Texas Man Arrested for Shooting Someone in the Head Over a Parking Space

Local news

A dispute over a parking spot ended with one man being shot Sunday afternoon.

Just after 3 p.m. police were called to Elvira and Trinity streets on San Antonio’s Westside.

Police say the victim and suspect began arguing when the suspect, a 74-year-old disabled veteran, pulled out a semi-automatic pistol and shot the victim in the head.

The victim was taken to University Hospital in serious condition.

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Michigan Democrats Seek to Repeal ‘Stand Your Ground’ Laws

State Sen. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, says she has a fix for Michigan’s stand your ground law that involves scrubbing it from the books altogether. (Photo: Michigan Senate Dems)

Guns dot com

The measure would scrap the 2006 Self Defense Act that passed with significant bipartisan support and was signed by then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm, a Democrat who had before served as the state’s attorney general. It extended legal protections to those who use deadly force when threatened by death or severe injury without having an obligation to retreat if possible.

This facet, commonly termed stand your ground, now contend lawmakers, is dangerous.

“Emergency room physicians and folks are just honestly worried about the prevalence of gun violence in our communities and frankly pretty nervous about the fact that there is no duty to retreat and substantial immunity from both criminal and civil liability under these statutes,”argues state Sen. Rebekah Warren, D-Ann Arbor, sponsor of the proposal to repeal the law.

Three other Democrats, including Senate Democratic Leader Jim Ananich, have signed on as co-sponsors of the legislation, for which Warren cites high profile court cases such as that of George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin in Florida, as an example of why Michigan needs to rethink stand your ground.

“People are using this lack of duty to retreat as a reason to inflict harm and are sometimes not held liable for taking someone’s life. And I want to set that right in Michigan,” she said.

Her legislation, SB 611, was introduced earlier this month and, framed as a simple two-page repealer, would scrub the 2006 Self Defense Act from the state’s laws. Castle Doctrine, which allows for defense inside the home against an aggressor there illegally, would remain in place.

Stand your ground in Michigan withstood a 2012 repeal attempt in the state House by urban Democrats from the Detroit area while over 20 states have enacted similar laws in the decade since Florida’s model law was adopted.

Right-wing Gun Nut Strikes in Colorado - 3 Dead, 9 Wounded

Robert L. Dear

Fox News

The gunman in Friday’s shooting at a Colorado Planned Parenthood Friday was identified by Colorado Springs police Saturday as Robert L. Dear.

Police said Dear is 57. They also released a mug photo.

The shooter is from North Carolina, an unidentified law enforcement official told AP. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the official was not authorized to speak about the ongoing investigation.

Three people, including one police officer, were killed in Friday’s attack. The gunman was taken into custody after an hours-long standoff and shootout. Authorities have yet to determine a motive behind the shooting or whether the gunman had any connection to Planned Parenthood.

Alcohol's Role in Gun Violence

Philly dot com

Set aside politics and posturing about gun violence in America and there is still one indisputable fact: Alcohol use plays a primary role in gun violence. 

A startling 48 percent of homicide offenders were reportedly under the influence of alcohol at the time of the offense, and 37 percent were intoxicated, according to an analysis by University of North Carolina researchers who reviewed more than 23 independent studies examining 8,265 homicide offenders in nine countries. 

In the United States, guns are the leading cause of homicide and suicide. 

"Both acute alcohol intoxication and chronic alcohol misuse are strongly associated with risk for committing firearm violence, whether that violence is directed at others or at oneself," said Garen J. Wintemute, founding director of the Violence Prevention Research Program at the University of California, Davis. 

He added that of the nearly 400,000 firearm-related U.S. deaths in 12 years, "it is probable that more than a third of these deaths involve alcohol."

Texas Man Brought Gun to 2014 Shooting, Faces Jail

Michael Barrera 

Local news

A 24-year-old Pearsall, Texas, man will be sentenced Monday in the accidental shooting of a Port Huron woman.

Michael Barrera pleaded guilty in district court Oct. 6 to carrying with unlawful intent, a 5-year felony, and careless discharge of a firearm causing serious injury or death, a 2-year high court misdemeanor.

Port Huron police Detective Sgt. Brian Georgia said Barrera was charged in relation to the Sept. 13, 2014, fatal shooting of 40-year-old Nellie Jo Pearson.

Charles Joshua Kelly was sentenced in May to three to 15 years in prison for his involvement in the shooting.

Kelly pleaded guilty to discharging a firearm while under the influence causing death, a 15-year felony, and using a controlled substance, a one-year misdemeanor.

Senior Assistant Prosecutor Mona Armstrong said Barrera has cooperated during the investigation and voluntarily returned from Texas for his September arraignment.

“You had individuals who were intoxicated who were playing with (the firearm), dry firing it, and that is a recipe for disaster,” Armstrong said.

“It did not appear and does not appear that it was an intentional act to harm someone but, regardless, there’s still criminal responsibility.”

Barrera’s lawyer, Dan Damman, said his client has remained in custody since his arraignment.
“To say he is remorseful is an understatement,” Damman said. “He very clearly recognizes that his actions have done damage than can never be undone.”

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