Dave P
Member
PENSACOLA, Fla. -- An elderly man defending his hurricane-damaged home fatally shot an intruder as the two scuffled, Escambia County sheriff's deputies say.
Retired oil industry worker James Workman, 77, and his wife, Kathryn, have been living in a trailer outside their home since it was damaged by Hurricane Ivan on Sept. 16.
Deputies said the intruder, whose identity was being withheld Thursday pending positive identification and notification of relatives, entered the couple's yard about 2:20 a.m. Wednesday.
Workman told investigators he confronted the man and when he refused to leave tried to warn him away by firing a shot from his .38-caliber handgun into the ground.
The intruder then entered the trailer, where Workman's wife was. Workman told deputies he went in after the man who grabbed him and then he shot the intruder as they struggled.
Prosecutors were reviewing the case to determine whether the killing was justified or if Workman should be charged with a crime.
The shooting in a hard-hit area just west of Pensacola occurred about 100 from an unrelated situation Oct. 8, when a neighbor fired a .22-caliber rifle to fend off a growling, machete-wielding man later subdued by deputies with a bean bag projectile and Taser.
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Sure sounds like a valid self-defense shooting.
Retired oil industry worker James Workman, 77, and his wife, Kathryn, have been living in a trailer outside their home since it was damaged by Hurricane Ivan on Sept. 16.
Deputies said the intruder, whose identity was being withheld Thursday pending positive identification and notification of relatives, entered the couple's yard about 2:20 a.m. Wednesday.
Workman told investigators he confronted the man and when he refused to leave tried to warn him away by firing a shot from his .38-caliber handgun into the ground.
The intruder then entered the trailer, where Workman's wife was. Workman told deputies he went in after the man who grabbed him and then he shot the intruder as they struggled.
Prosecutors were reviewing the case to determine whether the killing was justified or if Workman should be charged with a crime.
The shooting in a hard-hit area just west of Pensacola occurred about 100 from an unrelated situation Oct. 8, when a neighbor fired a .22-caliber rifle to fend off a growling, machete-wielding man later subdued by deputies with a bean bag projectile and Taser.
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Sure sounds like a valid self-defense shooting.