Armed Citizen

His luck apparently on the wane, an alleged serial burglar was committing his latest heist when two armed citizens fired shotguns. Police say the fleeing suspect broke into a nearby residence where 11-year-old Nicole Mendolia was home alone. A concerned neighbor knew the suspect was in the area and called Nicole’s father, Anthony Mendolia, who hurried home. Nicole hid under the covers for about 20 minutes until her father arrived armed with a 9mm pistol and fired two shots at the suspect, who fled the scene. The suspect was turned over to police after treatment for a gunshot wound. Nicole wanted him to know, “ ... You really got what you deserved today. You really deserved to be shot ... Seriously, you need to go to jail. You got problems.” (10 News, Tampa Bay, FL, 08/02/08)

Though he held the door shut against a 20-year-old intruder for as long as he could, police say an 84-year-old homeowner then grew tired. In desperation, he yelled for his wife to retrieve his .45-caliber handgun. He fired one shot at the intruder, who will be arrested pending his release from the hospital. “You could tell [the homeowner] was devastated,” Hancock County, Miss., Sheriff’s Investigator Andre Fizer said of the 911 tape, “You could tell he was scared.” (The Sun Herald, Biloxi, MS, 07/29/08)

According to police, a not-so-stealthy intruder awakened a couple by loudly whistling in their basement. The homeowner grabbed his shotgun to investigate—and that’s when the situation got even more bizarre. The intruder was covered in barbecue sauce and wearing the homeowner’s hat and his wife’s jacket. The homeowner escorted the sticky intruder upstairs at gunpoint. The disturbed man told police he’d obtained the sauce from the couple’s refrigerator in order to don “an urban disguise, if you will,” because he believed the FBI was after him. (The Post-Crescent, Appleton, WI, 08/03/08)

A group of doctors holding a lunch meeting at an upscale restaurant first thought a man was pulling a joke on them, but they realized the seriousness of the situation when the man forcefully tugged a doctor’s tie and demanded his wallet. Police say the robber took the doctor’s money and left, but soon returned. At that point, one of the doctors had enough. “Before we knew it, [the doctor] pulls his gun out and told the guy, ‘Get away, get out of this restaurant now,’” recalls Dr. Charles Weatherby. “The guy looked back and [the doctor] said, ‘If you look back again, I’m going to shoot you.’” The doctor escorted the robber outside at gunpoint, where he was arrested.
(KIRO 7 News, Seattle, WA, 07/22/08)

Police say a family was unloading groceries when three armed men approached and demanded money. When the father said he had nothing to give them, one assailant said, “Get the baby!” Fearing for his child, the father drew a handgun and opened fire on the men, who briefly returned fire before running away. One of the robbers crawled away as if shot until he was able to join his accomplices. They sped away in a black SUV and were being sought by police. No members of the family, including the baby, were injured. (KNXV-TV, Phoenix, AZ, 07/07/08)

Martin Garrison was asleep on his brother’s couch when, according to police, five people intent on burglary pulled up outside. Two armed suspects invaded the home while their accomplices waited in the car. “I thought it was all a bad dream,” Roger Garrison said. “I didn’t know what their intentions were. It was scary.” When one of the burglars pointed a weapon at Martin, he drew a .25-caliber handgun from under the couch and shot one of the burglars three times. The wounded burglar died on the scene. Police were led to the dead man’s accomplices when they answered incoming calls to his cell phone. “My brother is still real upset about it,” Roger explained. “Robberies are something you hear about, but you never want to go through one.” (Star-Banner, Ocala, FL, 07/23/08)