Hi Gabriel,
Let me start by saying that shooting someone is not something I would do. You can't shoot someone without a gun.
Next, let me say that the economy is forcing crime up and police response time is longer.
I don't believe for one minute that this man sat around longing to murder someone. He found himself in a bad situation with criminals, called 911 and took action when they came on his property.
Ask his neighbors, particularly the one who got robbed and see what they think. I'd be willing to bet they are appreciative.
I would not want to surprise a burgular in my home even if they had no weapons. No, no, not a good situation.
Thanks for the blog and I guess, don't mess with Texas is appropriate?
Thanks, From the Lone Star State~

The men were shot in the back. Horn was not being threatened. He got away with murder.

I Beleive Horn Got Away With a Double Murder, but it was Calculated, He Knew Texas Law, For Decades People Joke, Run Anyone Off Your Property With a Rifle, Ranch Style. I Grew Up in Houston, Lived there for 23 Years, Unfortunately, There is Crime. Sometimes Crime is Right in Your Street, Sometimes a Neighborhood Far Away. In Horn's Case, as is VERY Unfortunate, Racism Exists in Places and in Minds We Just Don't Talk About. In This Day and Age, There are Still Rednecks, in " these Here Parts". He Knew What He was Doing.
What Happened to the Law That Says If You Shoot An Unarmed Man in the Back You are Guilty of Murder ????
He Killed Someone's Son, Brother, or Uncle,
that Could be Your Child, Brother or Family Member, . . . .
No Material Possesssion is Worth The Taking of a Human Life !!
Not Yesterday, Not Today, Not Ever !!

I am Canadian. This whole situation is just beyond my comprehension. The man shot 2 human beings in the back over property!!! It reduces the value of human life to that of a microwave or stereo.
I can't believe that this man got away with this. Hearing the 911 tape it is clear that he was in no danger – he went ouside and shot 2 people in cold blood.
The last I heard, theft did not carry the death penalty in the US.
What is really twisted is that a Grand Jury comprised of individuals heard the evidence and chose not to endict him.

I have no problem with someone using lethal force on an intruder to one's home where one's life is in danger. However, after hearing the 911 tapes repeatedly in this case, I think that Horn got away with murder. The 911 dispatcher urged restraint by repeatedly warning Horn to stay inside. Nevertheless, Horn took it upon himself to go outside and deliberately discharged his weapon into the backs of two intruders of someone else's home. Someday, he will have to answer for his actions to his creator.

Maybe Mr. Horn used his best judgment at the time, but it is not right to take the law in your own hands. Otherwise, why would we have police and other people in law enforcement? The system isn’t perfect, but they are best equipped to handle misdemeanors and crimes. It is their job to do so.

Also, what he did was like using a sledgehammer to kill a fly. The punishment doesn’t fit the crime.

Lilibeth
Edmonds, Washington

I think that Horn was very wrong in shooting those thieves and killing them. Yes it is wrong to steal but it is equally as wrong to kill someone. The fact that they supposedly even came into his yard still didn't give him the right to kill them. He just decided to take justice into his own hands. If everyone does that then we are in trouble!

Now if they came on his property and threatened him that would have been a different story. But they didn't. Why he got off scott free is beyond me. No...actually he got off because the guys were illegal if we want to be honest about it. Would he have gotten off if the robbers were American citizens from his community? I bet not!

Cindy...Ga.

“This is a man who shot two unarmed men in the back as they were getting away."

Getting away from the scene of a crime. Breaking into someone's house is no laughing matter. No one was home, but did these two know that, or would they have cared?

Ultimately, the morality is in the consequences of the act, and the future victims of the unlamented deceased owe Mr. Horn a great deal.

I think he did the right thing. Two years ago I was leaving my apartment for the gym when it was still light out. I walked passed four men pulling back the window screen of my neighbors apartment caddy corner across from me. Luckily a wall blocked them from seeing me come out of my apt. One of the men asked me if I lived there. I said no and kept walking not knowing what they would do to me. I immediately notified the apartment manager and police on my cell phone that there was a burglary in progress. I watched from afar as these men opened up the front door and loaded up my neighbors furniture, etc. into two trucks. My neighbor was notified via cell that his apt. was being burglarized. He got there before the police did (it took the police over half an hour to arrive). Long story short 3 of the 4 escaped and my neighbor had the lone person help him move his stuff back into his apt. I myself lived in fear for quite some time since they knew I was the one who had called the police on them and it would've been easy for them to find me in this 12 unit building. If I owned a gun, would I have done what Mr. Horn did when I saw these thiefs – maybe.

I'm glad he said he wasn't proud of what he did, but it won't take back the lives of those two men.

Lilibeth
Edmonds, Washington

Horn was warned several times not to take matters into his own hands, but he was extremely eager to do just that–if he actually was in fear for his life, he should've stayed in his house and let the police deal with it. If those men were actually unarmed, how were they a threat to him, especially since he shot them in the back. People are understandably fed up with crime and criminals, but Horn's actions are going to set a bad precedent. I completely agree with Lisa Bloom.

To me, the right thing lies somewhere in the middle. Assuming Mr. Horn's aim is good enough, why not shoot them in the arm or somewhere else where they'd be injured enough to slow them down, but not likely to kill them? However, the situation being what it is, I lean more towards the side that says he did the right thing. I don't think he's a murderer. I think he's a man who was probably caught up in the moment, seeing people invade his neighbor's home, and that probably shook his own sense of security (as it would mine). But I would never call him a hero, and I'm glad he doesn't see himself as one either.

The smartest thing this guy could have done is stay inside his own
home, get as good of a description as possible of the events taking
place which would hopefully help the authories catch the thieves.
Nothing of material value that I have is worth taking another person
life for. The grand jury just let this man get away with killing 2 people.
I wonder if their reaction would have been different if this had been
a prank by 2 of their upstanding neighbors children.

Lis Alexandra from Capital of Texas wrote:

"He Killed Someone’s Son, Brother, or Uncle, that Could be Your Child, Brother or Family Member, . . . ."

My relatives do not break into people's homes.

Steve wrote:

"What is really twisted is that a Grand Jury comprised of individuals heard the evidence and chose not to endict [sic] him."

Considering the ease with which prosecutors can usually obtain grand jury indictments, this says a lot about the weakness of the case against Horn.

Lilibeth wrote:

"The system isn’t perfect, but they are best equipped to handle misdemeanors and crimes."

That's becoming less and less true every day.

To Suzy:

Shotguns are not pinpoint weapons beyond a certain range. Aiming for a particular body part is a lot harder than you think.

Does the neighbor thinks his "stuff" was worth 2 lives? How much blood money did the neighbor pay Joe Horn as a reward or was it a "freebie". Joe Horn was safe inside his own house, the victims probably didn't even know he was home. In the end the God will judge the 2 men as thieves, Joe Horn will be judged as a back shooting murderer x 2.

He wanted to kill those men, but he wanted an alibi that's why he called the 911 operator. He said he was scared. Scared of What? They were NOT in his house. He was NOT in anyway in danger, because the 911 operater told him to stay in your house and he chose to go out. No that man got a way with murder. There was No reason to shoot them. Over what material items. I just don't get this law in Texas. What if you need directions and you're lost and to think you're at the right house, but you're not you can killed for being at the wrong house just because you're on someones property. He is evil and he wanted to kill them.

I feel like he honestly felt like he was suppose to honor his neighbor's belongings and his life was threatened. But knowing the state of Texas the grand jury would not have be so gracious to an african american.

The law is the law and Horn was very aware of it when he told the 9/11 operator he was going to kill them. In the long run, Texas will get a bad rap for this. We'll see how many similar cases come up now that he's shown the nation that you can kill people and not face any consequences. Murder is murder and he shot those two men in the backs. I don't believe his life was in jeopardy at all.

With all that being said, I would still like to understand why he wasn't indicted. Any possibilities of getting one of the Grand Jurors to talk? From what I know, there appeared to be probable cause to indict. Then, let another jury decide innocence or guilt in a separate trial.

Jolene, St. Joseph, MI

AC360:
Several years ago a young newspaper delivery boy was shot to death very early in the morning on the porch of a customer's home in a suburb of Indianapolis. The customer thought he was trying to break into his house when in reality he was trying to place his paper inside his screen door.

If a couple teenagers want to take a shortcut through my yard, do I have the right to kill them? If an animal comes into my yard, do I have the right to poison it? Don't get me wrong, if someone invades my home I have the right to protect myself. But what Mr. Horn did was not about his personal safety. It was about vigilantism.

Terrible... Terrible.. The deaths of two human beings is a terrible thing....... HOWEVER..... If the two criminals were at home watching T.V., chances are they wouldn't be in the news right now. If you do ugly things, there may be some ugly consequences to pay. Victims rights are ALMOST non-existent... Criminals rights grow stronger, because of our legal system.... We can be assured these two guys will not be continuing their criminal activities... Nice job Joe... Nice job Harris County Grand Jury... I wish I had Joe for a neighbor!

I can't say I would have responded with the same force, but murder it most definitely is not. Manslaughter possibly, I was not there; perhaps a sudden rush of fear came over him that they would return and do worse. I do know, from experience, there are few things more invasive than having your home broken into or the living with the fear your neighbor has been victimized in such a way. And what do the police do? They come and fill out a report; rarely are the perpetrators ever caught or convicted. If they are, they are back on the street doing the same thing or worse in under a year. This practical sympathy for criminals, thugs is unbearable. They chose their way of life regardless of their upbringing. We all got problems and they became someone else's.
Furthermore are not the criminals ultimately responsible for all that occurs as a result of the crime? If a police officer runs over a pedestrian while giving chase is not the criminal responsible for the death? Their death is ultimitly of their own doings. That is the reality of what occured regardless or beyond some current laws.
As the saying goes, the only thing necessary for evil to prevail is for good people to do nothing. What is to stop someone from walking up to you and literally taking what they want? The police is hardly enough of a deterrent especially when they are never there when it happens. The criminal must understand that the prey can just as easily become the hunter. Is not the death penalty's main argument deterrent?
Too many expect people to flee in the face of wrong doings and at the same time question them when they do nothing. I hear the cry now, "how could you just stand there and watch it happen." Instincts tell a human fight or flight and some are not very fast so they answer fear with aggression. To tell, or expect, all people to run is not only wrong, but impossible. Anyone who says different has as their goal to place all those with brave instincts in prison. I will not allow myself or anyone in my vicinity to live in fear. Should the situation arise, perhaps I will end up in prison for that one day, but I hope fear of imprisonment will not stop me from doing what is necessarily right. And should I die as a result, well, there are worse things than dieing.

AC, I don't think for a second it was right what Horn did. This Gun Bull is going to get out of control., better yet it is just look at "Horn" kill & say "well ya I was scare" I guess I have to get a gun to because cowboys like "Horn" scare me..someone help us*

The true issue revolves around TOO FEW cops and WAY TOO many guns!! The US is a sick twisted nation indeed!! What ever happened to guard dogs and burglary alarms??

God bless Joe Horn. I believe he stood his ground and allowed his conscience to direct his actions. These two scumbags got the justice they deserved. Too many bleeding-heart-liberals are crying foul over the rights of criminals. It's no wonder our prisons are full, our laws have insignificant penalties for crimes committed. The fact is, these illegal immigrants should have never been here in the first place. We need more citizens to have the same courage of Joe and maybe we'd have a society where criminals think twice before acting. Assuming they think in the first place. It all begins with the parents. When will parenting become a privilege and not a tax write off?

Gabriel:

In the case of Joe Horn, it appears to me that he made a conscience decison to go outside and kill these two burglers. On the 911 tape you hear him telling the dispatcher that he was going outside and you hear the sound of the gun being as they say " locked and loaded" before he was even outside. Then you hear the sound of the shots being fired. The fact that the men were shot in the back seems to me that they were not coming after Mr. Horn and they were leaving the scene. Law Enforcement was there and could have done what needed to be done.

I do believe in the second amendment right to bear arms, but with that right comes a responsibility.

Susan
Phoenixville,PA

I would start by saying that theres no valueables in this world that is greater then life.

Who was the prosecutor in this case? I am curious to know if Horn has a perfect shooting range and what was his occupation. My point is that the prosecutor should have argued that it was a premeditated murder and racially motivated.

It seems he´s a perfect shooter for him to have gotten the targets perfectly as he told the operator that he wanted to kill the intruders. Where did he shoot them and how many shots were fired. The arguement is that he should have maimed the BURGLARS (not armed robbers). And cioncidentally there was only one survivor then it was not his fault.

Secondly, It was racially motivated.....(i hate to bring race) but if it was a white burglar would he have acted drastically....

I do not support crime of any type but murder is wrong and Horn shot these men in the back. The 911 call stated that horn was in his home and the men were in his neighbor's house. If this had been reversed and a man of color had shot two whites, would we see the same outcome from the grand jury. Oh, they were shot in the back so how could Horn feel threatened?People are more important than property.
Yes they should not have been there but taking the law is not what any of us should be doing. And I believe race did play a factor in the grand jury's decision!

Well, let me begin with this : he's not prizon to death, because, he's white specially in texas, he's the fellows capitalist in america,, but I know for fact that's ashame,, White people in america is the biggest trouble for this nation's futur,, tha is Bad

One of the men did run towards Horn when he told them to stop. Even then, I still feel he is justified in his actions. He did not break any laws, the criminals did. If the two scumbags were not there breaking, entering, and stealing at that time, they might be still be alive.

I have a "Concealed Handgun License" (CHL) ever since I was eligible to get one. I do not tote a gun everywhere, but I wanted one to protect myself when necessary- such as driving at night. If, for example, my car were to break down at night in a desolate and/or rough area of the city, I am not at the total mercy of someone who might harm me if I have my gun.

CHL instructors (most are law enforcement officials) tell their students that if you must shoot a criminal, you better be sure you killed the person. If you don’t, the person can come back to hurt you or you can be sued. Citing that according to our justice system, criminals have more rights than victims- to me, that is just sickening.

It’s unfortunate that CHLs exist, but if you don’t take steps to protect yourself, who will?

AC:

This is a Scary reminder of how Society has become an enemy of itself.

I live in Michigan. Two days ago, I had to get into the driveway of a house so that I Couls take a U Turn. Could that have been disatrous?

James Dylan wrote:

"This practical sympathy for criminals, thugs is unbearable."

Quoted for absolute truth.

Particularly infuriating were the "New" Black Panthers and their fists-in-the-air march through Horn's neighborhood.

AC:

This is a Scary reminder of how Society has become an enemy of itself.

I live in Michigan. Two days ago, I had to get into the driveway of a house so that I Could take a U Turn. Could that have been disastrous?

As the price of gas continues to rise , we can all adopt one of the horses they may kill, get our 6 shooter, and live in the era of the wild wild west. We all get to be judge, jury and executioner. We will live by the gun and die by the gun. Sounds like progress to me!!!

Make no mistake.......I fully intend to protect myself from any intruder that feels brave enough to enter my home.....but I'm not about to go outside to greet them.

I would start by saying that theres no valueable in this world that is greater then life. "You can replace diamonds but you cannot replace life........".

Who were the prosecutors in this case?

I am curious to know if Horn is a perfect shooter and what is his occupation (an officer or a hunter)? My point is that the prosecutor should have argued that it was a premeditated murder and also racially motivated.

It seems he´s a perfect shooter, for him to have gotten the targets perfectly as he told the operator that he wanted to kill the intruders. Where did he shoot them and how many shots were fired. The arguement is that if he had maimed the BURGLARS (not armed robbers), and then if coincidentally there was only one survivor then it would not have been his fault.

Secondly, It was racially motivated…..(i hate to bring race) but if they were white burglars would he have acted drastically….

ken

While I applaud Mr. Horn for reporting the break-in, his complete disregard of the 911 operator's advice not only made him responsible for killing two people, but also put his own life in jeopardy. What if the police arrived, seeing Mr. Horn shooting two people, and they shot him. Would the police have been justified?

All I can say is simply this. For all of those who give this man praise and say what a good american he is really should be ashamed of themselfs. Because all you are doing is making people believe that taking the law into your own hands is the american thing to do. Now Mr Horn was lucky that it was robbers. What if next time its just some neighbor hood kids. You cant see who you are shooting when you shoot them in the back. And I promise the next time this happen and someone innocent is killed. All the ones that stand here now will be the ones that have uprage for the innocent that die.

So good ahead and believe in shooting first and asking question later.

Joe Horn is no hero, nor is he a murderer in my opinion. I was watching 360* last night and was appalled with Lisa Bloom's response to, what I would call, self defense. Regardless as to whether Joe Horn's life was in grave danger, I feel that he did the right thing. These men went in and burglarized someones home and Horn ACTED on what he felt was right.

None of us were in his shoes at the time, so, I find it ridiculous that some of you could go so far to say that he is a murderer. Yes, he did shoot and kill two men. However, had he not have had a gun, did you ever stop to consider that he may have become a victim of the situation?

Honestly, I cannot believe how divided this debate is. If someone was robbing your house and your neighbor just so happened to gun them down, would you not appreciate the fact?... Or are you one for getting rid of the second amendment so that none of us can protect ourselves? (Criminals will be criminals and they will always be able to find a way to purchase a weapon... It might just be a little more expensive without the second amendment)

Although I'm certain I would not have made the same decision as Joe Horn, I don't understand the outrage when regular folks or cops confront hardened, dangerous criminals who are responsible for so many of the ills that affect our complex modern lives. The bad guys here may not have deserved to die, but putting guys like Joe Horn in jail is hardly going to help anybody....except maybe other crooks who are ready to rob, steal, and assault people.

I'd give critics a lot more credibility if I heard them talking more about how concerned they are about the *criminals* without so much carping about how careful those *confronting the criminals* need to be.

The good guys need our support, not our contempt.

Thank you Mr. Horn!!!!
You did everyone a BIG favor. Not only where they trespassing on your property they were trespassing on mine. The USA! They were illegal immigrants. They have no rights in this country of ours. You know America is in a bad place when you think for one secound that a criminal has rights in a country that they don't belong. If you think they have rights tring going to Mexico and stealing something for a native. Lets see how that turns out for you.

Nicolas Palmisano

You can not take a life to protect property. For those of you who are calling Mr. Horn a hero, lets hope you will console him when he becomes remorseful. His guilty conscious will create a conflict in his spirit, and it might affect his overall mental and physical health.

Nothing I own is worth risking your life over Forget the dog- BEWARE OF OWNER.
1. The 2 were here illegally
2.One was convicted of Selling Illegal drugs
3.They were caught red handed robbing a home
I suppose we should have a big signs on our homes that says
CRIMINALS WELCOME HERE 24/7/365
Do what you want, No Consequences to pay.

Ken wrote:

"My point is that the prosecutor should have argued that it was a premeditated murder and also racially motivated."

And how would you have proven that it was racially motivated?

You make the predictable, tiresome, boilerplate assertion that he would have acted differently if the intruders were white. Care to prove that?

Go join Quanell X and the Panthers on their next "civil rights" march, Outraged One.

No property is worth killing someone over. I hope Mr Horn can live with himself. He sure didn't sound in danger to me when he headed out the door with that rifle.

Annie Kate
Birmingham AL

"I don't why some people are suprized about joe horn getting away with cold blooded murder! it's a white man's world! he can do all the killing he wants with no punishment... but if he'd been a black man doing the same thing they would have thrown the book at him!"

"I guess that's how the law works in the great redneck state of texas!"

Some of you people who keep saying that “no property is worth a life’…I disagree wholeheartedly! Private property DOES represent a portion of a person’s LIFE! People dedicate and sacrifice part or most of their very lives in exchange for their property. So then, PROPERTY = A PORTION OF SOMEONES LIFE! Get it? Joe Horn was indeed acting out of self-defense and was indeed trying to defend his neighbors. One has the right to use what ever force is necessary to protect even a portion (meaning property) of a person’s life. Those bags of stolen property could have easily been that person’s life savings…savings he(she) has worked an entire lifetime for. Oh, and the 911 operator isn’t going to get it back for you either! Makes it easy for the 911 operator to say “don’t do anything” when the criminals are running away with possibly one’s life savings! Maybe thieves should think twice before trying to steal part of someone else’s life huh? What a concept!

everybody who disagree with mr .Horn, will be agree with him when it their turn to be defended. you can't justify roberies in a country like ours who offered so much opportunity to earned a dissent living.

thank you mr.Horn , two less low life to deal with.

What were illegals doing in our country, stealing property that they did not earn? If the neighbors were home and these thugs shot them dead in their own home and robbed them, what would the blogs say then? Oh, thats too bad..gee....those poor needy illegal thugs...they were just making their way in life, after all.... Look, Bleeding hearts haven't enough blood flow to reach the brain, obviously....Thank you Mr. Horn for a very brave action....CLEARLY you were within the law to do what you did
and that should be enough for everyone to comprehend even those with brain dysfunction. Happy 4th of July, Mr. Horn..a man of courage!