Man accused of shooting car break-in thief indicted for second-degree murder
A Richmond man was indicted today on a second-degree murder charge for shooting and killing someone who was breaking into his girlfriend's car in the city's Church Hill neighborhood.
A grand jury indicted Eric G. Driver, 25, of the 500 block of North 22nd Street, in the shooting death of Jamall Holman, 24, on April 22. The grand jury issued indictments against Driver today for second-degree murder and felonious use of a firearm in the shooting of Holman, who lived in the 1700 block of Forest Glen Road in Henrico County.
Richmond prosecutors say Driver crossed the line by shooting Holman three times to protect property. His defense attorney, John W. Luxton, has argued that Dixon reacted instinctively because his girlfriend was frightened and thought she was in danger.
Luxton could not be reached for comment today.
-- Michael Martz
Reader Reactions
Yes external threat was certainly a threat. But Madison and Jefferson’s main concern was with there own government, not the enemy’s. The belief by Madison was that a well armed society would defend and could defend there rights from being usurped by the federal government.
truthtellr,
I am sure the original intent was to arm citizens against potential British attack which loomed large even after the Revolutionary war. How you correlate that to modern times is beyond me. Just admit you need a gun because you’re scared.
Story here is you can’t use deadly force to protect property. While I don’t have a problem per se with using deadly force to protect property you probably shouldn’t run after someone shooting at them. Not because you will kill them, but come on your running and shooting in a neighborhood very easy to miss or have ricochet kill someone who had nothing to do with it. I certainly believe in your right to defend yourself and in certain situations your property (i.e.house) this does seem to go a bit far. Still should get manslaughter not second degree murder, last thing we need is this guy in jail for 10 years sucking up are tax dollars.
truthtellr- I take it you own your gun then to fight against a tyrannical government and no to ‘protect your property’? After all, you did say “Teachable Moment: Guns rights are guaranteed by the Bill of Rights so that citizens may protect themselves from a tyrannical government. “
Someone breaking into your car is not a tyrannical government.
Either way, both men were wrong and if Driver didn’t want to put himself into a position of being accused of murder, he shouldn’t have chased after the guy shooting at him. Fire a shot into the air and watch him turn tail.
The criminal was preforming a criminal act. His actions had consequences. Did the boy get up that morning and hope to shoot someone? I doubt it. As for finding a gun the criminal used, I am sure that the first citizen nearby found it and kept it (they are expensive now). Leave the boy alone and let him get on with his life. Enough already.
“The newspaper should (always) report to us the real facts of this case – the exact nature of the perp’s wounds, his blood chemistry – was he on dope or booze, or medicated for clinical depression, etc.? Did he have priors? A juvenile record? “
Which perp did you mean? The thief or the killer?
The T-D lets us down on this one – as always. The newspaper should (always) report to us the real facts of this case – the exact nature of the perp’s wounds, his blood chemistry – was he on dope or booze, or medicated for clinical depression, etc.? Did he have priors? A juvenile record? We could do with much less about Michael Jackson, and more about the people in our town.
Ahh, the anti-gun crowd comes out in droves over stories like this, yet crickets over the stories like the shooter of the spree killer in SC(released on parole despite a 25 page rap sheet).
Teachable Moment: Guns rights are guaranteed by the Bill of Rights so that citizens may protect themselves from a tyrannical government. Why do Liberals have such a problem with this? Wouldn’t they want to protect themselves from the “jack-booted thugs” of Bush and other fascists? Or perhaps, they know they truth of their own power-hungry tyrannical ways?
What I failed to hear from most, is that if the shooter did not have a gun this situation could have never taken place. This shows that not everyone has the good sense to manage their emotions and refrain from deadly force. That is why cops and military are trained. Now, the court has to decide the ambiguous feeling of “fear”. More situations like these will occur as more guns become permissable.
Unfortunately for Driver, chasing the thief down the sidewalk while shooting justifies the indictment. The little turd that was burglarizing the vehicle is at least 50% culpable for his situation, and died as a direct result of his own actions. I have no pity for him. I think Driver can make a reasonable argument that he was protecting his girlfriend, but his position falls short at the moment the bad guy turned tail to run. Self defense cannot pursue the attacker. I believe the charge is justified in this case.
Post a Comment(Requires free registration)
- Please avoid offensive, vulgar, or hateful language.
- Respect others.
- Use the "Flag Comment" link when necessary.
- See the Terms and Conditions for details.
Advertisement