Lookie what we have here:
Borris Miles told police he was fixing a leak on the second floor of the Houston house he’s building Sunday night when he heard a noise downstairs and saw two men trying to steal the copper. After Miles confronted the pair, one of the men threw a pocketknife at him, Houston Police spokesman Victor Senties.
Miles, a former law enforcement officer, shot the man in the left leg, police said. The wounded suspect was being treated at a Houston hospital. Police were trying to identify the other suspect.
Looks like a clean shooting to me. The problem, though, is that Mr. Miles is a state legislator who doesn’t think you should be able to do the same thing:
Miles, a Democrat, voted against a bill that gives Texans stronger legal right to defend themselves with deadly force in their homes, vehicles, and workplaces. The so-called “castle doctrine,” passed by the Legislature this year, states that a person has no duty to retreat from an intruder before using deadly force.
Tsk-tsk, Rep. Miles. How do you feel about that castle doctrine now?
Filed Under Uncategorized ·
Comments
21 Responses to “Castle doctrine for me, but not for thee”Search
Our Sponsors
Poll
Loading ...LST Book Club
-
Defending Identity: Its Indispensable Role in Protecting Democracy
by Natan Sharansky -
Fear No Evil
by Natan Sharansky -
The Case For Democracy: The Power of Freedom to Overcome Tyranny and Terror
by Anatoly Shcharansky -
The Jewish State: The Struggle for Israel's Soul
by Yoram Hazony -
Bobos in Paradise: The New Upper Class and How They Got There
by David Brooks -
Snobbery: The American Version
by Joseph Epstein -
A Conflict of Visions: Idealogical Origins of Political Struggles
by Thomas Sowell
That leak was in his head.
It’s kind of a weird story, though. He was fixing a leak in the huge palace that’s under construction? And he claims the thugs who were stealing copper wiring (not pipes?) were responsible for the leak? And they threatened his life by throwing a pocketknife at him?
What an odd combination of facts.
Vigilante. Nice shot.
Coincidentally, I was just in CHL class yesterday and we talked quite a bit about the castle doctrine. One thing is, it doesn’t go into effect until September and this incident took place before then. I’m not entirely sure what effect that will have on how incidents that take place prior to that will be handled.
The second thing is (and it may help explain Rep. Miles’ objection to the bill) is that we had a Jersey Village officer in class who wasn’t too enthused about the castle doctrine either. The law effectively extends your “castle” to your vehicle and business. If I’m a cop and I have to approach every vehicle I stop with the assumption that the driver has a gun, I’m going to be a bit skittish myself.
The officer’s point wasn’t anti-CHL. In fact, he pretty much said he thought anyone who had a gun should get their CHL. It’s just that the likelihood that an untrained and unlicensed person having a firearm in their vehicle (legally) is now higher. In his opinion, this new law is a “can of worms”. With that said, any time you are stopped by the police you should hand them your CHL along with your TDL.
How are the burglars doing?
Are they still listed as being in Hypocritical Condition?
Subject: ARE YOU A DEMOCRAT, REPUBLICAN or REDNECK TEST
Are you a Democrat, a Republican, or a Redneck?
Here is a little test that will help you decide:
You’re walking down a deserted street with your wife and two small
children. Suddenly, an Islamic Terrorist with a huge knife comes around
the corner, locks eyes with you, screams obscenities, praises Allah,
raises the knife, and charges at you. You are carrying a Smith & Wesson
.45, and you are an expert shot. You have mere seconds before he reaches
you and your family.
What do you do?
A Democrat’s Answer:
Well, that’s not enough information to answer the question!
Does the man look poor! Or oppressed?
Have I ever done anything to him that would inspire him to attack?
Could we run away?
What does my wife think?
What about the kids?
Could I possibly swing the gun like a club and knock the knife out of his hand?
What does the law say about this situation?
Does the ‘Smith’ have appropriate safeties built into it?
Why am I carrying a loaded gun anyway, and what kind of message does this
send to society and to my children?
Is it possible he’d be happy with just killing me?
Does he definitely want to kill me, or would he be content just to wound me?
If I were to grab his knees and hold on, could my family get away while he was stabbing me?
Should I call 911?
Why is this street so deserted?
We need to raise taxes, have paint and weed day and make this happier,
healthier street that would discourage such behavior.
This is all so confusing! I need to debate this with some friends for few
days and try to come to a consensus.
A Republican’s Answer:
BANG!
A Redneck’s Answer:
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! click….. (sounds of
reloading).
BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! BANG! click…
Daughter: “Nice grouping, Daddy! Were those Winchester Silver Tips or
Remington Hollow Points?”
The Second Amendment saved my life! One of millions in this country that can say that.
“any time you are stopped by the police you should hand them your CHL along with your TDL.”
I stopped a few that did that. When I saw the CHL ID, I immediately relaxed, knowing they were most likely not going to do anything stupid. Most were for b s sticker violations, fail to signal turn or lane change and such. I was looking for stolen cars, not tickets. Anyone I contacted with a CHL in my experience was usually more responsible that most. We’d chit chat about guns than I’d let them go…. no ticket
faster,
They showed a graph in the class which indicated that CHL holders are statistically less likey per capita to be criminally inclined. I guess it kind of makes sense when you think about it. If I’m going to go to the trouble of carrying a gun legally then I’m also most likely going to go to the trouble of following laws in general more diligently than the non-licensed citizen.
I think this is the part where BigJ busts my chops about graphs, so I’m gonna scoot now that I’ve given him that fine opening. That, and I’ve got a ton of work to do.
8^)
Lots of trained and licensed motorists along with doctors and lawyers and Indian Chiefs out there screwin’ things up so the whole train/license scenario don’t always guarantee a favorable outcome. However, any time a thug takes a shotgun blast to the noggin, ala last night’s Galleria incident, is a good thing - training or no.
Why would a policeman be taking a CHL class. Don’t they already have that right?
11 bigmck
He was a former officer. I have to go get my CHL to carry. I didn’t retire from HPD, I quit! Only if you retire from a department can you carry. But I believe you still have to get your ID from DPS. My sister retired from HPD and has hers.
#11 bigmck,
The officer I was speaking of was the one fingerprinting us for the applications. He wasn’t taking the class. He did provide quite a bit of good insight and advice along the way though (in addition to the instructor’s).
I hope Boris doesnt get sued by his thug, wounded thiefs, when they say they were just inspecting the property
thieves LOL*
When I worked traffic while in AF Security Police it was good practice to treat every stop as if they were carrying a gun or weapon. That way you weren’t surprised.
I just saw this story covered on Channel 2. Of course they didn’t mention his opposition to the castle doctrine. But Miles said the incident proves we need to do more to revitalize poor neighborhoods and provide more opportunities for the criminals so they won’t have to steal. And he said it with a straight face!
That story does sound a bit odd. He’s upstairs fixing a leak? What with no lights on- the guys couldn’t tell some one was there?
If you are going to steal tubing or whatever from a vacant house, wouldn’t you think you would wait till no one was there?
None the less it kizmit that this happens to him b-4 the law is in effect, maybe he will experience a slight amount of the crap a regular citizen goes through on a deal like this.
On the local news tonight it was said that he had problems with people stealing copper before and drove by to check up and caught them in the act.
14, My state rep’s office told me the castle doctrine does away with civil liabilities in self defense cases.
I supported the Castle Doctrine both personally and on the blog, but some opponents said, with some justification, that the law was redundant in Texas because our statutes already contemplated the situation. There was already no civil liability in self defense cases, as #20 put it. In Florida where the idea originated there was much more ambiguity in the prior statute - ours was already pretty strong, and nobody in Texas was getting prosecuted or sued for shooting armed burglars before the bill passed. Ever.
Having said that, I agree the facts sound odd. There’s no guarantee he’d qualify for immunity under the new law or the old one if there wasn’t an imminent threat. Throwing a pocket knife might get there, but that’s a low threshold, especially if after it was thrown the person was unarmed. But always be careful in high profile shootings: information released by police PR agencies immediately after an incident is notoriously inaccurate. We’ll know more in a week or three, I bet.
In any event, personally I’d take the opposite message from the situation. Clearly not everyone who voted against that bill is anti-gun or anti-self defense. That’s a stereotype, not always a realistic assessment of people’s motives. best,