Dollar General robbery suspect charged with murder

[ileus]

http://www.wokv.com/news/news/local/customer-shoots-robber-dead/nRLjK/

Odom's partner, 19 year-old Aundre Campbell, fled the scene and has since been caught by police.
He faces a felony murder charge for Odom's death because it happened while he was committing a crime.

The 57-year-old grandfather who shot Odoms was doing some late-night shopping at the Dollar General store on Dunn Avenue when all of the sudden, two men stormed in and tried robbing it.

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An update from a story we'd been following earlier last week.

I must ask if someone come into a large store where you had the ability to dodge them or hide would you dump some lead into them to save the store a few dollars? Or would you only shoot if they were "overly" hostile (whatever I may mean by that) toward fellow customers or clerks?

I suppose what I really mean is if you're not directly threatened what would your response be?

[pipoman]

1. My response would be to be a good witness...

[ileus]

2. I figure unless I feel lives

Are in danger there's not much reason to put myself in harms way. Of course armed thugs may change my mind...hopefully I'll never be put in that situation.

[petronius]

3. I don't carry and have never been present at a robbery, so my reaction is

only hypothetical: but I want to believe that I would intervene - up to and including shooting - if I believed that clerks or customers (especially me!) were at risk of serious or deadly harm. Otherwise, I think I would just observe, as carefully as surprise and adrenaline allowed...

[rDigital]

4. I'd never trust an armed robber to do the right thing. Assess, then Run or Fight. nt

[MercutioATC]

5. Unless I'm reading this wrong, I believe there's a bigger issue

Odom and Campbell committed (or attempted to commit) a robbery. Odom was shot and killed by a CCW-holding civilian (who will not be charged with murder...or, at least, not convicted of murder).

Reasonably, how is Campbell charged with murder because his accomplice in an attempted crime was killed? I understand how the legal issues can be manipulated to make this an allowable charge, but is this reasonable?

[AtheistCrusader]

7. The concept is called felony murder.

Anyone dies during the commission of a felony, you pay.

It is INTENDED to capture issues like, someone runs into a liquor store with a shotgun, threatens the store owner. Store owner is 60+ with a weak ticker, has a heart attack and dies. Perp didn't shoot or in any physical way injure the owner, but is undoubtably responsible for the death anyway.

In this case, the surviving accomplice shares responsibility for the dead perp, with the dead perp. No point charging a corpse with a crime, so, sucks to be the survivor.

[MercutioATC]

8. I understand the legal standpoint, I just don't believe it's ethical.

I'm the last person to apologize for people who choose to commit criminal acts, but (in my opinion) this is unethical.

Charge a person for what they did and prosecute them fully...but don't use legal loopholes to create a murder charge.

[AtheistCrusader]

9. In this scenario I think SOMETHING is appropriate.

Not sure if Felony Murder is the right answer. Like you I have reservations about it. It DOES show that the victims of the initial crime, had cause to be in fear for their lives, as the whole thing is prima facie evidence that deadly force was warranted.

Does that require a murder charge on the surviving perp? Maybe not.

I note that juries rarely find for this sort of charge.

[MercutioATC]

10. Attempted robbery with gun specifications

I'm not fluent with the laws of every state, but Campbell was a participant in a crime in which a gun was used, so I feel it's reasonable to add the gun specification whether or not he had a gun.

I'm not happy when a criminal gets off on a technicality, but I'm also not happy when a technicality is used to create a crime.

[AtheistCrusader]

6. Anyone threatens me or someone I care to protect with violence

and the solution will be deployed forthwith.

If they aren't threatening, they can go their merry way with as much shit as they can carry, I don't care.