Detroit porch killer Theodore Wafer guilty of murder


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Detroit porch killer Theodore Wafer guilty of murder

 

A Detroit-area man has been found guilty of second-degree murder for killing an unarmed black woman who banged on his door at night last year.

 

Jurors rejected Theodore Wafer's claim that he acted in self-defence when he fired a shotgun through his screen door at Renisha McBride, 19, in November.

 

Mr Wafer, 55, faces up to life in prison, but it is likely his actual sentence will be much shorter.

 

Ms McBride, who was drunk, had crashed her car nearby some hours before.

 

The case has raised the issue of the use of guns in self-defence in America, analysts say.

 

'Horrific' crime

 

Mr Wafer told jurors he fired after being awaked in the early hours of 2 November by loud banging on his door, because he was afraid and did not want to be a victim in his own home, in Dearborn Heights, Michigan.

 

"I wasn't going to cower in my house," he testified on Monday.

 

But prosecutors said he should have called the police.

 

In his closing remarks on Wednesday, prosecutor Patrick Muscat said it was likely that Ms McBride was looking for help after crashing her car nearby.

 

"What he did had to be immediately necessary and it wasn't. It was reckless. It was negligent. I don't know how to describe it. It was horrific," he said.

 

As well as being convicted of second-degree murder, Mr Wafer has also been found guilty of manslaughter.

 

Source: BBC News

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Yeah, I'm a gun owner and have to agree with this verdict. So sad for the girls family. When I went to my Concealed Weapons class one of the many things the instructor said was, and I quote "When you hear a knock at the door at 2AM make damn sure it's not the retarded kid (or fill in the blank) from down the street before you pull that trigger". "Once you pull that trigger, you cannot take it back".

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Yeah, I'm a gun owner and have to agree with this verdict. So sad for the girls family. When I went to my Concealed Weapons class one of the many things the instructor said was, and I quote "When you hear a knock at the door at 2AM make damn sure it's not the retarded kid (or fill in the blank) from down the street before you pull that trigger". "Once you pull that trigger, you cannot take it back".

 

Also agreed, I am an ardent supporter of the 2nd Amendment & the right to self-defense and this guy was just plain stupid. He was not justified in what he did.

 

He deserves to be punished like any other murderer, because that is what he did.

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Do I think he's a murderer and deserves to be punished? Yes.

Do I feel sorry for the woman? No.

Sorry she was driving drunk and crashed her car, and any sympathy I might have had for her went straight out of the window with that. The amount of innocent people that moronic drunk drivers kill pretty much means I have 0 sympathy for anyone who drives drunk.

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Yeah, I'm a gun owner and have to agree with this verdict. So sad for the girls family. When I went to my Concealed Weapons class one of the many things the instructor said was, and I quote "When you hear a knock at the door at 2AM make damn sure it's not the retarded kid (or fill in the blank) from down the street before you pull that trigger". "Once you pull that trigger, you cannot take it back".

What the hell is wrong with people?

Why would someone's immediate response to a door knock at 2am be to open fire? Sure it's dangerous (in some places) to open your door at 2am, but they have these wonderful things called "windows" in order to see who it is. Of course there's also the old "don't answer the door at 2am to strangers" trick too.

As long as they're outside your house, it's easier (and saner) to just pick up the phone and call the police than it is to start waving a gun around.

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How about simply not answering the door? 

 

I life in a relatively safe town, but in the times we live in, unless I know who is at my door, I don't open it. Period. They can knock all they want. Funny how so many people just automatically open their door to anyone. Since when am I required to open my door to any joe blow who knocks? I don't care what time of day it is. Leave me the f alone.

 

Lol! Guess that's explains why I don't have that many friends and why I'm moving a remote seaside house in Washington State in December.  ;)

 

Edit: I reread the story. He shot through the door?  Dumbass.

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One does not simply open the door in the middle of the night in Detroit to a strange person banging on your door.

You don't just open the door at noon in that town without making damned sure who/what's on the other side. Still doesn't mean you open fire blindly.

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There's a cracker kills black woman joke in there somewhere, but I can't find it..

 

Anyway, is this wafer fellow, by any chance, missing both legs from the knee down? 

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How about simply not answering the door?

I life in a relatively safe town, but in the times we live in, unless I know who is at my door, I don't open it. Period. They can knock all they want. Funny how so many people just automatically open their door to anyone. Since when am I required to open my door to any joe blow who knocks? I don't care what time of day it is. Leave me the f alone.

Lol! Guess that's explains why I don't have that many friends and why I'm moving a remote seaside house in Washington State in December. ;)

Edit: I reread the story. He shot through the door? Dumbass.

Holy crap, if he shot thru the door, he deserve the heavies punishment. Call 911 you SOB.
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One does not simply open the door in the middle of the night in Detroit to a strange person banging on your door.

 

He didn't, he fired through it.

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She was pounding on a locked steel frame screen door, penetrating the screen, with the main door closed. His story was he cracked the main door with the shotgun barrel in the opening to frighten the intruder when it went off.

BtPGzARCYAAq61b.jpg

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Nowhere I've read does it say it was a screen door.

 

 

Jurors rejected Theodore Wafer's claim that he acted in self-defense when he fired a shotgun through his screen door at Renisha McBride, 19, in November.

:)

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Third line in the OP.

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He shot through the screen door, yes, but he didn't throw open the main door. He opened it just enough to fit the shotgun barrel though.

 

In any case he got what he deserved. Keep the door shut, Open it and tell them to get off the property, call 911, whatever.. don't just open fire at someone outside your house without a damn good reason.

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If some crazy person was banging on my door in the middle of the night, I would want to have a trap door installed on my front porch so that they could be contained until police arrive.

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If some crazy person was banging on my door in the middle of the night, I would want to have a trap door installed on my front porch so that they could be contained until police arrive.

Makes a lot more sense than blindly firing a shotgun out through a gap in the door..

 

He's lucky he only hit her, and not the houses across the street or something.

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He deserved all of this...

 

If you're ever in this situation you should create a safe distance between you and the door (including with proper cover) while constantly informing the other person that you have no intention of opening the door. From the safe distance you can keep your firearm at the ready while calling the police on speakerphone... If the person forcibly enters the door before the police arrive then you have the drop on them and you are in a position to safely engage. There is no threat until they enter your home and since they don't know where you are you can do a great job maintaining your safety without doing something as stupid as this.

 

If he actually shot "accidentally" as he claims then he was even more of an idiot (if that is even possible). Proper gun handling is a must and should be done at all times.

 

  1. Never point a gun at anything you don't intend to kill
  2. Always index. Never put your finger on the trigger unless you plan on pulling it.

Obviously, there are more simple rules, but those two he violated are some of the most important.

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Makes a lot more sense than blindly firing a shotgun out through a gap in the door..

He's lucky he only hit her, and not the houses across the street or something.

It was a shotgun, probably loaded with bird shot. At that range it wouldn't get through the siding. Maybe crack a window. Buckshot probably, a slug definitely, but most people use bird shot.

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What amuses me is that he claimed he thought the gun was unloaded. If that's the case, why aim the gun and pull the trigger on an empty weapon? If it's unloaded it's kinda pointless to pull the trigger, isn't it?

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