Imagine this happening here in NYS?
Newberry Township man pursues stolen truck; fires warning shot
A York County man says he exercised his Second Amendment right when a thief stole his pickup truck from his driveway.
Dustin McKinley, of Newberry Township, said he mistakenly left his keys in the truck before he went to sleep. When he woke up just after 5 a.m. Sunday, he said he saw the thief driving his 1978 Ford pickup down Cly Street. He armed himself with a .357 magnum and followed the stolen truck.
McKinley said when he caught up with his truck, the thief was driving only 20 miles per hour and was on the wrong side of the road. McKinley said it was at that point he fired a shot into the air to get the man's attention.
"I presented my gun to him and told him he needed to pull over right now," McKinley said. "When he slowed down to about 5 miles per hour, I cut in front of him. I pinned him in, jumped out of the truck, and held him at gunpoint and told him to get out of the truck."
McKinley said he called 911. When police arrived, they arrested 43-year-old Roger Becker of York Haven. Becker was charged with theft, receiving stolen property, DUI, and driving with a suspended license.
"He was highly intoxicated and clearly a danger to the public if he would have driven any further," Newberry Township police Chief John Snyder said. "Looking at it from our perspective, the guy was stopped from driving a car while intoxicated. It's a win-win. We get the stolen car back, we have the person in custody that was a danger to the public, and no one got hurt luckily."
Snyder said McKinley should have waited for police to arrive before firing his weapon, but added that McKinley did nothing illegal.
"My interest here is to see that the person who did the crime gets punished for it," Snyder said. "Mr. McKinley did what he had to do."
"We are not interested in charging anyone that protects themselves or their property within a reasonable level," he added.
McKinley believes that if he did not fire his weapon, Becker would have gotten away.
"I believe in the Second Amendment, the right to bear arms, and this is exactly what it is used for," McKinley said. "It's not to kill somebody, it's to protect yourself, your family, and your possessions. I believe I made a perfect example on how you can do it safely and not harm anybody."
Becker was released from York County Prison on $2,500 bail Monday.
http://www.abc27.com/Global/story.asp?S=13312574
Newberry Township man pursues stolen truck; fires warning shot
A York County man says he exercised his Second Amendment right when a thief stole his pickup truck from his driveway.
Dustin McKinley, of Newberry Township, said he mistakenly left his keys in the truck before he went to sleep. When he woke up just after 5 a.m. Sunday, he said he saw the thief driving his 1978 Ford pickup down Cly Street. He armed himself with a .357 magnum and followed the stolen truck.
McKinley said when he caught up with his truck, the thief was driving only 20 miles per hour and was on the wrong side of the road. McKinley said it was at that point he fired a shot into the air to get the man's attention.
"I presented my gun to him and told him he needed to pull over right now," McKinley said. "When he slowed down to about 5 miles per hour, I cut in front of him. I pinned him in, jumped out of the truck, and held him at gunpoint and told him to get out of the truck."
McKinley said he called 911. When police arrived, they arrested 43-year-old Roger Becker of York Haven. Becker was charged with theft, receiving stolen property, DUI, and driving with a suspended license.
"He was highly intoxicated and clearly a danger to the public if he would have driven any further," Newberry Township police Chief John Snyder said. "Looking at it from our perspective, the guy was stopped from driving a car while intoxicated. It's a win-win. We get the stolen car back, we have the person in custody that was a danger to the public, and no one got hurt luckily."
Snyder said McKinley should have waited for police to arrive before firing his weapon, but added that McKinley did nothing illegal.
"My interest here is to see that the person who did the crime gets punished for it," Snyder said. "Mr. McKinley did what he had to do."
"We are not interested in charging anyone that protects themselves or their property within a reasonable level," he added.
McKinley believes that if he did not fire his weapon, Becker would have gotten away.
"I believe in the Second Amendment, the right to bear arms, and this is exactly what it is used for," McKinley said. "It's not to kill somebody, it's to protect yourself, your family, and your possessions. I believe I made a perfect example on how you can do it safely and not harm anybody."
Becker was released from York County Prison on $2,500 bail Monday.
http://www.abc27.com/Global/story.asp?S=13312574
