CLEVELAND COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA — It was just past midnight when our homeowner hears someone beating on the side of his home. The homeowner grabbed his gun and went out to investigate. When he went outside someone began bludgeoning him.
The Sheriff’s Office says they received a 911 call at 1:19 a.m. on March 5 about someone beating on the side of a home in Shelby. The owner of the home, Donald Bautista, grabbed his pistol went outside to see what was causing the noise.
Via Fox46
Bautista said he saw someone run into the wood-line behind his home moments before he was attacked by a suspect holding a wooden deck railing. Bautista sustained several defensive wounds before he fired one shot, killing the suspect later identified as Robert Burns.
The Breakdown:
Bautista was in his home sleeping when he heard the strange banging from outside. Unsure of the noise, Bautista decides to go investigate. Fortunately, Bautista had a firearm in the home and took it with him outside.
When Bautista went outside to where he heard the noise, he spotted a man running away from his home. Thinking the matter was over, it was then that Bautista was attacked. Another man lay in waiting and took the opportunity to attack Bautista as he was distracted.
The weapon of choice for the attacker, later identified as Robert Burns, was a wooden deck railing. For no apparent reason Burns began to pummel and bludgeon Bautista with the makeshift wooden weapon.
As Bautista began to sustain injuries from the attack, he decided to draw his firearm. He fired one shot, striking Burns. Burns would die from the one gunshot he sustained.
The Bad:
The articles reveals that Burns was extremely impaired. It doesn’t go into specifics, but we can assume that this behavior was not Burns behaving normally. Burns was staying with a friend at the same mobile home park where he attacked Bautista. Burns got into an altercation with the friend shortly before the shooting.
It’s hard to fault someone on a defensive gun shooting that saved their life, but there is one thing we can point out. Situational awareness was a key component to this story. We can cut Bautista some slack considering it was after midnight and he had just gotten out of bed. However, better situational awareness here could have prevented the attack, and possibly prevented a fatal shooting.
Also, going outside to check on a noise in the middle of the night isn’t always wise. Call the police, stay in the home and wait for them to come and investigate.
The Good:
Bautista checked all the boxes here for good self defense. First, he owned a gun. When Bautista heard the pounding noise outside he had a gun in his home to defend himself.
Secondly, he took the firearm with him when he went to investigate. A gun sitting inside the house while you go outside to check on a noise is pretty useless. Just as it is sitting at home while your out doing your every day activities. Bautista did the right thin when he armed himself.
Although we never like to see anyone get shot and killed, especially if they are impaired, the third important thing here is that Bautista used his firearm in self defense. Again, it is one thing to own and carry a firearm, it is another thing to have the courage to squeeze the trigger when it counts.
By doing all three of these things, Bautista is alive today. Currently there are no charges pending against Bautista, and the shooting is considered a defensive action.