Shortly before 2:00am in the 6300 block of Morrison Road, two teens were caught in the act of an attempted vehicle burglary by that car's owner. According to an initial NOPD report, the car's owner says he was walking back to his vehicle when he noticed the passenger side door open. That's when two teenage suspects reportedly exited the vehicle and pointed a gun at the victim.
According to the report, when confronted with a gun, the car's owner (who was armed himself) drew his own firearm, shooting one of the teens in the buttock. Loyola Law Professor Dane Ciolino says there are some legal questions that will need to be sorted out in the aftermath of this event; namely, whether or not the attempted thieves were running away at the time shots were fired."Under Louisiana law, the use of force or violence has to be reasonable and apparently necessary to prevent the offense. Deadly force like what was used (although death did not result) is very difficult to prove the necessity of such force if someone is running away from you," notes Ciolino.
"Of course the person who was shot is still going to be legally responsible for any theft or attempted theft, but the aggravated battery by shooting is something that the would-be victim very well may have to answer for if he is charged with some sort of aggravated battery by shooting. It's going to be a difficult case for him to make that the shooting was justified," Ciolino went on to explain.
Proving whether or not the would-be thief was running away could be key
Proving whether or not the would-be thief was running away could be key
