(This post may contain disputed claims. We make no assertions as to the validity of the information presented by our Opinion Columnist. We are an opinion blog, not a traditional news outlet, and this post should be treated as such. Enjoy.)As a general rule, people don’t choose crime as a career because they are highly intelligent. The criminal mastermind and genius super-villain are Hollywood fantasies.
It’s amazing that the criminals of Oklahoma continue to break into Charles Sweeney’s house. For the second time in 5 years, the homeowner has shot an intruder. Maybe with this latest act of self-defense, word will get out to pick a different house. He had a cold response when questioned about the last shooting.
Fox 35 reports that on Tuesday around 9pm in Tulsa, OK Charles Sweeney heard a strange noise coming from his bathroom. He went to inspect and saw a man crawling in through the bathroom window.
“He comes into view, and BLAM, that 9 millimeter is real loud inside the house,” Sweeney said.
Sweeney shot the intruder, who has since been identified as Donald Stovall, and dropped him on the bathroom floor.
“I knew I had killed him,” remarked Sweeney.
When police arrived, they found Stovall perforated and assuming room temperature. He was fitted with a toe-tag and sent to the morgue.
“He brought this on himself, I have no sympathy,” said Sweeney. “This is my boyhood home. I will defend the place.”
This wasn’t the first time Sweeney had to shoot an intruder. According to Tulsa World, in October 2013 Sweeney came home from a walk and found two people ransacking his house. He shot one of the burglars multiple times, while the other one fled. In that case, the intruder lived, though with severe injuries. Both burglars eventually pleaded guilty to charges related to the break-in.
Amazingly enough, besides the two shootings, Sweeney has used his gun numerous other times to defend his life and property.
“This is the second time I’ve shot someone, and I’ve escorted at gunpoint at least half a dozen people off the property,” Sweeney said.
Is there a Facebook app the criminals of Tulsa can use to alert each other that Charles Sweeney’s house is the wrong place to burglarize? Also, why do they keep targeting him? His dwelling appears to be modest and doesn’t scream that it’s full of riches.
Maybe he has the Hope diamond in a coffee can or basement full of priceless antiquities. The news didn’t say.
Luckily, Sweeney lives in a place that doesn’t frown on self-defense. Oklahoma is one of 22 states that has a “Stand Your Ground” law, and Sweeney had every right to use deadly force to defend himself and his property.
“I thought my life was in danger, I shot him, and I’ll do it again,” Sweeney said.
Tulsa police interviewed Sweeney and let him go without any charges.
“If you are in your home and you have an intruder come in and you feel that you are in fear of your life or the life of someone else who may be in your home, you are well within your rights to defend yourself,” Tulsa PD Captain Karen Tipler said.
Had Sweeney lived in a liberal place that doesn’t respect people’s rights to defend themselves, like California or New York, he might have gotten in trouble for this defensive gun use. If the intruder were unarmed, even though he was inside a house without permission, the state could argue that Sweeney’s life wasn’t in danger and brought him up on charges of manslaughter or even 2nd-degree murder.
Criminals are not smart, and the threat of jail doesn’t deter them from committing crimes. They do understand death, however.
