CHICAGO, ILLINOIS — The 7100 block of South Mozart Street, located in Marquette Park on the Southwest Side, was the scene of a fatal shooting just after 11:00 on the morning of October 25th.
According to Chicago Police spokeswoman Sally Brown, the woman received a phone call from a neighbor who told her that someone was breaking into her garage. Officers arrived at 11:15 and found a man unresponsive on the ground, who was later pronounced dead at the scene.
The homeowner stated that after receiving the phone call, she went outside with her gun. Upon seeing the man coming out of her garage with some of her personal property, she shot him in the chest. After complaining of breathing difficulty, the homeowner was transported to Holy Cross Hospital.
Following an autopsy, the Cook County medical examiner’s office ruled the death a homicide. It is not yet known if the woman is a licensed gun owner, or what, if any treatment she received for her respiratory issues.
No one likes a thief, especially when the thief is stealing their possessions. However, it appears that the thief was fleeing and had not threatened bodily harm to the homeowner. Even when threatened, the strength of a self-defensive claim is often carefully scrutinized, and it is not unusual for someone who claimed to be acting in self-defense to be charged with murder or the lesser crime of manslaughter.
The mere fact that someone has wronged you is not solid legal or moral justification to shoot and/or kill them. All gun owners should take the time and make the effort to learn the state and local laws that apply to violent crimes against persons as opposed to the laws that apply to property crimes and fleeing suspects.
