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Stop Criminals from
Using the Courts to Help Them Steal
Early this spring two men were
robbing a resident in Franklin Township, South Jersey. The property they
hit that night had been robbed in the recent past—in fact many residents
in this rural area had been victims of robbery in the past year. As one
resident stated, the fear level was quite high.
This night proved different. The homeowner was sleeping on his sofa when
he was awakened by a noise. He tried to call the police, but his phone did
not work. He hit the panic button on his alarm system and reached for his
handgun. As he opened his door, two men were rolling his ATV out of his
shed, 8 feet from him. One man turned with an object in his hand, later
determined to be a crow bar. When he turned, the homeowner shot. The thief
died and the homeowner was charged with first-degree murder.
I am sure many more details will come out in the trial. The homeowner has
a large amount of support in the community and it is growing.
The thief has history of crime and was out on bail for a previous robbery
when shot. In a letter to the editor, a relative of the thief said, “he
was a good man” and “the family will have justice.” In an article
about the incident, a police official was quoted, “ if your dog bites an
intruder robbing your house, you are liable.”
I remember hearing about a pharmacist in Illinois who hit his alarm while
being robbed. The robber then struck him in the head; breaking his jaw and
causing severe injuries resulting in weeks in the hospital. When the
robber turned to run out of the store, he tripped over a basket of soap
and fell into a plate glass window. He sued the storeowner while in jail
and won because the proper guards were not on the window and the basket of
soap was in the isle.
In another story, a burglar in California fell down a flight of steps and
sued the homeowner for not having the stairs in proper repair.
I believe it is time for us all, the law abiding citizens, to demand a
bill to be passed to prevent anyone from filing a civil lawsuit for
damages occurred while committing a crime. It is time for "WE THE
PEOPLE" to take back our justice system in simple language. Put the
bad guy in jail and do not punish the good guy.
I have heard the statement that you cannot take a human life over property
or money. When a thief is stealing twenty dollars in your home, HE is the
one who puts the value of his life at twenty dollars, NOT THE HOMEOWNER.
Please help support legislation that will stop criminals from using the
courts to help them steal more from the victims.
Robert L. Viden
ANJRPC Regional Vice President
NRA Director
Opinions and Editorials
The letters and articles in this
section reflect the opinions of individual Association members and are
not intended to represent official ANJRPC policy.
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