comment: >
  
  I can't fucking believe they didn't arrest the shooter. How the fuck do you shoot a person doing their job, and not get taken into custody?!?!
context: Aren't burglars in your house? Who just shoots random outside people through the window? >
  
  People who shouldn't have guns. >
  
  And yet it seems fully legal down in Texas:
  
  The resident stayed at the scene and is cooperating with detectives.
  No arrests have been made at this time.
  
  One of the many reasons I’d never live in a gun-crazy shithole like Texas. I’d like to think that killing a maintenance worker for zero reason other than misplaced paranoia would be illegal in my state. >
  
  They just want all citizens to have the same right to murder people at will that police currently do. >
  
  I was thinking the same thing.  All you have to do to invoke Castle Doctrine / Qualified Immunity is to be white and say that you were “afraid.“  You don’t even have to do anything to attempt to remove yourself from the situation or reduce your risk.    
  The Reveal did a podcast (Dec 9, 2021)  interviewing another maintenance man in North Carolina who was shot by a tenant who claimed he was afraid he was being burgled.  This guy OPENED HIS LOCKED DOOR so he could shoot the maintenance man in the chest.  No charges filed in either case bc white man claiming Castle Doctrine.  Coincidentally -or not- both shooters white, both victims non-white.    
  So, does the Castle Doctrine apply when the (white) cops are kicking in your (non-white) door?  Ask Brianna Taylor. >
  
  Or her BF - who had great aim, and control, and they tried to bury him.  The banter of the officers on arrival was enlightening and sickening, especially in hindsight with knowledge of the details of what actually happened. >
  
  Yes.  Just awful.  
  You know that in the story above if the call had gone in that a black tenant had shot a white maintenance man the cops would have shown up in full SWAT mode and there would be no “cooperating with detectives” — there would be a gunman-with-unknown-motive who was killed at the scene. >
  
  I mentioned this in another thread but once after one of the many hurricanes I’ve experienced the power went out. It was hot and I couldn’t sleep so I had the windows open and was sitting up in my living room. About 4am a black man walked into my backyard. I knew there was something on a pole in my yard that had something electrical on it so I just watched him. He had a long pole and he did something and the power came back on. As he was walking out of my yard I said “Thank you”. Poor guy probably shit his pants. >
  
  I used to deal with him in a previous profession. Cesar was professional, down-to-earth, kind, hard-working, and an overall pleasure to work with in an industry full of unsavory people.
  This sucks, the guy worked hard to take care of his residents. We talked once about how people would be crazy sometimes and that guns in the hands of 'the crazies' were a real hazard. >
  
  My brother-in-law manages and does repairs at a small complex not too far from Buffalo. At the height of the blizzard two apartments lost their heat, and he left the safety of his own house to drive there with electric heaters for them, while he tried to get their heat on. I really hope this doesn’t get spun as a “tragic accident.” No sane person would think a burglary would be happening under those conditions and turn their balcony into a shooting range. The shooter should be in custody. He killed an innocent man and destroyed a family. >
  
  Doesn't your life have to be in immediate danger to use lethal force while protecting property? You can't just go shooting even real robbers if they are running away from you. So why is it okay to shoot randomly before any perceived threat. >
  
  I’m sure I will be corrected if I’m wrong but I believe in Texas you can use deadly force to protect your property. >
  
  Edit: see u/Phaedryn ‘s correction below. As someone who carries a concealed handgun daily, I know my local laws well. I was confusing best-practices when carrying a handgun with law. One of those practices being that if you’re carrying a handgun, avoid confrontation at all costs and immediately leave an escalating situation.
  In most (all?) states, you have a duty to retreat when you’re in public - meaning that if you can avoid an altercation you have a duty to avoid it, and can only meet a threat with deadly force to protect life - not property. Most courts will take circumstance into account. For instance, if I can retreat from a gas station being robbed at gunpoint but instead choose to engage and protect the life of the clerk who’s being held at gunpoint, I will likely not be charged with homicide. 
  Castle doctrine states that you have no duty to retreat from your own home and may engage a threat with deadly force with far fewer restrictions than engaging a deadly threat in public. This also has limits. I can’t shoot someone who stepped onto my property to pick up their dog’s poop. I can’t shoot a delivery driver. You still have to demonstrate that your life or the life of someone in your duty of care was in danger. 
  Whether or not the courts always apply these principals justly is another question entirely… >
  
  Texas has a stand your ground law in public. So you can protect your property even in public. It's one of like 10 states that has it. >
  
  That seems like it could be so easily exploited.
  So if someone steals a bag of your chips and doesn't give it back, you can kill them? What about a single chip?
  Is there a dollar amount where you can start shooting people over taking your property? >
  
  So if the family in the van had a gun they also would have been within their rights to murder ATM guy right? It's retaliation but their lives could have been in danger >
  
  His poor family. Five sons and a wife of 29 years. I can’t imagine what Christmas will be like for them in the future. >
  
  if i was one of the sons that guy would be getting it, no question. >
  
  And then the family would have to mourn another family member: the son who got a long prison sentence... >
  
  Or maybe he gets a good defense lawyer to argure he was mentally insane to not recognize he did something wrong. He just saw that the guy who killed his dad not be charged. Maybe he confronts the guy knowing he is a murderer and feels HIS life was threatened.  When laws are made to encourage murder its not hard to rope that giy into the situation that qualities him to fear for his life >
  
  My man, you should just hold onto that law degree money and maybe buy yourself some drugs instead, because what you just described there sounds a whole lot like premeditated murder sprinkled with a shitty excuse. >
  
  Murder. Straight-up murder.
  ​
  "Montelongo leaves behind 5 sons and a wife. Christmas was set to be his 29th wedding anniversary."
  Fuck that murdering bastard. Lowest kind of scum. >
  
  I hate to break it to you, but in Texas this guy isn’t even gonna get arrested >
  
  Unless there are enough national news reports.
  This one is juicy enough to grab hold of. Those five kids without a daddy on Christmas are excellent headline fodder. >
  
  Why would the local PD care what people out of their jurisdiction think? Even if there is enough local pressure, no jury in Texas would ever convict this guy. >
  
  Not everyone in Texas is inbred. Plenty of folks would vote to fry the shooter. >
  
  This wouldn't be justified even if he was a burglar. You can't just smoke someone in a multi-tenant dwelling. >
  
  Tony Earls was indicted for aggravated assault leading to serious bodily injury.
  The grand jury refused to also indict him for murder.
  EDIT:  Nope, wasn't charged with anything.  That's messed up.  Necessity or not, if you fire your weapon in public, you should be held accountable for the consequences. >
  
  Not according to that article. The grand jury DECLINED to indict him on any charge. >
  
  You are correct, I was wrong.  Here's clearer phrasing (at least for me) in the New York Post coverage:
  
  Earls was originally charged with aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury, but the grand jury ruled against pressing charges because he was also a victim of a crime. The decision means he cannot be charged again. >
  
  I do wonder what a civil lawsuit would do to the guy, though ? >
  
  Considering Tony Earls was getting into a shootout over 20 bucks at a sketchy ATM, I would be surprised if he has the sort of assets that they could touch in a civil suit. >
  
  Good point >
  
  It sounds like he was murdered >
  
  "No arrests have been made at this time".
  They didn't even release the name of the guy who shot him.  That guy gets to spend Christmas with his family. >
  
  And people wonder why there is so much gun violence.
  Everybody is packing, paranoid, and feels justified to kill at a moment's notice... And the killers rarely face repercussions. >
  
  
  Everybody is packing,
  
  And who benefits most from that?
  Who would stand to gain if, say, fear and paranoia inspired more people to buy guns? >
  
  Nobody benefits when guns are so easy to access.
  That is why there is so much gun violence. >
  
  other than the person selling guns you mean >
  
  Sometimes I think we're a nation of cowards. I get being startled. But having your first instinct to fucking shoot someone? >
  
  We absolutely are. The idea that someone has to first put you in reasonable fear of death or grievous bodily injury first is basically a dead letter. Republicans are so scared of their own shadow that anything can be a pretext to that fear. Even throwing popcorn or allegedly a phone (that left no mark of any kind) as in the case of that theater shooter. They want to pretend these days that they're the "tough" and "manly" crowd but the type of conflict that would've been solved with a simple fistfight between men in the past will almost surely lead one of the combatants to draw a gun and kill the other instead these days. >
  
  Ugh..., the popcorn throwing incident...  Didn't the guy go to his car to grab his gun too?  No argument could be made for any sort of self defense. >
  
  These guys are just waiting to be finally able to kill someone. What a tragedy. >
  
  Wait, they have not arrested the dude who killed him? What fucked up country we live in... >
  
  Open and shut case of murder in Australia - you cannot use lethal force against someone who is posing no threat even if they are in your home much less outside on a balcony in an apartment complex.   Considering this is Texas I expect no charges.  A lot of conservatives think this is what home defence looks like.  Shoot first ask questions later. >
  
  There's so many psychopaths just waiting for any opportunity to kill someone and call it self-defence. >
  
  George Zimmerman was the first to popularize and illustrate how to do it. >
  
  It's been the law in Texas since 1879 I believe. >
  
  Even the wild west didn't allow guns like we do today. The shootout at the OK corral happened because someone got arrested for carrying a gun in town where it wasn't allowed. >
  
  This. We have cowboy movies to thank for this idea that people walked around town with guns on their hips and had duels in the streets. >
  
  No arrests!?!? How is this person not being charged with murder?!?? You don’t get to shoot people and then decide later if they were committing a crime or not. US guns laws are wack. >
  
  The person killed wasn’t a white dude. Simple. >
  
  “No arrests have been made at this time” he murdered an innocent man in cold blood!  I bet the shooter is noticeably less tan than the victim… >
  
  When all you have is a hammer every problem is a nail. >
  
  Americans and their guns. >
  
  Once the gun nuts accepted the murder of kids in schools, the gun control debate was over. >
  
  Maybe we need to start releasing photos of kids splattered everywhere, teachers piled on top of students trying to protect them, videos of children being hunted down, so they can see what they support. >
  
  They'll just scream about how horrible an act showing the pictures is. >
  
  The sound of screaming has been removed >
  
  Maybe add a laugh track. Would that be enough to move the needle a bit with these miserable excuses for humanity? >
  
  It’s almost like guns shouldn’t be so plentiful in a nation that spends all its time on using the news to be scared. >
  
  Maybe try calling the police before firing shots from your window. >
  
  Sadly, that isn’t the American way. We shoot first and ask questions later. >
  
  I thought that you are supposed to call the cops first so they shoot the plumber allowing you can save your ammo for the future fight against the government. >
  
  Just deranged, slaughtering a human because you think they might steal something, just a broken society. >
  
  Some people are scared that a burglar might harm them if they are found inside the house.  Regardless, you don’t just shoot anyone who happens to be on your balcony. >
  
  Good point, I shall start shooting anyone who comes within a mile of the property, just to be on the safe side. >
  
  That’s not what I suggested, but ok. >
  
  Indeed, 
  If everyone just kills anyone who happens to be near their home, just in case they might do something bad, there a very good chance that most of the people shot will be perfectly innocent. >
  
  Did you not read my entire post?
  | Regardless, you don’t just shoot anyone who happens to be on your balcony. >
  
  Perhaps a policy of just not killing people would be sensible. 
  Far too normalised that deciding that shooting a human is a valid response. >
  
  So he was murdered. What the hell is wrong with people? >
  
  Better be able to afford a really, really good lawyer. Still probably going to jail, but it is Texas he may get a medal. >
  
  What jail? Nobody goes to jail for killing Hispanic people in Trump's Texas. I can already see tears of concerned people defending the shooter and how sorry they feel for them. 🙄 >
  
  No need for them to get the window fixed, with their new job at Fox they'll be able to afford a new, better, place. >
  
  How awkward would it be to be the backup maintenance guy that had to fix this window? >
  
  Of course he won’t get charged - it’s Texas and the worker was a POC. I’m sure the governor will give him a medal or something. 
  Fuck Texas. >
  
  I'll take the other side of that....I bet he does get charged.  This is not a case of self defense. >
  
  But it’s Texas. And he’s not white. So they don’t care. >
  
  Grand jury should meet today.  I think they will care. >
  
  No. District attorney has to present case to Grand Jury, then they vote. Likely takes a couple weeks >
  
  How the fuck has no arrest been made. >
  
  Yay. Everyone has guns now. What could go wrong? >
  
  And just like that, if there were more laws against guns, those 5 kids wouldn't have a dead father as a Christmas present but no "GuNs ArE oUr CoNsTiTuTiOnAl RiGhT" >
  
  The 2nd amendment was added on, its an amendment.   And another amendment can remove it just like the 21st did to the 18th >
  
  This would never happen in the real world. You're talking about a huge amount of people who will just not get rid of their guns. If the right to bear arms was removed I see no enforcement of this that is practical. You think that people are gonna knock on every door and search for guns and confiscate them? Its simply not in the realm of possibility. Source: I am from Texas.
  I dont like guns at all I just cannot see how guns could ever be gone. The genies out of the bottle.
  Edit: the UK and Australia are not the US. >
  
  You can still do a lot of damage control if ownership of guns can be regulated. >
  
  In Australia they did the buyback and bought back 20% of guns and the next year gun deaths dropped 58% in a year. >
  
  gun crime was already trending down across western nations in the 90s, though. >
  
  Trending down is a couple of points a year not 58%. >
  
  How did he get on to the balcony??? If he was on the balcony and the door was closed leading to the balcony and you just shot him. I think that might be a problem for the shooter am I not correct?? >
  
  Corporate-owned apartment complex with "balconies" on all levels including the first floor. You and I would probably call it a porch, but it is identical to the balconies d above it. 
  First floor apartment, shoots maintenance guy because obviously the only reasonable assumption is that the junk in your first floor apartment is so worth stealing. /s
  I own guns. I believe it's protected by the Second Amendment. I also think fucking tons of gun owners are too fucking stupid to own guns. I say again, because this is Reddit, I'm not advocating for the damn government to take people's guns. I'm saying just because you can doesn't mean you should. Killed the fucking maintenance guy at Christmas. >
  
  I'm a gun owner and line up with your last paragraph. 
  Everyone knows at least one person who is too clumsy, impulsive, irresponsible, angry or just plain stupid to be trusted with a BB rifle, but they can walk right into a pawn shop and leave with a 9 mm pistol. 
  That's a huge issue, and I don't have a problem at all with setting the bar much higher for gun ownership. >
  
  The worst part is that those gun owners who should choose not to own guns, in my experience, aren't usually bad or malicious people. There some (like those "I wish a motherfucker would" types), but mostly it is just regular people who really can't handle the responsibility. 
  In my state, this killing would be charged as a murder. The shooter would then have to prove the affirmative defense of "sufficient provocation/self-defense. Many states would call it justifiable homicide, but not mine. But for states like mine, that would charge him, he would wreck two years of his life, be under the kind stress that shortens life expectancy, and be out probably $85 grand even if he was acquitted.
  And even if there are no legal consequences for the shooter, killing that person is almost certainly going to stick with him for the rest of his life. The blog truthaboutguns is, as you might imagine, very progun. In a post about carrying a concealed gun, the blogger advised every person to really ask themselves where they go and what they do that might necessitate using a gun in self defense. Most people probably could not prove a good answer to that question. He also admitted that gun control supporters have one thing right: you can't have an accidental discharge if there is no firearm. 
  I bet not one person in a thousand who read that post paid any attention to those considerations. People who own and/or carry firearms just because they can are downright dangerous to everyone around them. I don't think the shooter is a bad person, but I do think he's a terrible reflection on our society. Sorry for the long post, this situation just really makes me angry. >
  
  110% agree.
  I have guns but don't carry them because I don't need to. I don't go into dangerous neighborhoods or otherwise engage in dangerous activities.
  I feel like the presence of a gun, more often than not, escalates a situation, not descalates. >
  
  Thanks for being fucking sane. I have a concealed license and, on occasion based on being told by the state police at work that there is a reasonably credible threat that has been made I have carried a gun at work. 
  I run through the basic mechanics of the gun while I, more importantly, do an honest assessment of where I am at mentally before I have carried. Sick? Not enough sleep? Angry about something? Just don't feel aware enough? 
  Then I think about where I will be going. Do I need a gun each place? Will I have the opportunity to secure it before say going to eat? 
  Finally, I run the steps necessary in a gun-needed emergency. The number one thing that keeps law enforcement alive in a shootout is the opposite of what these BillyBadasses think. It's to run and take cover. The guy in this article had every opportunity to take cover and then tell the burglar he thought he was seeing to get off his porch. >
  
  
  no arrests have been made at this time
  
  Because the police apparently think it's reasonable to shoot at people outside based on no concrete evidence of anything? >
  
  Here in the UK id open my window and go "Can i help you mate" which would be met with "Oh no, just checking the pipes i work for the building," which would be met with a "Oh, Ok brilliant crack on mate"
  In the states its like "JOLENE, SOMEONE JUST CROSSED OUR PROPERTY BOUNDRY, GET THE FUCKING 50 CAL" >
  
  Please save me. I hate it here :-( >
  
  Poor guy, working on Christmas Eve because weather caused burst pipes. I bet if he would have knocked on the door to tell the residents he would be doing the work he still would have been shot. >
  
  Even if he WAS a burglar … how the hell do you decide from there to SHOOT someone ….? It’s mindboggling. >
  
  Worth pointing out that burglary isn't worth killing someone over in the first place. >
  
  When you make a low barrier to entry for owning deadly weapons >
  
  Shoot first, ask questions later. Works great if you're holding the gun.
  On the receiving end, not so much.
  We had someone break into our garage a couple years ago. He set off an alert on my cellphone. Before he left, he got a handful of coins from our car. Whatever. 
  One of my coworkers asked if I ran to the garage with a gun.
  What do I own that's worth risking my life, or worth taking another person's life??? >
  
  
  shot the Montelongo through the window.
  
  Oof. Would love to hear from a lawyer about how this shakes out in that jurisdiction. >
  
  “No arrests have been made.”
  ‘Murica, fuck yeah! >
  
  Liability insurance, mandatory for all gun owners, with all profits going to payouts, funerals and medical bills of innocent gun victims please. >
  
  All first world nation countries this would be murder 2 charge. Ohh yea, really America is not first world country. I’ll check myself. >
  
  We need to fix "property is more valuable than lives " rhetoric. >
  
  No arrest at this time.  Police must have felt that was the white thing to do >
  
  Weaponized fear. Fucking Americans. >
  
  Man these “good guys with guns” sure are out here making America safer. >
  
  No arrests, wtf. You do not have the right to shoot anyone. Did they even wonder how he made it to the sixth floor, did they even call out to ask why they were there. It sounds like they just opened fire. Arrest and convict them. They murdered someone! >
  
  What is wrong with these gun nuts? What In the hell are they so damn scared of all the time? They are the scary ones! >
  
  
  The case is under investigation and Grand Prairie detectives will refer the case to the Tarrant County grand jury for review.
  
  Sundown town shenanigans. Sounds like a murderer is getting off. >
  
  No arrests? Feckin joke America is, slaughter someone because you think he may be threat to someones stuff/property? Murder is what it is. How unbelievably unfair and heartbreaking for the family. >
  
  Another "Texas gun law" allowing irresponsible individuals to shoot first and walk away - because GOP = "everyone can have a gun" laws   coupled with but he is a brown man. >
  
  As a Texan, I hate guns. It's such a personality trait here. Sorry folks, guns are not toys, they're not appropriate for children and you aren't cool for shooting first and asking questions later. This isn't the old west and even if it were, there wouldn't be near as many shootings/shootouts as today. I bet the MF that shot him drives a big truck, wears those cringe Oakley sport shades, and saw this more of an opportunity to shoot someone and get away with it. Why did he feel the need to shoot him through the window? You have a gun, he is visibly not armed and also outside your home. He could have verbally confronted him, not shoot first ask questions later. I'm sickened by the people I have to share this planet with. Who fucking kills anyone on Christmas Eve? I'm losing faith in humanity more each day >
  
  
  No arrests have been made at this time. 
  
  Texas is so gross. >
  
  The nra should be declared a terrorist organization first, then the politicians they buy... >
  
  Everything’s dumber in Texas >
  
  Murderer: “his skin color made it look like he was an armed threat”
  Texas Cops: “looks about right to us - carry on, good citizen.” >
  
  Just “another” law abiding citizen exercising his constitutional right to own a gun. Yeah right. >
  
  We think everyone is an enemy. ‘We need moar guns!!!!1’ No, we need some common sense. >
  
  I'm very familiar with this area. It's predominately Hispanic. White people are the minority. People need to stop assuming that because it's Texas, it's white. I was literally in this apartment complex twice this past month. It's not a white area. 
  You can tell 99.9% of people in this thread don't live in Texas. 
  I don't know shit about the shooter. It's tragic what happened and sad for the family. But we need to stop assuming it's some racist bullshit. >
  
  its reddit. they are gonna push a naritive for karma no matter what. >
  
  think about stupid the average person is, now think about how 50% of people are stupider than them, now think about how the majority of them have guns… yeah gun deaths in USA make sense now >
  
  Police we’re probably like “ well he’s not white so I get it. Have a good night”. >
  
  Guns are so great for protecting your home, especially when you can shoot unarmed people outside your home and not even get charged with anything.  (in case you’re from Texas or Florida- this is satire!) >
  
  Texas: Where you can shoot anyone, anytime, for any reason and hey! you'll be fine. >
  
  The maintenance worker should have been armed, then nobody dies because guns save lives! >
  
  Is there any information on how common murders like this happens vs an actual home invasion scenario where shooting would be justified? Do we even see many cases of home invasions? Or do burglars wait till your out of your house to steal?