Burglar Fatally Shot By Homeowner In Kentucky

FRANKFORT, KENTUCKY – A man was fatally shot by a homeowner on Tuesday morning as he was allegedly burglarizing a home on Wallace Avenue. According to Frankfort Police Department spokesperson Lynn Aubrey, dispatch received a call from the 300 block of Wallace Avenue at 9:35 a.m., with the caller stating that he was the homeowner and had shot a man who was burglarizing his home.

The suspect, whom police have identified as Stephen Smallwood, 35, of Frankfort, was shot once in the torso with a 9mm pistol. He was first transported to Frankfort Regional Medical Center, then transferred to the University of Kentucky Hospital, where he was pronounced dead just after 5 p.m., according to police.

Kentucky is one of twenty-three states that has “Castle Doctrine” laws on the books, which gives residents the right to use deadly force to protect themselves, other people, and their property. It justifies the use of deadly force by allowing Kentuckians to assume a person entering their home intends to harm or kill them. The investigation into this case is continuing.