Hostage shoots captor

[Billy Ruffian]

http://tinyurl.com/6jd8j

84 year old man is able to get to his handgun, and fatally wounds one of his captors.

Fortunately for Mr. Colley, he was not required to keep his firearm unloaded and locked up.

[Spinzonner]

1. Good for him

How many times does that happen compared to kids getting hold of unsecured and/or loaded guns and hurting themselves or others ?

A law doesn't guarantee perfect results for every circumstance; it's intended to promote the best result for the most while respecting reasonable rights.

[Billy Ruffian]

5. I don't object to laws that require firearms be

inaccessible to minors, but that does not necessarily mean inaccessible to the owner.

Here in NC, I am required to keep minors from unsupervised and unauthorized access, but the method is up to me.

[itzamirakul]

2. I'm glad he shot his captor and

not himself. At 84, he is quite lucky.

I just don't like guns...never have...never will. I don't care if other people own them as long as they are kept safely put away...but as for me...I just don't want to be around them.

[MrSandman]

10. A little ageism showing?...n/t

[vpigrad]

3. He did the wrong thing!

He escalated the violence. When people take the law into their own hands, tragedies like this so often occur.

[sam sarrha]

4. he will probably end up in jail for saving himself..

[Billy Ruffian]

6. Tragedy?

Did you read the link? A criminal was killed by his victim. I don't find that to be a tragedy.

The dead criminal had held an elderly couple at gunpoint for hours, had shot the homeowner. The homeowner was able to shoot his assailant later.

There was no escalation of violence.

[left15]

7. He stopped the violence.

The criminals are at fault.

If this were in IL, the robber who survived could have been charged with the murder of his partner. In IL if anyone dies while you are commiting a felony, you can be charged with murder.

[alwynsw]

8. I see two tragedies here

The first tragedy is that he only managed to kill one of the criminals. The surviving criminal will eventually be free to victimize someone else. (Don't tell me about rehabilatation. I've worked in corrections. Rehab is a joke for about 90% of criminals.)

The second tragedy is that opinions such as yours infect state houses and result in laws that prohibit innocents from protecting themselves because of restrictive gun control laws that prevent legal firearms owners easy access to their own firearms in their own homes or on their persons.

[MrSandman]

11. But the alleged criminal may have been a minor...

Think of the children.:eyes:

[jody]

12. How would being a minor change the situation? n/t

[MrSandman]

13. Sarcasm...

Think of the children:eyes:

[jody]

14. Thanks, I've away to long. n/t

[skippythwndrdog]

9. You can't be serious.

The worthless criminal being killed is a tragedy? Your priorities are majorly screwed up.

[NorthernSpy]

15. oh, come on... does anyone really believe that?

He escalated the violence. When people take the law into their own hands, tragedies like this so often occur.

This man was taken prisoner by two armed robbers inside his own home; was shot and wounded by one of his assailants; and at last finally managed to reach his own gun and shoot one of his attackers.

Knowing what we know about the case, what reasonable person would honestly believe that Mr. Colley "escalated the violence" (which was already grave before he took his shot, an action that ended the violence) or "took the law into his own hands" (given that he's not reported to have continued firing after one attacker was down and the other had fled)?

Are you perhaps playing Devil's Advocate, Vpigrad?