A shooting by an employee in an Arlington, Virginia, smoke shop is getting a high level of attention because the shop owner has gone public with interviews on Tucker Carlson, local DC radio station WMAL, and multiple news stories. See the end of this post for links.
My overall take is that this case is a tragic and ugly example of (not surprising) ignorance of the law on the part of both the store owner and the employee, intersecting the presence of a progressive Arlington County Commonwealth’s Attorney (county prosecutor).
Basic facts:
Employee was temporarily living in the back of the shop, with the owner’s permission.
Due to previous robberies, the owner had legally purchased a handgun and was keeping it in the store for protection.
Between 4 and 5 am Sunday morning the employee was awakened by noise of three men breaking into the store.
Employee got the owner’s gun, opened a door to the main store and fired three shots. One shot hit one of the intruders.
Employee retreated to the back again, closing the door.
Employee returned to the main store area and fired the gun again as the robbers were fleeing.
Quoting the WJLA article:
“The juvenile who was shot is expected to survive. Arlington County Police say charges are anticipated in the breaking and entering, but Abushariah [the employee] is already facing three charges.
“The charges are malicious wounding, reckless handling of a firearm, and violation of a protective order. Arlington County Police say the third charge is because Abushariah had been ordered not to have a firearm.”
During his interview the owner said, “The gun is registered.”
=--=-=
Having recently completed Branca’s Law of Self Defense Course, here are some comments on aspects of the case.
1. Virginia has no gun registration. I assume that the store owner thinks that the 4473 he completed when buying the gun was a registration.
2. The tables on defense of property, duty to retreat (stand your ground), and castle doctrine in Branca’s LoSD book have minimal indication of relevant statute or case law for those situations in Virginia. There appears to be no legal basis for defense of highly defensible property, such as home or business, that might justify use of deadly force in this case.
3. I infer that the owner did not adequately check for legal basis for using the gun to defend his property, nor whether it would be appropriate to allow an employee to use the gun at all. Since the employee knew where the gun was, I assume the owner told him about it, showed him the location, and thus gave him implicit permission to use it in case of a robbery.
4. It is not clear that the employee had good reason to fear for his life or major bodily harm. While he may have a reasonable explanation for his first volley of shots, the second round at the fleeing robbers looks very much like a chargeable offense.
5. Violation of the protective order by obtaining the owner’s gun and using it looks like an easy slam dunk conviction for the prosecution.
6. During the 2019 election in Virginia, the Commonwealth’s Attorney had been reported as having Bloomberg support in her effort to get anti-gun prosecutors in place. She won.(This from my memory as a former Virginia voter).
7. Notwithstanding the moral outrage of the store owner, Tucker Carlson, and the WMAL morning show interviewers, the employee is toast.
=-=-=-=-=
THR readers can view the reporting yourselves at the following links:
Police: Store Employee Charged After Shooting Would-Be Thief
ARLnow.comMarch 29, 2020 at 8:35pm
https://www.arlnow.com/2020/03/29/police-store-employee-charged-after-shooting-would-be-thief/
Arlington employee charged for shooting burglar in middle of the night, owner speaks out
by Tom Roussey/ABC7Monday, March 30th 2020
https://wjla.com/news/local/arlington-employee-charged-shooting-robbers-owner-speaks-out
Virginia shop owner calls arrest of employee who shot would-be robber 'very sad,' 'mind-boggling'
By Charles Creitz | Fox News March 31
https://www.foxnews.com/media/virginia-shop-owner-employee-arrest-mind-boggling
Arlington Store Employee Charged With Shooting Juvenile Theft Suspect: Police
The 33-year-old employee shot at a group suspected of stealing cash and merchandise and violated a protective order, police say
By Sophia Barnes • Published March 30, 2020 • Updated on March 30, 2020 at 8:50 am
https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/...ooting-juvenile-theft-suspect-police/2258063/
‘This Is Mind Boggling’: Arlington Store Owner Defends Employee Jailed For Shooting Masked Burglars
SCOTT MOREFIELD REPORTER March 31, 2020 11:23 PM ET
https://dailycaller.com/2020/03/31/arlington-smoke-shop-employee-self-defense-jail/
Discussion on WMAL Radio Mornings on the Mall April1
5- D — ‘This Is Mind Boggling’: Arlington Store Owner Defends Employee Jailed For Shooting Masked Burglars.
https://www.wmal.com/2020/04/01/mor...-dana-cheng-cbps-robert-perez-gen-jack-keane/
Discussion at time hack 38 minutes, with audio from Tucker Carlson, then more at 3:40.
Information on the Commonwealth’s Attorney
Official bio:
https://courts.arlingtonva.us/commonwealth-attorney/meet-parisa/
Article on her position as a progressive prosecutor
Drug, Racial Reforms Emerge As Arlington Prosecutor Assumes Role
Parisa Dehghani-Tafti talked with Patch about marijuana possession prosecution and other opportunities for reform.
By Emily Leayman, Patch Staff Jan 23, 2020 11:32 am ET | Updated Jan 23, 2020 4:36 pm ET
https://patch.com/virginia/fallschurch/drug-racial-reforms-emerge-arlington-prosecutor-assumes-role
My overall take is that this case is a tragic and ugly example of (not surprising) ignorance of the law on the part of both the store owner and the employee, intersecting the presence of a progressive Arlington County Commonwealth’s Attorney (county prosecutor).
Basic facts:
Employee was temporarily living in the back of the shop, with the owner’s permission.
Due to previous robberies, the owner had legally purchased a handgun and was keeping it in the store for protection.
Between 4 and 5 am Sunday morning the employee was awakened by noise of three men breaking into the store.
Employee got the owner’s gun, opened a door to the main store and fired three shots. One shot hit one of the intruders.
Employee retreated to the back again, closing the door.
Employee returned to the main store area and fired the gun again as the robbers were fleeing.
Quoting the WJLA article:
“The juvenile who was shot is expected to survive. Arlington County Police say charges are anticipated in the breaking and entering, but Abushariah [the employee] is already facing three charges.
“The charges are malicious wounding, reckless handling of a firearm, and violation of a protective order. Arlington County Police say the third charge is because Abushariah had been ordered not to have a firearm.”
During his interview the owner said, “The gun is registered.”
=--=-=
Having recently completed Branca’s Law of Self Defense Course, here are some comments on aspects of the case.
1. Virginia has no gun registration. I assume that the store owner thinks that the 4473 he completed when buying the gun was a registration.
2. The tables on defense of property, duty to retreat (stand your ground), and castle doctrine in Branca’s LoSD book have minimal indication of relevant statute or case law for those situations in Virginia. There appears to be no legal basis for defense of highly defensible property, such as home or business, that might justify use of deadly force in this case.
3. I infer that the owner did not adequately check for legal basis for using the gun to defend his property, nor whether it would be appropriate to allow an employee to use the gun at all. Since the employee knew where the gun was, I assume the owner told him about it, showed him the location, and thus gave him implicit permission to use it in case of a robbery.
4. It is not clear that the employee had good reason to fear for his life or major bodily harm. While he may have a reasonable explanation for his first volley of shots, the second round at the fleeing robbers looks very much like a chargeable offense.
5. Violation of the protective order by obtaining the owner’s gun and using it looks like an easy slam dunk conviction for the prosecution.
6. During the 2019 election in Virginia, the Commonwealth’s Attorney had been reported as having Bloomberg support in her effort to get anti-gun prosecutors in place. She won.(This from my memory as a former Virginia voter).
7. Notwithstanding the moral outrage of the store owner, Tucker Carlson, and the WMAL morning show interviewers, the employee is toast.
=-=-=-=-=
THR readers can view the reporting yourselves at the following links:
Police: Store Employee Charged After Shooting Would-Be Thief
ARLnow.comMarch 29, 2020 at 8:35pm
https://www.arlnow.com/2020/03/29/police-store-employee-charged-after-shooting-would-be-thief/
Arlington employee charged for shooting burglar in middle of the night, owner speaks out
by Tom Roussey/ABC7Monday, March 30th 2020
https://wjla.com/news/local/arlington-employee-charged-shooting-robbers-owner-speaks-out
Virginia shop owner calls arrest of employee who shot would-be robber 'very sad,' 'mind-boggling'
By Charles Creitz | Fox News March 31
https://www.foxnews.com/media/virginia-shop-owner-employee-arrest-mind-boggling
Arlington Store Employee Charged With Shooting Juvenile Theft Suspect: Police
The 33-year-old employee shot at a group suspected of stealing cash and merchandise and violated a protective order, police say
By Sophia Barnes • Published March 30, 2020 • Updated on March 30, 2020 at 8:50 am
https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/...ooting-juvenile-theft-suspect-police/2258063/
‘This Is Mind Boggling’: Arlington Store Owner Defends Employee Jailed For Shooting Masked Burglars
SCOTT MOREFIELD REPORTER March 31, 2020 11:23 PM ET
https://dailycaller.com/2020/03/31/arlington-smoke-shop-employee-self-defense-jail/
Discussion on WMAL Radio Mornings on the Mall April1
5- D — ‘This Is Mind Boggling’: Arlington Store Owner Defends Employee Jailed For Shooting Masked Burglars.
https://www.wmal.com/2020/04/01/mor...-dana-cheng-cbps-robert-perez-gen-jack-keane/
Discussion at time hack 38 minutes, with audio from Tucker Carlson, then more at 3:40.
Information on the Commonwealth’s Attorney
Official bio:
https://courts.arlingtonva.us/commonwealth-attorney/meet-parisa/
Article on her position as a progressive prosecutor
Drug, Racial Reforms Emerge As Arlington Prosecutor Assumes Role
Parisa Dehghani-Tafti talked with Patch about marijuana possession prosecution and other opportunities for reform.
By Emily Leayman, Patch Staff Jan 23, 2020 11:32 am ET | Updated Jan 23, 2020 4:36 pm ET
https://patch.com/virginia/fallschurch/drug-racial-reforms-emerge-arlington-prosecutor-assumes-role
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