Date: Thu, 20 Jun 1996 21:16:10 -0400
From: NRA Alerts <[a--er--s] at [NRA.org]>
To: Multiple recipients of list <[r k ba alert] at [mainstream.net]>
Subject: ARMEDCITIZEN: July 1996

The American Rifleman, July 1996

THE ARMED CITIZEN

     Studies indicate that firearms are used over two
million times a year for personal protection, and that the
presence of a firearm, without a shot being fired, prevents
crime in many instances.  Shooting usually can be justified
only where crime constitutes an immediate imminent threat to
life limb or in some cases property.  Anyone is free to quote
or reproduce these accounts.  Send clippings to: "The Armed
Citizen," 11250 Waples Mill Rd., Fairfax, VA 22030


 "Thank God we have the constitutional right to bear arms. Let's
hope they never take that away from us," said Vietnam veteran
Mike Patton of Midvale, Utah, after he used a .38 to protect his
wife and home from an armed 17-year-old housebreaker. Awakened by
his barking dog, Patton confronted the intruder in his basement
and fired three shots before holding him for police. (The Desert
News, Salt Lake City, UT, 2/25/96)
 
 A pair of Long Island, New York, thieves, who police believe
used various scams to gain entry into the homes of elderly and
disabled residents, were finally apprehended thanks to the quick
thinking of an armed citizen. After Luise Starke, who is legally
blind, led one of the suspects to the basement when he said he
was there to service the oil burner, her husband, Alan, heard
another man enter the home. Suspecting trouble, he dialed 911 and
grabbed his side-by-side shotgun, which he used to detain both
suspects for law enforcement officials. (Newsday, Long Island,
NY, 3/1/96)
 
 Drinking and "up to no good," the three thugs--all convicted
felons with histories of"assaultive behavior"-- approached the
lone figure on a Staunton, Virginia, street, and one of the punks
attacked the pedestrian. Suffering several blows, the man, a
carry permit holder, drew his .45 and loosed eight shots at his
assailant, wounding him, stopping the attack and chasing off the
other miscreants. The district attorney refused to press charges,
saying, "We believed he acted in total self defense. The
concealed weapon kept this victim from being further injured."
(The Daily News Leader, Staunton, VA, 3/5/96)
 
 The Hurst, Texas, woman called her husband from the car phone to
let him know that she thought she was being followed. When she
pulled into her driveway, a man jumped from a white Ford Mustang
and pointed a gun at her, ordering her from her vehicle. That's
when the woman's husband emerged from their home with a 9 mm and
chased the suspect away. "I think both of us would have been dead
if I hadn't had my gun," said the husband. (The Morning News,
Dallas, TX, 3/9/96)
 
 It was the second time in six months Ali Ghaben had been held up
in his Columbus, Ohio, market and for the second time, the
situation ended with the suspect being shot and arrested. Ghaben
had been tending his shop when the lone, ski mask-clad robber
strolled in and drew a pair of handguns, demanding cash. When
another employee walked into the store, his presence distracted
the crook and gave Ghaben the chance he needed to grab his
firearm and shoot. (The Dispatch, Columbus, OH, 3/11/96)
 
 The robber pointed the pistol at Robert Shelton and pulled the
trigger. The gun failed to fire and a struggle ensued with the
bandit continuing to futilely pull the trigger and his accomplice
running from the store. Shelton's wife, Becky, was alerted to the
confrontation when the fight spilled into the rear office. In an
effort to save her husband, she grabbed a .38 and shot the
attacker several times, killing him. (The Morning News, Dallas,
TX, 3/17/96)
 
 Patrick Tansy walked into the kitchen of his Klamath County,
Oregon, home to investigate some noises when somebody clubbed him
with a large flashlight. Finding himself in a fierce struggle
with two burglars, Tansy, his scalp gashed and bleeding, managed
to break free and make it to a .50 cal muzzleloader he kept
loaded in another room. He fired, shattering the arm of one of
the intruders, both of whom fled the property. The two men were
quickly apprehended after Tansy, on the way to the hospital, saw
the suspects and called police from his cellular phone. (The
Bulletin, Bend, OR, 3/27/96)
 
 The bandit held Albuquerque, New Mexico, ice rink owner Bob
Martin and his employee at gun point demanding money from the
business' safe. Once handed the cash, the thief laid his gun
between his feet to stuff the loot into his fanny pack and
pockets. Martin used the moment to grab the .38 he was carrying
and loose a fatal round. The District Attorney declared Martin
justified in killing the robber, who had a "long criminal 'rap
sheet.'"(The Journal, Albuquerque, NM, 3/23/96)
 
 Redlands, California, sheriff's deputies credited an armed
citizen with helping them capture four men and two juveniles who
had just robbed a convenience store and pointed a gun at a plain
clothes police officer as they made their initial getaway.
Following a short chase all the suspects were captured. "One of
the guys was detained at gunpoint by a resident who really helped
us," Sheriff's Sgt. Bobby Phillips said. "He kept him there on
the ground until we got there." (The Daily Facts, Redlands, CA,
3/11/96)
 
 The teenage hoodlum began his attack on Madera, California,
shopkeeper Moon Yang by spraying him in the face with a chemical
spray, and then kneed him in the stomach. The assailant then
turned to Yang's wife, Soon, spraying her in the face as well.
Fearing for his wife, Yang grabbed a .38 and unleashed four of
the five rounds in his revolver. The suspect was found dead
outside the store and two accomplices were arrested. (The Bee,
Fresno, CA, 3/29/96)
 
 An Antelope Valley, California, judge was forced to dispense a
different type of justice after a parolee chose his house as the
site of his next burglary. Municipal Court Judge William Seelicke
had already warned the man to leave after spotting him in his
yard, but the man chose to attempt entering Seelicke's home
anyway. A few shots from the judge 's .38 changed his mind
though, and the man fled. Police arrested the housebreaker a
short time later. "Any normal bad guy would have heard the
warnings, but this guy just kept coming," said a Sheriff's
Department detective.  (The Daily News, Lancaster, CA, 3/2/96)