MI: 14 year old comes to door for directions, shot at by homeowner

[philip964]

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nat ... 516576002/

Teen was dropped off in wrong neighborhood by school bus. ( not sure how that happens )

Shooter claimed teen was trying to burglar house. Homeowners security cameras don’t tell same story as he told police.

[Grundy1133]

trespassing is trespassing... plus the kids 14. learn to use google maps... i'd blame the school.

[Jeff B.]

I took a look at that story and have seen it referenced on another forum. I don't think the kid is 100% on the up and up. He started to walk to school and got lost winding up in the neighborhood and oh, by the way, left his smart phone home... Not saying the guy was correct or right, but there's some parts of this kids story that are a bit off...

Jeff B.

[Mike S]

I haven't seen any versions of the story other than the one linked by Philip964, so there may be more. However, based on the linked article, the police interviewed the shooter & his wife as well as the 14 y.o. They also reviewed the home security footage. Based on the video evidence, they said the 14 y.o's statement was consistent with what they saw, and not the home owners'.

Not sure what the trespass statute says in Michigan, but here in Texas you can't use deadly force to eject a trespasser (you may use force but not deadly force).

The homeowner claimed the 14 y.o. was attempting to burglarize the home, which in Texas is a justified use of deadly force to prevent (and rightfully so). However, according to the article he shot at the teen in the yard, which if he was departing wouldn't likely meet the standard (unless he was in immediate pursuit of the burglar who was departing with property, & the owner reasonably felt he would be in jeopardy of serious bodily injury if he used less than deadly force to recover his property).

The article also says the homeowner, in addition to other things, must undergo alcohol testing. I infer from that, that alcohol may have been a factor in the shooting.

[Keith B]

From reading the article, it sounds like he was not witness to the juvenile at the front door, but was going on accounts of what his wife told him when she came screaming and crying into the bedroom where he was. He got out of bed, grabbed the shotgun and went hunting for a burglar due to his wife's hysterics. May have been nothing more than him trusting the wife and her possibly skewed view of the intentions of the youth, who happened to be black.

Situations like this reinforce my belief in the term “Doveryai no proveryai' (Trust but verify) that Reagan's adviser on Russian affairs, Suzanne Massie, coined before meeting Ronnie met with Gorby. Even though you may trust the person you are hearing the story from, you may need to make sure they are not mistaken before you take their story to heart.

[imkopaka]

trespassing is trespassing... plus the kids 14. learn to use google maps... i'd blame the school.

Trespass does not warrant deadly force in any state's laws. Homeowner should have shown some discretion.

Furthermore I don't know of any state who would consider walking to a home's front door "trespassing" unless a fence or other barrier prevented the general public from reaching said point or some legally recognized form of "no trespassing" sign was placed in such a person's path.

[JustSomeOldGuy]

Jeffrey Zeigler: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
https://heavy.com/news/2018/04/jeffrey- ... s-ziegler/

Brennan Walker: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know
https://heavy.com/news/2018/04/brennan- ... -shooting/

1) would love to see the BAC for Ziegler when he was arrested (retired firefighter, already 'drink taken' at 8am? Really?)
2) would love to see the house security video.
Since the wife opened the door, I am going to presume that the security video is NOT from a 'video doorbell' type of mechanism. Maybe the Zieglers should invest in one.....

[philip964]

Who opens the door to a stranger anymore?

The photo in the 5 facts, shows an awfully sophisticated looking 14 year old teenager, who got lost walking to school.

[MechAg94]

Who opens the door to a stranger anymore?

The photo in the 5 facts, shows an awfully sophisticated looking 14 year old teenager, who got lost walking to school.

Who opens the door and then starts yelling about a burglary?

The story just sounds odd. If the police are saying the video is consistent with just knocking, the response of the wife and then husband sounds odd. Were there recent break-ins nearby?

Either way, it is a lesson to all of us. If you wake up to a situation like this, stop at the doorway. If someone is still outside and you and your family are inside, it might be best to stop and call the cops.