+1 for the Good Guys

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100426/NEWS97/100429632#customer-shoots-would-be-robber




Police today said a customer fatally shot a would-be robber Monday evening at a busy Walgreens Pharmacy at 6101 Northwest Radial Highway.

Investigators believe that two masked men entered the Walgreen's about 8:50 p.m., one armed with a short shotgun, said Officer Jacob Bettin, a police spokesman.

Police were not releasing the dead man's name until relatives could be notified.



The armed suspect leveled the gun at customers, police said. One of the customers at the register, who has a permit to carry a gun, drew a handgun from the waistband of his pants and fired at the gunman, hitting him several times, Bettin said.

The wounded man fled, but then collapsed on the north side of the store. He was taken to Creighton University Medical Center, where he died.

The second suspect was held in the store by the same customer until officers arrived. That 17-year-old was booked into the Douglas County Youth Center on suspicion of robbery and using a weapon to commit a felony, police said.

Police interviewed the customer with the handgun and released him after detectives conferred with the Douglas County attorney, Bettin said.

The case remains under investigation.

 

[dovedescending]

+1 is right.

 

[Texas Gun Person]

Good.

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Liberal BS continues:

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100427/NEWS97/704279843#charge-filed-in-robbery-shooting

The Walgreens customer who shot and killed a would-be-robber Monday night has been cited for carrying a concealed weapon, a misdemeanor.

Harry J. McCullough III, 32, had a permit to carry a loaded handgun in plain view — typically in a holster — but did not have a concealed weapons permit, said Omaha Police Officer Jacob Bettin.

McCullough pulled his handgun from the waistband of his pants when he shot and killed a would-be-robber with a shotgun at the Walgreens in Benson Monday night, Bettin said.

McCullough has not been arrested in connection with the death of the robbery suspect. Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine is reviewing reports on the shooting and will determine whether charges are warranted.

Police have not released information about the robbery suspect who died.

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Bettin said two masked men had entered the Walgreens at 6101 Northwest Radial shortly before 9 p.m.

He said one of the men pointed the shotgun in the direction of the cash register, where several customers were standing in line.

McCullough fired several shots as the shotgun-wielding suspect pointed his weapon at customers. The gunman was hit several times. He fled from the store but collapsed outside.

McCullough then grabbed a second masked man and held him until police arrived, Bettin said.

The wounded gunman was taken to Creighton University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

The second suspect, a 17-year-old male, was booked into the Douglas County Youth Center on suspicion of robbery and use of a weapon to commit a felony.

Nebraska law allows individuals to use force when their life or another person's life is threatened.

The Walgreens store was open for business Tuesday, with several customers shopping. A few chatted about the crime.

Store employees said they were not allowed to comment. Calls to Walgreens' corporate offices were not returned.

 

[hankdatank1362]

If that second article is accurate, then that's an utter load of crap.

 

[RevolvingGarbage]

More than a few states have a law saying that even if you were carrying the gun illegally, if you use it in a lawful self defense shooting, you wont be prosecuted for the unlawful carry in that instance.

 

[Manco]

That just saved taxpayers from the enormous cost of numerous robberies, repeated trips to the court for jury trials, and an endless cycle of incarceration and early release after failed attempts at "rehabilitation." Do I sound like some kind of vigilante or do I simply speak the truth based on the common case?

 

[wishin]

Fantastic. And who was it that said citizen carry does nothing to prevent crime, it's only for self defense?

 

[Frank Ettin]

More than a few states have a law saying that even if you were carrying the gun illegally, if you use it in a lawful self defense shooting, you wont be prosecuted for the unlawful carry in that instance.

I guess maybe Nebraska isn't one of them. Do you have any idea what States do have such laws?

Without such a law someone carrying a gun unlawfully could wind up in this predicament: exonerated for the use of force as justified, but hung out to dry on a weapons violation. Something similar happened to Bernie Goetz in NYC some years ago.

It's too bad. The guy did right. Nebraska is a "shall issue" state, so I wonder why this fellow didn't have a concealed handgun permit.

There is such a thing as prosecutorial discretion. The DA does not have to prosecute. This looks like a good case in which to exercise that discretion. But it may not be politically feasible.

In any case, this illustrates why it's a good idea to have a CCW if you can.

 

[KodiakBeer]

The real shame is that this guy will now have a gun crime on his record. I suspect even a misdemeanor will keep him for getting a CCW if he ever wants one.

I hope he fights it. If the butt of the gun was in view, it might be argued that it was open carry.

 

[Ala Dan]

Excellent shoot, but now the hassles of the investigation~!

*FootNote: If I were the D/A I would not charge him with a crime,
+ I would authorize my municipality to reward him with one C-Note
($100 bill)~!

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

I'll have to go check and see if Walgreens has the pistol with the line thru it sticker on the door.

 

[mnrivrat]

Harry J. McCullough III, 32, had a permit to carry a loaded handgun in plain view — typically in a holster — but did not have a concealed weapons permit, said Omaha Police Officer Jacob Bettin.

Something smelly on this statement - guess more info is needed, but if you have a permit to carry a handgun in my state, it can be carried open or concealed. I haven't heard of a state that issues permits to open carry only, but maybe someone can enlighten me.

 

[Old Shooter]

It's too bad. The guy did right. Nebraska is a "shall issue" state, so I wonder why this fellow didn't have a concealed handgun permit.

I sometimes wonder, in a "Shall Issue" state, if it just isn't the paperwork hassle that prevents some persons from seeking the permit. In this case the individual did have the percieved need to carry a weapon (and he was right!) so why would he have not gone to the trouble of applying for the permit?

So much trouble for a, more or less, $100 permit?

 

[jakeiscrazy]

I think that second may be an example of poor reporting. A permit to carry in plain veiw?

 

[Domineaux]

I sometimes wonder, in a "Shall Issue" state, if it just isn't the paperwork hassle that prevents some persons from seeking the permit. In this case the individual did have the percieved need to carry a weapon (and he was right!) so why would he have not gone to the trouble of applying for the permit?

So much trouble for a, more or less, $100 permit?

Not sure about Nebraska but in Texas a CCW permit will cost at least $250+ due to the application cost + 10 hours (min) required "training".

 

[Ditch-Tiger]

Not to brag, but, SD's permit costs $10.00, no classes, no fingerprinting and the paperwork is on par with a 4473 background check. All that and i received my temporary card within 3 days and my permanent card within 7!!!

 

[Frank Ettin]

...So much trouble for a, more or less, $100 permit? ...

Not sure about Nebraska but in Texas a CCW permit will cost at least $250+ due to the application cost + 10 hours (min) required "training".

Whatever it might have cost in Nebraska, it's pretty much sure to have been a bunch less than our hero is going to wind up spending to deal with the weapons charge.

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

The OC permit is an Omaha thing only---the state issued CC permit trumps any Omaha rules---but its not cheap $250-$300 all said and done.

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Seems the prosecutor saw the error of his ways----there was huge stink on the local talk radio after they said they would press charges.

Theres a pretty good video on the link with his lawyer and the prosecutor.

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100427/NEWS97/704279843#no-charge-in-shooting


No charge in shooting
By Leia Mendoza
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER


JUAN PEREZ JR/THE WORLD-HERALD

The scene outside the Walgreens.




The Walgreens customer who killed a would-be-robber Monday night has been cited for carrying a concealed weapon but won't face a charge in the shooting.

Harry J. McCullough III, 32, had a permit to carry a loaded handgun in plain view — typically in a holster — but did not have a concealed weapons permit, said Omaha Police Officer Jacob Bettin.

McCullough pulled his handgun from the waistband of his pants when he shot and killed Marquail Thomas, a shotgun-wielding 18-year-old and would-be-robber at the Walgreens in Benson Monday night, Bettin said.

McCullough was not arrested in connection with Thomas' death, and Douglas County Attorney Don Kleine said Tuesday afternoon that he would not file charges in connection with the shooting.

Bettin said two masked men had entered the Walgreens at 6101 Northwest Radial shortly before 9 p.m.

He said one of the men pointed the shotgun in the direction of the cash register, where several customers were standing in line.

McCullough fired several shots as the shotgun-wielding suspect pointed his weapon at customers. Thomas was hit several times. He fled from the store but collapsed outside.

McCullough then grabbed a second masked man and held him until police arrived, Bettin said.

Thomas was taken to Creighton University Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

The second suspect, who authorities identified as 17-year-old Angelo Douglas, was booked into the Douglas County Youth Center on suspicion of robbery and use of a weapon to commit a felony.

Nebraska law allows individuals to use force when their life or another person's life is threatened.

The Walgreens store was open for business Tuesday, with several customers shopping. A few chatted about the crime.

Store employees said they were not allowed to comment. Calls to Walgreens' corporate offices were not returned

 

[JellyJar]

I went to :

http://www.opencarry.org/ne.html

and saw no report of needing a permit to open carry. So if he did have a permit it must have been for CCW and the reporter got it wrong. We need more information to be sure.

Edit: I was too slow. He did not have a permit to CCW.

 

[hso]

http://www.nsp.state.ne.us/Docs/forms/CCW_Rules_and_Regs.pdf

 

[Husker_Fan]

The man is not being charged for the shooting and the prosecuter has said it was justified.

The charge for carrying a concealed weapon is still pending. The man did not have a CCW permit, possibly because he has a 1997 conviction for concealed carry (a knife with a blade longer than 3 inches) but that would have only DQ'd him for ten years. That Walgreens is not posted. In NE, it is a misdemeanor to carry into a posted business.

People are right about the cost of the CCW permit in NE. It will be $250-300 total with 8-10 hours of training/range qualification.

The city of Omaha requires a permit for open carry, but if you have a CCW permit, the city attorney has said you don't need the Omaha permit to open carry.

He used a .40 caliber weapon, shot 8 times with 4 hits to the chest. No one else was injured. The robber who was shot had a sawed off Rem 870 that was not loaded. Whether it was loaded or not makes no difference in the moment, but it might make it harder for this guy to live with what he had to do.

 

[amflyer]

Nebraska does have something called affirmative defense, which acording to the statue reads something like this:

"It is an affirmative defense that the accused was, at the time of carrying, engaged in any lawful business, calling or employment, and the circumstances in which such person was placed at the time were such as to justify a prudent person in carrying concealed for the defense of his person, property or family. "

Don't know how this would pan out in the courts as he was getting ice cream and not really involved in any "business, calling or employment," although it's hard to say without five lawyers, a year in court and lots of $$

 

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Looks like it all worked out--

http://www.omaha.com/article/20100504/NEWS97/100509805#no-gun-charge-in-shooting

City Prosecutor Marty Conboy said Tuesday that he won't pursue a concealed weapons charge against the former security guard cited for shooting and killing a masked man at a Walgreens checkout counter.

Harry James McCullough III shot Marquail Thomas, 18, as Thomas pointed a sawed-off shotgun at customers at the Walgreens at 6101 Northwest Radial on April 26.

Thomas collapsed outside the store and was pronounced dead at the hospital.

McCullough, 32, was not charged in Thomas' death, but police had cited him for carrying a concealed weapon.

Conboy said that after viewing a videotape of the incident and police reports, he decided not to prosecute the ticket.

"We have to be able to conclusively prove the gun was not capable of being seen," he said. "If it's capable of being seen, technically, it's not concealed."

The police did their job in issuing a citation, Conboy said, and it's up to his office to determine if there's enough evidence to be able to pursue a conviction.

Conboy did not release a videotape.

He acknowledged a lot of community concern about concealed weapons and whether McCullough would be viewed as a hero and given a pass.

He said his decision was based strictly on the facts and whether attorneys would be able to prove the gun was not visible at any time.

"We can't just say it looks like it was concealed. You have to prove it."

A short time later, McCullough said, "I"m relieved but I'm still losing a little sleep. There's not a second . . . I still don't think of this."

He and his attorney, James Martin Davis, said one of the first things he'll do now that he's been cleared is register a gun that was donated to McCullough. He is fearful of retaliation from people the would-be robbers know, Davis said.

McCullough said he wants to take every measure to be safe.

Reflecting back, he said, given the same circumstances, he would have done the same thing.