The Armed Citizen® July 13, 2011

By NRA Staff (RSS)

July 13, 2011

When a noise woke an 
84-year-old grandmother, she noticed her hall light was on and knew something was awry. The sharp-thinking, independent woman opened a nightstand drawer and quickly grabbed her .38-cal. revolver. “My mind told me to get that gun,” she explained. No sooner had she done so than an intruder appeared at the bedroom door. The woman fired a shot, striking the wall. The intruder ran out the back door, which he had kicked in. (KTVU-TV, Oakland, CA, 03/03/11)

The Armed Citizen Extra
(The following account did not appear in the print version of American Rifleman.)

A 26-year-old man's burglary attempt was foiled when the homeowner of the house he was attempting to break into ended up being at home. When the homeowner discovered that his door was being forced open, he approached the would-be burglar with a gun, causing the man to flee on foot. He was arrested shortly after by police and charged with second-degree burglary. (Press-Republican, 02/05/11)

From The Armed Citizen Archive
July 1961: Because of recent burglaries, druggist John Skinner had been sleeping in his San Francisco store. Awakened by sounds of drilling, Skinner armed himself with a cal. .32 pistol and went around back to accost 2 men. Told to halt, they began edging in opposite directions. Skinner fired a warning shot, then felled one with a bullet to the leg as both ran. (Oakland Tribune)

Tags:  armed citizen,  blogs,  concealed carry,  nra,  nra arm citizen,  self defense,  self defense shootings,  the armed citizen

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9 Responses to The Armed Citizen® July 13, 2011

Firebird wrote:
January 16, 2012

Beware of pistol packing grannies

Nate wrote:
July 19, 2011

Perfect example for Jury Nullification. Do you know what it is? Read all about it at http://secondamendmentwarrior.webs.com Also become a Warrior.

EmeraldCoaster wrote:
July 19, 2011

I wonder how the pharmacist's defense presented the role panic/adrenaline rush played in the shooting. My son told me he experienced an extraordinary rush while being carjacked at gunpoint. While I'm inclined to give a crime victim plenty of latitude, I won't criticize a verdict without the relavent facts.

Bill Witten wrote:
July 15, 2011

I support the pharmacist. I wouldn't want a criminal making it through and then coming back to sue me or to hurt my family. Better to just finish it--even if you have to come back and switch guns to do it.

G-Man wrote:
July 14, 2011

Vharrall: check your facts before calling name, buddy. Better yet: watch the surveillance video of the shoot. Dr. Ersland put the guy down with a headshot, then chased the accomplice out of the store. Upon coming back, he grabbed a new gun and emptied the magazine into the prone, unconscious body of the robber. He clearly crossed the line from self-defense to execution. Watch the video captured on his own security system. I am a firm believer in concealed carry and self-defense, but also in knowing the applicable laws and exercising proper self-restraint. Dr. Ersland forgot the 2nd part of that. I think life is rather harsh sentencing for what could be argued was a shooting in "the heat of the moment" but 12 reasonable people did not see it that way. Neither did the judge.

G-Man wrote:
July 14, 2011

Vharrall: the surveillance video was public domain; watch it. The pharmacist CLEARLY crossed the line when he came back into his store, changed guns, and emptied a magazine into the prone, un-moving body of the perp he had already shot in stopping the robbery. Not self defense any more, it was an execution. I've watched it 20 times and discussed it on various 2A forums - there was simply no justification. Check your facts before you call a judge and jury stupid. They may be, but in this case i think not.

Mannie wrote:
July 14, 2011

The Pharmacist was convicted because he came back to "finish off" a wounded man. Ironically, the guy was already dead or dying, as the first shot was to the head. If he'd quit there, or if he'd riddled the gut in the first encounter, he would be home free today.

vharrall wrote:
July 13, 2011

In Oklahoma last week, an inept judge, along with a stupid jury found an pharmacist guilty of murder when he shot a would-be robber. The robber was armed with a gun, and the pharmacist emptied HIS gun into the man, killing him. The prosecutor argued that the pharmacist used too much force.

ElGatoGordo wrote:
July 13, 2011

Re the July '61 case: Today the druggist would be arrested and charged with, at minimum, assault with a deady weapon. Not so in '61, even ins San Francisco.