A Phoenix man was forced to resort to lethal force to defend his home when an intruder broke in during the night. The homeowner lives with his two children and wife and is being hailed as a hero for his efforts in defending his family on that evening.
An investigation is now ongoing, according to AZ Family, after the homeowner produced a firearm and shot the alleged home intruder in the chest. 30-year-old suspect Ricky Gomez was rushed to the hospital in critical condition but later succumbed to those wounds sustained in the shooting.
Neither Roger Smith heard the shooting from next door and immediately worried that one of the residents had been hurt. He took time to offer his thoughts on the matter, which transpired just moments before he planned to go to bed.
He told AZ Family, “He has two young kids, and he has a wife, and he’s protecting his family. You know the guy broke the window and got in. He did what he had to do.”
Mentioning that the man did what he had to do, Smith is echoing the right to self-defense, which is a right that every American has. The homeowner felt that his life was in danger when an alleged criminal broke into the home in which his family was sleeping, and he spared no measure in ensuring the safety of his loved ones.
Local Defense Attorney Dwane Cates made it clear in a statement that this kind of self-defense is fully justifiable by Arizona law. He is confident that the homeowner will face no legal repercussions in relation to the shooting.
Cates said, “If somebody is outside your window and you just see them peeking around out in the bushes, it may not be reasonable to shoot them. But if they actually enter your house coming through a window or kick down your front door, then you’re absolutely within your rights to shoot them. It’s called the Castle Doctrine. Your home is your castle, and you have the right to defend your home.”
At this time, there is no further information on the shooting. It has not yet been made clear why the suspect entered the family’s home in the first place.
For many Americans, the right to defend themselves, their family, and their property is something that is held dear. Self-defense is the right that allows all other rights to be protected. While it clearly makes some in blue cities uncomfortable at the thought of a homeowner using deadly force to ward off an attacker, plenty of criminals have been thwarted by the simple threat of self-defense.
As America faces a growing problem with crime, the answer cannot simply be added police presence. Police help, for sure, but each citizen needs to take a vested interest in obeying and upholding the law for American society to return to its once-great stature.
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