if you testified in court that you were "shooting to wound", then you have just admitted that you did not believe deadly force was justified.

Recommended reading: http://www.amazon.com/Gravest-Extreme-Firearm-Personal-Protection/dp/0936279001

"There are only three things of value: younger women, faster airplanes, and bigger crocodiles" - Arthur Jones.

[Andrewwhyte 1]

Sounds like mental illness. Here in Canada we do an unforgivable job of caring for our mentally ill. They are usually on the street or in the worst residential hotels. This sort of incident is far to common. The only difference is that the general population is rarely packing so it is left up to the police to come and shoot the poor bastard.

[sundevil777 102]

...and the guy killed will be included in statistics of those killed by guns, used to try and convince us of the need for stricter gun control laws.

People are sick and tired of being told that ordinary and decent people are fed up in this country with being sick and tired. I’m certainly not, and I’m sick and tired of being told that I am

[Lucky... 0]

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You can't really turn down the force from the gun, you can aim it differently, but the next queston is: Do you have a duty to aim differently? He didn;t go for a head shot, so I see nothing imprudent here. Even if he had, it still may have been JH.

You shoot to stop the attack, and you aim for the center of mass. The idea that you would "shoot to wound" is a myth. First, it is very difficult just to hit your target under the stress of a self-defense situation. Second, aiming at something other than the center of mass would increase the probability that you would miss and hit an innocent bystander. Third, if you testified in court that you were "shooting to wound", then you have just admitted that you did not believe deadly force was justified.

Recommended reading: http://www.amazon.com/Gravest-Extreme-Firearm-Personal-Protection/dp/0936279001

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Third, if you testified in court that you were "shooting to wound", then you have just admitted that you did not believe deadly force was justified.

I agree with all but this. Furthermore, the judge would be the finder of law, so he/she would make that determination.

Even if you shoot to wound and were justified to do so, and a fatality occurred you would likely still be covered under self defense as an affirmitive defense.

There really is a thread of a margin between right to injure and right to kill under self defenses.

[Richards 0]

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Sounds like mental illness. Here in Canada we do an unforgivable job of caring for our mentally ill. They are usually on the street or in the worst residential hotels. This sort of incident is far to common. The only difference is that the general population is rarely packing so it is left up to the police to come and shoot the poor bastard.

True. And regrettably Canadians would be defenceless in that situation. By the time our cops actually got around to showing up the intended victim would be dead or hospitalised.

Richards

My biggest handicap is that sometimes the hole in the front of my head operates a tad bit faster than the grey matter contained within.

[Guest]

At least the nut-job didn't survive to file suit against the shooter, but some ambulance-chaser will probably try.

mh

"The mouse does not know life until it is in the mouth of the cat."

[Andy9o8 3]

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At least the nut-job didn't survive to file suit against the shooter, but some ambulance-chaser will probably try.

mh

Well, every cloud does have its silver lining.

[tbrown 26]

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Sounds like mental illness. Here in Canada we do an unforgivable job of caring for our mentally ill. They are usually on the street or in the worst residential hotels. This sort of incident is far to common. The only difference is that the general population is rarely packing so it is left up to the police to come and shoot the poor bastard.

It doesn't sound like the cops were any help at all, until they heard the shot. Even though they were supposedly looking for this guy.

He probably was mentally ill and it's an unfortunate situation. But several years ago, also in downtown Seattle, a mentally ill man stabbed a guy to death in front of his wife and daughter as they were leaving a Mariners baseball game. It happened right around Pioneer Square. The unfortunate fact that a person is crazy and needs better treatment, though true, does not make them any less of a threat to life or limb. Once you've been knocked to the ground by someone who says they're going to kill you, it's a bit late to lament the lack of mental health care in the state. I'm just glad the guy had a gun. The cops would've probably turned the "poor whacko" loose, claiming "their hands are tied" by some arcane state law.

Your humble servant.....Professor Gravity !