Intruder Shot By Homeowner After Forcing His Way Into Rural Home

NEAR SPRINGFIELD, MISSOURI – A man was shot after forcing his way into a home Friday morning. The Greene County Sheriff’s Office says the incident happened just after 6:30 Friday morning at a home in the 6000 block of West Independence. The initial 911 call was for a possible residential burglary, and when responding deputies arrived, they found a man with a gunshot wound.

GCSO investigators say that the wounded man allegedly forced his way in through the front door of the house, and the homeowner armed himself and shot the intruder after a confrontation. Authorities did not elaborate on where the man was shot or his condition, other than to say that he was injured and transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Sgt. Jason Winston says it is still early in the investigation but at this point, they don’t believe the homeowner knew the man who was shot, nor have they determined a motive. “We have no idea what the motive was behind this. I’m sure detectives, when they do their interviews and things like that, they’ll find out more details. But as of now, it’s still early. It’s still fresh. We have no idea why the suspect decided to pick this residence and force entry. This is a quiet area. We don’t receive a lot of calls out here.”

While there has been no official determination if the homeowner was justified in shooting the intruder under Missouri’s stand your ground law, Sgt. Winston did comment that the law is there to allow people to protect themselves when someone breaks into their home. The investigation is ongoing, and it is believed that this was an isolated incident.