Law enforcement also confiscated his gun collection. I hate to think what the law would have done if grandpa had actually shot the burglar.

New Hampshire Man Arrested For Firing Gun Into Ground While Catching Suspected Burglar | Fox News

We have read a lot of similar stuff through the years. The fact remains you get what you elect and laws the elected make. I know, I know the old stupid comeback when one complains, well, get the law changed! Like really, one person is going to get the law changed! Its easier to move to a gun savy state. Thats a big part of the reason I left and moved to utah from california when I retired.

What's surprising is New Hampshire the most gun friendly state you'd ever want.

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Dick

Diamondback 68 beat me by a minute.
First of all, New Hampshire is a pretty lenient state when it comes to firearm ownership.

Strange that this has taken place, unless there is something else involved that isn't in the article.

I think the whole affair is going to be reversed in favor of the gun owner.

I'm sure a NH resident will post, he would have more knowledge on said story.

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Doesn't hasta call me Johnson

Masaad Ayoob ought to be all over this one. I think he lives in that part of the country.

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Richard Gillespie
FBINA 102

What made him fire the shot? Were any innocent lives in danger? No.
Cops don t give warning shots, why should this guy?

He might have had the best of intentions but he still broke the law.

Play stupid games win stupid prizes.

I hope they give the guy a break.

This happened two, maybe three days ago. As of this morning the charges were dropped.

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I always take precautions

Glad the charges were dropped. he got off lucky.

If you life is in danger you shoot at the danger. When you fire a "warning shot" you are admitting that your life was not in danger, just that you wanted to intimidate. Thats usually where the law gets you for dischargeing in public.

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Gerry

Then they took all of his guns? Wonder what else they took.

...and that's an example of the world we live in today...

Looks like Holland. You are not alloud to defence your self overhere.

I wish the grandpa all the best.

Better to shoot a warning shot then have the EMTs come to pick up a body.

"Warning shots" are an exceptionally bad idea.

Anybody who's an immediate and credible threat to your life and limb doesn't deserve any warning.

If you NEED to shoot, shoot center of mass.

Otherwise, don't shoot AT ALL.

Fosters.com - Dover NH, Rochester NH, Portsmouth NH, Laconia NH, Sanford ME

Just as I said in the first thread on this, it was a bad arrest and wrongful seizure.

I will bet there was a deal made where he does not sue the police in exchange for dropping the charges.

The prosecutor got it right. Now as Paul Harvey use to say "you will hear the rest of the story" later. The negotiations begin to get the guns back. The city not to be sued. The LEO praying not to be sued for wrongful arrest. Even in New Hampshire they have some that are Y,D&N. And a bunch of classroom time retraining on legal arrest.

cmort666,,, Couldn't agree more!
Just had a recent local shooting where a senior citizen was knocked off his bicycle by 3 teens, they had just assaulted two other seniors in a neighboring borough.
They had him on the ground and he pulled his weapon killing one, seriously wounding the second and the third one ran.
It was declared by the DA that it was a justifiable shoot and that he did what he had to to protect himself.
Of course the bleeding heart society was all over this in the newspaper,,,Why no warning shot,,, why not shoot to wound,,,, why not fire one into the air.....and it went on and on.

The fact of the matter is when your life is in danger you have to do what you must and that is to eliminate the threat, if you can't do that then you should not be carrying!

Just my thoughts............

Damned if you do....damned if you don't.

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...east wind...rain...

Actually, not damned at all if he didn't.

The POLICE have no duty to protect individual PERSONS. What makes you think a citizen has a duty to protect the property of a third person?

You can debate whether it was wise to intervene, but firing a shot in a populated area, NOT TO PROTECT LIFE is foolish.

If you HAVE to shoot somebody, shoot THEM. A firearm is not a noisemaker, nor does a gunshot serve as an exclamation point in conversation.

If you feel the need to intervene in a burglary of a neighbor's property, fine. The ONLY reason to be shooting in such a situation is that a perpetrator put you in immediate and reasonable fear of life and limb. If that happens, the proper response is to shoot the THREAT until it's neutralized, NOT the ground. I've never been threatened by or afraid of the ground.

I don't think that the arrest was false or wrongful. Arrests are often made upon probable cause and on further review by the DA charges are dropped. Or arrests are made and a Grand Jury refuses to indict.

Remember the burden of proof in a civil trial would be much lower for both sides and I think it would be easier for the police to show that they had probable cause to arrest the guy. Maybe not a great idea, but probably not actionable.

In MA, he'd be charged because the standard for self defense is much tougher than most other states.

In TX, they'd probably hold a BBQ in his honor.

I think this is all very good advice, especially in our state, where using a firearm to defend property -- especially not your own -- is to risk the full weight of Ohio Revised Code landing upon you.

Part of being a gun owner in Ohio (and especially a CHL) is to mentally prepare yourself for a variety of situations. If I witnessed somebody burgling my neighbor's property, would I produce my gun and attempt to hold them? No. (Doing this inside the Columbus city limits, where I live, would be *especially* stupid.) And if I did, they'd be smart to call my bluff, because if they took off, I most certainly wouldn't fire at them. They don't know this, of course, but discharging my weapon to wound/kill a fleeing burglar who didn't even burgle my own house == right out.

What I would do is grab my camera and take some pictures, assuming it wasn't too dark. And I'd call 911.

Now, this is all within the context of what Ohio law actually says. There remains the question of what it should say. There are some who think that the law should permit defense of property, even somebody else's, with force. This position is easy to see, insofar of defense of each other and our property is ultimately our responsibilty, and community policing could be particularly effective as a deterrent. There are others who say that nobody's life is a just price for theft and/or damage of property. This is also easy to see, if one considers life to be valuable on its own, and more valuable than property, and that life can/should only be taken if there is the threat of bodily harm/death, or actual harm/death.

Then there are the people who think that only those empowered by the state should own guns, and that citizens defending themselves is a foolhardy endeavor best left to officials whose timely presence cannot be assured and is highly unlikely. With these people I cannot agree, even a little.

There is currently legislation here in Minnesota to make deadly force legal ANYWHERE...not just your home.

Senate: Deadly force OK anywhere | StarTribune.com

We shall see if it gets past the governor. The opponents seem to always look at gun owners and lawful permit holders in the same light as criminals, as if we are violent individuals bent on death and mayhem! None of the predictions of the "wild west" turned loose on society have ever shown a shred of validity in any place where the common man was given more latitude to protect him/herself. I cannot understand how smart, educated people from the left consistently spend their time attacking law abiding citizens and coddle the criminals.

Deadly force is legal anywhere in Ohio.

Outside of home or vehicle, you must ATTEMPT to retreat if possible to do so IN PERFECT SAFETY. That means that if you can WITHDRAW without incurring ANY additional danger, you must do so before using deadly force. That does NOT mean that you must turn tail and run, only that you must attempt to leave. If your opponent thwarts that attempt, sucks to be him.

In home or vehicle, you have the rebuttable presumption of justification. Criminal assailants are also barred by law from recovering a PENNY from their intended victim if they get shot in the attempt and the shooting is determined to be justified.

Anybody looking for some place to pursue a career as a home invader or carjacker should probably write Ohio off as a potential venue.

Anyone who doesn't try to extricate themselves from a situation where deadly force might be necessary is a fool. Shoot when you don't have to? Not me!

The arrest and gun confiscation of the homeowner was illegal period. The Chief does not have the power to order seizure of property not invoved with the crime is not evidence. While the homeowner should have received a ticket for discharge of a firearm. The next thing is it was not his property and he should have just called 911.

I am not picking on anyone either but of all these people discussing shooting someone for burglary or other crimes, how many has shot someone before? It is easy to give feelings or opinions while sitting at a computer screen. It is not so easy to pay a lawyer, spend hours in jail being questioned and then days in a courtroom. Go over all the threads on gun forums. Many of them are discussing how to shoot, where to shoot and the caliber best suited for shooting someone.

Most here will agree that the man was in error when he shot into the ground. The question is what would he have done if the man did not stop and continued to flee. The man was angry because his home had been entered. He pulled a gun. Maybe that was proper action but I was not there and threatening someone with a gun for such an offense on property that the shooter did not own is illegal in most areas.

Just saying.

Sad, but you must gaurd yourself from the bad guys AND the police tactics.