At first blush, Texas burglary suspect calls 911 on homeowner with gun seems to be a “funny” defensive gun use (DGU) story. You know, bad guy gets his just deserts with an extra helping of humiliation. A closer look reveals some bad decisions by the homeowners in question. To wit: Mrs. Gerow’s comment to the 911 operator: “Yeah, hurry up. He [burglar Christopher Lance Moore] says my husband’s fixing to shoot him.” The chances of the Gerows facing blowback for grabbing the burglar’s keys and holding him at gunpoint in the Lone Star State are slim to none, and slim just left town. That said, civil suit. And it should be said . . .
that chasing and capturing a bad guy is a cop’s job. If Moore had had an armed accomplice waiting in the truck . . .
I’m also not 100% sure about blocking Moore’s truck, giving a 12-year-old a 12 gauge shotgun and instructing him to shoot Moore in the legs should he try to escape. Correct me if I’m wrong but there are a lot of ways that could have gone wrong.
I know there are a lot of readers who see this incident as justice served. And sure, the result was the right one. But again, the Gerows were not playing the percentages. They deserve praise for their courage, preparedness and moral fiber, but I’m not staking my life or my children’s lives on luck.
In any case, I think we can agree on this: no spiking the football. No re-enactments. STFU after a DGU. None of this:
“I gave him a chance,” Gerow said. “Had he said he had bad intentions before that, he wouldn’t have got his second chance. That’s a different ballgame. You threaten me and my family, that’s a different ballgame.”
James Yeager-like machismo may play well on the Internet but it sounds a whole lot different in a court of law. And not necessarily better. Yes, even in Texas.