February 9, 2019 a retired police officer tried to assist citizens who were making an apprehension for theft.
The employees of a national chain hardware store tried to stop a man for theft. The suspect fled on foot and into a car.
Apparently the retired cop told the suspect to stop, but he didn’t. As the suspect drove off, the retired cop fired twice at the car. One of the shots grazed the suspect’s neck.
The wounded suspect was able to drive himself to a local medical clinic. His injuries were not considered to be life-threatening.
Later, the police determined the shooting was not justified.
They arrested the retired police officer for assault with a deadly weapon.
The theft suspect went to the hospital and is expected to be released. It appears he will cited for misdemeanor theft.
Larry Kaye, Author of the book How To Make a Citizen’s Arrest commented, “You gotta’ be kidding me! Who does that!?!”
Larry’s View:
Look, if a retired law enforcement officer can get it so wrong, you really got to think twice about how you would react during a crime in progress.
If you think you might want to get involved, do your homework ahead of time. Does it surprise you that I suggest you should read my book?
If you can’t bring yourself to put that much “work” into learning about a citizen’s arrest, at least read my blog post on it!
You know what? On second thought, if you won’t take the personal initiative to read one single book on the subject, then don’t even try it. You’re gonna’ get it wrong anyways.