Soldier Holds Car Burglars at Gunpoint Until Police Arrive

[Guest ArmaDeFuego]

Soldier detains suspected car thieves, waits for police - WSMV Channel 4

Man detains 3 vehicle burglars until police arrive - WKRN, Nashville, Tennessee News, Weather and Sports |

I probably would have just called the police & waited. It wouldnt have been worth the trouble if all 3 would have been armed. Maybe I'm just a wuss.

Nice to see that the cops here in Clarksville didnt hassle the soldier at all. I feel super safe carrying around here. I know the chief from when I went through the CPA here & I dont ever see him pursuing charges against someone in a SD situation or in something like this unless its just blatantly obvious that the person did something wrong.

Soooo good for this soldier & good for the Clarksville PD. I would have just called the police & sat in my house though.....

[Guest pfries]

Well to each his own,

you stay in and call,

he calls and heads out,

doing something is what counts IMO.

If he is comfortable heading out more power to him I will neither condone nor condemn.

I am glad he caught the kids and no one was hurt.

[TMF]

Well good for him. Had he not detained these suspects they would have gotten away long before the police arrived. Criminals enjoy such a permissive environment because of long response times from law enforcement. If more people were willing to stand up for their property and their neighbors' properties then scumbags like these would think twice before trying to steal people's things.

[BlackHawk93]

Well good for him. Had he not detained these suspects they would have gotten away long before the police arrived. Criminals enjoy such a permissive environment because of long response times from law enforcement. If more people were willing to stand up for their property and their neighbors' properties then scumbags like these would think twice before trying to steal people's things.

Agreed 100%

[Guest mcgyver210]

What is the legal aspect though of someone holding someone at gun point when your not in danger & it isn't your property? Just curious since I have been told in the past not to get involved with my gun in this type of situation because I am not a LEO.

[Guest pfries]

Well good for him. Had he not detained these suspects they would have gotten away long before the police arrived. Criminals enjoy such a permissive environment because of long response times from law enforcement. If more people were willing to stand up for their property and their neighbors' properties then scumbags like these would think twice before trying to steal people's things.

I agree,

I would not however expect my misses to head out and clear/apprehend/detain.

Without any real background or training, I would never expect anyone to walk out into a situation like that that is why I said doing something is what counts (be a good witness if that is where you skill and or confidence level is).

[TMF]

I agree,

I would not however expect my misses to head out and clear/apprehend/detain.

Without any real background or training, I would never expect anyone to walk out into a situation like that that is why I said doing something is what counts (be a good witness if that is where you skill and or confidence level is).

He had his wife lock the door behind him when he exited the house to detain the suspects.

I'm a firm believer in what's mine is mine. I don't care if it's $5 or $50,000. It's the principle of it. Cowardly people like these punks prey on the hard working and law abiding citizens like vultures. Not everyone has the ability to stand up to these people. Some of us do because we refuse to be victimized or allow others to be victimized in our presence.

[Dolomite_supafly]

Pictures of the kids:

Clarksville Now - Man Detains Burglars Until Police Arrive

I am glad he was able to detain these kids. Maybe it isn't too late for them and they can turn their lives around to become productive citizens. Based on their appologetic statements I think it might be just what they needed.

I also wish more people would become involved or at least aware of their surroundings. People today don't want to get involved and that has allowed the criminals flourish. I will, without a doubt get involved, by either being a good witness or actively preventing a crime.

My wife and I have told our neighbors that we will keep an eye out on their property when they are gone. I have made phone calls to them when suspicious vehicles are in the driveway. One neighbor is gone for days on end leaving his wife alone at home. We have told them both that if anything happens call the police then call me and we will come right over. I have no problem protecting a yound mother and her child.

I hate thieves more than anything else. They take away more than just the items they steal, they take away your feeling of safety and security.

You can't use deadly force to protect property.

Dolomite

[Guest PapaB]

What is the legal aspect though of someone holding someone at gun point when your not in danger & it isn't your property? Just curious since I have been told in the past not to get involved with my gun in this type of situation because I am not a LEO.

He had children upstairs and 3 bad guys outside. Good luck to any prosecutor stupid enough to try to charge someone under those circumstances. I don't see any jury with parents in it wanting to punish someone for protecting their children. Legally I'm sure they could make a case against him but the publicity would look bad for the prosecution.

[TMF]

You can't use deadly force to protect property.

Dolomite

No, but holding them at gun point shouldn't be an issue. I guess they coulda just given him the finger and drove off, but he had already physically yanked one out of the car so he woulda ratted the other two out anyway. I think this is where the great debate starts in regards to when you can pull a weapon. I don't see any issue here. There were three of them and he didn't know how well armed they were. If three guys had stolen stuff from my property my gun is coming out for sure. It's up to them if I use it.

[Guest bkelm18]

What is the legal aspect though of someone holding someone at gun point when your not in danger & it isn't your property? Just curious since I have been told in the past not to get involved with my gun in this type of situation because I am not a LEO.

Not sure about holding at gunpoint, but TN law allows you to make a citizen's arrest if you witness someone committing a felony or have reasonable suspicion a felony has been committed.

[Guest PapaB]

I also wish more people would become involved or at least aware of their surroundings. People today don't want to get involved and that has allowed the criminals flourish. I will, without a doubt get involved, by either being a good witness or actively preventing a crime.

+1

You can't use deadly force to protect property.

Dolomite

Absolutly correct. I would have said I saw the person by my car and had my wife call 911 while I went out to get a decent description for the police. When I got outside I learned there were 3 of them and, not knowing if they were armed, had to draw my weapon to protect myself. "That's my story and I'm sticking to it."

[DaveTN]

What is the legal aspect though of someone holding someone at gun point when your not in danger & it isn't your property? Just curious since I have been told in the past not to get involved with my gun in this type of situation because I am not a LEO.

That has been debated at great length here. I contend that although you can’t use deadly force, you can threaten it to make an arrest on someone committing a burglary.

You can use force, just not deadly force to protect property, but I can’t believe our legislators would allow you to use force and not allow the threat of deadly force when engaging a person committing a felony. Had the cops got there in time they would have had their guns out and taken these guys at gun point.

However, I am not an attorney and don’t play one on TV. It’s possible you could be charged with Aggravated Assault and have some pretty high defense costs.

The responding Officers did the right thing, the Chief did the right thing, let’s just hope the DA has the same opinion.

[Fallguy]

Glad it all turned out this way.

As far as defense of property and using or threatening deadly force.... I do wish it was more clear about whether threatening deadly force is ok or not.

What if you just have a weapon and don't point at them?

If I was on a jury I wouldn't convict anyone in such a situation....but I think we ought to have TX type laws on the protection of property...

[DaveTN]

Glad it all turned out this way.

As far as defense of property and using or threatening deadly force.... I do wish it was more clear about whether threatening deadly force is ok or not.

What if you just have a weapon and don't point at them?

If I was on a jury I wouldn't convict anyone in such a situation....but I think we ought to have TX type laws on the protection of property...

I would guess if they wanted to charge you it wouldn’t matter if you pointed it or not, committing an assault and “uses or displays a deadly weapon†is all that is required for aggravated assault. Like you, I’m not convicting anyone of committing a criminal act for simply protecting their property by displaying a firearm. Especially when I have done it countless times as a cop. A Police Officer would not have approached three guys burglarizing a car without their guns drawn. But unless the threat level escalated they couldn’t shoot them and neither can we.

Maybe one of our legislators could ask for an AG opinion on this. I realize it will still boil down to the DA in your County.

[DWARREN123]

We have got to keep the criminals in check, luckly he was prepared to do so without having to shoot. Have to do what we can in our own way.

[TMF]

I would guess if they wanted to charge you it wouldn’t matter if you pointed it or not, committing an assault and “uses or displays a deadly weapon” is all that is required for aggravated assault. Like you, I’m not convicting anyone of committing a criminal act for simply protecting their property by displaying a firearm. Especially when I have done it countless times as a cop. A Police Officer would not have approached three guys burglarizing a car without their guns drawn. But unless the threat level escalated they couldn’t shoot them and neither can we.

Maybe one of our legislators could ask for an AG opinion on this. I realize it will still boil down to the DA in your County.

Clarification would be great, but I think drawing a weapon is justified; he approached 3 suspects that burglarized his vehicle. It would be unreasonable for him NOT to assume they are dangerous, especially since he's outnumbered. There is no law against recovering your stuff if you see it stolen. If somebody is breaking into my car I'm not going to just let it happen, and I don't have to. I'm also not going to walk up to the criminal and treat the situation as if he is not a potential threat; he's committing a felony, so it's not a great mental leap that he might be armed. Pulling a weapon doesn't mean you have to use it, but I think the circumstances support the action of pulling the weapon. If a DA happens to have a brain fart and decide to press charges (not likely) I would be just fine explaining my actions to a jury.

Besides, we're talking about Clarksville here. The DA just let a guy off on agg assault for shooting two people in the head and one person in the chest. I'm pretty sure you can drunk drive a stolen car into a minivan full of kids driven by a pregnant woman, all while clubbing a baby seal with a lit crack pipe in your hand and only get charged with disorderly conduct. That's how we do it in Clarksville.

[JayC]

Well good for him. Had he not detained these suspects they would have gotten away long before the police arrived. Criminals enjoy such a permissive environment because of long response times from law enforcement. If more people were willing to stand up for their property and their neighbors' properties then scumbags like these would think twice before trying to steal people's things.

Just need to pass a law that allows the use of deadly force to stop criminals stealing property... similar to some of the laws in Texas... and the problem will go away quickly.

Criminals know better than start messing around in somebodies garage after dark in Texas, you're likely to end up very dead in the process.

[DaveTN]

Just need to pass a law that allows the use of deadly force to stop criminals stealing property... similar to some of the laws in Texas... and the problem will go away quickly.

Criminals know better than start messing around in somebodies garage after dark in Texas, you're likely to end up very dead in the process.

I was a Police Officer in Illinois when we could kill fleeing forcible felons. They didn’t run as much as they do now.

Now they have absolutely no reason to stop. They know the cops can’t shoot them and when they get caught they just cry and say they were scared of the Police.

Of course when confronted by a homeowner they may not run because they aren’t sure if the homeowner knows the rules.

[Guest ArmaDeFuego]

Besides, we're talking about Clarksville here. The DA just let a guy off on agg assault for shooting two people in the head and one person in the chest. I'm pretty sure you can drunk drive a stolen car into a minivan full of kids driven by a pregnant woman, all while clubbing a baby seal with a lit crack pipe in your hand and only get charged with disorderly conduct. That's how we do it in Clarksville.

I was gonna say the same thing.

The DA here (Carney) seems like he doesnt mind it when criminals get what's coming to them from law-abiding citizens. I would be completely shocked if he tried to bring charges against this soldier. Considering public opinion around here, it would be a VERY stupid move on his part.

Also, I want to amend what I said in my first post. I read an article in the local paper here yesterday where they interviewed the soldier & he said that he's had training in how to detain suspects & things like that, & that his training kicked in & he went off that. Well hell if he's trained to do that then go right ahead! More power to him. I wish I lived in his neighborhood.

Sadly I havent had any army training so I'm calling the cops & locking my door.

[Guest 6.8 AR]

Carney has been wishy washy in the past about this kind of thing, but there may be pressure

for him to be a bit more sympathetic toward the victims now. I don't know what went on behind the scenes

on the teenager on Ussery Road, but it turned out okay I think. A lawyer friend told me about some cases

that Carney was the opposite concerning defending property and has a mistrusting opinion about him.

I hope this a good trend starting in Clarksville. I've been lucky enough to not see the damage personally,

lately. Everything on my property stays more secure nowadays, but you never know. I still wake up and get

my gun occasionally. Wish I lived out in the country.

[Guest Catfish36]

Let me chime in on this one..as this subject as been the topic of much discussion in my neighborhood lately.

Just before Thanksgiving both or our cars got broken into sitting under our carport. A few weeks later the neighbor across the street's house was broken into ..in the middle of the day while she was at work..and everything was stolen out of her house. She was having some roof work done on her house and had the materials delivered to her house a week or so later, but before the roofers could get to her a portion of her roofing was stolen out of her front yard. Then a couple of weeks ago my son's bicycle and sled came up missing off of our carport. Well, when we contacted the police..they more or less make us feel like they will do their best but there is not much they can do.

I don't know exactly what I would do in an outside robbery situation..(or inside for that matter)...I am sure it will never work out exactly how we have rehearsed it in our heads anyway. But I will say that we and our neighbors have become angry and more aware ..and we are tired of it! The criminals know there is not much the Police can (or even will attempt) to do..so its almost like they are just mocking us. I am glad to see these guys get caught..I am glad that soldier stood up for his neighborhood. I hope I will have the wisdom and fortitude to do what is right if I see it happening again.

If you wait to see if someone has a deadly weapon before you draw..it may be too late..that may be the last thing you see.

Time is money. The things I own were purchased with a portion of my life that I worked to earn that money. If someone takes my stuff..they are taking a portion of my life.

Do NOT TREAD ON ME!