Not much info yet but it was just on channel 7 News. A jewerly store owner shot and killed someone trying to rob his store in (supprise) Newark. One less scum on the street.

http://www.nj.com/essex/index.ssf/2013/06/newark_store_owner_guns_down_thief_in_citys_fifth_shooting_in_36_hours.html#incart_river_default

As he left, the store owner drew a handgun from behind the counter and shot him once, DeMaio said. The alleged thief ran out of the store but died a short time later, according to DeMaio.

 

If the jewelry store owner shot this guy in the back I'm going to venture a guess that criminal charges will be pressed. Let's hope not. 

But WHY??

After all, our State Constitution begins as follows:

 

 

NEW JERSEY STATE CONSTITUTION 1947
(UPDATED THROUGH AMENDMENTS ADOPTED IN NOVEMBER, 2012)

     A Constitution agreed upon by the delegates of the people of New  Jersey, in Convention, begun at Rutgers University, the State University of New Jersey, in New Brunswick, on the twelfth day of June, and continued to the tenth day of September, in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred and forty-seven.

     We, the people of the State of New Jersey, grateful to Almighty God for the civil and religious liberty which He hath so long permitted us to enjoy, and looking to Him for a blessing upon our endeavors to secure and transmit the same unimpaired to succeeding generations, do ordain and establish this Constitution.
 

                                                ARTICLE I
                                    RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES

   1.   All persons are by nature free and independent, and have certain natural and unalienable rights, among which are those of enjoying and defending life and liberty, of acquiring, possessing, and protecting property, and of pursuing and obtaining safety and happiness. 

   2.  a.  All political power is inherent in the people.  Government is instituted for the protection, security, and benefit of the people, and they have the right at all times to alter or reform the same, whenever the public good may require it.

 

If thats the case, hes going to go to jail for murder.  Remember, we are supposed to go bury our head in the sand is a scary guy comes into our homes or businesses.  Shooting him as he was retreating is just gonna go bad for him.  If what is in the story is true I do honestly believe the guy needed shooting.  The laws in this state are not in the store owners favor.

Ken

Hopefully he isn't charged. My reading of the statutes, is that if he ordered him to stop or surrender, and he did not, the use of force is justifiable. 

As he left, the store owner drew a handgun from behind the counter and shot him once, DeMaio said. The alleged thief ran out of the store but died a short time later, according to DeMaio.

 

If the jewelry store owner shot this guy in the back I'm going to venture a guess that criminal charges will be pressed. Let's hope not. 

 

Yeah, if the perp was leaving the store and the owner was not in danger, he's going to have a lot of explaining to do.

As the comments mention, this article makes it sound like there were 5 criminal shootings, when two were self-defense related. Typical SL bs.

Yeah, if the perp was leaving the store and the owner was not in danger, he's going to have a lot of explaining to do.

 

It says criminal was armed. I'm not sure with what, but I'm fairly certain an armed criminal in your store is still a threat. Unless  sometime after he decided to rob the store, he had a change of heart and became a non-violent/aggressive person  incapable of hurting someone. My guess is not. 

Well, it wasn't clear from the article exactly what was happening.  But if the perp was running out the door, according to my understanding of the laws of our state, the store owner could be hard-pressed to explain why he felt threatened enough to use deadly force.

Unfortunately in NJ, the perp could have been trying to jump over the counter and stab him, and the owner might still have a hard time trying to explain shooting him to some people. 

I'm not taking anything in this article at face value. The title tells me a bit about the author's take on the situation, "store owner guns down thief" [emphasis mine]. That seems like a pejorative phrase these days.

What the store owner should have done was say look I found 2 more fifty's, and then shot him when he turned back around to get them!!!!

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