ST. CHARLES, MISSOURI — Two men were wounded after exchanging gunfire during a home invasion in the pre-dawn hours of Sunday, according to St. Charles police. Both men were treated at local hospitals and are expected to survive.
A man identified only as a 66-year-old from Sikeson told officers that he was in town for an overnight visit with family when the incident occurred. He was staying in a unit at the Cedarbrook Apartments near West Clay Street and Zumbehl Road when he was awakened around 3 a.m. by yelling outside the apartment door. Two gunshots to the front door of the unit followed the disturbance.
The man inside armed himself with his handgun just as a man kicked in the apartment door. The two fired at one another, and the 66-year-old man was hit in his lower abdomen while the intruder was struck in his torso. Police were called and responded to the scene.
The intruder, identified as Marshall Funkhouser, 28, of St. Peters, was charged by the St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office with burglary, first-degree assault, and armed criminal action. Police say that neither the victim nor his family know Funkhouser, who is being held on a $50,000 cash-only bail.
Missouri is a “castle doctrine” state. Although the visitor was not technically in “his castle”, he was in a dwelling where he had a legal right to be, which also extends his right to use deadly force to protect himself and others when the person reasonably believes that the use of force is necessary for defense of themselves or others from someone who is illegally entering the dwelling.
