Exercising the Right

Alone but Not Helpless

The Meridian Star reported from Mississippi about a woman who was home alone when a criminal broke in. The woman was upstairs in her two-story house when she heard the sound of her door being shattered. After hearing the loud noise, she looked over her upstairs railing and saw a man standing in the entranceway next to the door that he had just kicked in. The woman grabbed her loaded .38-caliber pistol and fired it at the intruder, hitting him three times in the chest. The injured suspect fled, only to collapse outside. Police arrived on the scene and discovered the body of the suspect outside the house, noting that he died at the scene. Meridian Police Department Detective Dareall Thompson said that it appears the woman did not know the suspect and acted within her rights. The case will still be referred to a grand jury, but Thompson told the Meridian Star that this “is one of those instances where the homeowner was trying to protect her life and her property.”

Waffle House War on Crime

The Associated Press reported on October 10 that a man who attempted to rob a North Charleston Waffle House in South Carolina was fatally shot by a customer. It was early in the morning when the armed intruder burst into the restaurant and demanded cash from the employees. However, a customer, who had a valid concealed weapons permit, was waiting in his car for some take-home food that he had ordered when he witnessed the armed burglary in process. The customer retrieved his firearm, exited his vehicle, and confronted the burglar. Both the armed burglar and the customer exchanged fire, but only the burglar was wounded in the shootout. Police arrived on the scene and found the injured suspect. The suspect was transported to a nearby medical facility, where he soon died. The deceased suspect was later identified as Joshua Jermaine Davis.

Barney Limehouse, Jr., a retired law-enforcement officer who now teaches concealed-weapons permit classes, stated that the armed customer did everything right. Limehouse told the Post and Courier on October 17 that “Charleston citizens have a lot of power.... They don’t have to be pushed around anymore by thieves.” Limehouse explained that “every honest person” should be licensed and be trained and capable in the use of a weapon. Limehouse told the Post and Courier that incidents such as these are what having a gun is for. He said, “It’s only for self-defense or the self-defense of others. It’s not designed to take advantage of others.... More and more people are defending themselves.... What are we going to do, let (criminals) take everything from us?” Limehouse has taught over 600 concealed-carry classes over 17 years, and he’s positive he’s helped to save lives. He told the Post and Courier, “Everybody needs to be able to defend themselves.... We’re declaring war on crime — we don’t want to be abused by criminals anymore.”

This fantastic article is for subscribers only.
Login
Lost Password?

JBS Member or ShopJBS.org Customer?

Sign in with your ShopJBS.org account username and password or use that login to subscribe.

The New American Digital Subscription The New American Digital Subscription Subscribe Now
Use code SUB25 at check out
  • 24 Issues Per Year
  • Digital Edition Access
  • Exclusive Subscriber Content
  • Audio provided for all articles
  • Unlimited access to past issues
  • Cancel anytime.
  • Renews automatically
The New American Print+Digital Subscription The New American Print+Digital Subscription Subscribe Now
Use code SUB25 at check out
  • 24 Issues Per Year
  • Print edition delivery (USA)
    *Available Outside USA
  • Digital Edition Access
  • Exclusive Subscriber Content
  • Audio provided for all articles
  • Unlimited access to past issues
  • Cancel anytime.
  • Renews automatically