I didn't see anything in the sheriff's comments that implied that anyone should not defend self, hearth, and home by any means when under attack. His entire quote isn't included in the article; he apparently says that one should call for help (get it started) if they "suspect their home is being broken into" (quote from the article, not from the sheriff.) He also says that all cases are different, apparently a nod to the idea that, in this case, there was not a suspicion that the house was being broken into prior to the attack (the attacker was evidently granted entry, then began his attack without warning.) His comments are more general in nature, not specific to this single incident. He even goes on to say that he cannot specify or predict what actions a person whose home is under attempted breach should do immediately. I didn't see anything that said "don't do anything except call us and let us handle it."
Still, what he did say could have been more-clearly put as something like "call 911 if possible, or as soon as you can, but do what you have to."