Elderly Texas homeowner shoots two female intruders

Authors Defensive Use of Firearms S.H. Blannelberry

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An elderly homeowner in Atascocita, Texas, shot two female intruders Wednesday afternoon, leaving them both in critical condition.

The homeowner called 911 to complain that these women, who were described as “young adults,” were using rocks in an attempt to smash open a window near his front door.

While the man, believed to be in his 60s, waited for the police to arrive, he armed himself with a shotgun.

“They knocked on the door several times. There was no answer and at that time they obviously didn’t think anyone was there and they broke a window and gained entry,” Walter Stensland, with the Harris County Precinct 4 Constable’s Office, told Houston 2.

Unfortunately for the women, the police did not arrive in time. When they broke into the man’s home, he shot them both in the chest.

“One was still inside the house and the other one had fled outside the house and collapsed in the yard across the street,” Stensland said.

The women had recently stolen a car and had cased the neighborhood, knocking on several doors in the area before they settled on the man’s home, police said.

Following the shooting, the women were airlifted to a local hospital where they underwent surgery. They were said to be in critical condition.

Meanwhile, at least one neighbor supported the homeowner’s decision to fire on the intruders.

“You break into someone’s house, I believe you deserve to get shot,” neighbor Derenda Carr told KHOU. “Cops don’t get there in time; there’s no way they would’ve got there in time.”

Police questioned the homeowner and the case will now be turned over to a grand jury.

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  • Brian March 24, 2017, 7:21 pm

    This happened 2 doors down from mine, October 29. I spoke to my neighbors less than 2 hours after this incident. 2 women knocked on the door across the street first. Someone answered and the 2 women said, sorry we are at the wrong house. They turned around and went back to their car. My wife was passing in her car while one woman went to Johns house to knock. My wife saw one woman get into the car and turn it around to park on the street. One woman went around back of Johns house knocking loudly, John was going for his 20 gauge (bird shot) shotgun and calling police. His 12 gauge was in the shop, unfortunately, he explained the next day. The women grabbed a rock from his front yard and broke the small sill window next to the front door of his home. John did not answer when they were casing his home and knocking loudly. I have been into John’s house, garage on left side (long wall), on the right is an office. The women unlocked his front door, entered illegally, then walked past the office into the living room. John had been on the phone with 911 operator for 2 minutes telling them, I will shoot whoever is breaking into my home. The operator is pleading with him to not shoot the intruders, why I am not sure? Maybe 911 operators have to fill out paperwork?? John waited until they made their way into the living room and unloaded on both. One fell immediately, the other tried to run away. John moved towards the front door and shot again as she moved in the hallway. Some of the birdshot missed and hit the stolen car outside, causing damage to the car. John was NO billed by the grand jury. This happened around 2:18pm. My wife had closed the garage door with auto garage door closer, got out of her car. My wife moved inside our house, called 911 as she felt something was wrong at John’s house. Before completing call, she heard 3 guns shots in the direction of John’s home. John had done what was needed, he was shook up over the incident but would do it again if needed. He protected himself from predators. John was 67 years old and retired. You have the right in Texas to protect your belongings and yourself. And that, my friends, is the rest of the story.

  • Jack June 1, 2015, 12:06 pm

    The “FEMALE SUSPECTS” Didn’t have a Gun, They did have a Rock big enough to break in with and be able to hit the Man in the head, I just love these anti Gun Commentators, These women were on a crime spree and the Home Owner was able to stop them before they were able to cause damage to him or his neighbors. I say give him the KEY to the City, and a Parade Down Main Street, also some one buy that man some Double O Buck,

  • Russ November 14, 2014, 6:39 pm

    Poor elderly man.
    WE NEED MORE GUN CONTROL PEOPLE!
    Somehow this man never heard of “Two to the Body, One to the Head”
    I feel real bad for him.
    Maybe others can learn from his mistake.

  • Gary ODell November 5, 2014, 10:39 am

    When you force yourself into someones home you leave all your rights outside the door. These liberal bleeding hearts say he could see they were unarmed . that works both ways they could see he was armed . they had to see this because he had to be standing in front of them to shoot them both in the chest, and neither one offered to run . that means only one thing they thought they could over power him and take his gun. THEY WERE BOTH DEAD WRONG1 This man should not have to face the burden and expence of a grand jury. SEND THIS HOMEOWNER HOME .

    • Somegunguy April 3, 2017, 7:01 am

      Amen! Why the Grand Jury when they broke into his home? This makes no sense to me.

  • Slick November 4, 2014, 8:48 pm

    Is anybody else seeing what’s going on here? The criminals are the victims? The police can’t protect the people. I’ve had two alarm calls to the Sheriffs Department. Their response time was 1 hr 15 mins on both alarms. If you live rural, you better know how to shoot. If the criminals are the victims, then what do you call the law abiding citizen who is defending his family and castle?

    • Slick November 4, 2014, 8:57 pm

      My comment is awaiting moderation? What does that mean? Your response time is equal to the Sheriffs Department here.

    • Harry Marker February 3, 2017, 9:14 am

      I agree whole heartedly! Thats the single biggest change i have seen in the criminal justice system, in my 51 years. There was a time when you were innocent until proven guilty, and there were instances when a guilty person may go free but it was better that the guilty person went free before an innocent man would be falsely imprisoned.
      Our country has folded its rights to the agenda of the progressive left. If we are ever going to get back to being the Constitutional Republic we once were, we are going to have to reverse the lefts destruction of our Constitutional rights.

  • DONW November 4, 2014, 4:18 pm

    JUSTIFIED! JUSTIFIED! any of you bleeding hearts for the females, when they recover ( if they do) why don’t you take them home with you and have them stay. See how you sleep at night then.

  • ron November 4, 2014, 12:46 pm

    Two shots, two hits, center mass good shooting. Now thats gun control!!!!!!!!

  • Terry November 3, 2014, 6:56 pm

    Why didn’t this man make his presence known? If the story is correct, it can and it will be argued that he lay in wait for these young women, keeping his presence a secret while waiting for them to gain access to the house before blasting away at them.

    In my opinion, his behavior was unacceptable and he deserves to be prosecuted.

    • DanF. November 4, 2014, 8:54 am

      Why should this man have to “make himself known?” It’s his house and he can do anything in it that he pleases, including not choosing to be bothered by religious pamphleteers, Girl Scouts, fund raising kids, or anyone else. Also, if he were to have opened his door to these thugettes they could have more easily overpowered him and killed or maimed him. Nope, this fellow did precisely the right thing.

    • Doc March 18, 2016, 12:03 pm

      In my opinion people like you are what is the majority of what’s wrong with this country today. You stand in judgement of this man for protecting himself and take the criminals side. These two,women are criminals. Criminals do not like to leave witnesses and would have surely beat this man to death or severely injured him. Shame on you for your taking the criminal side. I applaud his man and hopefully the two women succumb to their injuries. They made their choice and their decision could very likely have cost them their life’s. Hopefully the police are waiting to arrest them because if they didn’t fools like you are footing the bill for their million dollar hospital bills with your taxes.

    • loupgarous June 17, 2016, 5:25 pm

      Fortunately for that man, he not only made his presence known, he used a signalling device endorsed by Vice-President Joe Biden – a shotgun. The noise even brought the cops around.

      Seriously, two people (women, men, or undefinable by their looks) don’t get a mulligan under Texas law. Once they invaded that man’s home, they became valid targets for lethal force. That’s actually the case in most of these United States – you cross the threshold, your ass is grass (some states require the expectation of bodily harm, which in the case of an elderly man confronted by two young, healthy home invaders, was met to my satisfaction).

      Unfortunately for this man, he lives in Harris County, where they send Sheila Jackson Lee to the House of Representatives. Who knows what six of those people will decide. It may go to a jury trial, and if the man can’t afford good legal representation, he might be bullied into accepting a plea deal and be wrongly punished.

    • Frank romo October 14, 2016, 7:26 am

      He was in the back of his house getting the gun when they made entry, how about that, laying and waiting? I’m too old for mutual combat, I’ll just air you out if you step into my dwelling, uninvited!

    • Sydders November 27, 2017, 5:33 pm

      “Laying in wait” – makes it sound like he was hiding in a dark alley stalking them. The man was in his own home!

    • Xam February 7, 2018, 4:38 pm

      Because he was scared, because he didn’t want to make himself a target ? Etc etc etc etc… Why did those animals break into his home ?
      In my opinion you deserve to be assaulted in your home as a senior citizen. The heck is wrong with you !?!

  • Terry November 3, 2014, 6:53 pm

    Why didn’t this man make his presence known? If the story is correct, it can and it will be argued that he lay in wait for these young women, keeping his presence a secret while waiting for them to gain access to the house before blasting away at them.

    In my opinion, his behavior was unacceptable and he deserves to be prosecuted.

    • loupgarous July 15, 2016, 7:18 am

      Fortunately for that man, he not only made his presence known, he used a signalling device endorsed by Vice-President Joe Biden – a shotgun. The noise even brought the cops around.

      Seriously, two people (women, men, or undefinable by their looks) don’t get a mulligan under Texas law. Once they invaded that man’s home, they became valid targets for lethal force. That’s actually the case in most of these United States – you cross the threshold, your ass is grass (some states require the expectation of bodily harm, which in the case of an elderly man confronted by two young, healthy home invaders, was met to my satisfaction).

      Unfortunately for this man, he lives in Harris County, where they send Sheila Jackson Lee to the House of Representatives. Who knows what six of those people will decide. It may go to a jury trial, and if the man can’t afford good legal representation, he might be bullied into accepting a plea deal and be wrongly punished.

    • 2A proponent April 7, 2017, 4:20 pm

      I’m sure he did make it known and as some others thought the thugs thought they could over-power the old man. I’m sure these thugs were talking trash and weren’t ambushed like this troll seems to suggest, making the criminals the victim. This man protected his home against intruders. I have absolutely NO sympathy for these criminals and they can see their stupidity every time they change clothes from the scar left behind. People like Terry have never been a victim of a crime and can sit back and analze this, – in the real world it ain’t like that. Stop playing GTO and get your heads out of your ass and start placing blame where it belongs to the criminals. If you get robbed, please ensure they take all your belongings and pack them a snack for the next house they rob – that is if they didn’t harm you.

    • ATheoK April 9, 2017, 12:59 am

      Prosecuted?

      For Self Defense?

      You really need reality to come visit you.

  • loupgarous November 3, 2014, 5:36 pm

    Can’t believe the prosecutor even sent this TO a grand jury. Justifiable homicide all over it. If they had rocks in their hands against an old man, that was an aggravated assault leaving that man in reasonable fear of death or grievous bodily harm.

  • Larry Wilson November 3, 2014, 3:09 pm

    It sounds like the reporter is on the side of the criminals here. The poor defenseless females. All I want to say is this. My mother was hit in the head by an intruder with his flashlight.
    It was touch and go for her and she woke up after three days from a coma. So don’t give me the attitude like this reporter’s!
    These women were not unarmed…I can guarantee that!

    • loupgarous November 3, 2014, 5:38 pm

      The reporter’s just giving the facts. The facts are what stink – that there’s a prosecutor anywhere who’d send a case like this to a a grand jury. They’re all scared Eric Holder will swoop down on them the way he did in Sanford, Florida after George Zimmerman defended himself from a mugging.

  • Larry Wilson November 3, 2014, 3:08 pm

    It sounds like the reporter is on the side of the criminals here. The poor defenseless females. All I want to say is this. My mother was hit in the head by an intruder with his flashlight.
    It was touch and go for her and she woke up after three days from a coma. So don’t give me the attitude like this reporter’s!
    These women were unarmed…I can guarantee that!

  • BRASS November 3, 2014, 12:05 pm

    If the case goes to a grand jury; this man will likely have to hire an attorney and his life will change for the worse, regardless of the outcome. If the facts are as described in the article with the man calling 911 prior to their entry into his home and before firing upon the intruders, and these women used violent force to gain entry into his home, and there is no evidence to suggest they had attempted to retreat before he shot them, there should be no charges nor a grand jury.
    Even if the Grand Jury fails to indict, this man is likely to go broke due to the legal costs. The unwanted media attention will be a huge negative for the rest of his life. The intruders who broke into the victims home surely didn’t think about the consequences for the victim, at home or not, before they violated his rights and threatened his life, The onus should be on punishing these criminals, not the victim.

    • Dan November 3, 2014, 7:13 pm

      You’re right. No good deed goes unpunished!

    • Bob November 3, 2014, 7:55 pm

      Unfortunately, you are probably right, the homeowner will be the one that really suffers.

      Given the facts presented here, I’d side with the home owner. If you break into someone’s house then you take the chance the homeowner may defend himself / herself.

      IF I were from Texas AND selected to the grand jury, this guy would go free. In fact, the criminals should be required to pay some form of restitution – providing they survive. Take warning thugs and criminals, most of us believe you forfeited your rights the moment you entered the house.

    • elnonio April 6, 2015, 6:12 am

      Unfortunately, you are wrong. A potential defendant does not get to present anything in a grand jury (Ferguson was an aberration). Therefore, a potential defendant need to hire an attorney for this purpose alone, although a smart person would hire a lawyer at the first opportunity (i.e. the second the smoke clears). A genius would have a lawyer on retainer. And no, it need not break the bank either.

      Anyway, the most the potential defendant can do is give a statement to the police, who turns it over to the prosecutor, who presents it to the grand jury if said prosecutor feels it supports indictment. If not, that statement may not even be brought in because the purpose of a grand jury is to for an independent body to present an opinion as to whether there is sufficient evidence to prosecute. The purpose is not to weigh the evidence against and for each side.

      Now, this guy did not know that the women had stolen a car, so all the hoorays about this fact are irrelevant as far as his prosecution is concerned. Breaking and entering, bad. However, what did the women do prior to entering? They tried to ascertain whether the house was empty. So all the talk about their disregard for his life are mere conjecture. If they had gone in with the intent to kill everyone in sight, would they have announced their presence? No. Instead, they were wanting the house to be empty.

      Finally, we have no way to know how, or even if, he felt threatened. More importantly, while it appears to be SOP in that county to send all cases to a grand jury, it is possible that the police told the DA that something didn’t seem right, and the DA agreed. What could it have been? Hard to say. Perhaps the women were clearly dressed as such. The newsreport says that neighbors witnessed the women’s behavior (knocking on his door) so perhaps something didn’t quite add up in the way they were shot. Perhaps the neighbors heard more than that.

      It says they were shot in the chest, but then there is this gem “The car the women traveled to the neighborhood in had been reported stolen earlier in the day, according to deputies. It was visibly riddled by gunfire after the shooting.” If he shot them inside the house, as is reported, it sounds a little strange then that the car parked outside would also be riddled by gunfire. But maybe not. Hard to say. Hence why you have grand juries, see?

      • Xam February 7, 2018, 5:28 pm

        You can tell that he felt threatened because he didn’t approach them. They knocked on his door because they preferred to have an easy time stealing from rather than have to assault him (which there is no reason to assume that they wouldn’t), and, apparently they brought the rocks inside with them. Also, there is the very simple yet common misconception regarding rules. These people do not play by your rules. When you give them better than they give you, you simply hurt the good people. But hey, maybe after being patched up for free (and airlifted for petes sakes) they’ll be humble and appreciative.

  • Barry November 3, 2014, 11:32 am

    Man did a good job. Only problem I see is that they are still alive. People who are to lazy to get a job and would rather steal whatever they can should not be around anyway. I’m 68 and have several guns within reach all the time. And I also live alone in Texas.

  • Pat November 3, 2014, 11:31 am

    There will likely be a million dollar medical tab to restore these two their community. Do you think they carry health and accident insurance?

  • Mike November 3, 2014, 11:25 am

    Two people (don’t care what their sex or race) steal a car, break into a home and get shot…….. Way to go homeowner !!!! Hopefully they won’t live and save the government tons of money for not having to jail them or put them on trial.

  • isquatonyou November 3, 2014, 9:53 am

    He should have shot them in the snatch and just wounded them.

    • Lyle boliou October 8, 2016, 1:12 pm

      Think he messed up by calling the police! He should have tied them up and ass raped them for the next 30 years!!!!! Then shot them and planted them in a liberals backyard

  • Porter November 3, 2014, 9:39 am

    This is one of those situations where an individual’s rights and a fatal action met face to face. Newspaper articles are not a summary of the facts, they are only what the editor chose to release to the public under our free speech or free press obligations. There are few facts presented here that would allow a clear understanding of all that actually happened in this unfortunate circumstance.

    Taking a life or attempting to take a life is not a stunt to be considered lightly. Property rights be damned, taking a life is a serious undertaking and only when one is in fear of loosing ones life should such an action be considered. By calling for a jury to review the facts not available to you and I, we have taken the only course of action necessary to consider what remains of this partially told story.

    If the shooting was justified, the jury will be making a decision about the rights of those shot and the one doing the shooting. One wrong does not make another action right. When I was young, I did some stupid things. I was never needing what did not belong to me, so I never crossed that line. These girls did something stupid. Determining their fate is not my responsibility, I am not on the jury. But, if I were on that jury, you can be sure I would make the right decision after knowing all the facts in this yet to fully unfold story.

    Just the facts mam, just the facts.

    • loupgarous July 6, 2016, 10:56 am

      With all due respect, entering someone else’s home forcibly is serious business. That home owner was eldery and comparatively infirm compared to the home invaders.

      Let me refresh your memory on home invasion. It’s done with the expectation not only of taking someone’s property, but doing so with physical force. The homeowner would have been entitled under Texas law (which has the “castle” doctrine in which a homeowner is entitled to use deadly force to repel home invaders) to kill those women. They weren’t teenagers throwing toilet paper on someone’s lawn, they were forcibly entering an inhabited dwelling.

      Home invaders’ rights be damned. If the narrative today has gone from the President’s endorsement of the Ferguson riots as “an understandable reaction” to the presumption that a home owner shooting two home invaders committed an indictable offense, maybe the preppers are right ant the Second Civil War is nigh.

    • Xam February 7, 2018, 5:31 pm

      You know that the shooting was justified because they broke into someone’s home. They have no respect for property rights or other people in general. Good luck explaining the facts to people like them ma’am

  • John November 3, 2014, 9:33 am

    Breaking into ones living quarters must be stopped. This is how it is done. The cops are the only reason for a grand jury inquiry. They do not like people taking their work away. I am sure this is not the first crime for these two. Look at the video, there are enough cops to defend Fort Knox after the situation is over. Why do they always dog pile on a crime that is over? I guess they are over staffed. Some of them are so overweight they could not run after a criminal unless he/she was shot firat anyway.

  • DanF. November 3, 2014, 8:13 am

    Darn good shooting. Two shots, two targets, center mass on both. Only problem is that he was probably using bird shot. With buckshot or slugs the likelihood is that these two would be held by the coroner not the hospital. And the fact that each was shot in the front shows they were advancing.
    What else was this (“elderly” my foot) man to have done? Invite these thugettes in and help them steal his property? Allow them to bind him and “question” him about where the small valuables were? I think not.
    I do hope that this incident occurred on a tile floor because carpet is so difficult to clean.

    • Blasted Cap November 3, 2014, 2:18 pm

      Actually the cleaning companies that do crime scene cleanups do a very good job. 99+ percent of the time you can’t tell anything happened. I’ve seen them clean up shotgun suicides, and you’d never even know.

    • Xam February 7, 2018, 5:34 pm

      According to people like porter, yes, yes he should have just hoped for the best.

  • Rodger November 3, 2014, 8:12 am

    We in Texas have the right to defend ourselves and our residence. It is called the “Castle Doctrine”, and we have it for a reason. Anyone who illegally comes into your home without an invitation and poses a threat is met with a firearm. We are not required to run and hide in our closet like some other states. These gangsta’ girls probably thought that nothing would happen to them since they are just girls. WRONG! I love Texas and will be voting Republican tomorrow.

  • Bill Findley November 3, 2014, 7:04 am

    Check crime statistics and you will find a majority of home burglaries occur during the middle of the day, not at night. Crime should be a high risk endeavor. The old guy was justified in shooting, particularly after the intruders entered his home.

  • rick November 3, 2014, 6:27 am

    Ed,
    Sounds right to me when they were breaking into HIS HOME.
    Was he supposed to wait to see if they were armed or not? He obviously feared for his safety and his life!!

  • Ed November 3, 2014, 4:08 am

    Plenty of light at one in the afternoon. Shooting two unarmed women? Something doesn’t sound right.

    • George November 3, 2014, 6:42 am

      Two unknown people, breaking through a window. Something doesn’t sound right.

      • Jerry November 3, 2014, 7:52 am

        Sounds ok to me, two young women breaking into his house. I’m sure they didn’t want to make love with him, they be easily able to over power him.
        Can’t be anything in their minds except trouble. They deserve what they got.

    • RS November 3, 2014, 8:38 am

      I don’t get what doesn’t sound right.
      They stole a car, they cased the neighborhood then they found what they thought was an empty house and BROKE into it.
      What would you have done? Wait for them to shoot first.

    • Fro November 3, 2014, 10:15 am

      Ed please do not resemble a huge moron. Unless these females were totally naked when they broke into the house, there would be NO way to tell if they were unarmed or not, they could have used something in the house to harm or kill the home owner. They chose to break the law so they suffered the consequences.

    • Joe McHugh November 3, 2014, 7:40 pm

      Hey Ed, How does this sound to you? When people invade a home, they leave their constitutional rights at the forced door or window. Such people forfeit any claim that they still retained their inherent rights inside someone else’s home that they had just invaded.
      It’s a pretty simple concept, don’t invite a ferocious reaction by attacking a person in his or her personal domicile. More advice, if the innocent person is armed, you don’t stand a chance because he or she knows the house like the back of their trigger hand. If I were that guy I would have loaded my 12 gauge shotgun with double 00 buck shot. At close range, the 9 lead balls in each shot would have blown their hearts out of their bodies and against the walls. No big deal because body bags are leak proof.

      Sound “heartless”? Keep your heart working and don’t invade my house!

    • AJ November 4, 2014, 10:01 am

      How did he know they were unarmed. Does he ask “Hey are you armed” No you protect yourself. They both could have had guns and could have been the type that shot him as soon as they saw him. If you break into someones home you are taking a chance of getting killed.

    • Maura November 5, 2014, 2:52 am

      What does the gender of the criminal burglar have to do with this? Women want equal rights and they have equal responsibilities to obey the law. The light level and the ability of the home owner to identify the sex of the people who broke into his home by force should have to bearing on his use of deadly force to protect himself and his property.

    • Dale November 5, 2014, 3:32 am

      Ed – they used a rock to break in his window! If they had a rock, they were armed! People are beaten to death with blunt objects in this country every day. In fact, more people die from being beaten than die from gunshot wounds, and that is an FBI statistic!
      He had EVERY right to defend his own life! Doesn’t matter if it was 1 o’clock in the morning, or 1 o’clock in the afternoon!
      If someone is breaking into your home (regardless of time of day), they aren’t there to sell you Girl Scout Cookies!!

    • Al June 4, 2015, 5:07 pm

      Ed, do you think young women can’t hurt you? Ever hear of Lizzy Borden, the Manson murders, Bonnie Parker, Carla Tucker, or Amy Fisher?…How was he to know whether or not they were armed or dangerous? Gimme a break dude!! Two women can kill you just as dead as any man and with no compunction – especially if they’re 40 years your junior.

    • loupgarous July 6, 2016, 11:02 am

      Depends on the neighborhood, but what doesn’t sound right is that the guy called this in to 911, and had to defend himself from two home invaders, then HE’S getting indicted.

      But this county sends Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee to represent them in Congress. If their district attorney’s like her, then the situation becomes clear. The homeowner wasn’t of the correct race to defend himself from a home invasion.

    • loupgarous July 6, 2016, 11:06 am

      The women were armed. Carrying rocks, which in FBI statistics in most areas are involved in more homicides than rifles. Add to this that these were two young adult women versus one man in his sixties who can be assumed to he relatively infirm, and you have the elements of a fatal or at least a serious beating if the man asserted himself at all to defend his home without a firearms.

      What’s the matter with you, anyway?

    • Xam February 7, 2018, 5:35 pm

      Yeah, you don’t sound right. They broke into his home.

  • Mick November 2, 2014, 1:28 pm

    There should be no grand jury for this homeowner. He was protecting himself and his property. It is open season on all home invaders/intruders…….man and/or woman!!

    • jon dodge November 4, 2014, 11:21 am

      thats right, things could be different, if they had guns, and he didnt, so its better this way,,, they already had a stolen car,,, do the math,, they had no good intention.

  • John October 30, 2014, 9:48 pm

    WARNING! Criminals stay out of Texas!

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